Current Final

Author: News Desk

  • Foreign national in Islamabad allegedly raped by own security guard

    Foreign national in Islamabad allegedly raped by own security guard

    A Foreign national in Islamabad has allegedly been raped by her own security guard, reports ARY. The incident took place in Islamabad’s G-6/4 area.

    According to media reports, the alleged rape survivor is an official working for an International Organisation. She went to the Aabpara Police Station to file a complaint against a security officer who she said had raped her at her home.

    The FIR states that the guard entered her bedroom and raped her. The suspect then fled the scene. Police is investigating the incident.

    The Current records the tally of rape cases that are reported in news outlets on a daily basis to highlight the alarming situation. We have used many different sources as listed. When will it stop?

  • Baseless propaganda, institution has right to take legal action against those involved: ISPR

    Baseless propaganda, institution has right to take legal action against those involved: ISPR

    Pakistan’s Military wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), has issued a warning and said that it reserves the right to take legal action against people involved in “peddling malicious allegations and blatant lies” against its leadership.

    ISPR’s warning comes in relevance to the claims made by journalist Shaheen Sehbai insinuating that former Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin was asked to switch sides and betray Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and help Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif. 

    Sehbai tweeted, “NEUTRAL EXPOSED: I am going to write soon about WHY the Chief Neutral, proved by Shaukat Tarin as Non-Neutral as he asked Tarin to betray Imran Khan and help Shehbaz, is so sensitive and DEAD SCARED about his remaining four months in office. Something fishy, intriguing, alarming, unpatriotic.”

    Tarin responded on Twitter: “I categorically deny what has been attributed to me by Shaheen Sehbai. I was never asked by anyone in the establishment to leave Imran Khan and join [the] Shehbaz Sharif government.”

    https://twitter.com/shaukat_tarin/status/1534536507872231424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1534536507872231424%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dawn.com%2Fnews%2F1693782

    The word ‘neutral’, used frequently by Imran Khan and his party, is seen as a reference to the military establishment.

    ISPR termed Sehbai’s remarks as baseless propaganda.

    “The insinuations by Shaheen Sehbai and some others on social media quoting the former finance minister are baseless propaganda,” an ISPR statement issued less than two hours after Tarin’s tweet said. “The same has also been duly rebutted by Shaukat Tarin himself.”

    “Peddling malicious allegations and blatant lies against the institution and its leadership to promote vested interests is condemnable and [the] institution reserves the right to take legal action against those involved,” it concluded.

    On Wednesday, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa presided over the 80th Formation Commanders’ Conference. 

    General Bajwa during the conference said that the Pakistan Army was a professional institution that shall always fulfill its responsibilities towards the security, integrity, and sovereignty of Pakistan as a sacred duty. 

  • Chaudhrys of Gujrat part ways as Hussain Elahi quits PML-Q

    Chaudhrys of Gujrat part ways as Hussain Elahi quits PML-Q

    Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) president and former prime minister Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain’s nephew Chaudhry Hussain Elahi has parted ways with the party. Hussain is the son of Shujaat’s younger brother Chaudhry Wajahat.

    Hussain tweeted, “I’ve always said my country is first for me, and keeping that in mind I have decided that my political journey with PMLQ must come to an end. Will be deciding my political future with Moonis Elahi but cannot be in a party that supports Shehbaz Sharif-led Imported Government.”

    Former federal minister Moonis Elahi also retweeted Hussain’s tweet, prompting speculations that there were differences within the party.

    Moonis retweeted a report by Dunya News claiming that a possible crack within the PML-Q definitely exists. The report states that one section of the party backs the PTI, while the other is in support of the PML-N.

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday visited Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain at his residence in Islamabad.

    It is being reported that the two apparently discussed the forthcoming by-elections on 20 vacant seats of Punjab Assembly and the fiscal budget 2022-23 to be announced on Friday.

  • Babar Azam scores a century against West Indies, breaking Virat Kohli’s ODI record

    Babar Azam scores a century against West Indies, breaking Virat Kohli’s ODI record

    Pakistani skipper Babar Azam has surpassed Virat Kohli, the former Indian captain, as the fastest to 1000 ODI runs as a captain.

    On Wednesday night at the Multan Cricket Stadium, Pakistani captain Babar Azam made history by smashing a century against West Indies in the first ODI, his 17th in the 50-over format, to set a new record.

    He became the first Pakistani batsman to achieve 1000 runs. It took only 13 innings for the world’s number one ODI batsman to achieve this milestone.

    Kohli was the first captain to score 1000 runs in his 17th innings, followed by AB De Villiers (20 matches) and Kane Williamson (22 matches).

    Babar is also the only batsman in ODI history to score three centuries in a row twice. He previously accomplished this feat against the West Indies in 2016, but this time he did so with a century against the West Indies, followed by two hundreds in the second and third home ODIs in April of 2022.

    Babar’s third successive century in ODIs came against Australia in Lahore earlier this year, when he scored 114 and 105 to help Pakistan win the series. It’s worth noting that Babar is now ranked first in the ICC hitters rankings for T20Is and ODIs.

