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Tag: Pakistan

  • Caretaker govt files appeal against Review Act verdict

    Caretaker govt files appeal against Review Act verdict

    The federal interim government has filed a review appeal against the Supreme Court’s decision on the Review of Judgment Act on Monday, asking the apex court Supreme Court to revise the decision.

    The petition contends that Article 142 empowers the Parliament to enact such legislation, the judicial decision being an encroachment on the powers of the legislature.

    It should be noted that the Supreme Court had annulled the (Review of Judgment and Orders) Act on August 11.

    “The Supreme Court (Review of Judgments and Orders) Act 2023 is ultra vires the Constitution being beyond the legislative competence of parliament,” declared a three-member bench led by former chief justice Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar.
    Senior lawyers had voiced severe concerns regarding the verdict’s timing.

  • Autopsy reveals 10-year-old Fatima died of physical injuries

    Autopsy reveals 10-year-old Fatima died of physical injuries

    The post-mortem report of 10-year-old Fatima has been released, while the final post-mortem report has been submitted in the court of Judicial Magistrate, Ranipur.

    According to the autopsy report, Fatima died due to head and chest injuries, and she was not provided any treatment after being assaulted which eventually led to her demise.

    Marks of torture on her arm have also been identified.

    Fatima’s case

    A domestic maid, 10-year-old child Fatima Phuriro, was found dead under suspicious circumstances in Ranipur.

    The child had been working as a domestic worker at a haveli owned by an influential local, Pir Asad Shah Jilani.

    Fatima’s mother, Shabana, was informed about the death by the employer who asked her to remove the body from the premises where two of Fatima’s sisters were also employed.

    According to DIG Sukkur Javed Jiskani, the parents initially did not share the facts of the case with the police and claimed that the girl was suffering from gastroenteritis. While her diagnosis was also confirmed by Dr Abdul Fatah Memon who treated her, the DIG revealed that Fatima was taken to the hospital either by the Pir or his staff and that the SHO was present at the time she was pronounced dead.

    It was not until videos of the child were leaked by an unknown source and circulated in social media that the case caught the media’s eye. By then, the family had buried Fatima on August 15.

    The body was later exhumed and sent for an autopsy which revealed that the girl had been raped both vaginally and anally.

  • Number of voters reached 127 million this year: ECP

    Number of voters reached 127 million this year: ECP

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has released voter data of the country from 2018 to 2023. According to the data, the number of registered voters increased from 105.95 million (105,955,409) in 2018 to nearly 127 million (126,980,272) in 2023.  These numbers are according to the calculations done in July this year.

    The number of male voters is over 68.50 million (68,508,258), while female voters reached 58.47 million (58,472,014) in 2023.

    According to figures given by the electoral authority, the number of voters in Islamabad increased from 765,447 in 2018 to over 1.04 million (1,041,554) this year. This is one of the country’s major urban centres.

    The total number of voters in Punjab reached 72.3 million (72,310,582) this year, while the number was 60.6 million (60,672,771) in 2018.

    The number of voters in Punjab reached 72.3 million (72,310,582) this year. On the other hand, the number was 60.6 million (60,672,771) in 2018.

  • New Zealand awards SSP Sonia Shamroz Khan from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

    New Zealand awards SSP Sonia Shamroz Khan from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) and District Police Officer (DPO) of Battagram district, Sonia Shamroz Khan, received ‘Officer of the Year’ award from International Association of Women Police (IAWP) in Auckland, New Zealand.

    SSP Battagram Sonia Shamrose has been awarded for excellence in policing strategies and prevention of violence against women.

    She previously worked as DPO Chitral during which she actively worked on local social issues, including establishment of a complaint cell to prevent forced marriages.

    While speaking to Geo News, SSP Sonia Shamzroz Khan dedicated her award to all the women victims of gender discrimination and diligent women police officers who are working tirelessly to ensure peace and security.

