Current Final

Author: News Desk

  • Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk to join Twitter board after investing $2.9 billion in the platform

    Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk to join Twitter board after investing $2.9 billion in the platform

    Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, has been chosen for Twitter’s board of directors, just one day after it was confirmed that he is the social media platform’s largest shareholder, holding a 9.2 per cent stake.

    On April 5, Twitter’s CEO Parag Agrawal said he was excited to announce Musk’s membership to the company’s board of directors. 

    Tesla’s CEO, whose personal wealth is assessed to be $289 billion, about $100 billion greater than the second richest person on the planet, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has a history of publishing controversial tweets.

    Musk was a “passionate believer and intense critic” of the platform, according to Agrawal, and it was exactly what Twitter needed to render it stronger in the long run.

    Surprisingly, Musk has a Twitter following of more than 80 million, and he was already looking forward to collaborating with the company “to make big improvements” to the social media platform in the near future.

    Twitter on Tuesday stated that Musk had agreed to serve as a class two director with a term terminating at the company’s annual meeting of shareholders in 2024.

    Musk bought a nearly $3 billion (£2.3 billion) share in Twitter on Monday, which is more than four times the 2.25 per cent share held by the platform’s co-founder, Jack Dorsey.

    However, Musk would not be able to own more than 14.9 per cent of Twitter’s outstanding shares, either alone or as part of a group, for as long as he was a board member and for 90 days later, according to the firm.

    The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, who ranks among the Top 10 most popular users on Twitter with 80.4 million followers, paid $2.89 billion for the stake on Friday at Twitter’s closing share price.

    Twitter shares rose another 5 per cent Tuesday morning after soaring more than 27 per cent on Monday after reports of Musk’s stock purchase.

  • Shireen Mazari accuses Aurat March of being ‘foreign funded’ over political stance

    Shireen Mazari accuses Aurat March of being ‘foreign funded’ over political stance

    While reacting to Aurat March’s statement in which the forum strongly condemned the constitutional crisis in Pakistan and the dissolution of the National Assembly (NA), Federal Minister Shireen Mazari dropped a controversial tweet.

    A day earlier in a tweet, the Aurat March criticised Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, saying: “We condemn the political circus that has been kicked off due to the fragile masculine ego of a person who has sabotaged democratic processes just to save the perception of his individuality and to stage a dirty manoeuvre for his comeback to power.”

    The statement clearly didn’t sit well with Mazari. She replied in disagreement, saying that “This [statement] shows Aurat March has little to do with genuine issues faced by women in Pakistan and more with politics and political agendas. Since many here have NGOs funded from abroad this statement, while condemnable, is not surprising. Fact is the US sought regime change and we do not accept it.”

    Indirectly hinting at Mazari, Aurat March Lahore released a brief statement, saying, “We cannot be asked to stay in our lane when the politics of this country deeply impact us.”

    The statement reads, “Aurat March does not accept funds from, partner with, or endorse any political party, NGO or corporation. We reject the idea that activism should be apolitical.”

    “We will continue to engage with politics, not only because it has a tangible impact on our lives, safety and wellbeing but because we are unafraid to stand up to institutions of political power,” the statement further reads.

  • Mustansar Hussain Tarar, Dr Ashu Lal reject ‘half’ ‘Kamal-i-Fun’ award by ‘fascist government’

    Mustansar Hussain Tarar, Dr Ashu Lal reject ‘half’ ‘Kamal-i-Fun’ award by ‘fascist government’

    Veteran writer and one of the giants of Urdu novel in the country, Mustansar Hussain Tarar,  has refused to accept the Kamal-i-Fun award announced by the Pakistan Academy of Letters (PAL) in Islamabad. The writer claimed it was “controversial and tainted.”

    The award was jointly announced for Tarar and Seraiki poet Dr Ashu Lal, who has already refused to accept the award immediately after its announcement, saying that he could not accept an award from ‘a fascist state that’s anti-people and anti-art’.

    The Kamal-i-Fun award carries prize money of Rs1m too.

    Tarar, famous for his novels and travelogues, raised the question as to why the tradition of the award was violated and the rules of the award ignored. He said the move was similar to dividing Sitara-i-Imtiaz, the highest civilian award of Pakistan, between two persons.

    “It’s just ridiculous. Sometime back, I came to know the ‘half of the award’ has been awarded to Dr Ashu Lal. He, according to his ideology, refused to accept the award. I think he is right (in rejecting the award) because it was injustice not only to me, but to him as well that he had to share the award’.

    Tarar said, “It’s difficult for me to accept the award that’s tainted and controversial. It’s against my creative integrity. That too at the age of 83 and after the creative process of 60 years. No, it’s not acceptable to me”.

