Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Chaudhry Nawaz and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-backed Sunni Ittehad council candidate Chaudhry Moonis Elahi are competing in the by-polls from PP-158.
Chaudhry Moonis Elahi is the son of the former chief minister of Punjab, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi.
Earlier in March, an appellate tribunal of the Lahore High Court (LHC) allowed Moonis Elahi to contest by-polls.
On Saturday, the federal government approved the deployment of Army and civil armed forces to maintain the law and order situation during by-polls set to take place in multiple districts tomorrow.
Pakistan Army and Civil Armed Forces troops will perform duties as a rapid response force, Geo reported on Saturday.
On April 17, social media was in an uproar with the news of Advisor to the Chief Minister (CM) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) Mashal Yousafzai requesting the government for luxury cars worth more than Rs 27 million on provincial government’s expenditure.
Social media users were quick to criticise the move as the government is implementing austerity measures due to poor economic environment.
Geo News reported on the issue, led by their Peshawar reporter Nadia Saboohi who sent Yousafzai messages on whatsapp to ask about her version. Soon after Geo reported on the story, Yousafzai alleged in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that Saboohi tried to extort money from her and when Yousafzai refused to give in, ‘propaganda’ was done against her.
The Current spoke with Saboohi to find out what happened.
“I had access to the document detailing the request for luxury cars, but since there are many fake documents on social media, I waited to get a confirmation from the relevant authorities about the authenticity of the document,” Saboohi said over the phone. “After the document was authenticated by proper authorities, I reached out to advisor sahiba for an explanation and her point of view.”
Interestingly, according to the document, Yousafzai had asked for a Toyota Fortuner for herself, listed at a price of over Rs. 1.7 crore and a KIA Sportage for her secretary worth Rs. 73 lakhs.
DOCUMENT
Saboohi remarked that she simply asked the advisor for her perspective, saying that she also asked if the move was wise in such a difficult economic climate, adding that “Even advisor sahiba’s own department has not paid seven to eight hundred employees their salaries.”
Saboohi also pointed out that the Chief Minister of KP Ali Amin Gandapur, implemented an austerity program and no government official is allowed to get any new cars or go abroad for medical treatment.
“In the beginning of our conversation, advisor sahiba flatly denied the existence of any such summary,” Saboohi recalled, “When she was sent the document, she changed her statement and said, ‘This summary is from March 29 and I stopped it.’”
When Geo News broke the story, it went viral, generating immense backlash against Yousafzai. The advisor then tweeted that she had taken back the request for luxury cars.
TWEET
But the issue did not die down. Yousafzai took to X again and criticised the journalist and posted a serious allegation on X against Saboohi.
‘You’re taking money from the ‘boys’ and Muazzam Butt,” read Yousafzai’s tweet.
She also posted screenshots of the conversation she had with the journalist and revealed Saboohi’s phone number to the public. However, in the screenshots posted in her tweet, there is no evidence that Saboohi had extorted money from the advisor.
Yousafzai later deleted the tweet.
Deleted Tweet
“I made it clear to advisor sahiba that, being a journalist, I have no interest in taking sides,” Saboohi said. “I also told her that I have no personal grudge against you but the story was important to break because given the tough socio-economic environment the people of KP are facing, people deserved to know that luxury vehicles might be purchased using taxpayers’ money.”
According to Saboohi, Yousafza has issues within her own party, specifically with senior advocate Muazzam Butt in Insaf Lawyers Forum. Butt was also mentioned in the tweet against Saboohi, as someone who Yousafzai alleged, was paying off the journalist. Yousafzai said to Saboohi, “Because Muazzam was unable to become the advocate general so he started propaganda against me with your help.”
Saboohi said that it was her job as a journalist to report stories about the government in KP and the CM had said that he wanted news outlets to openly report and criticise his government’s actions if needed. In return, “[Yousafzai] released my contact information on social media just because she didn’t approve of my story”.
KP GOVERNMENT’S RESPONSE
“The CM house rejected the summary when it was sent to them as told by the CM social media wing representative Yar Muhammad Niazi,” revealed Saboohi. Niazi told her that the document might have been circulated but it was always going to be rejected.
Saboohi also pointed out that the advisor neither holds the authority to send such a document nor put a stop to it because the ministry belongs to CM.
