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  • Billboards with images of PM Khan in Amritsar taken down after criticism

    Billboards with images of PM Khan in Amritsar taken down after criticism

    Ahead of the historic Kartarpur opening, scheduled to be held on November 9, billboards featuring images of Prime Minister Imran Khan have popped up in Amritsar, India.

    The posters which featured images of PM Khan and former Punjab Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu read, “Navjot Singh Sidhu and Imran Khan are the real heroes, for opening Kartarpur Corridor.”

    However, the hoardings were taken down within hours of being put up as they irked the Indians who widely criticised them.

    According to India Today, supporters of Sidhu put up hoardings calling him and PM Imran the real heroes of Kartarpur. The report further added that the hoardings were put up by Amritsar Municipal Councillor Harpal Singh Verka who is known to be close to Sidhu.

    Speaking to India Today, Verka said, “Imran Khan had asked his friend Navjot Singh Sidhu what he can do for him as he visited his swearing-in ceremony in Pakistan. Sidhu put forth a demand before Imran Khan that the Kartarpur corridor be opened for Sikh devotees. I put up hoardings of my own as I wanted to send out the message to the people about Sidhu’s role in getting the corridor opened.”

    See pictures: Kartarpur Corridor ready to welcome Sikh pilgrims

    As per reports, Sidhu was the first Indian politician who received the first invitation card to the opening ceremony bearing number 001 from Imran Khan three days ago.

    Sidhu has reportedly been given permission to visit Pakistan on November 9 when the Kartarpur corridor will be formally inaugurated.

  • India’s Davis Cup tie in Pakistan shifted to neutral venue

    India’s Davis Cup tie in Pakistan shifted to neutral venue

    India’s Davis Cup tie against Pakistan at Islamabad this month must be played at a neutral venue after the latest advice from the International Tennis Federation’s independent security advisors, the world governing body said on Monday, Reuters reported.

    According to the details, the Asia/Oceania Group I tie, originally scheduled for Sept. 14-15 in Islamabad, was postponed by the ITF to Nov. 29-30 following a security review amid political tensions between the bitter neighbors.

    The All India Tennis Association (AITA) had asked the ITF to shift the tie to a neutral venue.

    “As per the Davis Cup Regulations, the Pakistan Tennis Federation now has the choice to nominate a neutral venue and has five working days to confirm their proposed venue,” the ITF said in a statement.

    Pakistan expelled India’s ambassador and suspended bilateral trade and all public transport links with its neighbor in August after New Delhi removed “special status” from its portion of the contested region of Kashmir.

    The nuclear-armed neighbors have fought two wars over Kashmir since gaining independence from Britain in 1947.

    They came close to a third in February after a deadly attack on Indian police by a Pakistan-based militant group resulted in air strikes by both countries.

    The AITA had named a six-member squad in August for the tie against Pakistan but a couple of players and captain Mahesh Bhupathi had made themselves unavailable to travel to the neighboring country due to security concerns.

    While the national governing body chose Rohit Rajpal in Bhupathi’s absence, they will soon name a new team for the tie with Bhupathi having made himself available again.

    “We are very happy and welcome the ITF decision about the venue change,” AITA General Secretary Hironmoy Chatterjee told Reuters by phone. “We will wait for the PTF to choose the venue and then name our team.”

    Pakistan was forced to host Davis Cup ties at neutral venues for more than a decade as teams refused to travel to the country citing security concerns.

    They played their first home tie after a gap of 12 years against Iran in 2017, while Hong Kong were relegated and fined by the ITF after refusing to travel to Pakistan the same year.

    An Indian tennis team last traveled to Pakistan in 1964 for a Davis Cup tie, defeating the hosts 4-0, while Pakistan lost 3-2 on their last visit to India in 2006.

    Multiple doubles Grand Slam winner Bhupathi said it was great news and he was “of course available” to captain the side now that the tie has been moved out of Islamabad.

    “I think it’s just a sensible decision with the current situation,” he said in a text message.

    “Davis Cup is already a high pressure situation and having additional stress on security issues was not ideal for anyone.”

  • ‘Perfumes vs attar’: Hamid Mir points out differences between 2014, 2019 Azadi marches

    ‘Perfumes vs attar’: Hamid Mir points out differences between 2014, 2019 Azadi marches

    Senior journalist and analyst Hamid Mir has said that there is a lot of difference between the ongoing Azadi March of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and that of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) from 2014.

