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Category: Politics

  • Justice Qazi Faez Isa strikes back with ‘Imran, others’ properties in UK’

    Justice Qazi Faez Isa strikes back with ‘Imran, others’ properties in UK’

    Supreme Court’s (SC) Justice Qazi Faez Isa, who is facing a presidential reference for not disclosing his family’s assets, on Tuesday put the federal government in a tight spot before a full bench of the apex court by pointing out key leaders of the ruling party who also owned properties in the United Kingdom (UK), including Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan and his special assistant on accountability, Shahzad Akbar.

    As a 10-judge full court, headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial, continued hearing the petitions against the reference, Justice Isa in a written statement informed the bench that PM Imran owned six properties, Akbar (five), Special Assistant to the PM on Overseas Pakistanis Zulfiqar Bukhari (seven) and Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Youth Affairs Usman Dar have three to his name.

    Former federal information minister Firdous Ashiq Awan and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) stalwart Jahangir Tareen each owned a property there as well. In addition, the judge submitted before the court that former military ruler Gen (r) Pervez Musharraf owned two properties in the UK.

    Justice Isa submitted the statement in response to SAPM Akbar telling the court that he did not receive any salary or benefit as the head of the Asset Recovery Unit (ARU).

    “Taking a cue from what is stated to have transpired in the case of the petitioner’s family, the search engine 192.com was used to search a few known public figures,” the statement read.

    The judge clarified that he was “not saying or suggesting, let alone allege” that the people he had identified had illegally acquired any property in the UK in violation of the income tax, the foreign exchange and/or money laundering laws.

    “Before an allegation of non-compliance with income tax law is made, the Federal Board of Revenue must check its records [of these individuals] and consider how much taxable income was declared and income-tax paid and whether they had non-taxable income, such as from agricultural land, which the Constitution exempts from payment of income tax.”

    Justice Isa further stated that before making an allegation with regard to the illegal transfer of money abroad, the State Bank “must check to determine whether the said individuals had foreign exchange accounts and whether through these accounts money was remitted abroad, to exclude the possibility of it sent to the UK through Hawala, Hundi or by any other illegal means”.

  • ‘Hit-and-run’: Road accident in Islamabad further heightens Indo-Pak tensions

    ‘Hit-and-run’: Road accident in Islamabad further heightens Indo-Pak tensions

    • Two Indian High Commission officials detained briefly after running over pedestrian in Islamabad on Monday
    • Both officials of non-diplomat status handed back to Indian High Commission owing to diplomatic immunity while Indian reports claim they were let go off after New Delhi pressurised authorities in Pakistan
    • India had earlier claimed harassment and assault of officials and raised concerns over alleged abduction in response to expulsion of two Pakistan High Commission officials over ‘espionage’ in New Delhi

    A road accident in Islamabad has further heightened Indo-Pak tensions as diplomatic ties between the two neighbours continue to deteriorate ever since New Delhi’s abrogation of Article 370 for the annexation of held Kashmir last year in August.

    As per the details, Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) police on Monday arrested two staff members of the Indian High Commission (IHC) over their involvement in a hit-and-run incident.

    A vehicle, reportedly a BMW, hit a pedestrian walking on the embassy road at around 8 am. The two staffers, identified as Silvades Paul and Dawamu Brahamu, tried to flee after the incident but were caught by bystanders and handed over to local police.

    The critically injured pedestrian, whose identity has still not been revealed, was shifted to a nearby hospital for treatment.

    Eyewitnesses said the car was being driven irresponsibly and had gotten out of control due to speeding on Khayabane Suhrawardy.

    While it is said that the police were initially unaware that the two accused belonged to the IHC, an FIR [First Information Report] registered at the Secretariat police station of the federal capital, a copy of which is available with this scribe, revealed that one of the officials also possessed Rs10,000 worth of counterfeit currency.

    Local police later informed the Foreign Office (FO) about the incident. However, on Monday evening the two staffers, neither of whom were diplomats, were released because they had diplomatic immunity.

