Current Final

Category: Politics

  • ‘Perhaps we should consider holding of referendum,’ suggests Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar on talks with TTP

    ‘Perhaps we should consider holding of referendum,’ suggests Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar on talks with TTP

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar took to Twitter to question the government’s decision of holding talks with the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

    Mustafa Khokhar tweeted, “The question of holding talks with TTP is of immense public importance. This decision can not be taken unilaterally by any individual or the govt.”

    “Perhaps we should consider holding of [a] referendum under Article 48(6)(7) of the constitution. Let the nation decide in ‘YES’ or ‘NO’,” added Mustafa.

    According to the Constitution of Pakistan, Article 48(6)(7) states, “(6) If at any time the Prime Minister considers it necessary to hold a referendum on any matter of national importance, he may refer the matter to a joint sitting of the Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) and if it is approved in a joint sitting, the Prime Minister may cause such matter to be referred to a referendum in the form of a question that is capable of being answered by either ‘Yes’ or ‘No’.”

    “(7) An act of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) may lay down the procedure for the holding of a referendum and the compiling and consolidation of the result of a referendum.”

    Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Monday announced that talks between the government and the TTP were underway in line with the Constitution and that the ceasefire would be extended keeping in view the progress of the talks.

    “The state’s sovereignty, national security, peace in relevant areas, and social and economic stability will be considered during the talks,” said Fawad.

  • Govt faces defeat twice in NA over two bills, Opposition demands PM Khan’s resignation

    Govt faces defeat twice in NA over two bills, Opposition demands PM Khan’s resignation

    The government faced defeat twice at the hands of the Opposition in the National Assembly (NA) on Tuesday during voting on motions seeking introduction of two bills, reports Dawn.

    Under the session chaired by Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly (NA) Qasim Suri, the Opposition first defeated the government with a 117-104 vote on a motion moved by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) MNA Javed Hasnain. The bill was to seek permission to introduce a private member’s bill aimed at preventing politicians from changing their parties. After the first defeat, most of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) members had left the house.

    A motion moved by PTI’s lawmaker Asma Qadeer for a bill seeking to enhance punishment for those who passed offensive remarks against women didn’t pass. Because the deputy speaker announced that he could not allow Qadeer to introduce the bill as the Opposition members had rejected it with a majority and did not give the vote count as the Opposition had visibly outnumbered the treasury members.

    It is reported that there had been a significant increase in the number of members on the Opposition benches due to the arrival of PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari in NA.

    A day earlier, the government got seven bills passed in the absence of Opposition members from the lower house of parliament.

    After the defeat, PML-N’s Ayaz Sadiq said, “Morally, Imran Khan should resign before convening of a joint sitting of the parliament.” He was referring to the government’s plan to call a joint session of parliament this week.

    PPP’s Syed Khursheed Shah, who had been in the custody of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for more than two years, was welcomed by a loud desk-thumping by the Opposition members.

  • ‘Are we about to sign a surrender document once again?’: Supreme Court asks PM Khan

    ‘Are we about to sign a surrender document once again?’: Supreme Court asks PM Khan

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan appeared before the Supreme Court after he was summoned earlier today by the apex court to attend a hearing of the Army Public School (APS) massacre case.

    When the prime minister appeared at the rostrum, Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan said the parents of the martyred children are demanding action against the rulers of the time when the APS massacre took place, reports Geo News.

    The premier responded and said that when the massacre took place, his party was in power in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and he had met the parents in hospitals when the brutal massacre happened.

    “Parents are asking where was the security system [that day]? Despite our comprehensive orders, nothing was done,” replied Cheif Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Gulzar Ahmed.

    “There are no holy cows in Pakistan, I believe in rule of law. We won a war against terrorism,” he said. “There were bomb blasts taking place at the time every single day,” replied PM Khan.

    “The government should take action against those involved in the APS massacre,” said the Supreme Court. 

    “You are the prime minister, you should have answers,” said CJP Ahmad.

    “Hold on for a minute, Judge Sahab,” responded PM Khan. “Allah will give patience to the parents of the schoolchildren, what more could the government have done apart from giving compensation?”

