Current Final

Category: Politics

  • ‘Rana, rethink decision’, PPP tells govt not to lodge case on Masjid-e-Nabwi incident

    ‘Rana, rethink decision’, PPP tells govt not to lodge case on Masjid-e-Nabwi incident

    Federal Minister for Water Resources Syed Khursheed Ahmed Shah has said that cases against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) should not have been lodged in Pakistan.

    According to Shah, action should only be taken against the people who took the law into their hands in Pakistan. He added that if somebody had shown disrespect to the sacred place, only Allah and His Prophet (PBUH) would punish him for that.

    Shah further said that Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah should rethink the issue seriously. However, the interior minister defended the registration of cases against PTI leaders.

    In a tweet, Sanaullah said that there was no justification to not register a case against those who violate the sanctity of Roza-e-Rasool.

    Pilgrims were instigated under a plan, the minister said, adding that some of the people had travelled to Saudi Arabia from Britain. “There can be no forgiveness for what these people have done,” he said.

    Talking about the ongoing protest led by PTI Chairperson Imran Khan, Shah said that we will never object to Khan’s democratic right to protest.

    “Whoever wishes to bring millions of people in long march should not be barred and protesters should not be arrested for taking part in a peaceful protest. The government should be careful while issuing statements about PTI’s long march. It should take decisions with consensus as we are their partners in the coalition government,” added Shah.

    Last week, Faisalabad police registered a case under ‘blasphemy laws’ against the PTI chairman and over 150 others following the Masjid-e-Nabwi incident.

    Top leaders of the PTI and Imran’s close associates, including Fawad Chaudhry, Shahbaz Gill, Qasim Suri, Sahibzada Jahangir, Aneel Musarrat as well as Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed and his nephew Sheikh Rasheed Shafiq were nominated.

  • ‘Gadhay par lines bana kar woh zebra nahin ban jaata’, Khan on Pakistan vs England

    ‘Gadhay par lines bana kar woh zebra nahin ban jaata’, Khan on Pakistan vs England

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairperson Imran Khan revealed that he was aware that his government was in danger since July 2021 and as a result didn’t want the then Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Lt-General Faiz Hameed to be changed.

    “I wanted him to continue serving as the director-general of the ISI during the difficult winter season when the fallout of the Afghan infighting was imminent.”

    “I was aware of a possible civil war in Afghanistan last summer. I was afraid of the fallout in Pakistan as an aftermath of the possible war on Afghan soil. I didn’t want the ISI chief to be changed before winter, as it was a difficult time,” said Khan. “I was aware that the PML-N was planning to remove me. I was aware of their plans since last July so I didn’t want our intelligence chief changed.”

    Khan accused his former aides Jahangir Khan Tareen and Aleem Khan of seeking illegal benefits from him. He further revealed that the differences were developed among them when he refused to do what they asked for.

    Khan made these comments in a podcast on Thursday.

    The former prime minister said, “Aleem Khan expected me to legalise his 300-acre land near Ravi”.

    “I developed differences with Aleem after this. Their cases were in NAB and his name was in Pandora Papers as well.”

    Commenting on Tareen, Khan said that his problem was the sugar crisis.

    While responding to another question about his party’s ties with the establishment, Imran rubbished speculation that he wanted Lt-Gen Faiz Hameed to be the next army chief.

    “You don’t replace an intelligence chief during difficult circumstances,” he said.

    Khan also said that, unlike Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif, he never wanted to control the army as he had a ‘clean record’ and didn’t fear anyone.

    Khan also commented that he was welcomed in British society but he never considered England his home because he is a Pakistani. Giving an example that if one draws lines on a donkey it doesn’t become a zebra. A donkey remains a donkey.

  • ‘Gill tried to paint Motorway accident as murder’: Police

    ‘Gill tried to paint Motorway accident as murder’: Police

    Police arrested driver Wajahat Ali, whose car hit Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Dr Shahbaz Gill on M2 Motorway, ruling out allegations of a “planned attempt to target” him.

    As per Geo News, the Motorway Police said that the incident took place due to the negligence of Wajahat Ali and added that there was no planned attempt to harm Shahbaz Gill.

    “Gill tried to paint the incident as a murder attempt and did propaganda. After the driver’s interrogation and investigation of the crash site, it can be concluded that it was an accident,” said the police.

    A day earlier, Dr Shahbaz Gill sustained injuries in a vehicle accident on Thursday on the M2 Motorway.

    The PTI leader had claimed that it was an attempt to murder him in which a vehicle chased and hit his vehicle deliberately. 

    The former special assistant to ex-prime minister Imran Khan was travelling to Islamabad from Lahore. According to reports, Motorway Police officials arrived on the scene.