“The spokesperson of KPK government, Barrister Saif, said that the document was given by Yousafzai in her individual capacity, when I asked him about the issue,” Saboohi said, “after which I asked him if that meant that any common person can request the government to buy them cars? Because this was an official government document”.
WHAT HAPPENED NEXT
Khyber Union of Journalists Peshawar Press Club condemned the advisor for making unsubstantiated remarks and sharing the female journalist’s information on social media.
According to Saboohi, a Jirga in her community has also vowed to support her, adding that, “anyone is welcome to prove these kinds of allegations in her entire 26 years of career.”
Peshawar Press Club had given Yousafzai 24 hours to delete the tweet or provide evidence of her claims. Yousafzai has since deleted that tweet.
When asked about problems she’s faced due to her contact information being publicised by the KPK official, Saboohi remarked, “I am facing a lot of harassment and threats due to this and she [Yousafzai] is responsible for this.”
SOCIAL MEDIA RESPONSE
Interestingly, PTI supporters on X are also criticising the advisor on her tweet.
The Current has reached out to Yousafzai for her version of the story and a comment and have not heard back yet.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Omar Ayub Khan has declared the head of state, Asif Ali Zardari, “illegal” after the President’s first speech in parliament on Thursday.
Zardari stressed the importance of meaningful dialogue between political parties to reduce the political crisis in Pakistan in his speech.
The PTI leader raised questions on Article 41 of the Constitution, which states that a President is a representative of the federation, pointing out that Asif Ali Zardari hasn’t resigned as co-chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) as of yet.
“Law is being violated in this House,” the PTI leader said that he tried to raise a point being a leader of the opposition, but he was denied the floor.
“As per the law, the floor is given to the opposition leader whenever he asks,” he added.
On the other hand, PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan also criticized him, saying that “We do not recognize this president [Zardari]. [Not only this president, but Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the entire cabinet are also illegal.”
A speeding vehicle of Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz’s motorcade reportedly caused the death of a motorcyclist at the Chandowal Stop on Shakargarh Road, Narowal, Dawn reported on Friday.
The CM was heading to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur to join in the three-day Baisakhi festival celebrations. As her motorcade travelled from Narowal to Kartarpur, an Elite Force vehicle collided with a motorcyclist coming from the opposite direction. The motorcyclist, 23-year-old Abubakar from Jassar Town, lost his life on the scene.
The CM’s motorcade did not stop to take the injured to the hospital.
Ali Rizwan, a cousin of the accident victim, told Dawn that Abubakar was on his way to the gas station where he worked. He expressed frustration that no officials stopped their car to help the injured Abubakar, nor did they call Rescue 1122. Instead, he noted with disappointment that police officers arrived at the scene after the incident and washed away the blood from the road to eliminate the evidence.
The US State Department has supported Pakistan’s initiatives against terrorism and called on Taliban leaders to stop terrorists from using Afghanistan’s land.
In a conversation with Geo News, a State Department spokesperson said, “We support Pakistan’s efforts to combat terrorism and ensure the safety and security of its citizens in a manner that promotes the rule of law and protection of human rights.”
The spokesperson said that Pakistan suffers a lot due to terrorism, adding that no country should suffer this much due to terrorism.
“We urge the Taliban to ensure that Afghan soil is not used to support terrorist groups, movement of terrorists, or acts of terrorism.
“We have been very clear that we will judge the Taliban by what they do, not what they say. The Taliban wantsl international legitimacy. This requires the Taliban to meet their commitments to the international community,” the official said.
The US state spokesperson also said that the only concern of the US was to make sure that Afghanistan is not a secure and comfortable place for terrorists who want to harm the US, its partners, and allies.
The official added, “We are in regular communication with Pakistani leaders as a part of our partnership on counterterrorism issues. We continue to discuss Afghanistan in detail, including through our annual counterterrorism dialogue and other bilateral consultations.”
Shandana Gulzar, a senior member and elected MNA of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), recently appeared on a talk show with Hamid Mir and claimed that a foreign ambassador advised her to quit the party.
She stated that this matter is directly concerned with the 2022 vote of no confidence brought against former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Shandana said, “I was called by many people including an ambassador of a Western country who asked me to think about my future and leave Khan because our party [PTI] is ending.”