    However, he expressed gratitude to the members of the PAL committee for their love and kindness as they voted for him. “I am obliged to them and I hope they will understand my point of view”. At the end of his message he thanked his readers, saying that whatever status as a writer he had got was due to his readers. “I get a Kamal-i-Fun award from my readers on (publication of) my every book. They don’t consider me a half-writer but a complete writer.”

    Tarar has already received Sitara-i-Imtiaz in the category of literature from the government of Pakistan for the year 2016.

    On March 31, Dr Yousuf Khushk, chairman of PAL, announced the names of Mustansar Hussain Tarar and Dr Ashu Lal, selected for the Kamal-i-Fun award for 2020 after a meeting of the award committee at the PAL office. The selection for the award was made by a panel of writers and intellectuals, including Kishwar Nahid, Asghar Nadeem Syed, Mahmood Sham, Muhammad Izharul Haq, Dr Anwar Ahmad, Dr Rauf Parekh, Parveen Malik, Dr Riaz Majeed, Hafeez Khan, Mohammad Hameed Shahid, Dr Abaseen Yousufzai, Nasir Ali Syed, Dr Abdul Razaq Sabir, Dr Zulifqar Sial, Taj Joyo, Dr Ziaul Hasan, Dr Rubina Shaheen, Dr Qasim Naseem, Harris Khalique and Dr Wahid Bux Buzdar.

    According to a press release issued by the academy, the Kamal-i-Fun award is bestowed upon a Pakistani writer in recognition of his/her literary services of lifetime. It was launched in 1997. The National Literary Award for books published in various national and regional languages of Pakistan was also announced on the occasion for the year 2020.

    After his rejection of the award, Ashu Lal was hailed by the Seraiki speaking people for raising his voice against the state; however, some sections criticised him as well. Some others urged him to accept the award, terming it recognition of Seraiki language, but he remained adamant, due to his ideology. Now rejection of the literary award by Mustansar Hussain Tarar, considered by some as the most famous and the best living novelist of Urdu language from Pakistan, has raised more questions about it and the decision of the award committee.

  • ‘Bohat baatien hain mere paas’: Haroon Shahid set to expose Aleem Khan with WhatsApp chat proofs?

    ‘Bohat baatien hain mere paas’: Haroon Shahid set to expose Aleem Khan with WhatsApp chat proofs?

    PTI dissident Abdul Aleem Khan on Monday criticised Prime Minister Imran Khan and accused him of not being “sincere to the nation”.

    Once a close aide of the PTI chairman, Aleem has grown disillusioned over the past few years and recently took a position against the party by deciding to support the joint opposition in the Punjab Assembly.

    Talking to the media in Lahore today, he said he regretted dedicating 10 years of his life to the party. “I have supported the PTI with great loyalty, hard work and kept my ego aside. We thought there would be a Naya Pakistan in the face of Imran Khan,” he said.

    “I’m sad that the person I spent 10 years of my life for is not sincere with the nation.”

    Aleem criticised the premier over a number of issues ranging from the National Accountability Bureau “hounding” him to his insistence on retaining Usman Buzdar as the chief minister and then the nomination of PML-Q leader Pervez Elahi as the new Punjab CM.

    Aleem rued that he had been branded a “traitor to the PTI” as he called out his critics and claimed that no one in the party had sacrificed more than him.

    In a similar vein, he issued a challenge to the prime minister to bring forth any evidence of corruption against him, for which he said he was imprisoned for six months.

    “Why wasn’t a reference made against me? What proof do you have? Bring it in front of the nation and tell them that these were Aleem Khan’s misdoings and corruption … I promise that if I turn out to be lying then I will shoot myself.” he said.

    The PTI dissident levelled a number of allegations against Buzdar as well, saying that he was involved in bribery over transfers and postings in Punjab. He also accused Farah Khan, an associate of the first lady, of being complicit in these transfers.

    He said any investigation would uncover who she (Farah) was forwarding the money of her alleged corruption while responding to a question about whether the first lady was also involved in supporting Farah.

    Aleem criticised the prime minister for Sunday’s dissolution of the National Assembly as well, questioning what had stopped him from doing so before. He said that the premier could not dissolve the assemblies once a no-confidence resolution was submitted against him.

    Actor Haroon Shahid took to his twitter handle to call out Aleem for his shocking remarks against Imran Khan.

    The Verna hero stated that he has many proofs against Aleem since the time he was working for the politician’s digital company, which he might spill to the media.

    The Qayamat actor also express his regret on voting for Aleem in the past because of the PTI factor.

