Author: newsdesk

  • ECP sends notice for removal of Imran Khan as chairman of PTI: reports

    ECP sends notice for removal of Imran Khan as chairman of PTI: reports

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has formally initiated proceedings against former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan following his disqualification in the Toshakhana reference, reports Samaa News.

    According to media reports, the election body has sent a notice for the removal of Imran Khan as the chairman of PTI.

    The former prime minister was disqualified from his Mianwali seat in the Toshakhana reference.

    “The respondent has intentionally and deliberately violated the provisions contained Section 137,167 and 173 of the Elections Act, 2017, who has made false Statement and incorrect declaration before the Commission in the statement of assets and liabilities filed by him for the year 2020-21. Hence, attracts disqualification under Article 63(1)(p) of the Constitution read with section 137 and 173 of the Elections Act,2017,” –– the verdict read.

  • Russia agrees to provide petrol and diesel to Pakistan at discounted rates

    Russia agrees to provide petrol and diesel to Pakistan at discounted rates

    State Minister for Petroleum Musadik Malik announced on Monday that Russia has agreed to supply Pakistan with cheap petrol, diesel, and crude oil.

    Malik said he wanted to congratulate the public for a fruitful trip to Russia, calling it “more successful than our expectations,” during a news conference in Islamabad.

    According to The News, the state minister for petroleum, the secretary for petroleum Capt. (retd) Muhammad Mahmood, the joint secretary, and representatives of the petroleum division made up the delegation from Pakistan that travelled to Moscow to look into the possibility of obtaining Russian crude oil and other petroleum products at a lower price.

    Malik said that Russia lacked liquefied natural gas (LNG). The import of LNG is the subject of ongoing discussions with Russian private companies, and Malik added that state-run LNG producers in Russia have also been contacted.

    The state minister claims that negotiations with Moscow about the pipeline projects have advanced significantly.

    The News last week stated, citing sources, that during negotiations in Moscow, the Pakistani team requested a 30–40 per cent discount on Russian crude oil; however, the Russians refused, stating that all volumes had already been promised.

  • ‘Both Imran and General (r) Bajwa caused irreparable damage’: Hafiz Hamdullah

    ‘Both Imran and General (r) Bajwa caused irreparable damage’: Hafiz Hamdullah

    Hafiz Hamdullah, the spokesperson of Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), has said that both Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and ex-Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa have caused irreparable damage to Pakistan.

    In a statement, he said, “It was ex-army chief Bajwa’s fault that he brought Khan into politics and it was Khan’s fault to give him [Bajwa] an extension. Both of their mistakes caused irreparable damage to Pakistan.”

    He pointed out that Khan is now accusing his mohsin (well-wisher). “Today you are accusing your Mohsin of the double game without any shame.”

    Commenting on the recent statements by PML-Q’s Moonis Elahi and Punjab CM Pervaiz Elahi that the ex-chief had advised his party to back Khan during the no-confidence motion, Hamdullah stated that on the matter of General Bajwa, the father and son duo and Imran Khan are not on the same page.

    Turning his guns towards Elahi, he posed a question. “In the case of General (r) Bajwa, are you with Imran Khan or with Bajwa?”

    

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    Sarah Inam murder case: Shahnawaz, mother indicted
    
			
    A district and sessions court in Islamabad has indicted prime suspect Shahnawaz Amir and his mother Sameena Shah, on Monday in the Sarah Inam murder case.
    

    The indictment was issued by sessions court judge Atta Rabbani while dismissing Sameena’s plea requesting the court to discharge her from the case. The verdict on the plea was reserved earlier in the day after legal arguments were finished.
    

    In September, news of Sarah’s murder rocked Islamabad as details of the crime spread across social media and news networks. 
    

    Central to the sensationalism surrounding the crime was the fact that the alleged murderer was the son of renowned columnist and political analyst, Ayaz Amir.
    

    It has been reported that after murdering her with a blow to her head with a dumbbell, Shahnawaz dumped her body in a bathtub.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    Nawaz Sharif to return back to Pakistan anytime now: reports
    
			
    Nawaz Sharif to return back to Pakistan anytime now: reports
    
			
    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif has finalized plans to return home to Pakistan before the next general elections.
    

    According to media reports, Nawaz Sharif has instructed his party that if Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chief Imran Khan dissolves the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assemblies, new elections should be held in both provinces within 90 days as per the constitution, while Nawaz himself will head the election campaign of these provincial elections.
    

    The former Prime Minister has also completed consultations about his return with his lawyers. His legal team will begin pursuing reviews of his convictions in courts immediately after his arrival.
    

