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Category: Politics

  • ‘Bohat si ghaltiyaan huvi hain’: Hamid Khan says Imran Khan confesses to blunders

    ‘Bohat si ghaltiyaan huvi hain’: Hamid Khan says Imran Khan confesses to blunders

    Senior lawyer and former Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Hamid Khan said that former Prime Minister Imran Khan confessed to committing blunders that cost PTI politically.

    Hamid revealed that he had met Khan at the latter’s request. Speaking on Geo News show ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’, Hamid said that former Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi had brought Imran’s message to him. He said he agreed to see Khan along with former core members of the PTI.

    “He showed up with an open heart and confessed that bohat si ghaltiyaan huvi hain [We have made a lot of mistakes]. And [these mistakes] have resulted in a loss for the party,” said Hamid.

    Hamid said that Khan had admitted that his (Hamid Khan’s) stance and struggle against the establishment’s political role was right. He said Imran Khan had also admitted that he (Imran Khan) should have given importance to his (Hamid Khan’s) reservations about Jahangir Tareen and Aleem Khan.

    Hamid said Khan also admitted that he was misled on Justice Qazi Faez Isa’s issue, adding that he had told Khan that the reference was a mistake because the judge was an honest man.

    Earlier in April, Khan had admitted that the filing of a presidential reference for the removal of Supreme Court’s Justice Qazi Faez Isa was a mistake.

  • Session delayed, middle-finger: Punjab budget session full of drama

    Session delayed, middle-finger: Punjab budget session full of drama

    A day-long drama was witnessed in the Punjab Assembly on Monday as Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi refused to conduct the session and allow the provincial budget to be presented. The Punjab Assembly’s budget session for the fiscal year 2022-23 was postponed till 1pm today. 

    Elahi demanded that the inspector general of police (IGP) first tender an apology to him and that all cases lodged against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) workers and parliamentarians be withdrawn.

    The provincial cabinet had earlier approved the Punjab government’s first budget of more than Rs3.226 trillion for the next fiscal year.

    The budget session was scheduled to begin at 2pm yesterday (June 13) but it started after several hours of delay. Once it started, the Opposition benches protested the presence of Punjab government spokesperson Attaullah Tarar in the assembly, as he is not an MPA. 

    “We will not let the budget be presented till [Chief Minister] Hamza Shehbaz is present in the House, while the inspector-general and chief secretary are sitting in the gallery,” the Opposition said.

    Punjab Assembly Speaker Pervaiz Elahi demanded the guards escort Tarar out of the assembly and adjourned the session for 10 minutes.

    Elahi said that if Tarar was not out of the building within 10 minutes, he would adjourn the session till tomorrow.

    After the break, Tarar exited the assembly in “protest”. He also showed his middle finger before leaving the Punjab Assembly.

    He also ‘apologised’ for the incident on Twitter. “[The] speaker sent this force toward me to oust me from the house unconstitutionally. This attempt failed. I decided to leave the House in the interest of the public but as I was leaving expletives were used against me. In response, I turned to the opposition benches. If anyone was hurt by this, I am sorry. I was wrong,” he wrote.

  • Karachi police manhandled 28 protesters for Baloch missing students, major outrage

    Karachi police manhandled 28 protesters for Baloch missing students, major outrage

    Karachi police on Monday manhandled and detained 28 protesters, including females, who were demonstrating near the main gate of the Sindh Assembly against the ‘missing’ Baloch students of the University of Karachi (KU).

    Doda Baloch and Ghamshad Baloch —two students of KU — were allegedly taken away from their home near Maskan Chowrangi in Gulshan-i-Iqbal on June 7 and their whereabouts are unknown since then.

    Earlier in the day, Shayhaq Ellahi and HudaHair Ellahi, siblings of Doda, had tweeted that their brother and his friend had been “safely released”. Shayhaq also posted photographs of the pair, reports Dawn.

    https://twitter.com/HudaHair_Ellahi/status/1536492066187902983?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1536492066187902983%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dawn.com%2Fnews%2F1694772
    Protest outside Sindh Assembly

    Relatives of the missing Baloch students and members of civil society organisations had set up a camp outside the Karachi Press Club (KPC) for the last four days. On Sunday night, they reached the Sindh Assembly’s main gate.

    Videos of the police can be seen where the protesters are being dragged and manhandled by the Sindh police.

    South-Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) Asad Raza while speaking with Dawn said that the police detained 19 men and nine women as they tried to enter the assembly building on Monday. The officer denied that protesters were treated roughly. He added that female police officers had detained female protesters.