    Journalist Khawar Ghumman tweeted a video of the accident vehicle: “Initial evidence suggests his vehicle had been hit deliberately. Let’s see and wait what does motorway police say about the incident.”

  • Shireen Mazari urges UN to stop Govt from misusing blasphemy law against PTI

    Shireen Mazari urges UN to stop Govt from misusing blasphemy law against PTI

    Former Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shireen Mazari wrote a special letter to United Nations (UN) to stop the Pakistani government from misusing blasphemy law against former Prime Minister (PM) PM Imran Khan and his party leaders.

    According to Dawn, the letter has been addressed to the UN’s special rapporteur on extrajudicial summary or arbitrary executions, special rapporteur on the freedom of opinion and expression, and special rapporteur on the freedom of religion and belief.

    The letter states that the country had been engulfed in a political crisis since PTI was ousted in the aftermath of [which PTI claims] is “regime change scheme” and replaced with a government led by Shehbaz Sharif, who has been named in “multiple money-laundering and corruption cases and is out on bail”.

    In the letter, Mazari pointed out major human rights violations conducted against Khan.

    “One: A complete blackout of media coverage by state-owned media as well as almost all private channels through a carrot (advertisements) and stick (establishment). In this connection, the government-controlled PTCL, which provides cable connections to cable operators, has denied this access to any private channel seen covering Khan’s massive rallies.”

    The second violation highlighted by Mazari was the registration of blasphemy cases against PTI leader in connection with the Masjid-e-Nabwi incident.

    According to her, it was not a planned incident. “To use the Madina incident as an excuse to file charges of blasphemy means endangering lives of Imran and party’s leadership,” the former minister wrote.

    She informed that one member of the NA from the PTI-allied party is already under custody on blasphemy charges.

    Last week, Faisalabad police registered a case under ‘blasphemy laws’ against the PTI chairman and over 150 others following the Masjid-e-Nabwi incident.

    Top leaders of the PTI and Imran’s close associates, including Chaudhry, Gill, Suri, Sahibzada Jahangir, Aneel Musarrat as well as Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and his nephew Sheikh Rashid Shafiq were nominated.

    The complainant— Muhammad Naeem, a resident of Faisalabad alleged the Masjid-e-Nabwi episode was a “planned and thought-out conspiracy” and supported his claims by referring to videos and speeches made by certain PTI leaders.

  • Imran Khan reveals what makes Bushra Bibi angry

    Imran Khan reveals what makes Bushra Bibi angry

    Former Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday appeared in an interview with actor Shaan Shahid on Hum New. During the interview, Imran Khan also talked about his wife Bushra Bibi.

    “It is because of Bushra Begum that my guests get such a warm welcome in my residence nowadays. Long ago, I remember an incident when I used to stay alone. The American ambassador was coming to my house so I asked my attendant to get something to eat. He brought a packet of biscuits and didn’t even bother taking out the biscuits from the packet and served tea with biscuits in a packet,” Imran Khan said.

    Imran Khan added that Bushra Bibi gets angry if he does not serve his guests well now.

    During the interview, Khan revealed that he has not seen his sons Suleiman Isa Khan and Qasim Khan in 2.5 years because of the pandemic.

    He also claimed that the Sharif family is preparing to launch a campaign against him after Eid. Khan said that that the Sharifs had also made further preparations and “made videos” similar to the ones of former Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar and late Judge Arshad Malik.

  • Videos being prepared for my character assassination, says Khan

    Videos being prepared for my character assassination, says Khan

    Former Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday claimed that the Sharif family is preparing to launch a campaign against him after Eid.

    Expressing his views during an interview with actor Shaan Shahid on Hum News, Khan said, “Now that Eid is over, you will see they [Sharif family] are fully prepared for my character assassination. They have hired companies that are readying the material.”

    “I had to face mafias, the biggest of which is the Sharif mafia […] they always attack on a personal level because they are indulging in corruption for the past 35 years. When someone [points out] their corruption, they attack a person’s character,” said Khan.

    “Instead of responding to the theft of billions of rupees, the Sharif family will focus on immorality,” Khan said, adding that they had previously pursued a fake case against his ex-wife Jemima Goldsmith.

    “What was Jemima’s crime? She was my wife. Now they have Farah Khan because she is close to Bushra Bibi,” he added.

    He went on to say that the Sharifs had also made further preparations and “made videos” similar to the ones of former Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar and late Judge Arshad Malik.

    “This is mafia style. I only want the nation to understand that if you want to smear anyone’s name, there are companies that can help you achieve this.”

