Shoaib Malik, the former captain of Pakistan’s cricket team, surprised everyone with his sudden wedding to Pakistani actress Sana Javed. The wedding took place in Karachi with close family and friends in attendance.
The cozy ceremony had traditional vibes, and Sana Javed looked beautiful in a burgundy and light pink dress with minimal makeup. Her outfit, designed by Hussain Rehar, cost over Rs 379,000. Malik chose a classic white sherwani, similar to his wedding attire with Mirza in 2010.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has confirmed that 18,000 candidates are going to contest for national and provincial assembly seats in the upcoming general elections set to take place on February 8.
ECP released its final list of candidates on Sunday.
According to the ECP, 11,785 candidates will take part as independent candidates in the polls, and 6,031 will compete under the banner of their respective political parties.
On the other hand, some well-known politicians, including founder Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, and Asfandyar Wali, are out of the race for multiple reasons.
After having been denied their preferred election symbol after its intra-party elections were found to be contrary to its own constitution and relevant laws, PTI has fielded its candidates as independents, and each one of them has been allotted a different symbol.
On the other hand, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif is contesting the elections from NA-15, Mansehra, and NA-130. The former prime minister and Nawaz’s brother, Shehbaz Sharif, is taking part in polls from NA-123, Kasur, and NA-132, Lahore.
The Chairman of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, urged supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Sunday to vote for his party as the competition in the upcoming elections is between two parties symbolised by “the lion and the arrow”.
While the PTI has lost its election symbol “bat,” the PPP has secured its longtime symbol of an arrow. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) also managed to secure its electoral symbol of a tiger.
“I am speaking to PTI supporters: We kept on telling Khan sahib to do politics; abusing rivals and putting them and their sisters in jail is not politics,” Bilawal said while addressing a party power show in Lahore.
Bilawal also said that he is aware of the pain that PTI workers are going through. “I respect political workers […] I’ve been through this and I do not want anyone to go through such testing times”, he stressed.
“I appeal to you [PTI supporters], in the battle between ‘lion and arrow’, support me. I will bury revenge politics,” Bilawal vowed, reminding people that when his party’s prime ministers took office, they released “political prisoners”.
Bilawal also stressed that the way of politics should change now and that all forces need to work together.
Veteran actress Bushra Ansari is upset with people on social media after reactions to the news of Shoaib Malik’s wedding. Ansari said that the country has been buzzing since morning.
She was annoyed with mainstream media too. Bushra shared that after Shoaib Malik’s second wedding, she received many calls from media channels.
Expressing her anger, she said, “Did I study with Shoaib in school? Was he my classmate? Did Sana Javed play with me as a child? Am I part of their family? Who are you to speak about someone’s private life? Why should I answer stupid questions? I am very angry at these things, do you fear God or not? They both got married, that’s good, be happy, who are you and I to question someone’s private life?”
Bushra Ansari pointed out that while there are serious issues in the world, the media is focused on Shoaib Malik’s marriage and how his first marriage ended. She mentioned actor Talat Hussain Ali and the world’s problems, but the media seemed more interested in sensational news about Shoaib Malik and Sana Javed.
Expressing her frustration, Bushra Ansari warned that people who invade others’ lives for sensational news on social media will face the most punishment from Allah.
She advised Shoaib Malik and Sana Javed to stay away from social media, where people are talking nonsense about them.
There will be eight holidays in educational institutions during general elections across the country, Geo reported.
According to the report, the polling for the general elections across the country will be held on February 8, 2024, and on this occasion, the educational institutions will be closed for eight days.
The eight-day holiday spans from February 4-10. February 4 is a Sunday, February 5 is Kashmir Day, and February 6 to 10 will be a general election holidays.
11th February will be a Sunday and thus schools colleges and universities will open on 12th February after eight holidays.
After watching tons of videos of standup comedians online from all across the globe, getting hold of tickets of a show in Pakistan, No Offence was such a pleasant surprise. Expectations were high and excitement was going through the roof.
First and foremost, we need to have more standup shows in the country to give a boost to the comedy landscape of Pakistani entertainment. It was thoroughly refreshing to see a live comedy show. Many in the audience, especially uncles, found most jokes relatable and laughed their lungs out.
The show was held in Ali Auditorium on Ferozpur Road on a foggy winter night in Lahore. Expected to get defrosted by the warmth and hysteria of jokes, we were introduced to Mohsin Ejaz performing for the first half. His set literally was the music to the ears. The situations he created with old classic songs had some really good laugh-out-loud moments. The way he compared the nineties music of Bollywood and Pakistan and how he made Mehdi Hassan the pioneer of stalkers because of his song “Zindagi mein to sabhee” is one such example. He proved the power of his vocal chords and the audience appreciated him by singing along. His set did take a dramatic turn towards the end which hit the right chord and made us all emotional (you’ll have to go and see to understand). The use of dark humor was done in the right proportion.
The audience was charged up when we were introduced to Dawar Mehmood, the man of the hour. He started off by acknowledging his association and training by the legendary Anwar Maqsood. The stakes were high now. He started off nicely by doing a set about PIA air hostesses and how Punjabi humour does not appeal to a Karachiite. One could sense a hint of Moin Akhtar in them. His mention of the jokes shared by Anwar Maqsood were legit taking a dig at the current political landscape had a healthy amount of sarcasm in them. The way he relayed the story of his show getting cancelled because of Lahore’s obsession with Imran Khan during the days of his arrest was indeed funny. It would have been great had he just remained there because even though, the show was meant to be inoffensive, the jokes about cheating men, the Me Too movement, and feminism were archaic if not offensive. In today’s day and age, we are past these jokes, aren’t we?