    “Find out why 80,000 people were killed, also find out who is responsible for 480 drone attacks taking place in Pakistan,” added the premier.

    “Finding out about these things is your job, you are the prime minister. As the prime minister, you should have the answer to these questions,” replied the chief justice.

    “You can constitute a high-level commission on the APS tragedy,” said the prime minister. 

    “We have already formed a commission and it has issued a report as well,” responded the chief justice. “Our order of October 20 clearly states that the government should find out who is responsible for the massacre and take action against them,” he added. 

    The chief justice reminded the prime minister that seven years had passed since the tragedy took place. 

    “Mr Prime Minister, we are not a small country,” said Justice Qazi Amin. “We have the sixth largest army in the world.”

    Justice Amin told the prime minister that he had now brought the culprits of the massacre to the negotiating table. 

    “Are we about to sign a surrender document once again?” he asked.  

  • ‘Avoid bloodshed’: Military opposed use of force against TLP protestors

    ‘Avoid bloodshed’: Military opposed use of force against TLP protestors

    The government has decided to disclose the details of the agreement with the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) in the next 10 days. The military leadership had advised against the use of force against the protesters after Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan had authorised it, writes Fahd Husain for Dawn.

    On Monday, a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security (PNSC) comprising members of the National Assembly (NA) and Senate took place in Islamabad. The parliamentarians were taken into confidence by the military leadership over a secretive deal between the government and the TLP.

    The government has fundamentally decided to make public the agreement it signed with the TLP but the secrecy of the details shall be kept intact until its implementation.

    Sources privy to the matter revealed that the premier had authorised the use of force against the TLP marchers. Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa presented all the gains and losses of using force against TLP workers.

    “The army chief said if the decision-makers were ready to pay the price for using force against the TLP, then the military would do as ordered. However, mention was made of the previous instances where the government had used force against citizens – Lal Masjid and the Model Town incident – and participants of the meeting were reminded of the consequences of both episodes.”

    “The military leadership, however, advised against the use of force arguing that it was not a solution. It was then decided to opt for a negotiated settlement in order to, as one source put it, ‘avoid bloodshed’. This is when Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman was identified as someone who could mediate an agreement given his standing as a senior Barelvi cleric.”

    The TLP protest turned violent, killing seven police officers and hundreds more wounded during clashes with TLP demonstrators marching up towards the capital. November

  • PM Khan summoned by Supreme Court in APS massacre case

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan arrived at the Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) to appear before the apex court’s bench today (Wednesday) after he was summoned to attend a hearing of the Army Public School (APS) massacre, reports Geo News.

    The apex court summoned the prime minister to appear before the bench when the hearing resumed at 11:30am, in his personal capacity.

    During the previous hearing of the case, parents of the children martyred in the 2014 terrorist attack had complained to the court that they had lost their children in the incident hence the top civil and military leadership of the country should be summoned by the Supreme Court.

    During the hearing, the attorney-general sought time from the court to seek directives from the premier and other officials so he can respond to the court.

    However, the bench said this was a very serious case and that it would summon the prime minister and seek answers from him.

    The attorney-general asked for further time for the prime minister to appear before the court. However, the bench expressed anger at his request and said the parents of the victims of the APS massacre are also in court.

    During the hearing, the issue of the government holding talks with the banned Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was also mentioned.

    Justice Qazi Amin remarked that there are reports that the government is holding negotiations with a group and added, “Is it not the responsibility of the state to identify the real culprits [behind the APS tragedy] and nab them?”

    Meanwhile, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Gulzar Ahmed intervened and said we cannot leave the children alone to die.

  • Twitter reminds Jemima of marriage with PM Khan after she congratulates Malala

    Twitter reminds Jemima of marriage with PM Khan after she congratulates Malala

    Twitter users reminded the former wife of Prime Minister Imran Khan, Jemima Goldsmith, of her marriage with the PM after she congratulated Malala Yousafzai for getting married.

    Jemima took to Twitter and wrote, “Congratulations and mashallah x.”

    Read More: ‘That’s a true friend!’: Shaniera reacts to Jemima Khan split with ‘The Crown’

    Following her tweet, social media users started tweeting about Jemima Goldsmith and the premier and invited her to come to Pakistan.