    In April 2021, the Amanat star lauded the efforts of Chief Minister Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar for keeping the city of Lahore well-maintained.

    “On a drive this morning I realized how well Lahore is maintained,” wrote the Qayamat actor on social media. “Yes, there was a phase when there were issues with the waste management but this morning was a pleasant surprise to see horticulture, waste management, and traffic police all doing their job well.”

    “Well done Buzdar,” he added.

    Haroon further said: “I’ve started to realise that Buzdar and his team have been working without many PR antics and their work is now showing.”

    “There’s a whole PR cell working against him both from within and outside but frankly he’s slowly defying them with his work,” he added.

    You can get exclusive details in our new show, Maslay Aur Masala:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-4LRd_bz9c&t=428s

  • 64% Pakistanis believe there is no US conspiracy to overthrow PTI government

    64 per cent Pakistanis believe that there is no US conspiracy to overthrow the PTI government, Gallup survey has revealed. The survey was conducted between April 3 and 4, according to which 64 per cent Pakistanis cited inflation as the main reason behind the fall of the PTI government.

    Those who participated in the survey said that the main reason behind the Opposition’s efforts to remove the government is inflation and lack of relief for the people.

    Only 36 per cent of the participants said that the US was behind the fall of the government.

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has named Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu as the United States (US) representative who had a meeting with Pakistan’s Ambassador in the US, which led to the ‘threatening’ diplomatic cable.

    It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan is in a state of political chaos as the no-confidence motion against Khan was dismissed abruptly on Sunday. The move came after Suri termed it “unconstitutional”, saying that it was backed by “foreign powers”.

  • ‘We haven’t given any statement on election dates’, Election Commission

    ‘We haven’t given any statement on election dates’, Election Commission

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday denied issuing any statement regarding the time frame for the next general elections. “It is necessary to clarify that the Election Commission of Pakistan has not issued any statement regarding the election,” ECP tweeted.

    Earlier, a news report published in Dawn quoted an ECP official saying that it is not possible to hold general elections within three months due to a variety of legal and procedural issues.

    “Fresh delimitation of constituencies, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where the number of seats had been increased under the 26th Amendment, and bringing district- and constituency-wise electoral rolls in conformity were the major challenges,” a senior ECP official told Dawn, adding that it will take six months to prepare for the general elections.

    State Minister for Information Farrukh Habib said on Sunday that fresh elections in Pakistan will be held in 90 days after President Arif Alvi dissolved parliament on the advice of Prime Minister Imran Khan.

  • ‘Punish disobedient Imran Khan’: Russia lashes out at US for ‘plotting against Pakistan’

    ‘Punish disobedient Imran Khan’: Russia lashes out at US for ‘plotting against Pakistan’

    Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday declared that Russia is well aware of the events that led to the dissolution of the National Assembly (NA) in Pakistan.

    In a statement, Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said, “Immediately after the announcement of the upcoming working visit of Imran Khan to Moscow on February 23-24 this year. The Americans and their Western associates began to exert rude pressure on the Prime Minister, demanding an ultimatum to cancel the trip.”

    “When he nevertheless came to us, United States (US) Deputy Secretary of State for South Asia D Liu [Donald Lu] called the Pakistani ambassador in Washington and demanded that the visit be immediately interrupted, which was also rejected.”

    “According to the Pakistani media, on March 7 this year. in a conversation with Pakistani Ambassador Asad Majeed, a high-ranking American official (presumably the same D Liu) sharply condemned the balanced reaction of the Pakistani leadership to the events in Ukraine and made it clear that partnerships with the United States are possible only if Imran Khan is removed from power.”

    Zakharova further added, “The situation leaves no doubt that the United States decided to punish the ‘disobedient’ Imran Khan: a group of deputies of the same party of the prime minister ‘suddenly’ went over to the Opposition and the question of a no-confidence motion against the head of the incumbent government (Prime Minister) was immediately tabled in the parliament, the vote on which was scheduled for April 3rd.”

    “There is another attempt of shameless US interference in the internal affairs of an independent state for its own selfish purposes. The above facts eloquently testify to this. The Pakistani Prime Minister himself has repeatedly stated that the conspiracy against him was inspired and financed from abroad.”

    “We hope that Pakistani voters will be informed about these circumstances when they come to the elections, which should be held within 90 days after the dissolution of the National Assembly,” read the statement.

    It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan is in a state of political chaos as the no-confidence motion against Khan was dismissed abruptly on Sunday. Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri said that the no-confidence motion, presented on March 8, should be according to the law and the Constitution. “No foreign power shall be allowed to topple an elected government through a conspiracy,” he said, adding that the points raised by the minister were “valid”.

