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Category: National

  • Fashion face-off during the G-B Elections

    Fashion face-off during the G-B Elections

    With Gilgit-Baltistan going to elections this Saturday (November 15), the region has emerged as a hotspot with politicians from the ruling party and opposition arriving in the area for the ongoing election campaign. Over a dozen political and religious parties, including the country’s three major parties — Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), PML-N, and PPP — are contesting the polls.

    Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) has a rich, beautiful, and unique cultural heritage manifested in local traditions, music, and dress. Use of caps and ceremonial headdresses is a part of their tradition. The most commonly used caps are ‘khoi’ (a tuft of feathers or a flower on it) and ‘Iraghi’ (cap with a jewel). Politicians visiting Gilgit for the election campaign made sure that they carry those traditional accessories.

    There is no doubt that in recent times, our politicians have become more fashion savvy. With GB elections underway, we have compiled a list of politicians who impressed everyone with their fashion sense and style during the campaign.

    Prime Minister Imran Khan

    Starting with Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan. PM Khan, who was known to be a style icon during his cricketing time and is still one for many, during his visit elegantly carried a blue blazer with a white shalwar kameez.

    Maryam Nawaz

    Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz Sharif has been making waves with her outfits ever since she landed in G-B. She has been accesorizing her looks with Gilgit-Baltistani caps and shawls, adding a traditional touch to her outfits.

    Maryam also wore a beautiful Iraghi cap with the traditional piece of the jewel called ‘silsila’.

    Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari is not far behind when it comes to making cool fashion choices. The politician has been spotted wearing a number of cool sweaters and jackets along with the Baltistani cap.

    Sherry Rehman

    A diva in the truest sense, PPP Senator Sherry Rehman, also shared a selfie of herself wearing the khoi cap. She completed her look with a pair of reflectors and did not forget to wear her mask!

    Zulfi Bokhari

    One of South Asia’s Five Best-Dressed Men, Zulfi Bokhari made a style statement in a navy blue shalwar kurta and khoi.

    Hina Pervaiz Butt

    And how can we leave behind PML-N’s fashionable MPA Hina Butt.

  • PM claims to have intelligence on Nawaz’s ‘treason’

    PM claims to have intelligence on Nawaz’s ‘treason’

    Prime Minister Imran Khan has claimed to have intelligence on Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif, alleging that former ambassador to the United States (US) Hussain Haqqani was “running Nawaz’s communication strategy”.

    Speaking to a private media outlet on Thursday, the premier was referring to the former PM’s recent speeches in public meetings of his party and the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) during which he had accused the army establishment of orchestrating his ouster.

    Nawaz had gone on to name the Army and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chiefs and said that there was “a state above the state”.

    Reacting to his political rival’s statements, Imran on Thursday accused Nawaz of trying to create rifts within the armed forces by encouraging army personnel to “rebel against” the military leadership.

    “When they say that the [military leadership] is bad and the rest of the army is good; is army a democratic party that would move a no-confidence motion? You [Nawaz] are telling the army to launch a coup, to rebel [against the leadership]. Can there be a bigger [form of] treason?”

    When asked if the government would take up a treason case against Nawaz, the premier did not give a clear answer and said, “Treason cases are hard to prove.”

    He said that he had information on Nawaz’s activities but added that “court cases cannot be filed on agencies’ reports”.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    “A person who is sitting outside in a Mayfair luxury flat bought with stolen money is telling the army [personnel] to rebel. He is also trying to drive a wedge in the judiciary by taking the name of one judge saying he is good while another, who was a chief justice and gave the Panama judgement against him, was a bad judge.”

    “Imran Khan is a Bollywood villain but Nawaz is a democrat. The person who grew up in Ziaul Haq’s lap is a democrat today, while Imran Khan who started his party from scratch, who mobilised people to come to power is an army puppet!”

    “Nawaz Sharif suits India, not Imran Khan.”

  • PTI spokespersons make conflicting remarks on ‘Karachi incident’

    Prime Minister’s Special Assistant on Political Communication Shahbaz Gill has contested a statement made by Firdous Ashiq Awan, Punjab CM’s aide on information, on the Karachi incident, wherein the police chief was pressurised by the military officials to register a case against Capt (r) Safdar.