    The two reportedly belong to India’s Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). A sixteen-member specialised security unit from CISF has been deployed at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad since 2009 for the protection of the high commission and diplomats posted here.

    Both were booked by the police for reckless driving, causing injury due to negligent driving, and possessing fake currency.

    It is pertinent to note that officials at the FO were initially unaware of the development, while Indian media reports claimed that the two officials had been abducted and shifted to an undisclosed location.

    Amid Indian claims that the “missing” officials were let go off after torture and New Delhi pressurising Islamabad against the alleged abduction, officials, including the assistant sub-inspector concerned, deny the claims saying it was “nothing but regular action against two people accused of hit-and-run besides possession of counterfeit currency”.

    Pakistan was further asked to return the two Indian staffers along with the official car to the high commission.

    Deputy Superintendent of Police Iqbal Khan said the Indians were detained and shifted to the police station for completing the legal process.

    The FIR also suggests the same.

    Deputy Inspector General (FIG) of Police Operation Waqaruddin Syed said that both the detained Indians were hours later released from the police custody after confirming their status from the FO.

    PAYBACK?

    “The officials were out for an official work before they went missing. The Indian government has taken up the matter with Pakistani authorities,” said Indian reports earlier in the day as they hinted at the possibility of “payback” in response to India declaring two officials of the Pakistan High Commission (PHC) in New Delhi “persona non grata requiring them to leave India within 24 hours” alleging that they had been found guilty of espionage.

    Pakistan had condemned the Indian government’s decision to expel the staff members as part of a “persistent anti-Pakistan propaganda”.

    Islamabad had said that the two staff members of the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi were “lifted by the Indian authorities today (31 May 2020) on false and unsubstantiated charges”. They were subsequently released after the Pakistan High Commission intervened.

    “We condemn the detention and torture as well as threatening and pressuring of the diplomatic officials to accept false charges,” the FO had said.

    DIPLOMATS AND RASH DRIVING:

    Earlier this year, an SUV belonging to the United States (US) Embassy drove into a car on a main artery of the federal capital, killing a woman and injuring five members of her family.

    The police arrested the Pakistani driver of the US Embassy, named Amjad Zaman, and registered a case against him at Margalla police station.

    Accidents involving vehicles belonging to diplomatic missions, especially the US Embassy, have been frequent in recent years and in most cases the drivers got away unpunished by invoking diplomatic immunity.

    In April 2018, a motorcyclist was killed after being hit by a vehicle driven by the military attaché at the US Embassy in Islamabad.

    In Feb 2013, an SUV driven by an administrative assistant at the US Embassy hit two motorcyclists near Kohsar Complex on Margalla Avenue, killing one of them and injuring the other.

    In July 2010, an officer attached to the US Embassy’s Force Protection Department hit and killed a young man riding a motorcycle on 7th Avenue.

    In 2011, a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) contractor, Raymond Davis, caused countrywide outrage after he killed two persons when he ran over a motorcycle in Lahore. The deadly incident had strained ties between Washington and Islamabad. Davis went scot-free after paying blood money to the families of the victims.

  • ‘Alvi, Imran ready to face consequences if SC quashes reference against Justice Isa’

    ‘Alvi, Imran ready to face consequences if SC quashes reference against Justice Isa’

    The government’s counsel has told the Supreme Court (SC) that the President Arif Alvi and Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan were ready to face the consequences if the presidential reference against SC’s Justice Qazi Faez Isa was quashed.

    Dr Farogh Naseem, former law minister and currently the government’s counsel in the case against Justice Isa, submitted before members of the 10-judge full court that it appeared as if the top government functionaries were on trial and not the judge who has yet to explain the source of income for his family members’ properties.

    “We are ready to face consequences,” said Dr Naseem, adding that the consequences would be across the board.

    Earlier, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah had observed that the government is also accountable if the reference is not maintainable.

