Author: News Desk

  • US embassy sends ‘books, perfumes, clothes and shampoo’ for Zahir Jaffer

    The US embassy in Pakistan sent a parcel containing books, perfumes, clothes and shampoo for Zahir Zakir Jaffer, the prime suspect in Noor Mukadam case, through a courier. The courier was sent to Adiala Jail but the jail authorities refused to accept it.

    Superintendent of Adiala Jail, Arshad Warraich, told The Nation that the US Embassy had sent a courier for Zahir Zakir Jaffer but the administration returned the courier. He continued by adding that a letter was also written to the embassy by the jail administration to use the channel of Ministry of Interior in future if they want to send any thing for their citizen facing murder charges. “The parcel was returned by the jail authorities last Saturday,” he said in response to a query. 

    The Islamabad High Court will indict 12 persons in the Noor Mukadam case on October 6.

  • Video: ‘I feel abandoned and used,’ RAW agent who spied on Pakistan reveals India’s true face

    Video: ‘I feel abandoned and used,’ RAW agent who spied on Pakistan reveals India’s true face

    Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) agent, Daniel, who spied on Pakistan for India now lives a miserable life, as he has to drive a rickshaw while his wife works as a maid washing dishes, to earn some livelihood, an Indian news channel Pro Punjab reported.

    Daniel, who served a four-year sentence in Pakistan, was smuggled into the country in 1992 to carry out India’s dirty work.

    “We used to feel very proud while working for RAW. However, I am disheartened, my agency has abandoned me,” said Daniel.

    “I feel abandoned and used,” he said and hoped that if he gets some money, at least he could build a home and live a decent life, or get a job for his elder son.

    Speaking to the Indian news channel, he admitted that Pakistan does not send spies in India to carry out subversive activities. Rather, India frequently sends spies over into Pakistani territory.

    Daniel said that another Indian spy, Raju, is currently in Pakistan. The former RAW operative said that when he returned to India after getting caught in Pakistan, he was issued a meager Rs15,000 and fired from service. Praising the people of Pakistan, Daniel admitted that the Indian government keeps sending spies to its neighbouring country.

  • Indian singer Dhvani Bhanushali replicates Pakistani song ‘Gagar’

    Indian singer Dhvani Bhanushali replicates Pakistani song ‘Gagar’

    Indian singer Dhvani Bhanushali recently released her latest song Mehendi that is a blatant replication of the Pakistani song Gagar, sung by Pakistani singer Alamgir.

    Alamgir Main Ne Tumhari Gagar Se The Best Of Alamgir - YouTube

    The song has garnered more than 20 million views within two days of its release. Interestingly, the music of the Indian song is quite similar to the Pakistani iconic song Gagar.

    However, Pakistani singer Umair Jaswal, who recently did a rendition of Alamgir’s song in the Velo Sound station’s season 1, pointed out the clear copying of the tune and shared the news on his Instagram account.

    He questioned the Indian singer for copying the tune and tagged his fellow music artists who worked with him on Gagar’s remake. Originally made by veteran singers, the song Gagar is a famous song from the ’90s. Let’s have look at both songs:

    https://youtu.be/cH-69-I6CQ0
  • ‘Very problematic’, Pemra fines NEO TV for airing show that ‘leads to discrimination against female gender’

    The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) has fined news channel Neo News Rs 200,000 for airing “insensitive, degrading, insulting, and nasty” remarks by Abdul Razzaq, Dawn has reported.

    The complaint was filed by tennis player Aisamul Haq Qureshi with Pemra’s Council of Complaints through Barrister Khadija Siddiqi.

    As per Pemra’s order the complaint filed said the female host on the show also “degrades and shames the career adopted by female cricketers, expressly stating that female cricketers mostly leave cricket when they get married”.

    The Council of Complaints also observed that the comment on women leaving cricket after marriage was a “generalisation” that “leads to blatant discrimination against female gender”. The female host is insinuating that short hair is too masculine and that women cricketers are somewhat an anomaly,” the council said.

    Razzaq was “implying a presupposed notion that cricket is a sport only meant for boys, who define the masculine nature of the sport,” the council said.

    Earlier, this year in July, Abdul Razzaq and Nida Dar appeared in NEO TV’s program in which, one of the members interrupted Dar while she was talking about her profession and said that women cricketers leave their profession and get married.

    Abdul Razzaq was quick to jump in, saying, “Oh, they don’t get married.” “Aap inko hath mila kay dekh lein, yeh larki to nahi lagtein,” said Razzaq. (If you shake her [Dar’s] hand, she is anything but feminine). The video clip went viral on social media and Abdul Razzaq faced backlash for his comments.

  • Punjab govt suspends health officers over Nawaz’s fake vaccination entry

    Punjab govt suspends health officers over Nawaz’s fake vaccination entry

    The Punjab government suspended the Medical Superintendent (MS) and a senior doctor of Lahore’s Kot Khawaja Saeed Hospital over Nawaz Sharif’s fake vaccination entry case.

    MS Ahmed Nadeem and Dr Munir Ahmed have been asked to report directly to the health department, reported Geo News.