    She added that she has always been mindful of cultural norms and sensitivity attached to certain issues while working. Previously, she highlighted, women in Battagram did not approach the police, but now, there is an increase in crime reports pertaining to their issues.

  • Pakistan to launch digital rupee to reduce printing and distribution costs

    Pakistan to launch digital rupee to reduce printing and distribution costs

    The government has opted to introduce a digital currency as a strategic move aimed at reducing expenses associated with currency printing and distribution.

    According to The News, this digital currency initiative is expected to contribute to the appreciation of the rupee’s value, bolster the overall economy, and facilitate extensive financial transactions.

    Much like the Chinese digital currency, where one unit is equivalent to one Chinese Yuan, the value of this digital currency will be pegged to the Pakistani rupee. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) will be the driving force behind this endeavour, offering government-backed guarantees similar to traditional currency notes. The SBP has already begun its efforts, enlisting the expertise of professionals for its development.

    To oversee this transformation, a specialised department known as the Central Bank Digital Currency has been established. This department is diligently assessing the cost benefits and feasibility of the digital currency to ensure seamless transactions upon its launch.

    The government’s objective is to gradually replace physical currency notes with digital currency while maintaining an 80:20 ratio, allowing currency notes to coexist as a backup in unforeseen circumstances.

    The adoption of digital currency will also yield significant savings by eliminating the expenses associated with printing, distributing, and disposing of physical notes. Additionally, every digital transaction will be meticulously documented, enhancing the effectiveness of monetary policy enforcement.

    Furthermore, digital currency holds substantial potential for advancing cross-border trade and investment and extending access to financial services for the unbanked population. The World Bank acknowledges its potential to enhance the financial industry’s efficiency, resilience, and reliability, with blockchain technology serving as one of the pivotal distributed ledger technologies supporting these advancements.

  • Deadly virus kills 35 ibex in Kirthar

    Deadly virus kills 35 ibex in Kirthar

    Ibex goats are dying in large numbers in Kirthar National Park, authorities have confirmed.

    According to local sources, four more ibex were found dead on Sunday while nine infected animals were traced by wildlife officers.

    Local sources have also reported that dead ibex are being cremated and buried, while efforts are being made to clean the ibex’s watering holes.

    The water in which the dead ibex were found has been blocked by planting bushes around it. While the water has become very polluted after decomposing ibex were found in it, locals claim the water will clean naturally with rains.

    Ibex are apparently suffering from an epidemic called Peste des Petits Ruminants, or PPR.

    Locals explain that this ‘goat plague’ is a virus that spreads rapidly, usually infecting sheep and goats. It is thus feared that the disease has been spread to ibex from goats

    Currently, there are around 25 thousand ibex in Kirthar and so far, 35 have died.

    Deputy Conservator of the Department of Wildlife, Hyderabad, Wahid Shaikh told Geo News that samples of the dead ibex have been sent to the laboratory for analysis, adding that the Sindh Wildlife Department has sent more teams to the affected area.

  • Bilalwal asks ECP to announce poll dates

    Bilalwal asks ECP to announce poll dates

    Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, the chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), has stated that he will only be able to remark on making “alliances” with other political parties when the election date has been made public.

    While addressing a press conference in Okara, the former foreign minister once more urged that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to announce the election date so that the party could plan and launch its election campaign.

    “It is our request to the ECP to announce the election schedule,” the PPP chief said, emphasising that the matter of alliances can only be addressed once the election timetable is established.

    When asked about the expected return of Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif, Bilawal stated: “Mian Sahib’s return has been a long-standing demand of the PPP.”

    “The PPP is not being pushed to the wall, we didn’t even back out from the 2007-2008 elections,” the party chairman stated in response to a question.

  • Nawaz holds the ex-military leadership, Saqib Nisar, accountable for Pakistan’s condition

    Nawaz holds the ex-military leadership, Saqib Nisar, accountable for Pakistan’s condition

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif has said on Monday that the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government had saved Pakistan from defaulting.