    “There should be consequences if the reference is quashed based on malice,” noted another judge, Justice Maqbool Baqar.

    Meanwhile, chief judge of the full court, Justice Umar Ata Bandial observed that no bar association has ever complained about Justice Isa being dishonest. None of the government’s allegations prove dishonesty of Justice Isa, he remarked.

    READ: Law minister resigns again; this time to represent govt in Faez Isa case

    The federal counsel maintained that a judge is the most powerful person in society, and therefore, he argued, we must have confidence that the judge is free of controversy. The independence of the judiciary comes through integrity, and there should be good public perception of the judge, added Dr Naseem.

    At this, Justice Shah inquired whether the counsel admits that this is a case pertaining to independence of the judiciary.

    Justice Shah further asked the federal counsel whether a husband could seek his wife’s tax records from the Federal Board of Revenue. To this, Dr Naseem replied that he would have to ask the relevant officials.

    Under which law can the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) ask a judge to disclose details of his wife’s properties, inquired Justice Shah. He observed that the public perception of a judge can also be destroyed on social media.

    At this, Dr Naseem said that fake news could not destroy public perception but if a judge is unable to explain the source of his family members’ properties than it would influence his reputation before the public.

    Justice Bandial told the federal counsel that instead of relaying a violation of Section 116 of the Income Tax law his main focus is on the issuance of the show cause notice to Justice Isa by the SJC.

    READ: New top lawyer excuses himself from fighting Justice Faez Isa case for PTI govt

    With regards to the show cause notice, Justice Maqbool Baqar noted that if the basis of the reference was illegal then all of the proceedings would be quashed.

    Referring to various SC judgements, Dr Naseem said that the office of a judge came under the definition of public office and it is mandatory for a public servant that their family members’ lifestyle is not beyond the ostensible source of income. He maintained that his case was about the source of income.

    The bench asked Dr Naseem yet again as to why the government did not question Justice Isa’s wife about her source of income for the properties in question. If the wife purchased these properties through inherited income, would the judge be liable to reply, asked Justice Shah.

    In the same vein, Justice Yahya Afridi asked whether all judges should be asked about their family members’ tax concerns by the SJC or by tax authorities. To this Dr Naseem said that disciplinary proceedings against a judge could only be initiated by the SJC.

  • PTI MPA removed from Punjab information body after ‘leaked calls discussing PM, his wife, others’

    PTI MPA removed from Punjab information body after ‘leaked calls discussing PM, his wife, others’

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MPA Uzma Kardar, who had earlier made headlines for her mention in Reham Khan’s notorious book, was on Monday removed from an information body of the Punjab government hours after she was allegedly heard discussing Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, First Lady Bushra Bibi, Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar, Defence Minister Pervaiz Khattak among others in a series of leaked phone calls.

    According to a notification issued by Punjab Information Minister Fayazul Hasan Chohan, Kardar was removed from the provincial government’s Media Strategy Committee. No reason was, however, given in the notification, a copy of which is available with The Current.

    The sacking comes hours after journalist Mansoor Ali Khan said a call recording of someone from the present government could surface very soon and become very embarrassing for the PTI government.

    It was followed by audio clips doing rounds over the internet.

    While Kardar could allegedly be heard discussing PM Imran and the first lady in one recording, she allegedly made outrageous claims regarding Buzdar, Khattak, Punjab Child Protection Bureau Chairperson Sarah Ahmad, “dirty politics” inside the PTI, Punjab Info Minister Fayazul Hasan Chohan and PTI’s allied Pakistan Muslim League (PML), in other leaked audio clips.

    The Current does not endorse any of the recordings or other content available when the above-embedded links are accessed but is committed to keeping our followers aware of whatever is going on.

    While the PTI lawmaker was not available for a comment, the audio has drawn mixed reactions as many question the motive behind the leaks.

    Among others, Mansoor has also questioned who recorded the phone calls and why.