    “When one used to visit the 2014 sit-in, you could smell perfumes. When you come here, you can smell attar. So it’s perfume versus attar,” Mir said when approached by a private media outlet during his visit to Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s Islamabad protest last week.

    He further said that Imran Khan’s sit-in “had scores of rich people”. “You could see a lot of lipsticks. At this sit-in, what you see is…” the journalist added as he pulled in front of the camera a JUI-F worker.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    The viral video then shows the worker kissing a smiling Mir on his forehead. It isn’t later that another JUI-F activist to the journalist’s left, pulls and kisses him.

    “Do you understand the difference now?” he then asks the reporter, laughing.

  • PM’s aide wants ‘corrupt politicians & officials’ to be locked at Lahore Safari Zoo

    PM’s aide wants ‘corrupt politicians & officials’ to be locked at Lahore Safari Zoo

    Sahibzada Jahangir, Prime Minister’s Spokesperson on Trade and Investment in UK & Europe, came under fire yesterday for his tweet in which he called for all “corrupt politicians and officials” to be locked at the Lahore Safari Zoo in Raiwind.

    In a now-deleted tweet, Jahangir had said: “Visited Lahore Safari Zoo. Beautiful park and with great tourist potential. I urge Imran Khan PM to lock all corrupt politicians and officials here for weekend camping & let their fade [fate] be decided by Allah.”

    He later deleted his tweet when Twitterati gave him a piece of their mind.

    Sahibzada Jahangir, also known as ‘Chico Jahangir’, is the elder brother of Fauzia Kasuri. Ms. Kasuri parted ways with PTI after almost 17 years.

    Prime Minister Imran Khan has known Mr. Jahangir for more than three decades. Khan’s walima with Jemima Goldsmith was held at Jahangir’s residence in London.

  • Pak army to generate own electricity to reduce burden on economy

    Pak army to generate own electricity to reduce burden on economy

    Pakistan Army is all set to generate electricity for its garrisons and establishments across Pakistan to cut their expenditure on power which is estimated to be around Rs 15 billion for 240 MW (megawatt), a private news outlet has reported.

    As per reports, the Pakistan army is planning on harnessing renewable energy through solar parks with an aim to establish 1-5MW solar parks in each garrison. The pilot project will generate 40MW energy and no public money will be used on solar parks for 25 years.

    This step will reduce the burden on the Army’s budget as a huge portion of it goes to electricity payments to various electricity distribution companies, and the costs are rising due to increasing tariffs.

    The Defence Division has informed the federal cabinet that army possesses robust distribution systems, which means that it can easily shift to renewable energy alternatives.

    The division has sought the government’s approval for making the payment on account of purchasing equipment from private companies offering solar solutions, adding that it will be at least 20-30% cheaper than DICSOs.

    The cabinet was also informed that the stakeholders including Public-Private Partnership Authority (PPPA), Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB), Power Division and Finance Division have also endorsed the electricity project.

  • If Maryam Nawaz joins the ‘Azadi March’

    If Maryam Nawaz joins the ‘Azadi March’

    PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz has been released on bail, the only condition being that she cannot leave the country. Speculations regarding her joining Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s ‘Azadi March’ have already begun.

    Read more: Maryam Nawaz granted bail in Chaudhry Sugar Mills case

    What will happen if Maryam joins the march? Watch the video to find out:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mImkeHFTdf4&feature=youtu.be
  • Proud to have army as our spokesperson: Zartaj Gul

    Proud to have army as our spokesperson: Zartaj Gul

    Minister of State for Climate Change Zartaj Gul has said that the (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government is “proud to have the army as its spokesperson”.

    “We are proud that we are judiciary’s spokespersons [and] we are proud that the army is our spokesperson,” Gul said during her appearance on a SAMAA TV talkshow as she slammed the opposition for accusing the government of making state institutions controversial.

    She said that neither had the PTI government burdened the country with loans worth Rs31,000 billion nor had it enslaved the masses. “This is why the people and the army are with us.”

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Calling out opposition members, including former prime minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman “for making judges and the armed forces controversial”, she also questioned their ideology and what they were standing for.

    When asked about the way forward with the opposition, she said a “13th player” of the team was doing politics and wished to take others’ children to D-Chowk in Islamabad.

    Gul added that opposition leaders at the Islamabad sit-in were “only troubled by the fact that this time they were not a part of the parliament”.

  • Maryam Nawaz granted bail in Chaudhry Sugar Mills case

    Maryam Nawaz granted bail in Chaudhry Sugar Mills case

    The Lahore High Court (LHC) has granted bail to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Maryam Nawaz in the Chaudhry Sugar Mills (CSM) case.