    The protest organisers accused the police of manhandling women and children. They said the Sindh police had retracted their promise of arranging a meeting of the missing students’ relatives with Counter Terrorism Department officials on Monday. Therefore, they said, they again staged a sit-in near the Sindh Assembly building where the police manhandled and arrested protesters.

    Twitterati reacted to the barbarism of the police.

  • ‘No MoU on wheat and oil with Khan’s govt’: Russian ambassador to Pak

    ‘No MoU on wheat and oil with Khan’s govt’: Russian ambassador to Pak

    Danila Ganich, Russia’s ambassador to Pakistan, has said that in his opinion the Russian visit could have been “one of the factors” for the removal of former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan from power but added that it was a sheer coincidence that Khan happened to be in Russia the day the Ukraine war broke out.

    “I think that was one of the factors but I also know that it was a sheer coincidence that he happened to be in Moscow on that very day,” said Ganich when asked if Khan’s government was removed from power because of his visit to Russia in an interview with Aaj News‘ senior anchorperson Shaukat Piracha.

    “The proof of that is just the fact that he was in Moscow on that very day, had he known that the operation would start on that very day, definitely he would have tried to refrain from being there on that very day. So that was a coincidence.”

    “As an ambassador of a foreign country I prefer not to interfere in your internal affairs.”

    “I do know that Pakistani [authorities] concluded that there was no conspiracy. So here I would like to say period. I cannot take sides here, especially when your judge concluded that there was no conspiracy,” said Ganich.

    Ganich said that Russia and Pakistan did not conclude any memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Khan’s claims that Russia had agreed to sell both wheat and oil at a 20 per cent and 30 per cent discount to Pakistan due to the efforts of his government.

    “I can confirm that we did not conclude any MoU,” the ambassador revealed. “As for what kind of discounts could have been offered [on oil and wheat], I cannot comment on this, as these are confidential negotiations.”

    Earlier, Russian Counsel General in Karachi, Andrey Fedorov said that a proposal was discussed between the two parties, while categorically denying that any letter was written by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government to Russia, reported Samaa News.

    Finance Minister Miftah Ismail in an interview with CNN’s Becky Anderson refuted Khan’s claims that Russia has not offered a 30 per cent discount on oil or wheat.

    Miftah further said that even though a letter was written by former minister Hammad Azhar, Russia did not respond to the letter.

    Former premier Khan recently said that during his time in power, the PTI government had signed an agreement with Russia to buy cheap oil and wheat. Adding that his government remained in power Pakistan would not have to face the petrol bomb.

  • Farah Gogi, husband were residents of PM House in Bani Gala

    Farah Gogi, husband were residents of PM House in Bani Gala

    Farah Khan and her husband Ahsan Jameel Gujjar were treated as residents of former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s house in Bani Gala, which was declared the official PM House during his tenure, reports The News.

    The records for 44 months showed that Farah alias Gogi and Gujjar’s visits to Bani Gala were not recorded in the registers maintained by the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Special Branch. The Special Branch of Islamabad Police controls the entry and exit points of PM House as part of the security provided to the PM.

    According to The News, the Special Branch officers revealed that Farah Khan and Ahsan Jameel Gujjar were among the most frequent visitors to Bani Gala.

    However, the entry of Gogi and Gujjar was never recorded as the Special Branch had been instructed to treat the couple as “residents of the PM House since they were part of the family”.

    A record of all visitors to PM House is maintained by the PM’s secretarial staff. This record is kept in a register and includes the names and vehicle numbers of all visitors. This policy applies to all visiting ministers, members of parliament, politicians, government officials, and private persons.

    Farah Khan and her husband were known as close family friends of former PM Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Khan. In April, former Punjab senior minister Abdul Aleem Khan alleged that Farah Khan was involved in massive corruption. Gogi is also accused of having great influence on the official matters in Islamabad and the Punjab government.

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz dubbed Farah Khan the “mother of all scandals” and also accused her of receiving huge amounts of money for transfers and postings. “I dare to name Farah, a friend of Bushra Bibi who is involved in receiving millions of rupees in transfers and postings and these are directly connected to Banigala,” said Maryam Nawaz.

  • Army denies taking action against officers after Maryam Nawaz’s speech

    Army denies taking action against officers after Maryam Nawaz’s speech

    The Pakistan Army has revoked all the post-retirement benefits, including pensions and free medical coverage, for five retired army officers for their involvement in anti-army campaign.

    One ex-major general’s name is also included in the list. Action against these officials was conducted last month following legal procedures and allowing the ex-servicemen a chance to defend themselves.

