Current Final

Category: Politics

  • Gilgit: Viral video shows man removing Pakistani flag from burning car

    Gilgit: Viral video shows man removing Pakistani flag from burning car

    The video of a man in Gilgit removing a Pakistani flag from a burning car has gone viral on social media.

    The black car is believed to belong to a Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) minister and was set on fire during the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) protest against alleged rigging in the recently held elections.

    The video shows a man running towards the car and taking the flag off the bonnet.

    Widespread, even violent, protests are being held in the northern region against what the PPP has termed a “stolen” election on November 15.

    Videos from the area have shown people thronging the streets of and accusing Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) of winning the maximum number of seats by rigging.

    Earlier, PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had alleged irregularities in the elections.

    “My election has been stolen. I will be joining the people of Gilgit-Baltistan in their protest shortly,” he had tweeted as early as initial results had started pouring in while Maryam Nawaz of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) had accused the PTI of “pre-poll rigging”.

  • Bilawal tests positive for coronavirus, goes into isolation

    Bilawal tests positive for coronavirus, goes into isolation

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has tested positive for coronavirus a day after the test results of his political secretary Jameel Soomro came back positive.

    In a tweet, Bilawal shared that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and has mild symptoms. “I have tested positive for #COVIDー19 & am self isolating with mild symptoms. I‘ll continue working from home & will be addressing PPP foundation day via video link. Wear a mask everyone, see you on the other side IA,” the PPP chief shared.

    The PPP chief was planning to host Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) gathering at Qila Kohna Qasim Bagh Stadium in Multan on November 30 to mark the party’s 53rd foundation day. However, now he will be addressing the event via video link.

    Meanwhile, Bilawal House, Karachi, also went into lockdown after Soomro tested positive for the virus. Its staffers, including security guards, were barred from entering the house without negative test reports. According to reports, the directives were issued by former president Asif Ali Zardari.

    It may be mentioned here that the PDM — an anti-government alliance that the PPP is a part of — held a rally in Peshawar last week in spite of ban on the political gathering in the wake of an increase in COVID cases. There has been a significant increase in the cases over the past few weeks, with Pakistan reporting over 3,000 cases on Nov 25 — for the first time since July.

  • After two years, ex-LDA chief Ahad Cheema gets bail in NAB case

    After two years, ex-LDA chief Ahad Cheema gets bail in NAB case

    The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted bail to former Lahore Development Authority (LDA) chairman Ahad Cheema in an alleged corruption case.

    Cheema, who was a close aide of former Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Sharif, was detained in Feb 2018 by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in the Ashiana Housing scam. However, the accountability bureau also opened another inquiry against him for possessing assets beyond means.

    During the hearing, the apex court directed the former top civil servant to furnish surety bonds worth Rs1 million to secure the bail. The NAB lawyer opposed the bail plea, saying Cheema was a key accused in the case.

    At this, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood asked whether the accused doesn’t deserve bail due to the delay in the case.

    Cheema’s lawyer responded that his client has been in jail for two years and nine months. Bail is granted in case of undue delay, he added.

    Earlier this year, the Lahore High Court had dismissed a bail plea filed by Cheema, even though the co-accused in the case were granted post-arrest bail. Subsequently, ex-LDA chief’s counsel Azam Nazir Tarrar moved the apex court, seeking bail.

    ARREST OF FOMRER LDA CHIEF:

    In Feb 2018, NAB arrested Cheema after the latter failed to show up on NAB hearings. At the time, NAB had stated that that the inquiry conducted by the bureau “produced sufficient evidence to prove LDA ex-DG’s involvement in the Ahsiana scam”.

    In its official press release issued at the time, it said that the Punjab Land Development Company assigned the Ashiana Housing Scheme project to LDA, where Cheema as its DG misused his authority and received illegal gratification in the form of 32 kanals of land, valuing approximately Rs30 million from the owners of Paragon City. The accused also awarded the contract for the project to Lahore Casa Developers, that was ineligible for the contract.

    It may be noted here ex-CM Shehbaz Sharif and former principal secretary Fawad Hassan Fawad were also accused in Ashiana case.