In a nutshell, it is a great attempt for a start and Kopykats deserve all the applause for initiating this.
In a legal first, a man has been sentenced to three years in jail after he was found guilty of having non-consensual sex with his wife, a punishable act under Section 377 (unnatural offences) of the Pakistan Penal Code, The News has reported.
Additional Sessions Judge (South) Ashraf Hussain Khowaja announced the reserved judgment in Karachi after recording evidence and final arguments from both the defence and prosecution sides.
He sentenced the convict named Javed to three-year rigorous imprisonment and ordered him to pay a Rs30,000 fine. If he fails to pay the fine, he would have to undergo an additional one month of simple imprisonment.
“From a perusal of evidence brought at the trial by the prosecution, it appears that the victim has fully established a commission of sodomy with her by the accused being her husband,” the judge observed.
“Though the victim/complainant contradicted some facts relating to the period of her stay with the accused, putting her signature on the memo of site inspection at PS, suffering from disease of piles and her age which are immaterial facts which would not be fatal to the prosecution case,” he added.
The judge noted the medical evidence supported this version. On the other hand, he said the accused failed to establish “enmity” that her wife loved somebody else and therefore she implicated him falsely. The convict’s sisters who appeared as defence witnesses failed even to disclose the name of the alleged affair of the victim, he added.
The victim testified that her husband would commit sodomy with her despite her attempts to stop him. About two months after their marriage, she informed her mother-in-law, who didn’t say anything to him, she said, adding that then she disclosed her ordeal to her sister and brother, after which she lodged an FIR against her husband on November 23, 2022.
Advocate Bahzad Akbar of the Legal Aid Society, who represented the complainant, contended that sodomy falls within the definition of rape and marital rape in this case after an amendment brought to Section 375 of the Pakistan Penal Code in 2021.
He said that the woman’s testimony and medical evidence corroborated the charges against the accused, requesting the judge to punish Javed as per the law.
“I am not sure about other provinces but this is certainly the first such conviction over marital rape in Sindh following the amendment,” he told The News.
He added there are no known convictions on charges of marital rape in the country. An FIR had been lodged under Section 377 of the PPC at the Chakiwara police station on the woman’s complaint.
Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja took notice of an attack on the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) candidate’s election office in Lahore’s Sattoo Katla area.
On Friday morning, the Lahore office of Manzar Abbas Khokhar, the candidate from the PPP, was targeted in an attack involving a Molotov cocktail (petrol bomb).
“The banners on the gate were burned after catching fire from the petrol bombs while the attackers stole the chairs and other things,” added PPP’s spokesperson.
He added that Khokhar’s son filed an application at the Township Police Station. The police said that they would take legal action against the attackers after investigating the matter.
At the same time, the ECP’s spokesperson stated that they have received instructions to file a First Information Report (FIR) following a complaint lodged by the PPP.
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari condemned the attack, saying that targeting the election office of the candidate was “open terrorism.”
Former Indian tennis player Sania Mirza and Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik have divorced before his marriage, pictures of which he shared on social media on Saturday morning, Geo has said.
Rumors that the two were divorcing had been circulating for a while. Sania Mirza often shared pictures of herself and her son on social media, but Shoaib Malik was not in those photos. Recently, Sania Mirza posted a message on social media, saying that both marriage and divorce are tough decisions.
On the other hand, Shoaib Malik and actress Sana Javed announced their marriage on social media on Saturday. This has led to discussions on whether Sania and Shoaib are divorced or just separated. So far, there has been no official statement about their divorce.
Geo has reported that Sania Mirza was unhappy with Shoaib Malik’s involvement with other women, and she ignored him for a long time. It is said that Sania Mirza decided to end their marriage when she could no longer tolerate the situation.
Supreme Court Justice Athar Minallah, addressed a seminar on the significance of freedom of expression on Saturday, shedding light on its historical context and impact on Pakistan’s trajectory.
The seminar, a part of the second law bridge workshop on superior court reporting, provided a platform for Justice Minallah to share his insights on the intersection of freedom of expression and judicial independence.
Expressing his concern over the potential influence of social media on judicial decision-making, Justice Minallah asserted the importance of maintaining judicial independence, stating that any judge swayed by social media violates his/her oath and called upon fellow jurists to remain resolute in upholding justice despite external pressures.
Addressing the delicate balance between constructive criticism and trust in the judiciary, Justice Minallah emphasized that critics should retain faith in the legal system, considering it a litmus test for its strength.
He welcomed constructive criticism while underscoring the need to strike a balance in fostering trust in the judiciary.
Reflecting on the challenges of freedom of speech in the country, the Chief Justice traced the roots of censorship to historical actions following Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s speech on August 11, 1947. He stressed the necessity of balancing freedom of expression with responsible reporting to navigate these challenges.
Sharing a personal anecdote from his early days as a judge, Justice Minallah recounted a case involving a 16-year-old accused of displaying a banner against a senior apex court judge.
He highlighted the importance of judiciously addressing such incidents and cautioned against making blanket judgments without thorough investigations.
“When the matter of the 18th constitutional amendment was raised, many forces were against it. A reporter asked me, what will the Supreme Court do about the 18th Amendment. I replied ‘In my opinion, the SC should not interfere in the constitutional amendment’,” he said.
The apex court judge said he had said he would resign if the 18th amendment was annulled and the next day news was published that “Athar Minallah has threatened the court”.
Citing former Ugandan president and the modern world history’s most brutal dictator, Idi Amin, Justice Minallah said, “A society is ruined, if someone gags freedom of expression like Idi Amin.”