Current Final

Category: Politics

  • Shah Mehmood refuses to directly answer question about Biden not calling Khan, says it’s irrelevant

    Shah Mehmood refuses to directly answer question about Biden not calling Khan, says it’s irrelevant

    Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mahmood Qureshi, while speaking on Samaa News programme, revealed that talks of Pakistan with the President of United States (US) Joe Biden are now irrelevant.

    Speaking on ‘Nadeem Malik Live’, Qureshi said, “These talks with America have no weight, they are irrelevant.”

    Nadeem interjected and said that Pakistan does not want to talk to America, to which Qureshi said, “We will talk to them, whenever required we will talk to them [America]. When they need to talk to us, they do so.”

    “When we require we engage with them. When I was in New York I met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, we had a great meeting,” said Qureshi.

    Nadeem questioned Qureshi if the relationship between America and Pakistan had scaled down? Qureshi negating the question said, “No, the relationship has scaled up now.”

    “Why can’t you talk to Biden?” questioned Nadeem. “Biden as a personality has many institutions and has many channels of communication. Those channels of communications are open to us and we use them,” responded Qureshi.

    Later when Nadeem reminded him that there was a time when foreign office used to actively work to get a call for the sidelines of the United Nations (UN) assembly, now Qureshi was stating that the Biden call is irrelevant.

    Negating his previous statement, Qureshi said, “There is no harm in meeting Biden. But if he [Biden] thinks that he is busy with things and he might have is own preferences, so we have no hurry as well.”

    “Why has Biden kept us away from him as a policy, and has disengaged with us,” questioned Nadeem?

    “[Biden] can give the answer to this,” said Qureshi.

  • Interior Minister questioned on rising terrorism, didn’t brief parliament for nine months

    Interior Minister questioned on rising terrorism, didn’t brief parliament for nine months

    The Opposition senators questioned the Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed over the recent terrorist attacks in Islamabad and Lahore in today’s Senate session.

    Earlier this week, in a gun attack, a police officer was killed in the capital and the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility. Lahore was attacked on Thursday which claimed the lives of three civilians.

    Senator Raza Rabbani said that Baloch Nationalist Army (BNA) had claimed responsibility for one of the attacks while Rasheed said the TTP was behind it. The senator demanded that the minister be summoned to clear the confusion, reports Dawn.

    Several other senators including Pakistan Muslim-League’s (PML-N) sought a reply. One of them said that “he had not seen the interior minister in the House for any briefing during the last nine months.”

    Rasheed made a briefing and said that there are “special motives” behind the killing of the cop in Islamabad. However, about the Lahore tragedy, the minister stated that an investigation is underway. 

    Upon the Oppostion’s insistence of seeking an explanation from the government. Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani told the minister to brief the upper house in this regard and the steps taken by the government on Monday (January 24).

    After the capital incident, the minister had warned of more terrorist-related attacks. Previously in the past month, two terrorists allegedly belonging to the banned outfit TTP were arrested in Karachi.

  • PTI’s Dr Shahbaz Gill loses it when asked about his educational background

    PTI’s Dr Shahbaz Gill loses it when asked about his educational background

    Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Political Communication Dr Shahbaz Gill lost his cool when the credibility of his educational background was put into question during HUM News programme, ‘Breaking Point with Malick’.

     Anchorperson Mohammad Malick and Gill traded barbs while making personal attacks on each other.

    Malick and Gill’s argument revolved around the increasing inflation in Pakistan.

    Shahbaz Gill hit back at Malick saying that he is a journalist, not an economist. To which Malick questioned whether Shahbaz Gill is an economist or not.

    In response, Shahbaz Gill said he has done a PhD in Business from the University of Malaya. However, Malick took a dig at the university’s credibility claiming that it has a controversial status since there were talks that it is not a verified university.

    The personal attack did not sit well with Shahbaz Gill who said that Malick should leave journalism. Shahbaz Gill defended the university by saying that Malaysia’s Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad studied there.

    “That university is like Quaid-e-Azam University,” Dr. Shahbaz Gill said, highlighting its national importance in Malaysia. “You are giving a nonsense statement!”