  • Asif Ghafoor among six major generals promoted to rank of lieutenant general

    Asif Ghafoor among six major generals promoted to rank of lieutenant general

    Six major generals have been promoted to the rank of lieutenant general, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) has announced.

    In a tweet, the military’s media wing said those promoted included Maj Gen Akhtar Nawaz , Maj Gen Sardar Hassan Azhar Hayat, Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor, Maj Gen Salman Fayyaz Ghani, Maj Gen Sarfraz Ali and Maj Gen Muhammad Ali.

    Asif Ghafoor, who is among the most prominent recipients of the promotion, has previously served as the ISPR director general. He was appointed to the post in December 2016, replacing Lt Gen Asim Bajwa as the military’s spokesperson.

    Reacting to the news, Federal Minster for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry said it was an hounour to serve in the highest ranks of the army.

    “Serving in the highest ranks of #PakArmy is an honour. Many congratulations to all very well deserved officers for the honours bestowed upon them and best wishes,” he tweeted.

  • Why didn’t PM get chilled coke, Balochistan CS asks Makran commissioner to explain ‘shortcomings’

    Why didn’t PM get chilled coke, Balochistan CS asks Makran commissioner to explain ‘shortcomings’

    Days after the prime minister’s visit to the University of Turbat, the Balochistan chief secretary has written a letter to the Makran commissioner, asking him to explain “the shortcomings” observed during the visit of PM Imran Khan.

    The letter that has been circulating on social media has been shared by many, including Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) chief Akhtar Mengal as well, who sarcastically captioned it ‘viceregal’ attitude of the centre.

    The Current has confirmed the veracity of this letter

    The chief secretary asked the commissioner — who was supposed to supervise the arrangements — to explain why “each and every detailed instructions passed on to you” were not carried out in “letter and spirit”.

    It says the PM was served soft drinks that were not “properly chilled” and the plates that were used to serve food to the PM and his entourage were also of “low quality”. The sweeping staff was also reportedly inefficient as the “pathways and washrooms remained dirty” despite instructions.

    The commissioner was also asked to explain the unavailability of a “qualified person” to handle the operating system “complications” during the presentation. Also, there was no “spare laptop” in the meeting room.

    Furthermore, the chief secretary office was also not pleased with the fact that the CS’s chair was not “marked” in the auditorium where the PM interacted with “notables” while the CS was made to sit at the “extreme corner of the first row”, as per the letter. “The seating arrangement for the administrative secretaries to the government of Balochistan was neither marked nor were they were invited in the auditorium,” it added.

    Moreover, there was also complaints about the Turbat’s DC and SSP, who allegedly violated protocol by “walking too close to the PM”. “The SSP Turbat consistently tried to engage the PM in chit chat,” the letter mentioned, seeking a response on the above-mentioned “shortcomings” from the commissioner within 7 days.

    On Friday, PM Imran Khan visited Turbat district to inaugurate development projects in the city. During the visit, the PM also went to Turbat University.

    The Current approached the PM’s focal person on digital media, Dr Arslan Khalid for the confirmation of this letter. According to Dr Khalid, the prime minister has nothing to do with the letter. He said it was a matter of the provincial government. Sources in the provincial government also confirmed the veracity of the letter, saying it was issued by the office of the chief secretary.

  • PTV won’t give coverage to Opp, says new chairman

    Newly-appointed Pakistan Television (PTV) Chairman Naeem Bukhari, who has also remained the lawyer of Prime Minister Imran Khan, has the national television will not broadcast any speeches by the opposition parties.

    Bukhari’s comments pertaining to the blackout of the opposition on PTV came despite the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) manifesto that promised to transform PTV on the lines of BBC — the British state broadcaster. The ruling party had also protested during the PML-N government after the latter refused to allow PTI leaders air-time on PTV.

    Speaking to reporters outside the Supreme Court building, Bukhari said there will be no equal air-time for the opposition parties on PTV, as being a state-run organisation, it will only air the stance of the incumbent regime. “Only government?” asked the reporter. “Yes, only government,” Bukhari said.