    Meanwhile, reports claim that legal action will also soon be initiated against the PTI lawmaker.

  • These areas, including Lahore Cantt and parts of Gulberg, will be under 15-day lockdown from tonight

    These areas, including Lahore Cantt and parts of Gulberg, will be under 15-day lockdown from tonight

    With Punjab becoming the first province to record 1,000 coronavirus fatalities amid a rapid surge in the number of COVID-19 infections, Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid has announced a 15-day selective quarantine in Lahore, which will come into effect from Monday-Tuesday midnight.

    Addressing a press conference, Dr Rashid said that selected neighbourhoods, including Lahore Cantonment, Shahdara, Mozang, Walled City, Harbanspura, Nishtar Town, Allama Iqbal Town will be locked down completely from midnight. Some areas in Gulberg will also be closed completely.

    Areas of Lahore to go into lockdown Monday-Tuesday midnight as part of government’s efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19 (Google Maps)

    According to the health minister, more than 300 cases had been recorded in each of these areas which was why the decision to enforce a lockdown was taken. However, Dr Rashid added, pharmacies, tandoors and dairy shops will remain open and so will any factories that are making protective equipment.

    “These areas will be locked down for at least two weeks and then we will observe the results.”

    She also once again urged people to follow the government’s announced standard operating procedures (SOPs) to stop the spread of the virus, adding that the virus could be stemmed by 50 per cent just by wearing a face mask.

    Lamenting the “wrong” criticism against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government for alleged loose handling of the pandemic, she said, “If [you say that] our government has failed, so has every other government in the world.”

    “The media is comparing us to New Zealand and Taiwan. The population of New Zealand is half [about 5 million] of that of Lahore’s. Controlling the virus there is much easier than controlling it in a thickly populated country like ours,” she said.

    “People don’t understand that this is a viral infection. Even in China, where they followed strict measures with commendable discipline, there is a resurgence of cases,” the health minister said.

    ‘NO SWEEPING LOCKDOWN’:

    On Saturday, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan had ruled out a sweeping lockdown once again on a visit to Lahore during which he held meetings with Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar and other officials to evaluate the virus situation in the province.

    The premier’s visit to Lahore had come a day after the Punjab government sent recommendations to the federal government to tighten lockdown measures in the province, in particular Lahore, in a bid to curb the growing number of COVID-19 cases.

    But after holding meetings with the provincial government’s top brass, PM Imran had said a strategy of “smart lockdowns” will be implemented instead whereby strict adherence to SOPs will be ensured to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

    “After analysing with my Punjab team today, [we’ve decided that] we will not impose a lockdown but will impose selective lockdowns — trace and seal hotspots,” the premier had said, adding that the country’s administration and police were not in a position to take “such a huge burden of a complete lockdown”.

  • FIA acquits Imran’s health aide Dr Zafar Mirza in masks smuggling case

    FIA acquits Imran’s health aide Dr Zafar Mirza in masks smuggling case

    The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has acquitted Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Zafar Mirza after probing his alleged involvement in the smuggling of protective masks amid COVID-19 pandemic.

    According to FIA sources, no allegation was proved against Dr Mirza as the petitioner failed to provide evidence of his allegations during the agency’s investigation into the export of 20 million masks to China.

    Sources said that according to FIA’s report, no collusion was proved in issuance of permit for export of the masks and the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) allowed the export under rules and regulations.

    It may be noted that the complaint in this regard was registered by Young Pharmacists’ Association (YPA) Secretary General Dr Furqan Ibrahim with the PM’s Complaint Cell.

    According to the complainant, 20 million masks were smuggled out of Pakistan allegedly by the SAPM in collusion with DRAP Deputy Director Ghazanfar Ali Khan.

    Meanwhile, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has also decided to launch an inquiry into the allegations against Dr Mirza.