    Last month, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Muhammad Safdar was arrested from his hotel room in Karachi for raising slogans on the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam. The Sindh government subsequently distanced itself from the arrest. Reports later emerged that Sindh police chief Mushtaq Mahar was pressurised by the army men to register a case against Safdar.

    Subsequently, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari asked COAS Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa for an inquiry into the incident. The probe resulted in the removal of the Inter-Services Intelligence and army officials.

    Referring to the inquiry, Firdous said the army chief ordered an inquiry into the incident on the directives of the prime minister so that a “crisis” could be contained. She added the investigations into the “Karachi incident” and final outcome proved that Pakistan Army was a disciplined force.

    However, soon after the statement, Gill posted a statement on his Twitter account, saying the PM didn’t call the army chief in this regard. According to Gill, “Dr Awan’s statement is either her personal analysis or her statement has been run out of context. In order to set the record straight, Dr Awan’s statement is not correct.”

    It may be noted here that the PM Imran Khan had termed the abduction of the Sindh IG an incident “that made him laugh”.

  • 22 wedding guests killed in DI Khan rickshaw accident

    22 wedding guests killed in DI Khan rickshaw accident

    Twenty-two wedding guests were killed when the rickshaw they were riding in fell into a canal in northwestern Pakistan, police said Wednesday at the end of a recovery mission.

    The three-wheeler was overloaded with 29 people when the accident happened on Monday, near the city of Dera Ismail Khan.

    “We have recovered 22 bodies which include 16 women and six children”, Muhammad Ramzan, a senior police official, told AFP.

    The victims were from the same extended family, and at least seven of them were from the same household, he added.

    Seven people were rescued.

    Bilal Muhammad Faizi, a spokesman for the local rescue agency, confirmed the death toll and said the last bodies were retrieved on Wednesday.

    Rickshaws are a common mode of transport across Pakistan, and accidents occur frequently.

    Pakistan has one of the world’s worst records for fatal traffic accidents, mostly blamed on poor roads, badly maintained vehicles and reckless driving.

  • Judge, who wanted Musharraf hanged at D-Chowk, succumbs to COVID-19

    Judge, who wanted Musharraf hanged at D-Chowk, succumbs to COVID-19

    Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth, 59, has passed away due to coronavirus on Friday.

    Justice Seth had tested positive for COVID-19 on October 22 and was subsequently moved to a hospital in Peshawar, a report in Dawn said. The judge was later shifted to to a private hospital in Islamabad in a critical condition.

    He leaves behind a wife and a daughter.

    Justice Seth took oath as chief justice of the PHC on June 28, 2018. During his tenure as the CJ, he issued important verdicts, specifically the acquittal of over 70 convicts most of whom were handed down death sentences by military courts.

    The deceased jurist was also the head of a special court that had sentenced former military dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf to death by hanging in a high treason case.

    Both the government and the army had expressed “anger” over a specific paragraph 66 of the detailed judgement and termed it “unlawful”, “inhuman” and “unconstitutional”.

    Para 66 of the verdict read: “We direct the law enforcement agencies to strive their level best to apprehend the fugitive/convict [Pervez Musharraf] and to ensure that the punishment is inflicted as per law and if found dead, his corpse be dragged to the D-Chowk [in front of the Parliament House], Islamabad, Pakistan, and be hanged for three days.”

    CONDOLENCES POUR IN:

    Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed grief on the demise of the judge.

  • PM approves funds for purchase of COVID-19 vaccine

    PM approves funds for purchase of COVID-19 vaccine

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has approved funding for the advance purchase of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a statement released by the Ministry of National Health Services Regulation on Thursday.

    The Health Ministry said that the prime minister has shown special interest in ensuring quality vaccines at the earliest and has approved funding in this regard. The ministry said the government has developed a COVID-19 vaccine strategy in response to global best practices.

    According to the statement, under this strategy, the government has prioritised the groups most likely to be the initial recipients of a potential vaccine. It said an expert committee on the COVID-19 vaccine has been working on technical oversight and review of safety and efficacy data coming in from trials.