    On Monday, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting notified Bukhari, who has a vast experience of doing TV programmes, as chairman of PTV. The appointment was made after a court ruling in Sept 2020 declared the appointments of PTV chairman Arshad Khan and independent members of the board of directors illegal while directing the government to fill the vacant slots in accordance with the law. 

    Bukhari, who has worked as an anchorperson and commentators on PTV for decades, had joined PTI in June 2016. At the time, he called Imran Khan the “only political leader who had the courage to speak the truth”. Bukhari also represented Imran when he went to the Supreme Court against then prime minister Nawaz Sharif following the Panama Papers leak.

    The pleas that were later admitted by the apex court which disqualified Nawaz Sharif for being “dishonest” under Article 62 (1)(f).

    The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had also hired the services of Bukhari as a special prosecutor to take up cases against close confidants of Sharif brothers — former Lahore Development Authority chief Ahad Cheema and former principal secretary Fawad Hassan Fawad.

  • Will Nawaz stay in London till end of Imran govt?

    Will Nawaz stay in London till end of Imran govt?

    Former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif is not going to accompany the dead body of his mother Shamim Akhtar, who died last week, giving rise to speculations that the ex-PM will not come back till the end of the incumbent government.

    His decision of staying in London couple with a tweet by PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz — wherein she asked her father to stay in London because the government was hell-bent on exacting revenge — has prompted people to ask if this was his plan all along.

    In a tweet following the death of her grandmother, Maryam had said: “I have requested Mian sahab not to come back [to Pakistan] at all. These are tyrants, these are the people hellbent on exacting revenge, and no humanity is expected from them.” Maryam also said that the government didn’t inform her of her grandmother’s death while she was attending a rally in Peshawar.

    Nawaz has been living in London since November last year when he was released on conditional medical bail for his treatment abroad. Dar, on the other hand, has taken self-exile in the United Kingdom after his removal from the post of Finance Minister in 2017 following the emergence of allegations of accumulation of assets beyond means against him. Both of them are wanted back home in multiple cases of graft and abuse of power

    Political analysts said the remarks by the PML-N vice president were devoid of logic, as Maryam couldn’t hold the government responsible in this case. “It is however her right to advise her father,” analyst Irshad Bhatti said in a Geo News show. According to Bhatti, the elder Sharif’s decision not to return was a “pre-planned” strategy by the PML-N to pressurise the government and seek reprieve.

    Similar views were shared by analysts Hassan Nisar, Dr Rasul Baksh Rais, and Muneeb Farooq.

    Farooq and Dr Rais said the former prime minister will not be coming back to Pakistan during the government of Imran Khan, and a recent statement by Maryam Nawaz, asking him to stay in London indefinitely, has proved it. Dr Rais said the decision that Nawaz will not return during the PTI government tenure was taken a long time ago and the statement made by Maryam was an attempt at political damage control.

    Shamim Begum, the Sharif family matriarch, breathed her last in London on Sunday due to a chest infection at the age of 89. Her body will be moved to Pakistan within next few days. Her grandsons, Hassan and Hussain, will also not accompany her dead body to Pakistan.

  • Nawaz welcome to attend mother’s funeral in Lahore, govt says

    Nawaz welcome to attend mother’s funeral in Lahore, govt says

    The government on Tuesday dismissed the impression of placing restrictions on the arrival of deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his sons — Hassan Nawaz and Hussain Nawaz — and former finance minister Ishaq Dar for the funeral of Begum Shamim Akhtar, the mother of Sharif brothers who passed away in London on Sunday.

    Nawaz has been living in London since November last year when he was released on conditional medical bail for his treatment abroad. Dar, on the other hand, has taken self-exile in the United Kingdom after his removal from the post of Finance Minister in 2017 following the emergence of allegations of accumulation of assets beyond means against him. Both of them are wanted back home in multiple cases of graft and abuse of power

    Speculations arose after the sudden demise of Akhtar, who had travelled to London in February to live with her son, whether or not Nawaz and Dar will return to attend the funeral.

    Later on Sunday, Nawaz’s daughter and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) vice president Maryam Nawaz, in a tweet, said she had advised her father not to return because of what she claimed was the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government’s vendetta against the Sharif family.

