Current Final

Category: Politics

  • Gen Bajwa says he will retire in November

    Gen Bajwa says he will retire in November

    Putting months of speculation to rest, Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has reiterated his promise to leave office after completing his second three-year term in November, adding that he would fulfil the pledge he made earlier.

    The army chief made these remarks at a lunch at the Pakistan Embassy in Washington.

    The COAS also stated that the armed forces have distanced themselves from politics and want to stay out of it in the future as well.

    “There can be no diplomacy without a strong economy,” said the army chief stressing that restoration of the ailing economy of the country should be the priority of every stakeholder of the society.

    After the lunch, Gen Bajwa went to the Pentagon for a meeting with US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin.

    According to the ISPR, Gen Bajwa called on retired General Lloyd James Austin III, Secretary of Defence; Jacob Jeremiah Sullivan, National Security Adviser; and Wendy Ruth Sherman, Deputy Secretary of State.

    The army chief arrived in the US on September 30 and met with UN officials in New York.

    General Bajwa is heading a delegation that will stay in the US for another couple of days, diplomatic sources said, terming the visit an important one that portrayed “robust relations” between the two countries.

  • ‘Nawaz Sharif ka rasta ab saaf hai’: Maryam Nawaz hints at her father’s return

    ‘Nawaz Sharif ka rasta ab saaf hai’: Maryam Nawaz hints at her father’s return

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz hinted that her father, PML-N supremo and former Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif, might soon return to Pakistan.

    Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Maryam said, “Nawaz Sharif ka rasta ab saaf hai, sirf ab aik application deni hai court mei.” (The path to his return is clear now. All we have to do is submit an application in court.)

    The PML-N leader also revealed that now that she had received her passport, she would soon visit her father in London.

    “I am happy today that I have received my passport, but I would like to ask why I was deprived of my fundamental right for three years,” the PML-N leader asked.

    Taking a jibe at Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, Maryam told the judiciary that it should not be lenient with a person like him who thinks like “satan” and whose only job is to blame people and launch smear campaigns.

    The PML-N leader said Khan went to the court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry to apologise as he was aware that if he didnt do it, then he could be disqualified.

    “Was Zeba asked whether she wants to forgive him or not? Do you [courts] know what kind of precedent are you setting?” she said.

    Maryam noted that since Khan has been forgiven, the contempt cases against PML-N party leaders Talal Chaudhry, Daniyal Aziz, and Nehal Hashmi should also be disposed of.

    Referring to the misplacement of US cipher allegedly linked to Khan’s ouster, Maryam said that she is “At a loss of words” at the PTI chairman’s carelessness.

    “This wasn’t a record of a diamond ring that you misplaced or the record of the dollars that you took in the foreign funding case. It was Pakistan’s property,” she lashed out.

  • ‘Our intelligence agencies are making people feel threatened’: Khan

    ‘Our intelligence agencies are making people feel threatened’: Khan

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has said that intelligence agencies should reconsider what they are engaging in.

    “Our intelligence agencies should think about what they are engaging in. They are making people feel threatened,” he said. Addressing the agencies during an interview on Channel 92, the former Prime Minister said that “political engineering” was not in their job description and that they were tasked to keep the country safe.

    Khan claimed that state secrets have been leaked to the country’s enemies, citing an alleged breach of the secure line at Prime Minister’s Office.

    “Secrets of the state have been leaked to our enemies. There has been a violation of the security line of the Prime Minister’s Office. The security agencies must be questioned about who is responsible for this,” he said during an interview with a private television channel.

    ‘They [government] should first ask the Foreign Office about the cipher’s master copy’: Khan

    Khan said that the master copy of the infamous cipher is lying in the Foreign Office.

    “They [government] should first ask the Foreign Office about the cipher’s master copy,” the former premier stated, adding that the master copy first arrives at the FO and its copies are then sent to the Prime Minister’s house, president, and the chief of army staff.