    A two-member bench of the LHC comprising Justice Ali Baqar Najafi and Justice Sardar Ahmad Naeem announced the verdict. The legal representatives of Maryam and National Accountability Bureau (NAB) were also present in the court.

    Maryam Nawaz had approached the high court on September 30 seeking post-arrest bail in the CSM case, in which she is suspected of money laundering.

    Following the sudden deterioration in the health of her father, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, she then filed a miscellaneous petition on October 24 seeking immediate bail on the basis of fundamental rights and humanitarian reasons.

    The bench had reserved its verdict in the case on October 31 after both the petitioner and NAB had concluded their arguments.

    In its verdict, the court on Monday directed Maryam to submit her passport with the court besides two surety bonds of Rs100 million each. The court also directed the PML-N leader to deposit Rs70 million separately with the court.

    According to her lawyer, bail has been granted on the merits of the case and not on humanitarian grounds.

    Maryam and her cousin Yousuf Abbas were arrested by NAB on August 8 in the CSM case. Later, on September 25, they were sent to jail on judicial remand by an accountability court in Lahore.

    NAB suspects PML-N president of involvement in money laundering through investments of variable heavy amounts being the main shareholder of the CSM. It has alleged that she was involved in money laundering with the help of some foreigners during the period of 1992-93, when Nawaz was the prime minister.

  • Sarfaraz sacked on PM Imran’s order: report

    Sarfaraz sacked on PM Imran’s order: report

    Pakistan cricket team’s wicket-keeper batsman and former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed was removed from his position on direct orders from Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, Cricket Pakistan reported.

    According to the details, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) wanted to retain Sarfaraz Ahmed in the same role till the T20 World Cup next year, however, Imran Khan was unhappy with him and forced the decision of his eventual removal.

    Not only this but PCB had earlier also blamed PM Imran for nullifying the No Objection Certificates (NOCs) granted to its players to feature in the upcoming T10 League.

    When players protested against the decision, they were told that the instruction had come from the PM’s office.

    Moreover, according to website ESPNcricinfo, PM Imran had instructed PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani to avoid the T10 League due to the involvement of Indian owners and financial benefactors. The same report cited a probable mutiny by the players in this regard as well.

    Reports further reveal that a PCB official leaked the news to media personnel so that the government could be blamed for the decision. The Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) is also unhappy with the attitude of the PCB on this matter.

    In this regard, the International Cricket Council (ICC) might also begin investigations to find out if the government is influencing PCB’s decisions.

  • VIDEO: ‘Gen Bajwa gifted Fazl a perfume after heated argument,’ Klasra claims

    VIDEO: ‘Gen Bajwa gifted Fazl a perfume after heated argument,’ Klasra claims

    Saying that a meeting did take place between Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, senior journalist and analyst Rauf Klasra has revealed further details of the encounter that some say “never took place”.

    A journalist affiliated with a private media outlet had last month quoted the army chief as telling Fazl that “there was no possibility of a minus-Imran Khan concept”.

    In the “important” meeting held ahead of JUI-F’s Azadi March, the journalist had claimed that Gen Bajwa “made it clear to Fazl that they wouldn’t permit destabilisation at a time when the regional situation was critical”.

    While some, including an ex-army official, had denied the claims regarding any meeting between the two, no official statements were made as the journalist claimed it was “common knowledge”.

    With Fazl going ahead with his anti-government protest, staging a sit-in in the federal capital and demanding Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s resignation, Rauf Klasra has two weeks later claimed that not only did the meeting take place, but it also saw a “heated exchange of words” between the COAS and the religio-political party chief.

    “Even though both sides state otherwise, it has been confirmed that the meeting did take place. Not only did it occur, but it was also marred by a heated argument as Maulana Sahib defied the army chief,” Klasra said in a video doing rounds over the internet.

    He claimed that Fazl refused to budge on his plans and the situation got tense enough for the army chief to gift him a perfume on his way out. “My sources say that Maulana was gifted a bottle of perfume to calm him down.”

    WATCH VIDEO:

    According to earlier claims, Gen Bajwa had reminded Fazl that he was a responsible political leader and must be aware that the regional situation was critical. “The situation on the border with India is volatile due to the Kashmir crisis and Afghanistan’s situation is also a source of trouble.”

    The army chief had reportedly also referred to Iran-Saudi Arabia affairs and told the JUI-F chief that it was not an appropriate time for staging the protest since the economy had been brought on the right track after herculean efforts within the country and abroad.