    Earlier, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Faisal Sultan confirmed that the PM has approved funds to purchase the possible vaccines of COVID-19 in advance. The funds were approved after the Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination had written a letter to PM Imran Khan for advance booking of coronavirus vaccines.

    Earlier on November 4, it was learnt that the health ministry has recommended purchases of potential coronavirus vaccines under last-stage trials and allocation of $100 million funds for its advance booking.

    The ministry recommended allocation of $100 million in funds for the purchases of vaccines on an emergency basis for around 10 million nationals. In its first phase, the vaccines will be made available for elderly citizens and health workers.

  • PML-N ready to talk with establishment ‘on one condition’

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz has hinted at opening up a dialogue channel with the military establishment while ruling out any backdoor negotiations.

    In an interview with BBC Urdu, the PML-N leader said the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) leadership would consider talking to army generals but the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government will have to go home first.

    She claimed that the establishment approached a number of her party leaders, but no one has approached her directly with an offer to sort things out. She said the PML-N respects the army as an institution, but it has no authority to transgress beyond its role enshrined in the constitution.

    According to Maryam, there will be no secrecy in talks with the army generals, everything will take place in front of the people of Pakistan.

    Responding to her critics who said the PML-N’s anti-narrative was harmful to the party, Maryam said the anti-establishment line that the party has adopted has attracted thousands of people across Pakistan. The massive gatherings in Gujranwala, Karachi, and Quetta are proof of the PML-N’s popularity, she added.

    In a comment on the interview, Federal Minister Fawad Chaudhry said the PML-N only wants an end to the cases against its leadership.

    In a tweet, he said if the PML-N is not willing to talk to the military or the government, then it is difficult for him to comprehend their narrative.

  • Fawad, Sanaullah favour live coverage of corruption trials

    Fawad, Sanaullah favour live coverage of corruption trials

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhry and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) lawmaker Rana Sanaullah have endorsed the live broadcast of graft trials for greater transparency.

    The lawmakers were participating in a talk show hosted by senior journalist Hamid Mir. During the show, Mir asked Fawad if he would support the plea of PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi seeking live coverage of his trial in an accountability court. At this, Fawad said he would fully support it.

    According to the science and technology minister, the live coverage of trials was standard practice in the UK. “Pakistan follows many practices and laws of the UK, why can’t it do it in terms of trials,” he added.

    He said the people must know what are the charges and what is defence.

    At this, Sanaullah said he also supported the idea of the televised trials, adding that his narcotics case should also be aired.

    On Wednesday, former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi filed a petition in an accountability court of Islamabad, seeking live media coverage of his trial proceeding in LNG-Terminal project reference.

    The plea argued that Article 19-A grants the public the right to know factual information about a trial. People would get the authentic information about the trial through live coverage, he added.

    “There are other public benefits; let the people know whether their representatives are innocent or corrupt or they have been involved in false and politically motivated cases; let the people see whether complaints are ‘stock witnesses’, whether the case is politically motivated,” the application quoted by Dawn newspaper said.

  • Did you know Usman Buzdar is a crorepati?

    Did you know Usman Buzdar is a crorepati?

    After both the upper and lower houses of the parliament, details of assets and liabilities of Punjab Assembly members have also been released by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), according to which, Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar is a millionaire or crorepati with his 10 immovable properties alone amounting to Rs35 million (Rs3.5 crores).

    According to details, while some members of the provincial assembly also own offshore properties, others run businesses besides owning agricultural lands.

    It has also emerged that CM Buzdar, on top of his 10 immovable properties, also has a 14-kanal bungalow in Taunsa Sharif and four kanals in Dera Ghazi Khan. His spouse, on the other hand, owns three pieces of land, whereas Buzdar himself also owns agricultural land in Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan besides three tractors, two vehicles and Rs7.7 million (Rs77 lacs) in his bank account.

    Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervez Elahi owns three properties worth Rs69.4 million (6.94 crores). He also has shares in three properties and owns a house each in both Lahore and Islamabad. The former CM also has shares in the Zahoor Palace Gujarat, has Rs9.9 million (Rs99 lacs) capital in a flour mill and Rs13.5 million (Rs1.35 crores) unsecured debt.