    “What cipher are they talking about which has been stolen?” Khan questioned the government, stressing that they “initially lied” that there was no cipher.

    He added that President Arif Alvi sent the cipher’s copy to Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial and that his party had sent one copy to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Asad Qaiser.

    ‘No one will be able to guess what will happen, what we’ll do’: Khan

    “We have planned more events after this. No one will be able to guess what will happen, what we’ll do. [I’ve] just shared the details with four to five closest people,” he said.

    “Our discussions get leaked, our phones get taped. It seems like I’m a traitor,” the former premier said, claiming that his servants are being paid to leak information.

  • ‘Irresponsible’: Fawad Chaudhry lashes out at govt after Miftah-Ishaq clash

    ‘Irresponsible’: Fawad Chaudhry lashes out at govt after Miftah-Ishaq clash

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhry took to Twitter to comment on the conflict between new Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and his predecessor Miftah Ismail over the recent Rs12.63 per litre petrol price cut by the government.

    Chaudhry said, “The irresponsible and contradictory statements of Dar and Ismail have complicated matters further regarding the IMF programme”, adding that the federal government comprises of the “most idiotic team” in the country’s history.

    Fawad further stated that the economic team of the country is “totally confused”.

    The PTI leader claimed that “Their [govt] politics have been buried. If [the government] is working, it is working to end their NAB cases.”

    Earlier, former finance minister Ismail said that the government’s decision to not increase the Petroleum Development Levy (PDL) this month without International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) approval is “reckless”.

    While the incumbent finance minister Dar said, “I have to handle the International Monetary Fund (IMF), so from now on, neither Miftah nor anybody else has to worry about anything.”

    On September 26, Dar landed in Pakistan after five years and took the charge of the finance ministry right after Ismail’s resignation.

  • Chief Justice calls lifetime disqualification under Article 62(1)(f) a ‘draconian law’

    Chief Justice of Pakistan, (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial, has termed the lifetime disqualification of politicians under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution a “Draconian law”.

    “Article 62 (1)(f) is a draconian law and we will hear this case with caution and in detail,” the CJP remarked while hearing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Faisal Vawda’s appeal against his disqualification for life under the article.

    According to Article 62(1)(f), a person shall not be qualified to be elected or chosen as a member of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) “unless — he is sagacious, righteous, non-profligate, honest and ameen, there being no declaration to the contrary by a court of law”.

    The Article was previously used to disqualify Nawaz Sharif, the three-time former Prime Minister whose party is now holding power in the federal capital. Former PTI leader Jahangir Khan Tareen was also disqualified for life under the same article.

    Vawda had appealed to the top court to set aside the order of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in which he was handed out a lifetime disqualification.

    In February, ECP disqualified Vawda for hiding his United States (US) citizenship. Later, he approached Islamabad High Court (IHC), seeking the revocation of his lifetime disqualification, however, the court dismissed Vawda’s plea.

    Vawda has pleaded to Supreme Court that the ECP had cited no reason for invoking Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution to disqualify him for life. The commission appears to be under the impression that any person disqualified under Article 63(1)(c) — for having dual nationality — could automatically be penalised under Article 62(1)(f), he said.

    During the hearing on Tuesday (today), the CJP said, “The election commission has the right to investigate a false affidavit.”

    “Even if we set aside the ECP’s verdict, the facts will remain the same,” he added.

    “The question is whether or not the ECP can order disqualification for life,” Justice Bandial said.

    The hearing was later adjourned till October 6 (Thursday).

    It is pertinent to mention that in 2018 the Supreme Court declared that the disqualification under 62(1)(f) would be for life.

    Under this same article, both Nawaz Sharif and Imran Khan’s former close aide Tareen are currently disqualified for life.

  • Did Khan just confirm Bushra Bibi’s ‘prove them traitors’ audio leak is legit?

    Did Khan just confirm Bushra Bibi’s ‘prove them traitors’ audio leak is legit?