  • ‘Unrealistic and meaningless’: Economists react to PTI govt’s second federal budget

    ‘Unrealistic and meaningless’: Economists react to PTI govt’s second federal budget

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has unveiled a Rs7.13 trillion budget for the upcoming fiscal year, which was presented before the parliament by Industries Minister Hammad Azhar amid opposition members’ protest against the same for being “anti-people”.

    But while the budget, which Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s team claims will bring relief to the masses in coronavirus times, is drawing mixed reactions from political leaders and the general public, what do economists have to say about it?

    MUZZAMMIL ASLAM:

    “Given the GDP [gross domestic product] projections (2.1%) for next year, it is apparent that the government has failed to provide impetus to the economy. This has highlighted resource constraints the current government is facing. The government is basically relying on the stimulus of 1.2 trillion it provided during COVID-19 and is now consolidating its finances due to [the] IMF [International Monetary Fund] programme.”

    YOUSUF NAZAR:

    “Budget making has been reduced to a meaningless annual ritual given the overall dismal performance in meeting the targets, a performance which had little to do with the pandemic. Given that Pakistan’s economy is contracting for the first time in history, I had hoped that the government will come up with a plan to revive growth. A big near term risk to growth is the locust attack. I don’t see anything in the budget to help the agriculture sector face this threat. On a broader note, the government seems lost and overwhelmed by the economic contraction. I don’t see how it succeed in meeting the revenue target through privatisation when the business confidence is so low and the premier appears to be, honestly, clueless about we need to do to reform the economy, reset spending priorities and revive confidence in the government.”

    FARHAN BOKHARI:

    “It is an unrealistic budget that is based on an unrealistic tax collection target. The budget should have included a bold plan to cut losses in public sector companies and an equally bold plan for tackling losses in the energy sector. Pakistan additionally needs an emergency plan to raise agricultural productivity as agriculture is the only sector of the economy that has recorded some growth. Such big moves require a national political consensus which is missing as the premier refuses to talk to other mainstream political leaders.”

    According to Hammad Azhar, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) revenue target for next year has been kept at Rs4.95 trillion, while defence allocations amount to around Rs1.3 trillion.

    READ: Twitter loses it over Rs1.29 trillion budget for defence, Rs83.63 billion for education

    The federal development programme has been budgeted at Rs650 billion to support growth prospects.

    The budget for fiscal year (FY) 2020-21 comes at a time when the country is battling the COVID-19 pandemic that has served a severe blow to the economy. According to reports, it has been formulated considering the impact of the virus and to give relief to the citizens, as part of which no new taxes have been imposed.

    Check out the budget document here.

  • Twitter loses it over Rs1.29 trillion budget for defence, Rs83.63 billion for education

    With the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government unveiling its second budget in the National Assembly (NA) on Friday, Twitterati are losing it over nearly Rs1.3 trillion being allocated for defence against not even Rs84 billion for education in the Rs7.13 trillion budget for fiscal year (FY) 2020-21.

    One trillion equals 1,000 billion.

    DEFENCE BUDGET:

    According to Dawn, the government has proposed Rs1.29 trillion defence allocation for the next fiscal year, representing an 11.8 per cent increase over the original allocation for the outgoing year. Federal Minister for Industries Hammad Azhar, while presenting the budget in the National Assembly, said that defence and internal security have been given adequate attention in the budget.

    The military had last year forgone a major hike because of the economic challenges then facing the country and settled for a raise of 4.74 per cent, but by the end of the year, it had overshot the allocation by 6.33 per cent.

    The original allocation for last year was Rs1.15 trillion, but according to revised figures presented before the lower house of parliament, about Rs1.23 trillion had been spent. It has now virtually become a norm for actual defence spending incurred in a year to be higher than the original allocation.

    EDUCATION BUDGET:

    Meanwhile, the government has earmarked Rs83.363 billion for Education Affairs and Services against the revised allocation of Rs81.253 billion for the current fiscal year, showing an increase of around 2.5 per cent. The country’s public expenditure on education as a percentage to gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated at 2.3 per cent in the fiscal year 2019-20, which, according to reports, is the lowest in the region.