    On top of this, he has Rs12.7 million in his bank account while his wife has assets worth Rs93.1 million in her name, including jewelry worth Rs2.1 million.

    The assets of Hamza Shehbaz, who is the leader of the opposition in the Punjab Assembly, are worth Rs414 million (Rs41.4 crores). He owns Rs30 million (Rs3 crores) of agricultural land given by his brother Suleman Shehbaz, and has invested Rs130 million (Rs13 crores) in the country.

    Hamza also has Rs10 million (Rs1 crore) in his bank account.

    Provincial Minister Aleem Khan and his wife have properties worth Rs159.2 million (Rs15.9 crores). His daughter and wife have assets worth Rs7.8 million (Rs78 lacs) in England and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and stock shares worth Rs117.7 million (Rs11.77 crores).

    Aleem also has an unsecured loan of Rs1.21 billion and owns three luxury cars worth Rs32.1 million (Rs3.21 crores) in addition to 65 tolas of gold. He also has Rs10 million (Rs1 crore) cash and Rs139.1 million (Rs13.91 crores) in his bank account.

    Punjab Minister Fayazul Hasan Chohan owns two properties worth Rs8.5 million (Rs85 lacs) while he and his spouse have a total of Rs7.9 million (Rs79 lacs) in their bank account.

    Provincial Minister Raja Basharat owns more than Rs29.3 million (Rs2.93 crores) assets, while Provincial Minister Raja Rashid Hafeez owns more than Rs111 million (Rs11.1 crores) assets.

    The documents also state that Ejaz Khan of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has total assets of only Rs274,000 (Rs0.27 million) and no car or jewelry or businesses at home or abroad. The lawmaker with the least assets and liabilities is Sajida Yousuf, who has only Rs217 in her bank account. She has no car, no jewelry and no property at home or abroad.

  • VIDEO: Cameras were installed in Maryam Nawaz’s jail cell, bathroom?

    VIDEO: Cameras were installed in Maryam Nawaz’s jail cell, bathroom?

    Senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Maryam Nawaz has claimed that cameras were installed in her jail cell and bathroom during detention in National Accountability Bureau (NAB) cases against her and other members of the Sharif family.

    In an interview on Wednesday, Maryam said that she has been to jail twice and if she revealed the details about how she and other female inmates were treated during detention, “they” will find no place to hide their faces.

    Maryam is currently leading PML-N’s election campaign for the November 15 Gilgit-Baltistan election.

    “I don’t want to hide behind these incidents at all. I’m struggling today, so I don’t want to show that I was affected; I don’t want to cry today that I have been abused,” she said.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    The PML-N vice president added that if her door room could be broken, if she can be arrested in front of her father for speaking the truth, if cameras can be installed inside her jail cell and bathroom, and if she can be targeted personally, then no woman in Pakistan is safe.

    “Be it in Pakistan or elsewhere, a woman cannot be weak,” she said.

    MARYAM IN JAIL:

    On July 6, 2018, Maryam was sentenced to seven years in jail by the NAB on corruption charges in the Avenfield reference case.

    The court had held that trust deeds presented by Maryam before the apex court were fake and had been tampered with. As a result, she was disqualified from contesting elections for 10 years.

    The next day, Maryam announced that she would return to Pakistan on July 13 to file an appeal against the decision. The same day, NAB announced to arrest her and Nawaz Sharif upon their arrival in Pakistan.

    She, along with her father, was taken into custody on July 13 upon their arrival at Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport and were airlifted to Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail.

    On July 26, she challenged her sentence in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) and filed a petition for bail. The next day, the court rejected her request for release on bail and adjourned the hearing till the end of the 2018 general election on July 25.

    While she was released following the suspension of the verdict against her father, husband and herself by the IHC, Maryam was once again arrested in August 2019 over Chaudhry Sugar Mills corruption charges; this time upon her arrival at the Kot Lakhpat jail in Lahore to see Nawaz, who was serving his sentence in a separate corruption case.

    In November 2019, Maryam was released on bail by the Lahore High Court (LHC).