  • PTI Shibli Faraz questions Noor Alam Khan’s presence in meeting

    PTI Shibli Faraz questions Noor Alam Khan’s presence in meeting

    Chairman of Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Noor Alam Khan ordered that senior officers of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) declare their assets along with those of their spouses, children, siblings, and parents within a month’s time, in a meeting held on July 7, 2022. The meeting was presided over by the acting Chairman of NAB, Zahir Shah.

    The directive ordered by the PAC chairman further required that details of perks, privileges, and employment terms of NAB officers also be declared publicly.

    Former Minister of Science and Technology Shibli Faraz opposed the directive and pointed to NAB’s ongoing inquiry against Khan. Faraz was of the view that chairman PAC should not have chaired the meeting altogether because there is an ongoing inquiry against him by the anti-graft watchdog.

    In the meeting, PAC chairman inquired whether the case against him under deliberation by NAB had concluded. He added that if the case is still ongoing, he will not preside over the meeting. The NAB chairman responded that the inquiry had not yet concluded. He went on to say that if Khan is found innocent, he will be receiving an apology letter. He further added that all those found innocent in the future will receive a letter of apology.

    PAC chairman, however, remained in the meeting till the end.

  • PPP, PML-N decide to contest together in Punjab by-election

    PPP, PML-N decide to contest together in Punjab by-election

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) have decided to jointly contest the Punjab by-election which will be held on vacant seats of the Punjab Assembly (PA) next month.

    Punjab minister Attauallah Tarar confirmed the development to Dawn, saying, “The PML-N and PPP leadership agreed to jointly contest by-polls on 20 Punjab Assembly seats.”

    Earlier, PPP’s Chairperson Asif Ali Zardari and Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Hamza Shehbaz met on Tuesday in which other members of the parties also participated. The decision reportedly took place during the meeting.

    Zardari congratulated Hamza on assuming the CM’s office. According to The News, the two parties also discussed other issues related to cabinet expansion in Punjab and federal, water issues, petroleum prices, and the upcoming budget. Moreover, Zardari held a meeting to sort out his party’s differences with PML-N over desired ministries in Punjab.

    Currently, PPP has seven seats in the Punjab Assembly (PA) and they were promised four ministries and two adviserships. However, in the Punjab Cabinet, there are only two members of PPP, but they are inactive due to non-allocation of their portfolios.

    The polls will be on 20 vacant seats of the PA on July 17. The seats are vacant due to the disqualification of PTI’s Members of Provincial Assembly (MPAs) by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) who switched sides and voted for Hamza as CM.

    It is pertinent to mention that out of the 20 seats, eight are from southern Punjab where the PPP has a strong foothold.

  • Direct taxes target predicted at Rs2,560 billion for FY 22-23

    In an attempt to meet the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) revenue collection target of Rs7,255 billion for the upcoming fiscal year, the direct taxes target has been predicted at Rs2,560 billion, up from Rs2,182 billion in 2021-22.

    According to Brecorder, the indirect taxes (net) estimates were predicted at Rs4,695 billion in the macroeconomic framework for 2022-23. Direct taxes forecasts included income tax and withholding taxes, whereas indirect taxes projections included sales tax, customs duty, and Federal Excise Duty (FED).

    The indirect tax goal for 2022-23 has been set at Rs4,695 billion, up from Rs3,647 billion in 2021-22, representing a Rs1,048 billion rise. The indirect tax revenue for the fiscal year 2021-22 was Rs3,440 billion.

    The entire collection of indirect taxes in 2020-21 was Rs3,008.2 billion. Direct taxes are expected to reach Rs2,560 billion in the next fiscal year, up from Rs2,182 billion in 2021-22, a Rs378 billion increase.

    Read more: PM Shehbaz directs to eliminate taxes on raw materials used by export industries

    During the first 11 months of the current fiscal, the FBR collected roughly Rs1.9 trillion in direct taxes. In the fiscal year 2020-21, direct tax collections totalled Rs1,726.0 billion. Withholding taxes account for 72 per cent of the total direct tax collection.

  • Dogs being abducted, tortured for medical experiments

    Trigger warning: Animal Abuse

    Videos and pictures from Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University (PMAS-AAUR) in Rawalpindi have gone viral on social media in which dogs can be seen in inhumane conditions.

    As per an animal rescue organisation, ACF: “Veterinary universities in Punjab are Butchering stray dogs and torturing animals to learn medicine.”

    “How are the vets being trained mentally? They are becoming serial killers. This is slaughter without death,” the post added.

    According to media reports, veterinarian students have been snatching healthy dogs and experimenting and operating on them in brutal, immoral, and terrifying ways. Dogs are being used to perform surgeries.

    A protest also took place outside Islamabad Press Club on June 7 against animal brutality.

  • Coming budget 22-23 will improve Pakistan’s IT sector

    Coming budget 22-23 will improve Pakistan’s IT sector

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif emphasised the importance of drafting an economic strategy during the day-long Pre-Budget Business Conference on Tuesday, stating that all stakeholders should work together to develop a framework for attaining economic growth.