    “The GHQ had proceeded against the five retired officers at least two weeks before Maryam spoke on the issue,” said one of the sources while denying the statements of some YouTubers who are connecting the military action against with a recent statement of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz.

    According to the source, the military expects the government to take action against individuals who defame the military.

    “The social media reports of 150 ex-servicemen facing the action are totally incorrect,” the source added.

  • There should be no hindrance in Musharraf’s return to Pakistan: Khawaja Asif

    There should be no hindrance in Musharraf’s return to Pakistan: Khawaja Asif

    Defence Minister Khawaja Asif in a tweet has said that there should be no hindrance in former military dictator General (retd) Pervez Musharraf’s return, if he wants to come back to Pakistan.

    “In view of his health condition, there should be no hindrance in the return of Pervez Musharraf to the country,” tweeted Khawaja Asif. “Events of the past should not stand [in his way to come back].”

    “May he spend his time with dignity in this phase of life,” added the defence minister.

    Rumours of Musharraf’s death started circulating on social media on Friday. However, his family clarified that Gen Musharraf is not on a ventilator but has been unwell, stating that he is “going through a difficult stage where recovery is not possible”.

    On December 17, 2019, a special court found Musharraf guilty of high treason and sentenced him to death under Article 6 of the Constitution in a 2–1 split verdict.

    However, in January 2020, the Lahore High High Court (LHC) overturned the death sentence handed down to Musharraf.

  • Imran Khan responsible for the chaos during PTI’s long March: Islamabad Police

    Imran Khan responsible for the chaos during PTI’s long March: Islamabad Police

    The Islamabad Police, Chief Commissioner Islamabad and the interior secretary submitted their report regarding the Supreme Court’s (SC) order violation by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders during the long march. The report submitted on Friday by the Islamabad Police stated that PTI Chairman Imran Khan caused disorder in the federal capital during his party’s “Azadi March”, which took place on May 25.

    The federal police further told the top court on Friday that Khan had directed protesters to enter the Red Zone despite a judicial order to hold the jalsa in H-9 ground. No PTI member went there because in a video message, PTI Chairman Imran Khan instructed his party workers to reach D-Chowk.

    “The PTI Chairman Imran Khan told his workers to reach the D-Chowk in a video message. The police and law enforcers made every effort to stop the protesters but they advanced removing all containers and barriers on the night between May 25 and 26,” the report stated.

    Islamabad Inspector-General (IG) Akbar Nasir Khan also attached video evidence and tweets of the PTI leaders with their report.

    The report says that the PTI supporters managed to remove containers and barriers as PTI leaders Fawad Chaudhry, Zartaj Gul, Saifullah Niazi and Imran Ismail kept provoking them.

    Earlier, the SC sought a report from law enforcement within seven days. The top court also directed the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and other authorities to submit a report before the court explaining whether the judiciary’s orders were violated on May 25 during the long march.

    On June 1st, SC gave its majority judgment after a petition was filed by the Islamabad High Court Bar Association under Article 184(3) of the Constitution in anticipation of a protest march into Islamabad by the workers of the (PTI) on May 25, the federal government had blocked highways to and roads within the Capital to prevent entry and movement of the protestors.

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial observed that Pakistani citizens have the right to move and assemble anywhere within the country under Articles 15, 16 and 17 of the Constitution of Pakistan. He also warned the government against any illegal arrests and raids.

    However, during the hearing, Attorney-General (AG) Ashtar Ausaf Ali claimed that the PTI workers and supporters moved forward to D-Chowk after their leader [Imran Khan] asked them to.

    In its majority judgment, the top court stated: “It is apparent that the assurances conveyed to the court by the learned counsel for the top leadership of the PTI may have been dishonoured by the workers/supporters/sympathisers of the party by proceeding to the D-Chowk in the Red Zone area and by allegedly committing acts of arson and destruction of public and private properties on the way. However, we note that in the early morning today Mr Imran Khan reached Jinnah Avenue leading to D-Chowk and announced the postponement of his sit-in at Islamabad for six days. As a result, further damage to property or injury to human life has been averted.”

    The judgment also added, “there is no evidence or allegation that such acts were committed on the instigation of any party or happened randomly.”

    “At its most elementary level, the PTI leader appears to have assured the holding of a political rally at the G-9/H-9 ground and therefore not to assemble and sit in another venue including at D-Chowk in G-5 Islamabad.”

    ’ Not withstanding the said request by the AGP, we exercise restraint for the time being for several reasons’: SC

    The court also said it was “disappointed” to note that riots took place in the federal capital despite its order to create a balance between both sides, PTI and the government.

