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Tag: Pakistan

  • ‘Mastermind’ behind MDCAT cheating scam arrested

    ‘Mastermind’ behind MDCAT cheating scam arrested

    Peshawar police have arrested seven suspects on Friday, including the mastermind “facilitating” cheating in the recent Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT).

    City police issued a statement saying that they had received several complaints of some students cheating via Bluetooth devices and more.

    So far, 74 candidates, including men and women have been arrested and 19 cases have been registered at eight police stations in the provincial capital.

    The police claim to have arrested Zafar Khattak, the alleged mastermind of the scandal following the initiation of a formal investigation — a joint operation by the Peshawar and Kohat police led to the arrest.

    Khattak’s brother, along with Fahad, Fazal Subhan, Arshad, Fazl Wahab and Aminullah have also been arrested; all of whom are said to be highly-educated people.

    Electronic devices have been recovered which are to be sent to the Federal Investigation Agency for forensic examination.

    According to the police, other districts have also recovered 44 devices including microphones, mobile phones and a smart watch.

  • World Bank urges urgent economic reforms in Pakistan to tackle rising poverty

    World Bank urges urgent economic reforms in Pakistan to tackle rising poverty

    The World Bank has issued a grave warning regarding Pakistan’s economic state, urging the nation to take swift action. They propose taxing key sectors like agriculture and real estate while reducing wasteful expenditures to stabilise the economy. This endeavour aims for a significant fiscal adjustment, equivalent to over 7 percent of Pakistan’s economic size.

    The World Bank also revealed alarming statistics, with poverty levels surging to 39.4 percent in the last fiscal year, pushing an additional 12.5 million people below the poverty line. Currently, nearly 95 million Pakistanis live in poverty.

    To address these challenges, the World Bank has drafted a set of policy recommendations in collaboration with stakeholders, focusing on low human development, unsustainable fiscal practices, overregulation in the private sector, and issues in the agriculture and energy sectors.

    Immediate measures include raising the tax-to-GDP ratio by 5 percent and reducing expenditures by about 2.7 percent of GDP, primarily targeting previously protected sectors.

    Tobias Haque, the lead country economist at the World Bank, underscores the need for substantial policy changes, given Pakistan’s economic and human development crises.

    According to Express Tribune, the World Bank’s recommendations encompass a range of fiscal reforms, including the removal of tax exemptions, increased taxation on real estate and agriculture, and mandatory use of CNIC for transactions.

    Furthermore, the institution advises cutting energy and commodity subsidies, implementing a single Treasury account, and adopting temporary austerity measures for short-term savings. Medium-term savings entail streamlining federal spending and enhancing the quality of development expenditures.

    Najy Benhassine, the country director for Pakistan at the World Bank, emphasises the importance of political consensus and domestic solutions to address Pakistan’s challenges.

    The World Bank highlights the need to address the human capital crisis, reduce energy subsidies, and promote inclusive, sustainable, and climate-resilient development in Pakistan. These measures are imperative to stabilise the nation’s precarious economic situation and alleviate the growing poverty crisis.

  • Father sentenced to death for raping daughter

    Father sentenced to death for raping daughter

    The Model Court for Sexual Violence in Lahore has awarded death sentence to Rafiq for raping his 14-year-old daughter.

    The verdict was read out by Judge Mian Shahid Javed. The court also ordered that the father should also pay Rs 10 lakh as compensation to the daughter, adding that in case of non-payment, the criminal will have to undergo another six months of imprisonment.

    The court directed the jail superintendent not to carry out the death sentence until confirmation from High Court.

    A case was registered against Rafiq back in in March 2019 by Satwa Katla police station.

  • Govt attributes UAE’s fresh meat export ban to faulty refrigeration systems in containers

    Govt attributes UAE’s fresh meat export ban to faulty refrigeration systems in containers

    The Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) has attributed the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) restriction on fresh chilled meat exports from Pakistan to issues with inefficient or non-functional refrigeration systems.

    The ban, effective October 10, 2023, was enacted in response to substandard fresh beef shipments detected in Dubai. TDAP revealed that subpar meat quality was linked to refrigeration problems in reefer containers, a responsibility of shipping lines. Exporters affected by the ban have filed claims against these shipping entities.

    According to Brecorder, the UAE’s Ministry of Climate Change and Environment revised its list of approved slaughterhouses for meat exports via sea routes, imposing specific requirements on shipments of fresh and chilled meat until October 10. Only vacuum-packed or modified-atmosphere-packed meat, conforming to specific shelf-life criteria, will be permitted via sea transport.