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan in the spur of the moment likely confirmed the audio leak in which his wife Bushra Bibi is allegedly instructing Khan’s former Focal Person for Digital Media, Dr Arslan Khalid, to run a campaign to ‘prove them traitors’.

    “From my house, [Bani Gala] from my secure line, Bushra Begum made a call to someone [Arsalan Khalid] that too was leaked,” said Khan while speaking with journalist Moeed Pirzada on 92 News.

    It is pertinent to mention here that in the alleged leaked audio, Bushra Bibi could be heard saying, “Khan Sahib told you to run a hashtag of treason. I have been getting calls from people that your social media was very active but after a week, it is not. You should have been very active nowadays.”

    She also allegedly said that former PTI leader Aleem Khan and others will talk against her, her friend Farah and Imran Khan as well. “They will make so much fuss and they will also give testimonies of people but you don’t have to make any issue of it. Just link them all with treason,” says Bushra Bibi.

    “I am telling you, you don’t have to discuss this issue with anyone. They are after him [Imran Khan] because of this. But you have to link it with treason.”

    The former first lady allegedly asks Khalid to direct his team to take up the issue of the government not buying oil from Russia and link it with how Imran Khan was being betrayed.

    “You cannot let this matter die down,” Bushra Bibi allegedly says to him, asking him to make a trend so people know that the country and Khan are being betrayed.

  • ‘Biggest liar on earth’: PM Shehbaz calls out his rival Imran Khan

    ‘Biggest liar on earth’: PM Shehbaz calls out his rival Imran Khan

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif has called Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan the “Biggest liar on earth”.

    In an interview with The Guardian, Shehbaz Sharif stated that Khan was responsible for injecting poison into society to “Dangerously polarise the electorate” after he was ousted from office earlier this year.

    Shehbaz termed Khan “A liar and a cheat” whose policies had left the economy in ruins. “Khan ran on an anti-corruption manifesto, of conducting the country’s affairs to suit his own personal agenda in a manner which can be only described as the most inexperienced, self-centred, egotistical, immature politician in the history of this country,” said the premier.

    Mincing no words while talking about the recent leaked audios, the Prime Minister said that they were “An irrefutable endorsement that he [Khan] is the biggest liar on the face of the earth. I’m not saying this with a sense of glee but a sense of embarrassment and concern. My country’s image has been been damaged hugely by these lies told out of mean personal interest.”

    Shehbaz said Khan had to be held accountable for these “conscious criminal acts”.

    The prime minister highlighted the significant challenges he has to deal with alongside Khan mobilising on the streets, building a narrative against the government.

    “Never before was I concerned about our country’s future,” stressed the PM, blaming Imran Khan for injecting “Ifinite amount of poison in this society and made it hugely polarised as never before … he is distorting facts and creating hate.”

    Discussing his brother Nawaz Sharif’s, involvement in government, Shehbaz Sharif was diplomatic. “Of course I consult Nawaz, he is my leader and my older brother,” he said. “But he has given me completely free rein to make decisions,”‘ he insisted.

    Commenting on Khan’s criticism of dynastic politics in Pakistan, the premier said, “It’s about competence: it’s about public support, it’s about people’s trust,” he said. “It’s not about dynasty.”

    Prime Minister Shehbaz also highlighted how several world leaders, who he [Shehbaz] refused to name, had personally raised questions on Khan’s conduct. “Some leaders told me in person about his personality,” said the PM. “They told me he was rude, he told lies and he is a ‘narcissist’, quote unquote.”

  • Brazil polls: Bolsanaro faces off against Lula in tough competition on October 30

    Brazil polls: Bolsanaro faces off against Lula in tough competition on October 30

    Brazil’s top two presidential candidates—incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva— will face each other again in a runoff vote on October 30 after neither of them got a clear majority.