    The court further added that peaceful protest is a constitutional right but PTI could have done it with the permission of the state. As long as sanctions under Articles 15 and 16 are inevitable, the right to protest cannot be restrained without legal, reasonable grounds.

    However, Justice Yahya Afridi wrote a dissenting note. He quoted Khan’s statement after the court order: “Wherever Pakistanis are, there is good news: the Supreme Court has issued an order that there will be no hurdles and no one will be arrested. This is why I want all Pakistanis to come out of their homes today evening; people in Islamabad and Rawalpindi should try their best to reach D-Chowk because I will reach there within one-and-a-half-hour.”

    Justice Afridi said that there is sufficient material before the court to proceed against Khan “for the alleged disobedience of the court order which warrants the issuance of notice by this court to Mr Imran Khan to explain why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against him.”

  • ‘Why would I harm my family business’?: PM Shehbaz, CM Hamza get pre-arrest bails

    A special court in Lahore granted pre-arrest bails to Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif and his son Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Hamza Shehbaz in a Rs16 billion money laundering case registered against them by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

    The court asked both PM Shehbaz and CM Hamza to pay Rs1 million in surety bonds, each within seven days.

    Both the PM and his son CM Hamza appeared before the court on Saturday.

    During the hearing, the court asked Shehbaz if he has no ownership of Ashiana Housing Scheme and Ramzan Sugar Mills, to which the PM replied, “I have no stake in either.”

    PM Shehbaz asked: “Why would I engage in corruption and money laundering and harm the family business?”

    He said the Federal Investigative Agency (FIA) was provided with all the facts verbally. “I faced countless hearings and trials. The FIA was admonished for not presenting a challan. I believe the FIA was preparing for an arrest, hence the challan was delayed,” he added.

    “The entire case is built on lies and will be buried,” PM Shehbaz further said during the hearing.

    PM Shehbaz’s attorney Amjad Pervez stated that the fact that both of them [Shehbaz and Hamza] had previously been interrogated in jail by the FIA was sufficient proof for their bail.

    He said, “The case has been ongoing for more than a year and now we discover that the suspects were not made part of the inquiry.”

    Last year, the FIA submitted a challan against Shehbaz and Hamza to the special court for their alleged involvement in a money laundering case.

    The report said that the amount was kept in “hidden accounts” and “given to Shehbaz in a personal capacity”.

  • ‘Azadi March’: Anti-Terrorism Court grants interim bail to Shafqat Mahmood, Hammad Azhar, Yasmin Rashid

    ‘Azadi March’: Anti-Terrorism Court grants interim bail to Shafqat Mahmood, Hammad Azhar, Yasmin Rashid

    An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Lahore on Friday approved interim bails of top leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in Punjab after it issued non-bailable arrest warrants for them over alleged vandalism and damage of property on May 25, during the Azadi March.

    The ATC had issued non-bailable arrest warrants for the PTI leaders earlier. According to the court order issued Thursday, investigating officer Muhammad Saleem had requested the issuance of non-bailable arrest warrants for PTI leaders Mian Akram Usman, Muhammad Zubair Khan Niazi, Imtiaz Mehmood Sheikh, Mian Mehmood ur Rasheed, Mian Shafqat Mahmood, Malik Nadeem Abbas, Murad Raas, Mian Aslam Iqbal, Yasir Gilani, Dr Yasmin Rashid, Hammad Azhar, Andleeb Abbas, and Ijaz Chaudhry.

    PTI leaders whose warrants had been issued reached out to the court for interim bails. The court, after accepting their pleas, directed each of the petitioners to submit Rs100,000 as the surety against bails.

    Former energy minister Hammad Azhar said that Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz want to make this country a “police fascist state”.

    “A criminal [lady] issues directives from PM House to include sections pertaining to terrorism. I ask: where are the law and Constitution?”

    Hammad warned that the country would become a “police fascist state” if the law and Constitution don’t raise their voice today.

    “All these people standing with me are respectable citizens of society. They are not terrorists,” said Hammad.

    Last month, the Punjab Police had registered a total of 42 criminal cases against PTI’s senior leaders and workers for alleged agitation in the aftermath of the Azadi March held on May 25.

    However, PTI Chairman Imran Khan admitted that during the Azadi March, PTI protesters were carrying weapons with them. 

    “Our people had pistols on them too. I was afraid that the country will now face riots,” Khan told anchorperson Moeed Pirzada while speaking on 92 News‘ political talk show ‘Hard Talk’.