    “If you’re talking about nonsense statements, then I think you are acting as a nonsense person,” Malick hit back. “You are being rude, look at your language, try saying ‘nonsense’ to your seniors in the party,” said Malick.

    Malick later said, “I hope the prime minister will teach his special assistants how to talk. We are hosts and on television, we cannot speak certain things due to professional obligations. This is not a Jalsa but a political talk show. I hope the ministers and special assistants of the government should have the patience and decency to answer questions in a decent manner.”

    We can give a lot of answers but we will not respond to insults,” said Malick.

    Gill took to Twitter and said, “If someone insults my school by calling it suspicious, then a harsh answer will be given back.”

    Later, Mohammad Malick tweeted that he misheard the university’s name.

    “Confusion arose when I misheard uni name and mistook it for another but that was a minor issue, the ugliness happened because of extreme aggressiveness of the gentleman and rowdy language,” said Malick.

    “Like I said, every conflicting opinion can be made without a conflict,” Malick tweeted.

  • Court allows PML-N’s Khawaja Asif to cross-examine PM Khan

    Court allows PML-N’s Khawaja Asif to cross-examine PM Khan

    The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has allowed Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) Khawaja Asif to cross-examine Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan with reference to the premier’s defamation case against him.

    During the hearing, headed by IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah, the civil court directed to conclude the proceedings within two months, states Dawn.

    Barrister Haider Rasool, the counsel for Asif argued that since 2012 his client had sought adjournment 28 times while the court adjourned the proceedings on PM’s request on nearly 50 occasions.

    The court observed that it was the defendant’s [Khawaja] right to cross-examine the PM.

    Earlier this year, the high court had sought a reply from the premier.

    Back in 2012, the premier had filed the defamation suit against Asif for recovery of Rs10 billion as the latter at a press conference levelled allegations about misappropriation of funds and money laundering through the Shaukat Khanam funds.

  • Did Maryam Nawaz gift a car worth 14 crore to son Junaid on his wedding?

    Did Maryam Nawaz gift a car worth 14 crore to son Junaid on his wedding?

    News reports have been circulating, stating that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice-President Maryam Nawaz gave a car worth 140 million (140 crore) to son Junaid Safdar as a wedding present.

    One of the news report stated, “Maryam Nawaz Gifts Junaid Safdar Rs 140 million Mercedes, Most expensive car to be registered in Punjab.”

    However, Maryam has denied the news reports. “This blatant lie is all over social media. It is disappointing how reputed accounts propagate fake news without verification,” she wrote in a tweet while sharing the screenshots of the news reports.

    Junaid Safdar tied the knot Last year in August. The wedding festivities of the couple took place in December 2021.

  • ‘They [PML-N] are mafias, always influence courts’: PM Khan

    ‘They [PML-N] are mafias, always influence courts’: PM Khan

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan on Thursday, lashing out at the Opposition, said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) are known for “using unfair tactics” to influence courts.

    While referring to the affidavit case of the former chief judge of Gilgit-Baltistan Rana Shamim, the prime minister said the PML-N generated the controversy of the affidavit to pressurise the court which was hearing the case of its leaders Shehbaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz.

    “They [PML-N leaders] are mafias and they always influence courts when they feel that they are about to decide their cases,” said the premier.

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Senator Faisal Javed informed the media that PM Khan had said that the Sharif family had again been exposed for trying to pressure the judiciary, reports The Express Tribune.


    “The PML-N has pressured courts in the past as well for making decisions in its favour. Everyone knows that the PML-N has a history of pressuring the judiciary” the senator quoted the prime minister as saying.

    “The Sharif family is fighting for its survival while we [PTI] are fighting the nation’s war,” said Javed.

    Talking to a group of spokespersons, the premier urged his spokespersons to vehemently counter “controversies” being created by Opposition leaders, especially in the media, reports Dawn.

  • ‘Establishment, Imran Khan are on same page, you fools’, Sheikh Rasheed refuses to take back statement

    ‘Establishment, Imran Khan are on same page, you fools’, Sheikh Rasheed refuses to take back statement

    Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed has revealed during a political talk show that he was asked to refute his statement that Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan is backed by the establishment.

