Category: English

As the race to grab the Senate’s leadership intensifies, political parties have sped up their consultations over preferred candidates for the post. According to well-placed sources, Sharif and other party leaders met with Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party head Mahmood Khan Achakzai and National Party President Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo in the capital on Wednesday to devise a strategy for the election of Senate chairman scheduled for March 12, alongside the oath-taking ceremony for senators-elect. During the meeting, Sharif was critical of former…

ISLAMABAD: It is a million dollar question whether the independent senators-elect who were backed by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) can now join this political party, as the constitutional provision for the Senate is silent on it. The complicated issue had been raised in the house by a PML-N lawmaker on Monday, who argued that the right was surely available to them and sought a ruling of the Senate chairman on it. Senator retired Gen Abdul Qayyum said that the members of the lower house of parliament as well as…

Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar on Monday assured police that the Supreme Court does not wish to take charge of the hunt for former senior superintendent of police (SSP) Rao Anwar, who has been on the lam ever since he was accused of involvement in the extrajudicial killing of aspiring model Naseemullah (aka Naqeebullah) Mehsud. Justice Nisar made the assurance while hearing the case regarding Naqeebullah’ extrajudicial killing in what Anwar had claimed was a ‘police encounter’. The CJP, however, ordered Inter-Services Intelligence, Military Intelligence, the Federal…

Paris, 23 February 2018, the second FATF Plenary meeting under the Presidency of Mr. Santiago Otamendi of Argentina took place in Paris 21-23 February 2018 and as an outcome, Pakistan will be placed on the FATF grey-list in June 2018. Pakistan’s inclusion in the terror financing list issued by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has been met with speculations. It is reported that Pakistan did manage to remain out of the list of terror-financing economies initially. China, Saudi Arabia and Turkey supported Pakistan and opposed the bill that aimed…

The Senate elections are underway in the national and provincial assemblies as 133 candidates contest for 52 seats on Saturday. The Senate — the Upper House of Parliament — is a body of 104 lawmakers. Each serves a term of six years, barring resignation, disqualification, or other extraordinary circumstances. They are not all elected at the same time: rather, half are elected at one time, and the other half three years later. In 2018, 52 senators (who were elected in 2012) are slated to retire. The other 52 were elected…

A total of 87,813 intending pilgrims were selected through a transparent computerised balloting on Thursday to perform the religious obligation under the Government Haj Scheme 2018. Minister of State for Religious Affairs Pir Aminul Hasnat Shah conducted the balloting process. Speaking on the occasion, the minister said: “Keeping in mind the growing restlessness among applicants and the uncertainty about reimbursement of payment, the ministry had requested the federal cabinet to proceed with the lottery under a 50 per cent quota, following which the balloting took place and the lucky winners…

An independent candidate backed by the ruling PML-N on Thursday comfortably cruised to victory in a by-election on a Senate seat vacated after the disqualification of former senator Nehal Hashmi. Dr Asad Ashraf bagged 298 votes in the 368-member Punjab Assembly — where the polling for the by-election took place — defeating Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) candidate Dr Zarqa Suharwardi-Taimur, who managed to obtain 38 votes. Ashraf had submitted his papers for the election as a PML-N nominee but was declared an independent candidate after a Supreme Court verdict restrained Nawaz Sharif…

GILGIT: The National Accountability Bureau on Wednesday arrested three officials of Gilgit-Baltistan agriculture department for their alleged involvement in embezzlement of over Rs20 million through bogus bills and advertisements. NAB personnel arrested Nizamudin, GB deputy director agriculture, Sir Syed Ahmad, drawing and disbursing officer, and cashier Shah Zareen from Gilgit. According to a press release issued here, the accused misused their authority and embezzled the amount by processing bogus bills on the basis of fake advertisements, fake documents etc from various heads of the agriculture department in Diamer, during their…

Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif on Thursday extended support to Kabul’s proposed political process seeking to recognise the Taliban as a legitimate political group, and said Pakistan is ready for one-on-one talks with the Afghan Taliban. Asif’s statements come a day after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani at the second Kabul Process conference offered recognition of the Taliban as a political group and asked the group to take part in peace talks “to save the country”. The offer adds to a series of signals from both the Western-backed government and the Taliban suggesting a…

A report submitted to the Supreme Court on Thursday regarding television anchor Dr Shahid Masood’s claims about 6-year-old Zainab’s killer states that all 18 of the revelations made by Masood were false and baseless. The anchorperson had claimed during a late night show that Zainab’s rapist and murderer, Imran Ali, was a member of a pornography gang, which also includes a Punjab minister. During earlier hearings of the case, Masood had also told the court that the suspect has 37 foreign accounts. His claims about the bank accounts, however, were…

Former senator Nehal Hashmi was released from Adiala Jail on Wednesday after completing his one-month sentence handed to him by the Supreme Court (SC) over contempt of court. Supporters gathered outside Adiala Jail and showered him with rose petals. Speaking to the media after being released, Hashmi said he was a victim of revenge as his appeal against the verdict has not been heard even after his sentence has ended. “This is the height of oppression,” a charged Hashmi said outside Adiala Jail. “This is the state of this country.”…

PML-N bigwigs on Tuesday, during a meeting called to choose an interim party president, elected Nawaz Sharif as “[the party’s] Quaid(leader) for life”. Maryam Nawaz confirmed the development in a tweet as the PML-N Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting was underway at the Sharif family’s Model Town residence in Lahore. “Raja Zafarul Haq, Prime Minister Abbasi and Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s proposal elicited a resounding approval from [the] CWC,” Maryam said. PML-N Chairman Raja Zafarul Haq proposed Nawaz’s elevation as ‘quaid for life’, saying, “Mian Nawaz Sharif was, is and Inshallah will…