    His statement came during a party meeting via video link from London, where he emphasised that the PML-N rescued Pakistan from an economic crisis by making sacrifices. He was also confident that PML-N would achieve success in the upcoming elections.

    In addition, the PML-N leader blamed former ISI chief General (retd) Faiz Hamid, former chief of the army, General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa, and former chief justice Mian Saqib Nisar for Pakistan’s current condition.

    “Today, the poor is craving bread; who brought the country to this state” the senior politician questioned, regretting how people were worried about putting two meals on their table.

    Recalling that the economic conditions were different in 2017 when he was in power, Sharif said that flour, ghee, and sugar were cheap but now the poor people of the country are unable to pay their bills.

  • Can democracy deliver? Pakistanis answer in new report

    Can democracy deliver? Pakistanis answer in new report

    Open Society Barometer conducted a survey on one question: Can Democracy Deliver?

    The survey is based on representative polling in 30 countries with a combined population of over 5.5 billion people, including Pakistan, to reflect on geographic, economic, and political diversity.

    The report surveyed 36,344 respondents aged 18 or older in each country

    According to the survey, 86 per cent of respondents have faith in democracy while only 20 per cent believe that authoritarian countries can deliver “what citizens want.”

    72 per cent believe that human rights have been a “force for good” in the world, and 71 per cent agree that “human rights reflect values that I believe in.”

    It is noteworthy that only 57 per cent of 18-35-year-olds prefer democracy to any other form of government, compared to 71 per cent of older respondents.

    Democracy and Pakistan
    The global average percentage of respondents who deem it important to live in a democratically governed country is 86 per cent while in Pakistan it is 79 per cent.

    Similarly, 56 per cent of Pakistanis preferred democracy over other form of governance in comparison to 62 per cent of the global average.

    The global average percentage of respondents who believe human rights have been a force for good in the world is 72 per cent while in Pakistan it is 81 per cent.

    Human Rights and Pakistan

    With the global average of 72 per cent respondents, 81 per cent Pakistanis believe human rights have been a force for good in the world.

    78 per cent of Pakistanis believe human rights reflect the values that they believe in in comparison to the global average of 71 per cent.

    The highest percentage of Pakistanis, i.e. 39 per cent, rank economic and social rights as the most important. This is followed by civil and political rights with 23 per cent, environmental rights with 16 per cent and digital rights with 12 per cent.

    Most importantly, 43 per cent of Pakistanis disagree with army rule as a “good way of running a country” in comparison to 33 per cent who agree.

    Likewise, 45 per cent of Pakistanis disagree with having a leader who “does not bother with parliaments or elections is a good way of running a country” while 33 per cent agree.

    Equity, justice and Pakistan

    73 per cent of Pakistanis fear that political unrest in their country could lead to violence next year in comparison to 58 per cent of the global average.

  • What is Practice and Procedure act 2023?

    What is Practice and Procedure act 2023?

    On March 29 and March 30, 2023, the National Assembly and Senate, respectively, adopted and enacted the (Practice and Procedure Bill) 2023. Without his signature, the President remitted the bill for review, but on April 10, 2023, the Joint Session of Parliament once more passed the Act after it had complied with all rules and procedures.

    According to the Act, each case, appeal, and subject before the Supreme Court will be heard by benches formed by a committee comprising of the Chief Justice and the two senior most judges.

    It further stated that any issue involving the use of original jurisdiction under Article 184, paragraph (3), shall be brought before the committee for consideration first.
    The committee must then assemble a bench of at least three Supreme Court justices, which may also include committee members, if it deems that the issue involves the enforcement of one or more fundamental rights.
    According to the Act, an appeal must be submitted within 30 days of the larger bench of the Supreme Court obtaining jurisdiction over it and its hearing date must be scheduled no later than 14 days after that. When submitting a review application, it also offers a party the flexibility to choose the lawyer of its choice.