    Notably, this ban does not affect fresh and chilled meat shipments by air. TDAP is actively engaged in resolving the issue, with the Pakistani Consulate in Dubai collaborating with stakeholders to determine the cause. TDAP remains optimistic that constructive dialogue and cooperation will lead to a resolution, allowing the resumption of fresh chilled meat exports from Pakistan to the UAE.

  • Arshad Sharif murder case proceedings on halt

    Arshad Sharif murder case proceedings on halt

    The proceedings of senior journalist Arshad Sharif’s murder trial have been put to halt in District and Sessions Courts Islamabad.

    According to the details reported by Samaa news, witnesses have failed to appear and there is a lack of interest on their behalf; and so the case’ file was sent to the record room.

    Judicial Magistrate Abbas Shah issued the written decision of the previous hearing.

    According to the decision, on March 16, the court received a challan of Penal Code Section 512 in the Arshad Sharif murder case. On April 5, the court summoned witnesses to record their statements. They were summoned several times, but no one appeared.

    The court says that they are not interested in recording the statements of the witnesses in the Arshad Sharif murder case; the prosecution was given an opportunity to submit evidence 15 times. And so, at the previous hearing, the prosecution was given notice that perhaps the file should be sent to the record room. According to the prosecutor, private and official witnesses are not coming to the court to record their statements.

    In the judgement, it has been said that the prosecution can file an application for a new date considering the appearance of the witnesses, till further orders the Arshad Sharif murder case file is sent to the record room.

  • Pakistani fans can finally get a chance to watch ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahani’

    Pakistani fans can finally get a chance to watch ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahani’

    Great news for Pakistani Bollywood fans who bemoaned missing out on the excitement surrounding the release of Karan Johar’s much-lauded romantic comedy ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahani’, because there is finally a chance for them to watch the Alia Bhatt starrer on their screens. The Ranveer Singh-Alia Bhatt film is finally out on the streaming platform Amazon Prime with a special twist: it will feature a full-screen version of the song ‘Kudmayi’.

    Director Karan Johar announced the release of the film on his Instagram account.

    The romantic comedy stars Singh as a West Delhi playboy and Alia Bhatt as the headstrong feminist journalist, who cross paths after both realise there was a special connection between their grandparents. The film also stars veteran actors Jaya Bachchan, Dharmendra and Shabana Azmi.

    The film was hailed by audience members and film critics for the strong feminist message, as well as the performances by both Ranveer and Alia, with many saying this was Karan Johar’s comeback film. The film grossed more than $23 million in India and a further $21 million overseas, making it the fourth highest-grossing Hindi film of the year.

  • Elections Date; kis nay kia welcome, kaun jaye ga court?

    Elections Date; kis nay kia welcome, kaun jaye ga court?

    After the announcement of the timeframe of elections by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), major political parties in the former ruling alliance welcomed the development, hoping that it would dispel apprehensions about the political situation of the country.

    “The final list of constituencies will be published on November 30. After that, elections will be held in the last week of January 2024,” the commission said in a statement.

    Reacting to the development, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) viewed it as positive development while Awami National Party (ANP) demanded a specific date. However, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) decided to challenge the move in court.

    PTI

    After the announcement, PTI has decided to challenge the Commission’s decision to conduct elections in the last week of January.
    While talking to Geo News, PTI’s core committee member Niazullah Niazi said that the Constitution calls for elections within 90 days, and exceeding the period is unlawful.

    “We will challenge the Election Commission’s decision. The way the ECP is working it does not look like a constitutional institution,” Niazi said, adding that President Arif Alvi has the authority to announce a date for polls.

    PMLN

    Senior PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal stated that his party welcomed the decision by the ECP as it has ended uncertainty about delimitations.

    “Everyone knew from the first day that the election commission was bound to conduct delimitation after the census,” he said.

    “Earlier, the ECP had said to complete the delimitation process by December 15 after which the polls were estimated to be held in February next year. However, our party had given suggestions to the ECP to reduce the delimitation period. In the light of those suggestions, the ECP reduced the delimitation time till November 30 and then announced elections at the end of January after the 54-day period,” he added.

    He further added, “It is important that the elections are held peacefully, and a stable government is formed that takes the country out of the economic crisis.”

    PPP

    PPP leader Qamar Zaman Kaira stated that he could only give his own opinion on the matter but viewed the development as “positive”.
    The former federal minister said that uncertainty would end and things would hopefully move in a positive direction. “Let’s hope for the best.”

