Current Final

Blog

  • Recklessly drifting BMW lands doctor in jail

    Recklessly drifting BMW lands doctor in jail

    A doctor has been apprehended and his BMW confiscated by the police for reportedly causing significant damage to recently constructed infrastructure in Defence Housing Authority, Karachi, with his allegedly drifting car.

    The incident, which occurred in Bukhari Commercial Area, resulted in substantial harm to the area’s development, according to a senior police official.

    Dr Salman is currently being interrogated as his BMW was allegedly involved in the incident.

    The police revealed that two luxury cars were involved in the drifting, one of which belonged to the detained doctor, while efforts are under way to apprehend the owner/driver of the other vehicle.

    The complaint, filed by a sub-engineer of the Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC), highlighted the negligence of the drivers, who caused damage to the official infrastructure through overspeeding and drifting, and then abandoned their vehicles at the scene.

    The incident, which occurred on April 12, follows a similar event on April 10 involving another unidentified car and driver. Both incidents have led to the registration of FIRs against the drivers underSections 279 and 427 of the Pakistan Penal Code.

  • Bilal Abbas Khan, Sabeena Farooq to star together in new HUM TV serial

    Bilal Abbas Khan, Sabeena Farooq to star together in new HUM TV serial

    Bilal Abbas Khan and Sabeena Farooq are teaming up for the first time in a new HUM TV project written by Zafar Mairaj and directed by Kashif Nisar.
    The news was confirmed by actor Gohar Rasheed on Instagram, where he also announced his significant role in the project.

    Apart from the lead duo, the ensemble cast includes seasoned actors like Asma Abbas, Sheherzade Peerzada, Maira Khan, Mustafa Afridi, Adnan Shah Tipu, and Usman Chaudhry.


    With such a talented team both behind and in front of the camera, expectations are high for the upcoming venture, promising audiences yet another compelling storyline and stellar performances. Stay tuned for more updates on this exciting collaboration.

  • Ali Rehman thinks being compared to THIS Hollywood heartthrob is a compliment

    Ali Rehman thinks being compared to THIS Hollywood heartthrob is a compliment

    In a recent interview with Independent Urdu, Pakistani actor Ali Rehman Khan expressed his surprise and admiration after being compared to a Hollywood heartthrob for the first time.

    Ali Rehman, known for his role in ‘Bebasi,’ was pleasantly surprised and flattered when he was compared to Ryan Gosling. He praised Gosling’s ability to handle serious roles and excel in comedy. “It’s a big compliment to be compared to him. He’s a very big actor,” Ali said.
    “Personally, I have never felt a resemblance… He is one of my favorite actors because I think that Ryan Gosling does serious roles with finesse but his comedic timing, too, is extraordinary. His film ‘Bad Guys’ is one of my favorites. His performance in it is just amazing,” he added.


    Talking about his life, Ali, originally from Islamabad but now living in Karachi since six years, described Karachi as a busy metropolitan city compared to the more laid-back Islamabad. “Karachi is a bustling metropolitan city where day and night merge into one. In Islamabad, you feel the difference between day and night very strongly,” he explained.


    Ali loves Karachi, highlighting its dynamic atmosphere and delicious food, especially the famous dishes of Burns Road. “I love the food on Burns Road. As actors, we can’t eat a lot because we have to watch our diets, but you can find great food anywhere in Karachi,” he said.


    Looking ahead, Ali said he wants to work with leading actresses of Pakistani cinema like Mahira Khan, Sanam Saeed, and Sajal Ali, praising their talent and the potential for diverse opportunities such collaborations could bring.

  • Bollywood film ’12th Fail’ to premiere in China

    Bollywood film ’12th Fail’ to premiere in China

    Indian actor Vikrant Massey’s successful film’12th Fail’, a biopic of an IPS officer, is gearing up for release on over 20,000 screens across China.
    Massey confirmed the news of the release, stating, “It’s too soon to talk about that, but I am really excited because, after a long time, something like this has happened.”


    Elaborating on the film’s popularity in China, Massey said, “There is a huge demand for Hindi cinema or Indian cinema in China. There are more than 20,000 screens [given to 12th Fail]. China really caters to the entertainment sector and hence the numbers [of screens].”
    ’12th Fail’ is based on a best-selling book by Indian author Anurag Pathak and tells the real-life story of IPS officer Manoj Kumar Sharma. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra, the film stars Vikrant Massey alongside Medha Shankar, Anant V Joshi, Anshumaan Pushkar, and Priyanshu Chatterjee.

    Initially released in India last year, the film received critical acclaim and was later dubbed in Tamil, Kannada, and Telugu. It is currently available for streaming on the OTT platform Disney+ Hotstar.