    Earlier, Jemima asked Pakistani Twitter about a good Pakistani pop wedding song and people kept replying her with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf political song.

  • Everything you need to know about Malala’s husband

    Malala Yousafzai has tied the knot with Asser Malik in a small, intimate nikkah ceremony in Birmingham.

    Malala looked radiant in a tea-pink shalwar kameez while Asser Malik wore a black suit with a matching tea-pink tie to compliment Malala’s dress.

    July 12, 2021, Asser wished Malala on her 24th birthday by tweeting, “Happy Birthday to the most amazing @Malala. @iamsrk had to make a necessary cameo of course.”

    June 23, 2019, AsserMalik shared a picture with Malala on his Instagram profile with the caption,” Best day at @homeofcricket with Waqar Younis, @aslitareen, and @malala   #CWC19.”

    On June 26, 2019, Asser shared another picture, “Rooting for Pakistan with Saqlain Bhai, @aslitareen @adnanmalik1 and @malala #cwc19.”

    Skilled in Sports Management and developing unique concepts and ideas, Asser brought the world’s largest amateur cricket league (LMS) in Pakistan.

    He is currently serving as the General Manager High Performance at the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

    His formative education is from Aitchison College and then he went to Lahore University of Management Science (LUMS) to pursue a bachelor’s in Economics and Political Science.

  • ‘Precious day in my life’: Malala Yousafzai ties the knot

    ‘Precious day in my life’: Malala Yousafzai ties the knot

    Pakistani Nobel laureate and activist Malala Yousafzai tied the knot with Asser Malik in a small intimate nikkah ceremony. Malala looked radiant in a tea-pink shalwar kameez on her special day. The ceremony was attended by Malala’s parents and close friends.

    Malala took to Twitter to announce her nikkah along with the pictures from the event.

    “Today marks a precious day in my life. Asser and I tied the knot to be partners for life,” wrote Malala.

    “We celebrated a small nikkah ceremony at home in Birmingham with our families. Please send us your prayers. We are excited to walk together for the journey ahead,” she added.

    Soon after Malala’s announcement, Twitterati started congratulating the newlywed bride.

    Ziauddin Yousafzai, Malala’s father wrote, “It is beyond words.”

    Jemima Goldsmith wrote, “Congratulations and mashallah x.

    Daughter of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari, congratulated the couple. “May you both find every joy together, and may your journey be blessed at every turn. Sending you love & duas.”

    Singer Shilpa Rao wrote, “Many many congratulations to both of you.”

  • ‘Govt and TTP agree on complete ceasefire’: Fawad Chaudhry

    ‘Govt and TTP agree on complete ceasefire’: Fawad Chaudhry

    Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry announced on Monday that a complete ceasefire had been reached between the government and the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), according to state-run Pakistan Television (PTV).

    The minister said that talks between the government and the TTP were underway in line with the Constitution and that the ceasefire would be extended keeping in view the progress of the talks.

    “The state’s sovereignty, national security, peace in relevant areas, and social and economic stability will be considered during the talks,” said Fawad.

    Fawad added that the interim Afghan government had facilitated the negotiations and progress on the restoration of “complete peace” in these areas of the country was a positive development.

  • Govt to stop release of weekly Sensitive Price Index after severe backlash due to inflation

    Govt to stop release of weekly Sensitive Price Index after severe backlash due to inflation

    After severe criticism due to uncontrolled inflation, the federal government has decided to stop the release of weekly Sensitive Price Index (SPI) data and instead release monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI), reports Business Recorder.

    This decision was taken by the Federal Cabinet in its meeting held on November 2, presided over by Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan.

    The cabinet took note of the presentation by the Finance Division on prices of essential kitchen items and observed that despite inflationary pressure, prices in Pakistan were still lower in comparison to other regional countries.

    The Cabinet directed the Planning, Development & Special Initiatives Division to only release CPI on monthly basis, instead of weekly SPI, in line with the practice prevalent internationally.

    The Cabinet also directed the Finance Division to include Sri Lanka in the price comparison with regional countries.