The federal government has taken an important step to stop issuance of illegal passports and theft of sensitive data.
According to the sources, reported by Geo News, PECA law has been implemented to permanently block access to Pakistani passports for foreigners including Afghans.
The Federal Cabinet has implemented the Anti-Electronic Crimes Act on six sections of passport offices.
Sources elaborated that entry into important offices in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi has been made inaccessible except for certain officers and employees with security clearance — all to prevent data theft of sensitive information, passports, visas, theft of citizenship and applicant data.
Approval has been taken from the caretaker federal Cabinet through a circular on the summary of the Ministry of Interior.
Pakistani-American businessman has donated nine million dollars to the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) for unprivileged students, reports Geo.
The donation will help 200 students every year through an endowment fund. This is the biggest ever fund given to any Pakistani university.
It’s my honour dear @HamidMirPAK sb to give back to the country that gave us everything. My contribution is no favour to pakistan, it’s my duty towards my motherland. IT is the future and I will request affluent overseas Pakistanis to work for education in Pakistan-that’s the… https://t.co/6aKPGXHnNb
Tanveer Ahmed also donated 50 million dollars to flood affectees in 2022. Business tycoon Tanveer went to America as a student and started working in a restaurant.
Recently, as reported by Dawn, he met Army Chief General Asim Muneer in Washington DC where the chief praised him for his contributions for Pakistan. “I met the army chief along with dozens of other community members. More than 70 people were in attendance. We had an open and frank discussion with the army chief. He interacted with everyone and was very receptive,” Ahmed tweeted after the dinner.
DAWN confirms exactly what I stated as a witness that Army Chief Gen Asim Munir met a packed house of American Pakistanis and leading PTI leaders met him too and congratulated him on his successful visit. Open and frank discussion. Many came on private planes for the meet.… https://t.co/zCsnsjUjqZ
Every year on December 18 Minority Rights Day is celebrated in India but this year, the country topped the list of atrocities on minorities.
In the Northern Indian city of Ayodhya, once marred by communal rights because of Babri Mosque, Ram Mandir is about to be inaugurated on January 22. The establishment of Ram Mandir is a long overdue promise of the ruling Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Ayodhya is expecting about 4.5 million tourists a month – more than Ayodhya’s entire population of three million – once the first stage of Ram Mandir opens in the upcoming days.
Ayodhya made international headlines in 1992 when a Hindu mob razed Babri mosque – where the Mandir will stand – saying it had been built on the site of an earlier Hindu temple.
The incident spurred nationwide riots that left 2,000 people dead, most of them Muslims.
After decades of legal wrangling, India’s Supreme Court in 2019 awarded the site to Hindu groups for the temple.
While the $180 million temple project in Uttar Pradesh is funded by donations, the state government – controlled by PM Modi’s Hindu nationalist BJP- is pulling out all the stops.
In a Reuters report cited by the Business Recorder where they interviewed people from the locality of the temple, Hindus expressed excitement for the launch because this will attract business for them. Muslims, on the other hand, fear being marginalized further.
The Supreme Court also said authorities must allocate the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board, which advocates for Muslim rights, “suitable” land at a “prominent” place to build a new mosque.
The board was issued land 15 miles from the temple, just next to the city border.
That effectively means Muslims are excluded from the development boom-brought by the temple-downtown, said Azam Qadri, president of Ayodhya district committee of the board.
“Everyone is focused on the temple. There should have been a focus on promoting mosques too,” Qadri said.
Muslims still don’t have wide acceptance in the city and even if the community tried to build hotels, Hindu religious tourists might not visit, he added.
It’s not just Muslims, other minorities in India are suffering as well. On April 21, 2022, 50 thousand houses of Muslims were demolished in the state of Hyderabad, and in 2023, 400 incidents of violence against Christians were reported in 23 states of India. On August 25, Indian extremists killed hundreds of Christians and burned 600 villages in the Kandhamal district of Orissa, reports Samaa News.
Sikh riots intensified after the assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984, in which around 17,000 Sikhs were killed. Farmers remain protesting across Punjab but the government did not pay any heed to their demands.
As per DW, 60,000 crimes against Dalit Hindus were reported. On average, an incident of violence against a Dalit occurred every 10 minutes in 2012. National Crime Bureau said that over 250,000 hate crimes against lower castes were reported in the last 5 years while as per the report US Institute on Religious Affairs, there have been systematic attacks on Muslims, Christians, and Dalits in India.