    The polls released a day before the elections had predicted a 14 percentage point gap between Lula and Bolsonaro. However, Lula da Silva is ahead, as he had managed to gain 48.4 per cent of support while President Bolsonaro had 43.2 per cent. Nine other candidates were also competing.

    Bolsonaro had questioned polls that showed him losing to Lula in the first round, saying they did not capture the enthusiasm he saw on the campaign trail. He has also attacked the integrity of Brazil’s electronic voting system without evidence and suggested he might not concede if he lost.

    It is pertinent to mention that Lula could not run in the 2018 election because he was in prison after being convicted on corruption charges which were later annulled.

    Lula left the presidency 12 years ago with record popularity. His conviction was later overturned by the Supreme Court, allowing him to run again for president this year.

    Deforestation and forest fires have soared during President Bolsonaro’s time in office. Climate activists have warned that if he is re-elected, the area could reach a tipping point.

    His popularity has suffered since the coronavirus pandemic, which he called a “little flu” before Covid-19 killed 686,000 Brazilians.

    Voters now have four weeks to decide which of the two should lead the country.

  • ‘Is this a joke’ : PM Shehbaz refuses to inaugurate dashboard for monitoring of flood relief assistance

    ‘Is this a joke’ : PM Shehbaz refuses to inaugurate dashboard for monitoring of flood relief assistance

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif on Monday refused to inaugurate a dashboard built to monitor flood relief assistance, pointing out that it lacked real-time updates and was not of international standards.

    Visibly frustrated after finding inadequacies in the dashboard, the Prime Minister said, “If real-time information doesn’t arrive on this then it’s of no use. Then we are wasting each other’s time. I’m not going to inaugurate this today.”

    Terming the dashboard a “joke”, he asked for it to be trashed. “I’m not negating your effort but this is not the dashboard we all imagined. This is a stationary thing in which you fill in figures,” he opined.

    Federal Minister Ahsan Iqbal told the Premier that information on the portal could not be displayed in real-time because it was dependent on information from the provincial disaster management authorities.

    However, the premier cut the minister midway, “But sir […] you will find out who is providing the information and who is not […] at best, this can be called a static dashboard.”

    “But still, dashboards are a work in progress […],” Iqbal replied, trying once again to placate the prime minister. “They have developed a tool in a short time but as we go on more data will be uploaded,” Ahsan Iqbal stressed.

    “This (flood dashboard) is not something the nation or I want. It lacks in many ways [and] it is deficient to our requirement,” the prime minister insisted as he reprimanded the officials concerned.

    Shehbaz told the two federal ministers to take all the help they needed but develop a “world class” dashboard, adding that it would aid the government for decades to come, while any “makeshift” work would be of no benefit.

  • Khan, sorry, not sorry? Court dismisses contempt notice against Imran

    Khan, sorry, not sorry? Court dismisses contempt notice against Imran

    Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Athar Minallah on Monday dismissed a contempt notice against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan. The ontempt case against the PTI chief was initiated after his controversial remarks against Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Zeba Chaudhry at a public rally on August 20.

    A larger bench, headed by IHC Cheif Justice Athar Minallah and comprising Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, and Justice Babar Sattar, heard the case today.

    Talking to reporters after the hearing, Imran said: “Justice Athar Minallah has taken great decisions [in the past].” He also said that he would appear before the court if needed as he had done in the past.

    While announcing the verdict, the court discharged the contempt of court notice against Imran Khan.

    Following the court’s verdict, the PTI chief said that the court has taken a “great decision”.

    In response to the IHC verdict, PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz said that “fitna” has been forgiven.

    “The contempt was committed and in front of the entire world. So instead of saying that the case has been dismissed, it would be more appropriate to say that fitna has been forgiven,” Maryam wrote on Twitter.

    Khan submitted an affidavit to the IHC in a contempt of court case against him, saying he had realised he “Might have crossed a line” in his controversial remarks regarding Judge Zeba Chaudhry.

    However, it is pertinent to mention that, for the third time, Khan avoided tendering an unconditional apology to the court.