  • X working with Pakistan govt to ‘understand concerns’ over ban

    X working with Pakistan govt to ‘understand concerns’ over ban

    Islamabad, Pakistan – Social media platform X said Thursday it would work with Pakistan’s government “to understand its concerns” after authorities insisted an ongoing two-month ban was based on security grounds.

    The platform, formerly known as Twitter, has been rarely accessible since February 17, when jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party called for protests following a government official’s admission of vote manipulation in the February election.

    “We continue to work with the Pakistani Government to understand their concerns,” X’s Global Government Affairs team posted, in their first comments since the site was disrupted.

    The Interior Ministry on Wednesday said X was blocked on security grounds, according to a report submitted to the Islamabad High Court where one of several challenges to the ban is being heard.

    On the same day, the Sindh High Court ordered the government to restore access to social media platform X within a week.

    “The Sindh High Court has given the government one week to withdraw the letter, failing which, on the next date, they will pass appropriate orders,” Moiz Jaaferi, a lawyer challenging the ban, told AFP.

    The court’s full decision is expected to be published this week.

    Both the government and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) had for weeks refused to comment on the outages.

    “It is the sole prerogative and domain of the federal government to decide what falls within the preview of terms of ‘defence’ or ‘security’ of Pakistan and what steps are necessary to be taken to safeguard National Security,” said the interior ministry’s report, submitted by senior official Khurram Agha.

    The interior ministry suggested intelligence agencies were behind the order.

    The closure of a social media service “when there is request from any security or intelligence agency” is “well within the scope of provisions of the PTA act”, the report said.

    Digital rights activists, however, said it was designed to quash dissent after February 8 polls that were fraught with claims of rigging.

    Access to X has been sporadic, occasionally available for short cycles based on the internet service provider, forcing users to use virtual private networks.

    Mobile services were cut across Pakistan on election day, with the interior ministry also citing security reasons.

    It was followed by a long delay in issuing voting results, giving rise to allegations of tampering.

    Khan’s opposition party had already faced heavy censorship in the weeks before the election, banned from television channels and from holding rallies, forcing its campaign online.

    Despite the crackdown, his party won the most seats but was kept from power by a coalition of rival parties that had the backing of the military.

    stm-ecl/jts/ssy

    © Agence France-Presse

  • Meta shouldn’t force users to pay for data protection: EU watchdog

    Meta shouldn’t force users to pay for data protection: EU watchdog

    Brussels, Belgium – Facebook owner Meta and other online platforms must not force users to pay for the right to data protection enshrined in EU law when offering ad-free subscriptions, the European data regulator said Wednesday.

    “Online platforms should give users a real choice when employing ‘consent or pay’ models,” the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) chair Anu Talus said in a statement.

    “The models we have today usually require individuals to either give away all their data or to pay,” she said. “As a result, most users consent to the processing in order to use a service, and they do not understand the full implications of their choices.”

    Meta in November launched a “pay or consent” system allowing users to withhold use of their data for ad targeting in exchange for a monthly fee — a model that has faced several challenges from privacy and consumer advocates.

    Meta has long profited from selling user data to advertisers but this business model has led to multiple battles with EU regulators over data privacy.

    The latest announcement came after the data protection authorities of The Netherlands, Norway and the German state of Hamburg went to the EDPB for an opinion regarding the pay-or-consent model used by Meta.

    The Silicon Valley company allows users of Instagram and Facebook in Europe to pay between 10 and 13 euros (around $11 and $14) a month to opt out of data sharing.

    Meta pointed to an EU court ruling last year that it said opened the way for subscriptions as a “legally valid” option. “Today’s EDPB opinion does not alter that judgment and subscription for no ads complies with EU laws,” a Meta spokesperson said.

    Meta is waiting for a decision on its model by the data privacy regulator in Ireland where the company is headquartered.

    ‘Binary choice’

    All digital platforms must comply with the European Union’s mammoth general data protection regulation (GDPR), which has been at the root of EU court cases against Meta.

    The EDPB in its opinion argued that Meta’s model was at odds with the GDPR’s requirement that consent for data use must be freely given.

    “In most cases, it will not be possible for large online platforms to comply with the requirements for valid consent if they confront users only with a binary choice between consenting to processing of personal data for behavioural advertising purposes and paying a fee,” the opinion read.

    The EDPB also warned the type of subscription service put forward by Meta “should not be the default way forward” for platforms.

    It suggested that platforms should consider an alternative that would give users the right to reject being tracked for advertising purposes without the need to pay.

    Privacy defenders welcomed the opinion.

