A video of tourists celebrating and partying at tourist destination at Malam Jabba recently went viral on social media, prompting authorities to register an FIR against the participants and hotel management for violating SOPs.
According to reports, the FIR also states that “obscene acts” were carried out at the party. The FIR was lodged under Section 294 and 33 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). The FIR also says that 30 to 40 participants are unidentified and missing.
The FIR was registered on the complaint of SHO Javed Iqbal.
Later, hotel owner Fazal Khan and manger Hasnain Ahsan were presented before a divisional magistrate. Both were fined Rs40,000 and released.
ویڈیو وائرل ہونے کے بعد۔۔۔ مالم جبہ پولیس نے LUMS کے طلباء اور ہوٹل انتظامیہ کے خلاف ایف آئی آر درج کر لی۔۔۔۔ پرچے میں فحش حرکات کرنے والی دفعہ 294 PPC بھی شامل۔۔۔۔ pic.twitter.com/y5xVNlQwkT
Reacting to the incident, Ahmed Ali Butt hit out at authorities for allowing jalsas and rallies but registering FIRs against dance parties.
Meanwhile, despite a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases, tourists are thronging to Pakistan’s scenic northern areas to witness snowfall and experience the winter wonderland.
As per the latest reports, tourists flocked to Kalam valley to witness the Snow Kabaddi Championship, organised by the local youth in collaboration with the hotel association and youth affairs department.
Six local teams took part in the championship with the Matiltan Tiger emerging as the winner.
Japan’s NEC Corporation has introduced a new facial recognition system that identifies people even when they are wearing masks.
As per reports, the technology firm had already been working on a system to meet the needs of allergy sufferers who wear masks — a common practice in Japan — when the Covid-19 pandemic prompted it to accelerate development.
The system determines when a person is wearing a mask and hones in on the parts that are not covered up, such as the eyes and surrounding areas, to verify the person’s identity. Users register a photo of their face in advance.
NEC says verification takes less than one second and claims an accuracy rate of more than 99.9pc.
England’s women cricket team will make its first tour to Pakistan this year in October, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced. As per details, two Twenty20 Internationals and three one-day internationals will be played between both sides.
The team will play Twenty20 matches on October 14 and 15 along with their men’s side while the one-day internationals will be played on October 18, 20 and 22.
All the five matches will be played at Karachi’s National Stadium.
England women to make first-ever tour of Pakistan in October
“World champions England accompanying their men’s side for their first-ever tour to Karachi is an extremely powerful and strong announcement for Pakistan, our women’s cricketers, as well as for the global sport,” said PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan, in a statement.
“The three ODIs against the world champions will assist the Pakistan women’s side to access, gauge and fine-tune their ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 preparations as they aim to produce improved performances than in the past,” he added.
Talking about the tourECB Managing Director of Women’s Cricket Clare Connor said: “We are absolutely delighted to be making this historic announcement today.”
“The England Women’s cricket team has never toured Pakistan before so this is another important step in our history and journey,” she said further.
England’s men cricket teamwill also visit Pakistan after 15 years for a short tour. Unlike the women’s cricket team they will only play two Twenty20 matches.
Mehwish Hayat, who turned 33 on January 6, celebrated her birthday in a small and intimate party with her closest friends and family.
Sharing pictures from the celebrations on social media, Mehwish thanked her fans and well-wishers for their “wonderful birthday messages”.
“Your love means so much,” said the superstar.
Later, in a detailed post, Mehwish shared her reflections from the past year.
“As I turn 33, the past year gave me opportunity to reflect, assess my life and see what really matters to me,” said Mehwish. “Work has been so full on that I’d forgotten the simple pleasures in life; getting my hair oiled by my mother every Sunday, beating my brothers and nephew at video games, watching Netflix with my sister– all things that I’d missed.”
“Believe me nothing in life is as important as family,” she asserted.
The star went on to say: “Like everybody, I am glued to my phone most of my waking hours. While it connects us with the world, it also disconnects us from the world. We need to be present in the here and now and take in the wonders that abound. So much more to life, if only we appreciate it.”
Mehwish also talked about dealing with negative criticism and hate on social media.
“Let’s not let society dictate the way we want to lead our life. I have come to realise that it is possible for a girl in her early 30’s to be totally happy without being married and with children. It’ll happen when it will and not to some timetable,” said the actor.
Talkin about change, Mehwish expressed that it needs to be systemic.
“I am a little fed up of celebrities (including myself) made ambassadors for meaningful causes that fizzle out after a grand launch and photo op. How many times have we flooded social media, taken out rallies after some distressing event and then what.”
“Social media is great – it has really democratised freedom of speech like nothing else. But some have taken it as a licence to abuse and bully others. Others see it as an excuse to spread fake news and malicious gossip. Wikipedia giving my age does not make it true,” she wrote.
Continuing her note, she added: “Let’s not knock but support each other. We have this culture of bringing each other down. This has to stop if we are to succeed as a nation. Let’s understand that we are in this together and my success – or anyone else’s – is something of pride for every Pakistani.”
“Depression is real. Though my life may seem perfect, we all have our insecurities, shortcomings and setbacks. But as long as we work towards inner healing and connecting with the divine, we are capable of overcoming everything that life throws at us,” the actor added.
“The world was put on pause for us to reflect, how we come out of this is up to us. I, for one, know the direction I need to take. My mother always teaches that we have to create our own destinies wherever that may lead.”