    “They are welcome to come to Pakistan and attend the funeral,” Minister for Information Shibli Faraz said on Tuesday.

    In a tweet, Faraz warned the opposition party of trying to politicise the matter. “The narrative of state suppression is deliberate propaganda and an attempt to politicise this issue. Who are you trying to fool?”

    Meanwhile, arrangements are being made to bring the body back to Lahore within a couple of days to be buried next to the grave of her husband, Mian Sharif, at the family’s Jati Umra residence.

  • Mubasher Lucman wants Pakistan to establish ties with Israel

    Mubasher Lucman wants Pakistan to establish ties with Israel

    A day after the reports of a secret meeting between Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, journalist and anchorperson Mubasher Lucman urged the Pakistani state to revisit its foreign policy and “establish diplomatic ties with Israel”.

    The anchorperson who appeared on an Israeli news channel to supposedly comment on the controversy surrounding the latest push of Arab countries to normalise ties with Israel said that it was time for Pakistan to be “friends with everyone”, including Tel Aviv.

    https://twitter.com/TeamMLucman/status/1328780163283226624

    According to Lucman, Pakistan needs to put itself first and stop fighting for the rights of other nations — Palestinians in this case. “I am one of those people who believe both countries should shake hands and establish diplomatic ties,” said Lucman, as he went on to call Israel a “vibrant country”.

    The journalist also undermine the struggle for self-determination of the Palestinian people, while trying to play down the atrocities committed by the Israeli troops against the Palestinian people. “People in Pakistan do not know much about Israel, except that it is a zionist state carrying out ‘whatever it is doing against Palestinians’”.

    “The Israeli nation is a great nation in their own way. They are fighters, they are survivors,” said Lucman, comparing it with Pakistan which is a “great country in its own right with many accolades”.

    Lucman also commented on a recent media reports that claimed Pakistan was being pressurised by the US and another Muslim country to recognise Tel Aviv. He said: “If Israel and Pakistan ever ever have to shake hands, it must not be due to a third party, it must be directly. We don’t need to be subservient to anyone, be it the US or Saudi Arabia.”

    He also said the “animosity between Pakistan and Israel” existed for over 70 years now, and both states needed to educate their masses if things have to “progress” from this stage to the next.

    Earlier this month, Prime Minister Imran Khan said Pakistan would not accept Israel unless Palestinians get their right to self-determination. He also told a journalist that US outgoing President Donald Trump and a Muslim country wanted Pakistan to accept Israel, which it cannot do.

    MBS-NETANYAHU MEETING:

    On Monday, Netanyahu allegedly met MBS in Saudi Arabia, which observers see a step towards recoginsation of Tel Aviv by Saudi Arabia. There has been widespread speculation, within Israel and the US, that Washington may push for other Arab states to follow suit before President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in.

    However, the reports of the meeting were denied by the Saudi foreign minister. “I have seen press reports about a purported meeting between HRH the Crown Prince and Israeli officials during the recent visit by @SecPompeo. No such meeting occurred. The only officials present were American and Saudi,” Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud wrote on Twitter on Monday.

  • PM approves national intelligence body for effective coordination among spy agencies

    PM approves national intelligence body for effective coordination among spy agencies

    Prime Minister Imran Khan has approved the formation of the National Intelligence Coordination Committee for effective coordination among the over two dozen intelligence organisations in the country.

    According to a report in Dawn.com, the committee will be headed by Inter-Services Intelligence chief Lt Gen Faiz Hameed. According to the report, though the terms of reference of the body have yet to be finalised, the proposal for the body was submitted to the premier after a thorough discussion between the intelligence agencies.

    The move is part of the long-awaited reform of the intelligence apparatus, which aims at clarifying the role of respective agencies, improving their coordination, and optimising their capabilities, said the report.

    In past, the civilian government made multiple attempts to reform intelligence agencies, but to no avail, specifically due to differences over the leadership of the new body.

    In 2008, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government placed the ISI and Intelligence Bureau (IB) under the “administrative and financial” control of the Ministry of Interior, but the notification was retracted following a backlash from the military officials.

    Similarly, attempts by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government to reform the intelligence agencies of the country failed.