    Last week during a press conference, while taking a jibe at the Opposition, Rasheed said, “They [Opposition] want that the hand [protecting] Imran Khan should be on their head as well,” adding, ” this hand can be on their [Opposition] neck but never on their head.”

    Rasheed’s words were indirectly hinting at the establishment.

    Speaking during Geo News programme, Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’, Rasheed said, “I was asked to take back my statement on Imran Khan [where I had said that the hand protecting Imran Khan can be on Opposition’s neck but never in their support] but I will not take it back.”

    Anchorperson Shahzeb Khanzada repeating Rasheed’s statement said, “Your words are being quoted a lot. Your statement has gone to such an extent that people are saying that Director-General (DG) Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) should give a clarification in this regard.”

    Khanzada continued by saying, ” You say that they [Opposition] have been produced through gate number four [referrring to General Head Quarters (GHQ)] and now you say that the establishment supports Imran Khan.”

    “Establishment and Imran Khan are on the same page, you fools, minor issues do erupt, little music is being played. Just because one is singing the song doesn’t mean everything is going to shambles,” said Rasheed.

    Khanzada further asked Rasheed how does the government plan on going to it’s supporters knowing that the people will know that the establishment is backing PM Khan. To this Rasheed said that he needed time till April to get back and answer this.

  • PTI offers Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid Lahore mayor candidature

    PTI offers Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid Lahore mayor candidature

    The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has offered Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid to contest the all-important Lahore Mayor elections in the local government elections expected to be held in May this year, reports Dawn.

    Rashid has not given her consent upfront as she wanted to discuss the ways to contest the upcoming election.

    The news outlet further states that Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar has recommended Dr Rashid as the mayor candidate to Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan.

    Dawn states that the premier had assigned the task to Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood to convince Dr Rashid to become Lahore Mayor candidate.

  • Taliban call for Muslim nations to recognise them

    Taliban call for Muslim nations to recognise them

    Afghan Prime Minister (PM) Mohammad Hassan Akhund has called on Muslim nations to be the first to officially recognise the government that seized power in Afghanistan in August.

    “I call on Muslim countries to take the lead and recognise us officially. Then I hope we will be able to develop quickly”, Akhund said and stressed that it’s for the public.

    No country has yet recognised the Taliban government. After they gained power, they promised rights for women but they are largely excluded from government employment, and secondary schools for girls are closed.

    According to the recently released report by United Nations (UN), jobs have dried up and women’s employment levels are extremely low by global standards.

    The lack of work also threatens to worsen child labour levels in Afghanistan, where only 40 per cent of children aged five to 17 years old attend school. Moreover, the UN has warned that half the population is threatened with food shortages.

    Last month, a special meeting of the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) was held to discuss the Afghanistan crisis. However, Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister (FM) was excluded from the official photograph taken during the event.

  • Blast in Lahore leaves at least three dead, several injured

    Blast in Lahore leaves at least three dead, several injured

    A blast in Lahore near Pan Mandi in Lahore’s New Anarkali which is a crowded area occurred on Thursday.

    As per reports, the blast resulted in at least three deaths (confirmed by Deputy Commissioner (DC) Lahore) and 28 injuries. A police official said the blast caused a 1.5 feet-deep crater in the ground. The injured people were shifted to Mayo Hospital.

    An improvised explosive device (IED) was used in the attack.

    According to DC Lahore, no alert was issued previously by the government. He said that the blast took place at 1:45 pm, while the safe city cameras would be used to track down the culprits.

    The deceased has been identified as 38-year-old Ramzan, resident of Ferozewala, and a child aged 10-12, Zeeshan.

    The area was sealed as police officials were gathering evidence from the scene of the crime.

    After the blast, Twitter was flooded with videos and recent developments.

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan came forward to express his grief and requested a report from the Punjab government.

    Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar took notice of the explosion and instructed the director-general to submit a complete investigation report on it.

    Punjab Cheif Minister Usman Buzdar tweeted: “The blast near Anarkali Bazaar Lahore is a vicious act of sabotaging the atmosphere of law and order.”

    Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) Shehbaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz have also condemned the act.