    During his speech, the PM stressed the importance of financial management in order to boost exports and agricultural yields. The meeting was attended by senior economists, industrialists and was organised by the government to explore avenues of consensus-based economic initiatives, according to APP.

    “All of us will have to move collectively. The government will need guidance from stakeholders and experts. The government will form a taskforce on agriculture and exports for formulating comprehensive plans,” he said.

    PM Shehbaz stated that his government had about 15 months to implement short and medium-term economic initiatives.

    He was disappointed that Pakistan was lagging behind other countries, despite the fact that the rest of the world had excelled by following their development plans. He claimed that Pakistan was endowed with talented individuals capable of replicating India’s success in the IT sector.

    PM Shehbaz announced that he had assigned Minister of Information Technology Aminul Haque the objective of increasing IT exports to $15 billion in the next two years. “We cannot progress until we set ambitious targets,” he stressed.

    Syed Amin Ul Haque pledged on Tuesday to increase information technology exports to $5 billion by the end of 2023.

    For the coming fiscal year, several IT and telecommunications programmes have been proposed in this regard.

    According to sources, these projects include 31 existing and two new ones, for which the Pakistani government would give Rs4,438.696 million and foreign aid will provide Rs1,042 million.

    Budget allocation for IT sector

    Reportedly, an amount of Rs100 million is proposed for IT professional certification through the Pakistan Software Export Board, while Rs80 million is planned for Crime Analytics and Smart Policing. In Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, Rs50 million has been suggested for demand-driven industry, while Rs179 million has been earmarked for the building of a data centre to provide cloud-based services.

    PM Shehbaz warned that development plans could not be implemented unless political stability was achieved. The premier also stressed the importance of concentrating on exports and developing the agricultural sector.

    He went on to claim that he was aiming to ‘fix’ friendly country relations that had deteriorated during the previous administration’s tenure. “I have invited China, Japan, Turkey, and other countries to invest in Pakistan,” he said. He invited the corporate community to join him in this endeavour.

    Meanwhile, Finance Minister Miftah Ismail stated that the government will require $41 billion in the next 12 months and that he is ‘confident’ that this can be achieved.

    The Shehbaz Sharif government, he added, has re-engaged with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). “We spoke with them and are extremely optimistic that we will reach an agreement with the IMF soon. That is something we are extremely certain about”.

    Moreover, he explained that the present coalition administration had made difficult measures to help the economy stabilise. “It is difficult for any prime minister to authorise a fuel price hike of twice the amount we have, but we were losing Rs84 per litre on diesel and Rs69 per litre on petrol”.

  • PM Shehbaz directs to eliminate taxes on raw materials used by export industries

    PM Shehbaz directs to eliminate taxes on raw materials used by export industries

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif, urged authorities to abolish all taxes on raw materials used in the export industry and to set up task teams to attract investment in a variety of local industries.

    The new government has been attempting to put in place a long-term plan to resuscitate Pakistan’s struggling economy, with the premier reaffirming his plea for increased exports to alleviate the country’s growing cash constraint yesterday.

    The premier met with a team from the American Business Council, which included officials from the pharmaceuticals, food processing, IT, e-commerce, retail, textile, sports, and logistics sectors, according to APP.

    Federal ministers Syed Naveed Qamar, Makhdoom Murtaza Mahmood, and Marriyum Aurangzeb were also present at the meeting.

    Task groups were constituted by the prime minister to solicit investments in a variety of areas. Tourism, pharmaceuticals, information technology, e-commerce, large-scale manufacturing, and agriculture will all have task teams constituted.

    He reminded the team that the government was working hard to guarantee that high-quality agricultural products were produced for export. The government was pushing for policy consistency for the first time, he said, because “subjects of the national economy and public welfare are above politics”.

    Shehbaz Sharif also asked the secretary of trade and the secretary of the Board of Investment to guarantee that the investors’ concerns were addressed immediately, and he requested a compliance report within a week.

    Business representatives, on the other hand, told state media that government initiatives had helped them regain investor confidence, and that the pre-budget dialogue with stakeholders was a “positive step”.

    PM Shehbaz has called all stakeholders to get together on Tuesday, ahead of the budget declaration on June 10, to finalise a long-term plan to rebuild the ailing economy. Top businessmen, agriculturists, and economists attended the day-long pre-budget meeting, where they offered advice on how to lift the country out of its unparalleled economic crisis.

    During the meeting, the premier pledged that their suggestions would be taken into consideration and that separate plans for agricultural, industrial, and financial expansion would be developed.

    PM Shehbaz also stated that political stability cannot be attained without economic stability and that it was past time for the elite class to make sacrifices and for non-productive assets such as real estate to be taxed. He advised businesses to invest in renewable power rather than relying on the country’s vast coal reserves for power generation.

    The prime minister also emphasised the importance of reducing imports while increasing exports, assuring attendees of the government’s full support in expanding local business and eradicating any barriers.