    He added that the PTI had announced its long march to Islamabad by the end of May due to which the Sharifs wanted to lower his respect in the eyes of the public and assassinate his character.

    He added that 60 per cent of the federal cabinet was out on bail. “The father (Shehbaz) is on bail and so is the son (Hamza). Maryam is also out on bail and Nawaz Sharif has been convicted [while] his sons have fled abroad. So what [other] defence will they have?”

    He said that in a democracy, they were required to give an answer for the allegations levelled against them. “You can’t come up in any democracy if you are out on bail; you can’t get any position.”

  • Govt considering suspending Nawaz Sharif’s sentence

    Govt considering suspending Nawaz Sharif’s sentence

    Interior minister Rana Sanaullah said that the federal government is considering suspending former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s sentence.

    During an exclusive interview with Samaa News’ correspondent Asim Naseer, Rana Sana said that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif was convicted on wrong grounds. “An innocent man has been wrongly accused, he [Nawaz Sharif] should be granted the opportunity to plead his case before a court,” the minister added.

    He also stated that the government has the authority to commute, decrease, or postpone the sentence of anyone.

    Sanaullah added that the PML-N chief should be involved in the next election campaign, while Maryam Nawaz would be in charge of leading it.

    In 2019, courts granted Nawaz permission to leave the country for medical treatment on the condition that he would return to Pakistan as soon as the treatment was completed to fulfill his ten-year sentence.

  • Sheikh Rasheed says PML-N wants to kill him

    Sheikh Rasheed says PML-N wants to kill him

    Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed on Sunday alleged that PML-N leaders are plotting his assassination and are also attempting to disrupt Imran Khan’s planned long march to Islamabad.

    Rasheed said his life is in danger because the Sharif family and other PML-N leaders want to get rid of him.

    “I have registered a case against seven people at the secretariat police station as my life is in danger,” he said. “I have also written a letter to the top five institutions of Pakistan in which I have stated that if anything happens to me, then these seven individuals, including Nawaz Sharif, Shehbaz Sharif, Hamza Shehbaz, and Rana Sanaullah, must be questioned,” added Sheikh Rasheed.

    He also said Rana Sanaullah is pushing the country into a civil war, and he should be stopped.

    “How could they make this lunatic person the interior minister of the country,” he said. “This man only wants bloodshed.”

  • Pakistan, UAE reaffirm commitment to further strengthen bilateral relations

    Pakistan, UAE reaffirm commitment to further strengthen bilateral relations

    Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) reaffirmed their commitment to expanding their bilateral trade and economic ties.

    The agreement was struck during a meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi.

    PM Shehbaz Sharif met with the UAE dignitary to discuss the opportunities for advancing cooperation as well as a variety of bilateral, regional, and international concerns.

    PM Shehbaz Sharif was warmly welcomed by the UAE crown prince ahead of their meeting at the royal palace, Qasr-e Al-Shatie.

    During the meeting, the crown prince congratulated PM Shehbaz Sharif on his election as Pakistan’s leader and wished him well in his new role. He also expressed his best wishes for Pakistan’s ongoing success and prosperity.

    The prime minister expressed gratitude to the UAE for its longstanding support to Pakistan both bilaterally and multilaterally.

    He also noted the humanitarian projects implemented in Pakistan under the UAE-Pakistan Assistance Programme, as well as the UAE’s critical support during the Covid-19 pandemic.

    The two leaders also talked about regional and international challenges. They agreed to keep in regular contact on all areas of common interest and to coordinate views at multilateral venues such as the United Nations and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

  • No more load shedding in Pakistan from today: Ministry of Energy

    No more load shedding in Pakistan from today: Ministry of Energy

    After long hours of power outages across Pakistan in the month of Ramzan, the Ministry of Energy has announced that power load-shedding has been reduced to zero from 5am today (Monday).

    In a tweet, the ministry said, “As per the promise made by Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, load shedding in the country has been reduced to zero from 5am on May 1. The ministry has worked hard to add more than 2500 Megawatt of additional power to the national grid system.”

    “The ministry is constantly striving for uninterrupted power supply during the Eid holidays and beyond”, the tweet further said.

    In April, PM Shehbaz took notice of the situation and directed the concerned departments to reduce power outages by May 1. He said until the problem is resolved, he would not leave for China and would not allow anyone to relax.

    Last month, due to higher demand and reduced generation due to fuel shortages and reduced gas supplies to power plants, Pakistan experienced 6-10 hours of electricity load-shedding in various areas.

    As of April 25, generation was 17,976 Megawatt (MW), compared to the demand of almost 21,000 MW, indicating a significant discrepancy between demand and generation.