    According to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) watchman, Abul Hassan and ward boy Adil used the ID of a third employee, Naveed, to enter Sharif’s fake data into the system. Police registered cases against the three of them and arrested Abul Hassan and Adil.

    Moreover, the investigative team comprising officials from FIA and the provincial health department have seized important records from the hospital.

    A four-member team presented a report before Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar. The National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) summoned the Punjab health secretary to Islamabad.

    A fake entry was made on the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) portal, which said that Nawaz, who is currently in London, was administered the first dose of Sinovac on September 22 and he is due to receive the second dose next month. The entry was later deleted from NADRA portal.

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz said, “Just like this fake government, its vaccination record and entry data for vaccines is also fake.”

  • Jemima Goldsmith bonds with Rahat Fateh Ali Khan in London

    Jemima Goldsmith has shared a video of live performance by veteran singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan. She also shared a picture with the Ishqiya crooner.

    “What a treat. On set today- An actual live performance by the great Rahat Fateh Ali Khan Sahib,” she wrote in her Instagram post.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahs35pbVpZc&feature=youtu.be&ab_channel=TheCurrent

    Earlier, the Meray Paas Tum Ho singer performed in London’s Wembley Stadium and received an overwhelming response from the South Asian community. The tickets to his show sold out soon after the COVID-19 restrictions were lifted after two years.

    Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, thanked Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and called him a “living legend” for bringing together four generations of South Asians who love Urdu music and poetry.

    Jemima is currently working on her production venture, What’s Love Got to Do With It starring Sajal Aly and Shabana Azmi.

  • Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel believes Covid-19 pandemic could be over next year

    Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel believes Covid-19 pandemic could be over next year

    Moderna Chief Executive Officer Stephane Bancel believes that the coronavirus pandemic could be over in a year as the production of vaccines rises up to meet global demand, Forbes reported Thursday citing an interview with Swiss newspaper Neue Zuercher Zeitung.

    Bancel said in the interview that increasing vaccine production will help ensure that enough doses are available to get the entire global population vaccinated by mid-2022.

    While responding to a question on when he thinks things could go back to normal, Bancel said: “In a year, I assume.”

    Read More: Nurse makes chandelier with empty Covid vaccine vials

    The pharmaceutical executive pointed out that even people who don’t want to get the vaccination may “immunise themselves naturally” by that time with the highly contagious delta variant spreading fast across the globe.

    “The people who get vaccinated will enjoy a good winter while those who don’t will live with the risk of getting sick or even being hospitalised due to the variant,” predicted Bancel.

    He said that he feels that people would need a booster shot soon and the company’s version will contain half the amount of the original formulation.

    He said that Moderna is also testing a “Delta-optimised variant” of the vaccine that will serve as the foundation for booster shots in 2022.

  • Self-defence classes for women introduced by Islamabad Police

    Self-defence classes for women introduced by Islamabad Police

    Islamabad Police announced a one-month comprehensive self-defence course for females, which includes physical training, armed training and assault course.

    The classes will be three days a week from 4pm-7pm and cost Rs 30,000. The registration is currently open via an online application form.

    The course offers all women to develop the ability to defend themselves and to initiate a culture of resilience among the female community of the country.

    Recently, Lahore police reported that the registration of sexual harassment and assault cases has increased up to 300 per cent in the city.

  • Dengue on the rise in Punjab, Shehbaz Sharif urges govt to protect people

    Ninety-two cases of dengue have been reported in Punjab in the last 24 hours, Dawn has reported. Of those 92 cases, 64 cases were reported from Lahore. As per the details, 828 cases of dengue virus have been reported in Punjab, and 687 in Lahore.

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shehbaz Sharif has urged the government to implement dengue control guidelines to protect people.

    “Dengue is spreading & people are getting infected. I would ask the government to implement the dengue control guidelines & protocols that are already in place to mitigate the threat. People’s lives are precious and every measure should be adopted to protect them from dengue,” Shehbaz wrote in a tweet.

    In 2019, more than 8,670 cases of dengue were recorded in Punjab alone with over 50,000 reported from all over Pakistan.

  • VIDEO: Man arrested for harassing women at Lahore bus stop

    The Punjab police detained a man on Thursday for harassing three women waiting at a bus stop in Lahore.

    A Twitter user, Hasna Khan Dasti, posted a video that shows a man advancing towards the women who were running away from him.

    https://twitter.com/HasnaDasti/status/1440993562951393283?s=20

    Soon after the video did the rounds on social media, the Punjab police shared a picture of the suspect in custody, saying that the police had registered a case and arrested the suspect.

    Since the Minar-e-Pakistan incident, the number of sexual harassment and assault cases has increased up to 300 per cent in Lahore.

    A police report stated that during the past 1.5 months, 642 cases of sexual harassment were registered under sections 354, 354-A and 509-B as compared to the number of incidents up to less than 150 that had been reported before August 14.

    Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Shariq Jamal Khan said that the ratio of sexual assault and harassment cases was high in the past but previously people used to avoid registering cases.

    He added that the actions related to the accused in the incident of Greater Iqbal Park have encouraged the women to report such cases. He said that the authorities will take strict action in such cases.