The MNA replied to the ambassador that the reason why she’s not quitting PTI is because it is a matter of “honour” for her.
Gulzar further emphasized that the entire process of VONC was “stupid” and “botched up”. And that it could have been done with finesse and elegance rather than being so clumsy.
An X user @DanMir_musings posted an old video of Shandana where she claimed that she was not told explicitly to quit PTI and Imran Khan. The user wrote, “Shandana Gulzar has already backtracked on this lie of hers that she was called by an embassy after VONC motion and was told to leave PTI and Imran.”
Chief Minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz got into trouble when Punjab government sent McDonald’s meal bags as a gift to school children in Murree on Tuesday.
The famous fast-food chain faced boycotts and protests internationally when it announced shortly after the October 7 attacks, that it would give free meals to the Israeli military. In many countries throughout the world, including Pakistan, McDonald’s was subjected to boycotts on allegations of aiding Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
On Monday, Maryam Nawaz visited a government girls high school in Murree where she inquired about the facilities in school, including health facilities.
The very next day, the provincial government sent McDonald’s meal bags for the children.
The PML-N’s also shared videos with their followers on X.
Sher Afzal Marwat has offered clarification on his allegation that Saudi Arabia was involved in the ouster of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in 2022.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), he wrote, “The statement made by me in live show was based on my personal views. I never claimed in my interview that the stance had any official backing of the PTI.”
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has ‘criticised’ its maverick member Sher Afzal Marwat for alleging that Saudi Arabia played a role in the ouster of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
PTI’s official X (formerly Twitter) account posted a statement which read, “Marwat’s views do not undermine the strategy or position of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf in any way, nor do they consider them as factual statements. This may be his personal opinion which is not supported or approved by the leadership or workers of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf at any level.”
Moreover, the post said that Saudi Arabia is one of Pakistan’s closest and most trusted Islamic brotherhood countries and Imran Khan had a relationship of mutual respect and trust with Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman (MBS).
Meanwhile, Imran Khan’s close aide Zulfi Bukhari also clarified on X, “Neither Imran Khan nor PTI holds any such opinion about the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. KSA has ALWAYS been & will be our closest brotherly country.”
He also said that the recent visit by the Saudi delegation is a testament to Pakistan’s brotherly relations with KSA.
Moonis Elahi also said his piece on X, “I think Sher Afzal Marwat Sahib is mistaken. His recent statement against Saudi Arabia is also not correct because PM Imran Khan never mentioned Saudi Arabia in the regime change plan. As far as I remember, Khan Sahib has always used good words for the Saudi government.”
Earlier, Sher Afzal Marwat, the popular Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) member, in a talk show on GTV, gave a new twist to the alleged ‘regime change’ of 2022 when he remarked that Saudi Arabia was directly involved in the ouster of former prime minister Imran Khan.
“This regime change operation took place due to cooperation between the two countries Saudi Arabia and America. Saudis played the role of a conduit in the regime change,” said the PTI member.
When anchorperson Gharida Farooqi said to Marwat that this is a very serious allegation because Saudi Arabia is a brotherly country of Pakistan, he replied that his allegations are a reality because KSA makes policies on the whims of the USA.
“Someone made an allegation on Imran Khan that he did mimicry of Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman (MBS) and he got to know about it so that could also be the reason for this,”, said Marwat after being questioned by the journalist about Saudia’s motivation for it.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) announced on Wednesday that it will hold public rallies across the country, especially in Punjab, before the upcoming by-elections set to take place on April 21st.
PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, along with party leader Sher Afzal Marwat, talked to journalists in front of Adiala jail about their meeting with party founder Imran Khan.
The former Prime Minister asked Barrister Gohar Ali Khan to announce the party’s plan about public rallies in the country before by-polls. Imran Khan specifically assigned Sher Afzal Marwat to lead public rallies in Punjab.
Furthermore, it was noted that Imran Khan instructed the party’s leadership to revamp the party’s activities nationwide, particularly in Punjab.
Barrister Gohar, Omar Ayub, and Sher Afzal Marwat were given the responsibility to mobilize the party in Punjab and KP for upcoming by-elections. They were also tasked with organizing rallies before the elections. The party’s founder specifically assigned Sher Afzal Marwat to visit constituencies where the by-elections were happening.