    “Overall, Meta is out of options in the EU. It must now give users a genuine yes/no option for personalised advertising,” said prominent online privacy activist Max Schrems.

    “We know that ‘Pay or Okay’ shifts consent rates from about three percent to more than 99 percent — so it is as far from ‘freely given’ consent as North Korea is from a democracy,” said Schrems.

    Tech lobby group CCIA however warned the EDPB risked “opening a Pandora’s Box”.

    “Forcing businesses to offer services at a loss is unprecedented and sends the wrong signals,” said CCIA Europe’s senior policy manager, Claudia Canelles Quaroni.

    “All companies should be able to offer paid-for versions of their services.”

    raz/gv

    © Agence France-Presse

  • Will Virat Kohli participate in T20 World Cup?

    Will Virat Kohli participate in T20 World Cup?

    The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has taken a decision on the participation of star batsman Virat Kohli in the T20 World Cup 2024.

    Rumors alleging that Virat Kohli will not be included in the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup had been circulating for a while. However, now the Board has decided to include the master batsman in the squad for the T20 World Cup starting in America and West Indies from June.

    The report said that Kohli wanted clarification from the selection committee. During a meeting between captain Rohit Sharma, head coach Rahul Dravid and chief selector Ajit Agarkar, it has been decided that Kohli will participate in the event and also open the inning with Rohit Sharma. Kohli has batted most of his career at No. 3 but has a great record as an opener as well.

    Earlier, questions were being raised regarding Virat Kohli’s participation in the T20 World Cup and his strike rate was also being criticized. Recently, Virat Kohli came under criticism for scoring the slowest century in the match against Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

  • Army orders to investigate EX-ISI chief Faiz Hameed, journalist Kamran Yousaf reports

    Army orders to investigate EX-ISI chief Faiz Hameed, journalist Kamran Yousaf reports

    Pakistan army has formed a high-level inquiry committee to investigate alleged accusations to investigate former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Faiz Hameed for allegedly misusing power while serving as the director-general of ISI, journalist Kamran Yousaf has reported.

    People familiar with the development said that the investigation has been conducted at the directions of the Supreme Court (SC) and the Ministry of Defence.

    Faiz Hameed was appointed as DG-C in ISI and later became the head of the intelligence agency. His name was involved in multiple controversies, including the Faizabad Dharna case. Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also accused him of engineering his removal from office in 2017.

    However, the Pakistan Army has decided to investigate the case through a high-level inquiry committee. “A high-level inquiry committee has been constituted under a Major General, which will look at every aspect related to this matter in detail.”

    ‘There is a strict and highly transparent system of self-accountability in the Pakistan Army, and by promoting this system, all such allegations are investigated with great seriousness, and those responsible are also given severe punishment so that the self-accountability of the Pakistan Army is maintained,” Express TRIBUNE reported.

  • Vanuatu women’s cricket team collects donations to participate in ICC event

    Vanuatu women’s cricket team collects donations to participate in ICC event

    The women’s cricket team of Vanuatu, a country in the Oceania region, has resorted to collect donations to participate in the International Cricket Council (ICC) event.

    Vanuatu is scheduled to participate in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Global Qualifiers in Abu Dhabi but lacks funds to upgrade the team’s equipment.

    Vanuatu qualified for the Global Qualifiers by defeating Japan in the East Asia Pacific Qualifiers.

    Teams from the Netherlands, Zimbabwe, Ireland, UAE, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Scotland, USA and Uganda are participating in the global qualifiers which started on April 25.

    According to the report, the team needs six to seven thousand dollars for better equipment, but the Vanuatu Cricket Association requested funds from the public to collect the money.

    The Vanuatu Cricket Association has created a fundraising link on the GoFundMe portal and so far $3,000 have been collected.

    The amount required is equivalent to one match fee of any international cricket team player.

  • After Allah, I hope from the Sharif family: Umar Akmal

    After Allah, I hope from the Sharif family: Umar Akmal

    Pakistan cricket team’s middle order batsman Umar Akmal has said that after Allah, he has hope only from the Sharif family.

    During an interview on Samaa on Monday, Umar Akmal said, “Everyone has personal connections. I am thankful to Nawaz Sharif and Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz for always giving me time.”

    Umar Akmal complained, “There were some problems in my life which bothered me, I was not allowed to play cricket for a long time. The seniors in Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) are getting personal with me. I showed my performance to Maryam Nawaz and requested her to give me a chance. If I get a chance, I will make a comeback in international cricket.”

    In August last year, Umar Akmal went to London to meet former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, where while talking to the media, he said that Sharif’s return will improve cricket and he has made a request that will hopefully be accepted soon.

    Umar Akmal last represented Pakistan in a match against Sri Lanka in 2019.