    An amount worth Rs70.741 billion has been allocated for Tertiary Education Affairs and Services in budget 2020-21, which is 84.9 per cent of the total allocation under this head, while Rs2.931 billion have been earmarked for pre-Primary & Primary Education Affairs, Rs7.344 billion for Secondary Education Affairs & Services and Rs1.237 billion for administration.

    Since the federal government only finances higher education after the 18th Amendment when education as a subject was devolved to provinces, the government has increased the budgetary allocation for the higher education sector from Rs59 billion in 2019-20 to Rs64 billion for the next fiscal year. According to the budget documents, Rs29.470 billion have been earmarked for the Higher Education Commission (HEC) under the Public Sector Development Programm (PSDP) for 2020-21.

    TWITTER REACTS:

    With the nearly 1447.62 per cent difference between the spending on defence and education not sitting well with many, here’s how Twitterati are reacting:

    Some also highlighted how the government had allocated only Rs70 billion for combating the coronavirus and other disasters at a time when dozens were losing their lives to the virus across the country every day.

    What do you think of Budget 2020? Let The Current know in the comments.

    You can go through the budget document here.

  • 10 million Pakistanis to fall below poverty line

    10 million Pakistanis to fall below poverty line

    At least 10 million more Pakistanis will drop below the poverty line because of the toll of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government’s new economic survey estimates.

    Around one in four Pakistanis are currently too poor to meet basic needs, but the figure is predicted to rise closer to 30 per cent of the world’s sixth most populous nation.

    “The COVID-19 outbreak is expected to have a negative impact on Pakistan’s economy, and the number of people living below the poverty line may rise from the existing figure of 50 to 60 million,” the survey says.

    The government’s annual Economic Survey also warned that the economy would contract for the first time in 68 years.

    “The country’s provisional gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate will likely contract 0.4 per cent instead of growing 3.3 per cent as previously forecast,” Adviser to Prime Minister (PM) on Finance Abdul Hafeez Shaikh told a news conference.

    The adviser said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank (WB) were making bleaker assumptions keeping in view the severity and duration of the coronavirus pandemic. “In my view, we will have a better estimation when this year ends on June 30.”

    He highlighted the government’s swift and decisive policy actions since the start of the current fiscal year, including resource mobilisation, completion of the IMF programme, austerity measures and monetary policies helping stabilise the economy.

    The adviser stated that these measures helped the economy to reverse large external and internal imbalances. He said that significant improvement in external accounts was made as the current account and trade deficit witnessed a substantial contraction.

    “Foreign reserves steadily improved. There was an increase in foreign direct investment (FDI). The credit rating profile also improved. Fiscal performance remained strong during the first three quarters of the outgoing fiscal year, on the back of consolidation efforts and targeted reforms.”

    “To mitigate the socio-economic impact of the pandemic, the government announced a stimulus package of Rs1.24 trillion and offered further relief measures through the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). The policy rate was also cut by 5.25pc to 8.0pc,” he said, adding that monetary and fiscal policy interventions had been made to restore economic activity in this difficult time and to reduce negative effects on poverty and unemployment.

  • READ: PTI govt’s ‘corona budget’ for FY2020-21

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has presented its second federal budget in the National Assembly.

    According to Industries Minister Hammad Azhar, who delivered the budget speech on the floor of the house, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) revenue target for next year has been kept at Rs4.95 trillion, while defence allocations amount to around Rs1.3 trillion.

    The federal development programme has been budgeted at Rs650 billion to support growth prospects.

    The budget for fiscal year (FY) 2020-21 comes at a time when the country is battling the COVID-19 pandemic that has served a severe blow to the economy. According to reports, it has been formulated considering the impact of the virus and to give relief to the citizens, as part of which no new taxes have been imposed.

    Here’s the complete Rs7.13 trillion budget:

    June 12, 2020