    ANP

    Meanwhile, the Awami National Party has urged the ECP to fix an exact date for the election.

    Senior ANP leader Zahid Khan said that his part has demanded that elections be held in 90 days and the party raised the same issue when they met Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja.

    MQM

    MQM-P leader Mustafa Kamal told Geo news that they are satisfied with the development.

    However, he said it is yet to be seen whether the ECP would address the party’s concerns regarding the demarcation of constituencies after publishing an initial list of delimitation.

    The former Karachi mayor said his party would file a complaint if they found any problem with the delimitation process.

  • Officers of ‘spy agency’ will perform duties in NAB

    Officers of ‘spy agency’ will perform duties in NAB

    The top anti-corruption watchdog, National Accountability Bureau (NAB), has decided to appoint intelligence agency officers to investigate high-profile corruption cases after Supreme Court’s decision of reopening graft references worth billions of rupees, Geo has reported.

    A letter has been written to the institutions, and National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Chairman Lt Gen (retd) Nazir Ahmed Butt has also approved that letter, sources have confirmed.

    According to the report, anti-corruption officials have also said that the officers of sensitive institutions will be appointed to key positions and will start working in a few days.

    The insiders also stated that vacant seats in NAB will be filled soon.

    A deputy chairman of the national anti-graft body and prosecutor general will also be appointed soon on a permanent basis, they added.

    The officers of sensitive institutions will perform duties in the NAB offices, as this way a strong and efficient intelligence system can be established in the institutions.

  • Tired of long queues at NADRA centres? Good news for you, then

    Tired of long queues at NADRA centres? Good news for you, then

    NADRA centres are to introduce various new facilities including renewal of national identity cards at post offices without waiting in queues.

    Counters have been set up in 10 General Post Offices (GPOs) in Karachi to provide facilities for national identity cards where devices are connected to the NADRA system.

    Post office counters have facilities for renewal of identity cards, change of marital status, while the facility of issuing replacements for lost identity cards will also be available at the counters.

    This means that ID cards can be renewed from the post office up to one year after expiry, while home address, signature and photograph can also be changed.

    However, biometric facility of blood relation is not available at post offices. Renewal of form is mandatory from a 16th grade officer while FRC and (b) form issuance facilities are not available.

    NADRA has agreed to set up counters at the Pakistan Post Office for 10 years.

  • Co-accused in Fatima case, Fayyaz Shah, rearrested for harboring criminals

    Co-accused in Fatima case, Fayyaz Shah, rearrested for harboring criminals

    Pir Fayyaz Shah, one of the suspects in the Fatima murder case, has been re-arrested today.

    The prosecution legal team has claimed that Fayyaz Shah has been arrested for two other pending cases filed against him after Fatima’s murder FIR was filed — one issue pertaining to a jirga and the other for harbouring criminals.

    A bench of the high court had granted Fayyaz Shah a six-day bail, ordering the police not to detain him in connection with the murder case of the child maid Fatima at the Ranipur Haveli.

    Following his arrest, Shah was relocated to an undisclosed location.

    Pir Fayyaz Shah is Asad Shah’s father-in-law, the owner of the mansion where Fatima died, and the father of the other suspect, Hina Shah. He has persistently claimed that Fatima died due to illness and the family had no involvement in the case. He claims that they are being targeted for political persecution.

    Earlier, Sindh High Court Hyderabad bench granted security bail of Rs50,000, while the decision on the bail of Hina Shah will be pronounced on September 26.

    Similarly, five-day physical remand of Asad Shah and Imtiaz Merasi were approved.

    Asad Shah and medical dispenser Imtiaz Merasi, accused in the Fatima murder case, were produced in the Anti-Terrorism Court.

    A 15-day physical remand was requested by the police, but the court granted a five-day physical remand and handed them over to CTD Sukkur.

    The accused were shifted to Sukkur CTD under tight security.

    Additionally, since the past one month, nothing, including the pin code of the mobile phone, could be recovered from the accused, Pir Shah.

    Fatima’s parents had expressed doubts over the performance of Khairpur police, on which IG Sindh handed over the accused to CTD’s DSP Abdul Qadoos.

    Caretaker Provincial Minister and IG Sindh visit Fatima’s house

    Caretaker Interior Minister Brigadier (retd) Haris Nawaz and IG Sindh visited village Khan Wahan of District Naushahro Feroze where they condoled with the father of deceased Fatima Phuriro.

    Nawaz said that he will ensure justice in Fatima’s case, giving instructions to the inquiry officer to complete the inquiry soon.