The head of the U.S. Commission on Religious Freedom said that religious freedom in India has suffered a sharp decline under the Modi regime. Since 2020, the US Commission on Religious Affairs has included India in the list of countries of concern, and human rights organizations have declared India as a dangerous country for minorities.
During a recent interview, Janhvi Kapoor admitted that she regrets not making use of the acting skills she inherited from her mother due to the pressure of accusations of nepotism. She acknowledged that it was a mistake to avoid seeking help from her mother during her first film, “Dhadak,” because she wanted to prove herself independently.
Kapoor explained, “I was so conscious during my first film. People said I got the role because I am Sridevi’s daughter. I wanted to stay away from her influence. I thought it would be unfair if I took advantage of her advice. Looking back, I realize it was silly. I didn’t let her help me when she wanted to be there for me as a mother.”
She expressed regret, saying, “Sometimes I wish I had just told her, ‘Mom, I have a shoot, please come quickly.’ Maybe she would have been there. I’ve come to understand that now.” Janhvi concluded by expressing pride in being the daughter of her parents. She acknowledged that some might debate the morality of her being Sridevi’s daughter, but she believes it’s the truth.
Her younger sister, Khushi Kapoor made her debut in the recently-released teen musical ‘The Archies’. Janhvi shared the advice she has for her: “She did such a wonderful job at being honest. When I was talking to her, I told her to be prepared for hate but not to forget herself in the process. I wish someone said this to me. I wish someone told me to try looking at the people that value you, like you, because believing the bad is always easier.” “When someone says something bad about you, then believing that person becomes easier. It takes a lot of self-confidence to believe someone who says the right thing. Me and my sister, at times, we question ourselves a lot. I told her ‘Don’t lose yourself, don’t be jaded because you’ve been very honest.’ I felt her performance was very warm, there was a lot of innocence in it. She was not trying to show anything off and it is very difficult to be this real in front of the camera.”
The caretaker federal government has blocked the CNIC of former minister Hammad Azhar and 18 other leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
The party leaders are facing legal charges following the May 9 riots. The list of leaders with blocked CNICs consists of Ali Amin Gandapur, Muhammad Aslam Iqbal, Malik Karamat Khokhar, Wasiq Qayyum Abbasi, Jamshed Iqbal Cheema, Zubair Khan Niazi, Malik Nadeem Abbas, and Ghulam Mohiuddin Dewan.
According to officials, the CNICs have been blocked at the request of the police and will remain suspended until investigation is completed.
Authorities also said that if PTI leaders do not appear before the court, they will be deprived of their legal rights.
Earlier On Sunday, PTI conducted its first virtual jalsa through various social media platforms, amid accusations of an alleged ‘internet crackdown’ aimed at stopping the event’s impact,.
Chairman PTI Barrister Gohar Khan spoke to approximately one million social media users globally, reaching audiences in Asia, Europe, and America.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had a virtual jalsa on Sunday night and the internet is in fits after seeing the new look of one central leader.
Qasim Suri, central senior vice president, member of the core committee of PTI, and the former deputy speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan, made a public appearance after a long time and people can’t accept that he looks like a different man.
Netizens compared him to Indian singer Kumar Sanu.
“Kal space mein Qasim Suri Ki Jagah Kumar Sanu Aagae Thy Ghalti Se.”
“Looking at Qasim Suri’s pictures, I’m convinced ke jo kaam aurton k liye makeup karta ha mardon ke liye wo kaam Beard krti ha Cutie came from Metaverse”
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) held the first-ever virtual jalsa in Pakistan amid a crackdown and unsaid ban on their on-ground jalsas.
Former Prime Minister and founding chairman of PTI Imran Khan addressed his supporters using an audio clip generated by artificial intelligence (AI) during the virtual jalsa.
The AI-generated audio, played alongside photographs and videos of Khan, garnered over 1.4 million views on YouTube and drew a live audience of tens of thousands on various social media platforms.
PTI social media lead, Jibran Ilyas, took to X (former Twitter) and wrote, “Founding Chairman Imran Khan’s speech in AI voice. Can’t stop praising Dr Asma for staying up 36 hours to get this done in time, Nausheen for translations and Intazar Bhai for getting notes from the Legend Imran Khan! #PTIVirtualJalsa.”