“I will dare to dream and dare to dream big! Anything is possible,” she concluded.
However, Faryal did not let the trolls win and clapped back by posting another photo from the same photoshoot, writing: “This is for the social media trolls. Hoping this platform provides you with that moment of importance you needed to assure your self-righteousness.”
In a recent post, Akram once again expressed her love for the city praising the resilience and diversity of Karachi, comparing it to an eagle that looks into the eye without a fright and remains devoted to where it belongs.
Posing in front of a wall painting of wings, Akram said: “Karachi is a personification of these damaged wings in which we believe and have the faith that it can fly high and conquer all its fears.”
“The city of lights, the city of diversity and the city of hearts held so tightly by its people, more than a city it’s home to all who pass through or plant their feet,” she added.
“That is why we will never turn our back or give up on our beautiful city and it’s future,” concluded Shaniera. “We are the change and we are it’s a support system. Together we can heal, build, and grow.”
“Karachi is We, Karachi is Us and Karachi is love!”
The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) gained over 500 points on Wednesday to cross the 45,000-point threshold for the first time since May 2018.
Global equity markets also showed a positive trend. Profit reported that the buying activity was observed across the board. According to the newspaper, “Exploration & production and oil & gas marketing sectors rebounded strongly, whereas cement and fertilizer sectors continued with previous day’s positive momentum.”
“International crude oil prices jumped significantly on the conclusion of agreement among OPEC+ countries, which became the basis for an uptick in E&P stocks. Cement sector leaped on the expectation of an increase in cement price in the northern region, while banking sector contributed positively in anticipation of annual results.”
Express Tribune reported that the trading volumes lifted to 664.5million shares due to strong investors’ interest. The market outlook also remained positive due to the government’s decision to settling circular debt with the independent power producers (IPPs), though partially.
Moreover, the petroleum product sales that rose in double digits also helped the bullish trend. “Oil sales were up 16% to 1.59 million tons in December 2020 compared to 1.37 million tons in the same month of 2019,” the report said.
It further stated that the State Bank of Pakistan’s report on the Pakistani economy also played a role in rallying the stock market. According to the central bank, the economic activity in the country has been largely restored to pre-coronavirus levels in the first quarter of the current financial year.
TikTok has announced a competition for its users in Pakistan for the first time. Contestants can participate in the competition ‘1 Million Audition’ by sending creative videos.
The #1MAuditionPK campaign started on January 6 and will continue till January 22. The campaign invites all TikTokers to showcase their creative streak, across various talent categories.
TikTokers in Pakistan will have to use the #1MAudition hashtag for the campaign. They can also add the category in which they would like to compete such as #1MAComedy, #1MATalent, #1MASing&Dance.
There will be nine winners in each category. Winners will be selected based on video quality and engagement on the video. The final winners will be announced on January 22.
TikTok will gift a voucher worth US$1000 to one winner in each category. The runner up in each category will get an $800 voucher and while the second runnerup will receive $500.
This campaign was launched in 2018 in many other countries by TikTok.
As per a press release, the move is aimed to encourage and promote creative expression in Pakistan.
The Bollywood actor recently slammed a photographer and publication for capturing and posting her and husband Virat Kohli’s private moment.
Taking to Instagram, the mom-to-be posted the picture taken by the photographer and wrote, “Despite requesting the said photographer and publication, they still continue to invade our privacy.”
“Guys! Stop this right now,” added a furious Anushka.
Ever since Virat and Anushka announced their pregnancy in August, pictures of the couple and their baby bump have gone viral on social media. However, this time the actor decided to take a stand.
Earlier, in an interview to a fashion magazine, Anushka had said that she wants to raise her child away from media attention as she does not want to “raise brats”.
Anushka and Virat are expecting their first child this month. Their announcement tweet was the most-liked tweet of 2020.
Meanwhile, later when a fan lashed out at celebrity photographer Viral Bhayani for sharing pictures of the couple on a lunch date, Bhayani said Anushka “was concerned that her private home pictures were leaked and that is what irked her”.
He added that he is constantly in touch with her management to “check if there is any concern as distress is caused to them”.
The opposition leadership, including Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz, will visit the families of the Hazara coal miners who were killed in a sectarian attack in Mach, Balochistan, last week.
The families of the slain miners are protesting for the past five days against the killings on Quetta’s Western Bypass. They have refused to bury their dead till the in person security assurances from the prime minister. But the PM has refused to visit, saying he will come to condole with them very soon.
In a statement, Marriyum Aurangzeb, the PML-N spokesperson, confirmed the visit of Maryam to Quetta on Thursday. She said the PML-N VP will visit the victim families to express condolence on behalf of PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif. She will be accompanied by PML-N leaders Ahsan Iqbal, Senator Pervaiz Rasheed, Khurram Dastgir, Rana Sanaullah, Marriyum Aurangzeb, and former Sindh governor Muhammad Zubair, the statement said.
On the other hand, Bilawal will visit the Hazara mourners along with Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and members of the Sindh Cabinet. The PPP chief will offer condolences to the families who lost their loved ones in the attacked claimed by the Islamic State.
On Wednesday, the PM had asked Hazaras to bury their loved ones, saying the state was taking measures to put a stop to such attacks against the minority Shia community. He had also blamed a neighbouring country for the attack.