  • Construction work for Swat Motorway Phase-II to begin next week

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Mahmood Khan will lay the foundation stone for Swat Motorway Phase-II in the next week.

    The CM instructed that development on the Dir Motorway project’s PC 1 for land acquisition be quickened so that practical work on the project can proceed.

    He was presiding over a meeting of the Pakhtunkhwa Highways Authority to discuss the status of various road projects, including the Swat Motorway Phase II and the Dir Motorway.

    The meeting was informed on the status of Swat Motorway Phase II, which will be 88 km long and will be built at a cost of Rs58 billion and will run from Chakdara to Fatehpur. It was also revealed that a contractor deal for the project’s construction had been inked.

    It was revealed that Rs6.7 billion had been allocated for the project’s land acquisition. In addition, section four was implemented for the purchase of land.

    Project Plan

    Swat motorway will have four lanes at first and will be expanded to six lanes later. Chakdara Interchange, Shamozai Interchange, Barikot Interchange, Mingora Interchange, Kanju Interchange, Malam Jabba-University of Swat Interchange, Sher Palam Interchange, Matta Khawazakhela Interchange, and Madin-Fatehpur Interchange would be among the nine interchanges.

    On the Swat River, a total of eight bridges will be built. The project also includes the construction of four rest spots in various places, as well as the construction of connection highways if required.

    PHA officials briefed the meeting on Dir Motorway that an Expression of Interest for a 30 km long Dir Motorway from Chakdara to Rabat had been floated. Three interchanges, four flyovers, 24 bridges, two underpasses, and two tunnels will be part of this road project.

    These developments, according to the Chief Minister, would help boost tourism, trade, and economic operations, making them a “milestone” for the long-term growth of the Malakand division. These initiatives will also provide employment chances for locals in addition to improving transportation facilities.

  • ‘You heard from me last week’, US repeats stand on Pakistan political situation

    ‘You heard from me last week’, US repeats stand on Pakistan political situation

    The US State Department on Tuesday once again rejected Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s allegations that the United States of America (USA) has aided and abetted the Pakistani opposition in tabling a no-confidence motion in the National Assembly to topple the PTI government.

    US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said that there is absolutely no truth in that allegations as “you heard from me last week.” “We [US] support the peaceful upholding of constitutional democratic principles in Pakistan.”

    “We do not support one political party over another, we support the broader principles, the principles of rule of law, and equal justice under the law,” he added.

    https://twitter.com/srdmk01/status/1511217262719496192?s=20&t=R0wLwBPb9LZgzPwThVEt8w

    Last week, Washington reacted to the allegations levelled by Imran Khan. White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield said, “There is absolutely no truth in these allegations.”

    At the time, US Department of State Spokesperson Ned Price also seconded Kate’s statement saying, “We are closely following developments in Pakistan. We respect and support Pakistan’s constitutional process and the rule of law. But when it comes to those allegations, there is no any truth.”

    On March 27, Khan accused the US of interfering in Pakistan’s politics and plotting to oust him through a no-confidence motion in the National Assembly (NA). In a public gathering, he also brandished a ‘threat letter’ [which he claimed is from the US].

    Following this, based on this ‘threat letter’, the deputy speaker Qasim Suri rejected the no-trust motion against the PM. Later, acting on the PM’s advice, President Arif Alvi dissolved the National Assembly.

    This act of the government, however, plunged Pakistan into a constitutional crisis as the matter is being heard by the Supreme Court (SC) currently.

  • Islamabad Traffic Police creates special squads to curb road stunts, one-wheeling

    Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) has constituted special squads to prevent one-wheeling and road stunts in the federal capital.

    The special squads were created on the orders of Inspector General of Police (IGP) Islamabad, Muhammad Ahsan Younis to control one-wheeling, car racing, and rash driving, which endangers not only the offenders’ lives but also many other motorists.

    Various ITP units and special squads would conduct continuous patrolling operations at different spots of the metropolis, particularly on 7th Avenue, 9th Avenue, Margalla Road, Kashmir Highway, Islamabad Expressway, and Murree Road, and take action against motorists who engage in dangerous road stunts.

    The police officers and squads in these regions would maintain intensified watch, prohibiting young folks from being involved in dangerous actions.

    SSP Traffic, Rai Mazhar Iqbal stated that one-wheelers and rash drivers would face severe punishment. He urged parents to keep a close eye on their children and not allow them to play stunts on the roadways, endangering their lives.

    Read more: PIA prohibits pilots and cabin crew from fasting during Ramzan

    One-wheeler’s bikes will be seized, according to the SSP Traffic, while heavy fine tickets will also be issued to them.