Founding Chairman Imran Khan's speech in AI voice. Can't stop praising Dr Asma for staying up 36 hours to get this done in time, Nausheen for translations and Intazar Bhai for getting notes from the Legend Imran Khan! #PTIVirtualJalsapic.twitter.com/9CoDVT4sXb
In his address, Khan lamented the restrictions on public rallies imposed on his party, emphasizing the alleged abduction of party members and harassment of their families.
“Our party is not allowed to hold public rallies,” Khan stated, urging his supporters to actively participate in the upcoming general elections. “Our people are being kidnapped, and their families are being harassed.”
Officials from Khan’s party revealed that the AI-generated speech was derived from a written version approved by Khan himself while he remains incarcerated. PTI organized the virtual rally in response to Khan’s media blackout.
Murtaza Solangi, the information minister in Pakistan’s caretaker government tasked with overseeing the elections, did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comments.
Internet services faced serious disruptions on Sunday night as a large number of people complained about difficulties in accessing social media sites where Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was holding a virtual election rally.
Users from different parts of the country reported slow internet speed all across the country, especially in Karachi, Lahore, Mir Pur Khas, and Rawalpindi. Downdetector confirmed that website versions were down since around 7 pm in the evening.
Imran Khan, convicted and sentenced to three years on graft charges on Aug. 5, has been entangled in numerous court cases, some of which are conducted behind closed doors in prison.
A happy day turned into a tragic one when a groom suddenly passed away during his wedding ceremony in Sialkot’s Daska Tehsil, creating panic among the family members. The family has stated that he died because of a heart attack.
In the video which is doing the rounds on social media, the groom can be seen sitting on a sofa surrounded by his family members on his wedding day. Instantly, the groom collapses and falls forward without moving, reported Geo News on Monday.
This alarms the family members sitting beside him who suddenly pick him up and one of the men checks the groom’s pulse.
According to the police, the family members said that the groom died of a heart attack. However, the groom’s family refused to initiate any investigation into the sudden death.
A special court in Rawalpindi granted post-arrest bail to former federal minister Fawad Chaudhry on Sunday in a corruption case.
The court announced its decision to release the former minister, ordering him to submit a surety bond of Rs200,000.
Fawad Chaudhry was arrested in November, in a case pertaining to a Rs5 million bribe paid by a citizen in August 2022.
Following the extension of his physical remand, he was subsequently placed on judicial remand and is currently incarcerated at the Adiala jail.
While speaking with reporters outside the court, Fawad’s brother, Faisal Chaudhry, said that the ex-minister will take part in the upcoming polls, which are set to take place on February 8, 2024.
He also said that it has not been decided yet on what party ticket Fawad will contest the election.
“This decision will come as a surprise,” Faisal said.
Faisal Chaudhry also said that the conflict between him and his sister-in-law, Hiba Fawad, is a family matter.
“Hiba is my elder sister. [We] will resolve the domestic matter at home,” he stated.
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) co-chairman and former president Asif Ali Zardari met PPP Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) leaders on Sunday to discuss the upcoming general elections and political alliances with like-minded parties.
During the huddle, the former president also directed the PPP leaders to not form an alliance with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for the forthcoming polls on February 8 next year.
Asif Zardari said that local leaders of PPP can form alliances with any other political party except the PTI in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The former president stayed at the Governor House, while KP Governor Haji Ghulam Ali met him as well.
Governor Ghulam Ali and Mayor Peshawar Zubair Ali gave a traditional shawl to a PPP co-chairperson as a gift.
Meanwhile, PPP’s senior leaders also ruled out an election alliance with the PTI in KP. “We never brought under discussion alliance with PTI in our meeting with party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Sunday,” said PPP leader and former MPA Mohammad Ali Shah Bacha.
The head of the PPP women’s wing, Faryal Talpur, also attended the PPP KP parliamentary board meeting.
Former Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani, former deputy speaker of the National Assembly (NA) Faisal Karim Kundi, Mohammad Ali Shah Bacha, and Rubina Khalid also attended the huddle.
On the other hand, another PPP leader, Ziaullah Afridi, said that the former president didn’t visit KP. He claimed that he invited Zardari to his son’s wedding, and the former president just accepted it.
