Page 84 - Muzaffargarh Gazzetteer

Chapter 4

DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION

The history of appointment of Deputy Commissioner in Muzaffargarh goes as
far back as 1849 when the district was annexed to the British Empire. The
Deputy Commissioner remained subordinate to the Commissioner of Multan
till 1982 when District Dera Ghazi Khan was separated from Multan Division
and made an independent Division. In addition to the District Dera Ghazi
Khan itself, Muzaffargarh, Layyah and Rajanpur constituted the new
Division.

Mr. Wedderburn, a British, had the honour of being the first Deputy
Commissioner of the district. Sardar Gurdial Singh Man was the first native
Deputy Commissioner of Muzaffargarh who held the office briefly from April
25, 1888 to June 22, 1888 only to come back again in 1889 for a longer run
of nearly 4 years. However, the longest serving Deputy Commissioner was
Khan Bahadur Syed Bunyad Hussain who held the office from November 5,
1936 to October 15, 1941, i.e. just 20 days short of 5 years. Maulvi Inam Ali
had the distinction of being the first Muslim Deputy Commissioner who
remained in office from October 15, 1897 to October 21, 1898. At the time of
partition, Raja Sultan Lal Hussain was serving as the Deputy Commissioner
of Muzaffargarh. The author of this gazetteer had the honour of being 195
th
head of the District Administration of Muzaffargarh.
As regards the evolution of office, by 1929, the Deputy Commissioner was
assisted by 2 Sub-Divisional officers posted at Layyah and Alipur. The
Deputy Commissioner was also the District Magistrate whereas the Assistant
Commissioners/Sub-Divisional Magistrates and Extra-Assistant
Commissioners/Magistrates had first class magisterial powers. The
Tehsildars and Naib-Tehsildars were magistrates of 2 and 3 class
rd
nd
respectively.
The Deputy Commissioner was the Collector of the district too, and as such
headed the district revenue staff. He was assisted by a Revenue Assistant at
the headquarters and by the 2 Sub-Divisional Officers who exercised the
powers of Assistant Collectors.

Tehsildar Naib-Tehsildar Qanungo Patwari/
Assistant Patwari
Muzaffargarh 1 3 10 121
Layyah 1 2 6 63
Alipur 1 1 9 95
Kot Addu 1 1 6 69

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