    Media reports also suggest that it has been decided at the highest level that Nawaz Sharif will no longer keep himself away from domestic politics and will directly lead his party and supporters in the next election.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    ‘Agar mulk chalana hai toh NAB ko khatam karey’: Shahid Khaqan Abbasi
    
			
    ‘Agar mulk chalana hai toh NAB ko khatam karey’: Shahid Khaqan Abbasi
    
			
    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and former Prime Minister (PM) Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has demanded the abolishment of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), blaming the watchdog institution for the ongoing crisis in the country.
    

    While speaking outside an accountability court in Islamabad after attending a hearing in the LNG case, he said, “Agar mulk chalana hai toh is idaray [NAB] ko khatam karain (If you want the country to progress, this institution [NAB] should be abolished).
    

    He said the “so-called” accountability was aimed at defaming only politicians. “The so-called process of accountability operates just to ridicule politicians,” he added.
    

    Lambasting ex-chairman of NAB, Javed Iqbal, the former premier said that he should confess who told him to register false cases.
    

    It is pertinent to mention that PML-N has repeatedly criticised NAB and said that false cases were made against party leaders.
    

    In August, the National Assembly passed the National Accountability (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022, which sought to exclude private transactions from the scope of NAB.
    

    Under the amended bill, the pecuniary jurisdiction of NAB had been fixed to only take action against mega scandals. Furthermore, it had been proposed that supplementary references can only be filed with the permission of the court to expedite the proceedings of the court within one year.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    Here is when Polio will end in Pakistan according to UNICEF
    
			
    The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has expressed confidence that polio virus will be eradicated from Pakistan by the end of next year, following effective measures to check its spread.
    

    UNICEF’s Regional Director for South Asia, George Laryea-Adjei, said that according to available data, the potentially fatal virus is in control in Pakistan.
    

    “We are using all available resources and services at our disposal to reach every girl and boy in Pakistan with life saving vaccines and protect them against the entirely preventable disease,” he said.
    

    “The programme is back on track to stop all wild poliovirus transmission in 2023,” he added.
    

    Adjei noted that compared to a year ago, Pakistan was in a far better position to eradicate polio. He stated that certain obstacles complicated efforts to entirely eradicate the pathogen.
    

    He lamented the attacks on health workers and polio teams in various areas of Pakistan and voiced his concern about them. He also praised the polio teams’ bravery.
    

    Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where polio has not yet been eradicated. To formally eradicate the disease, a nation must be polio-free for three consecutive years. Nigeria was declared free from wild polio in August 2020.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    Xiaomi is gearing up to launch its first-ever Windows PC with gaming GPU
    
			
    Xiaomi is gearing up to launch its first-ever Windows PC with gaming GPU
    
			
    Xiaomi seems to be gearing up to enter yet another technological market. The Chinese juggernaut is most likely known for its smartphones, and some of you may be familiar with their line of laptops, but it now appears that at least a few Windows PCs are on the way.
    

    According to gsmarena, the two designs were reportedly planned to be unveiled at the Xiaomi event on December 1. Due to Jiang Zemin’s passing as the former general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, the event has been postponed. It appears that two PC designs were still showed off to select folks a little early while we wait for a new date to be set.
    

    Let’s begin with the stranger of the two. The Xiaomi Host Mini PC appears to be a small form factor (SFF) prototype that has been left in its most basic form. That is to say, the system in the image only has a 100W XM22AL5X PSU installed. The remainder of the hardware that will be included in the box hasn’t been revealed because it’s unlikely that Xiaomi will sell it as a barebones kit.
    

    We can infer from the images that a Mini-ITX motherboard will support low-profile, half-height, up to dual-slot dedicated GPUs. Although we are unsure of how a dedicated GPU will function with the 100W power supply, it’s possible that it isn’t the final or only component in the setup.
    

    The windows key and “M” key combination are illustrated on a bespoke plate that is attached to the back of the case. Perhaps Xiaomi intends to change the Windows key combination that generally dismisses all windows and replace it with a unique function. The mechanical switch that is mounted on the back of the Host Mini PC is another intriguing feature. Even though neither of us is certain what it does, the leaked Weibo images do show an accessory package that includes a keycap for the button in question, indicating that it is probably functional.
    

    Now let’s go on to the other system, about which we know a lot more. It is a small PC with a form factor similar to the Mac Mini or Intel NUC. It will reportedly be powered by a 45W MD Ryzen 7 6800H APU with a Radeon 680M RDNA2 iGPU, 16GB of memory, and a 512GB SSD.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    Punjab Assembly to stay intact till March says CM Elahi
    
			
    Punjab Assembly to stay intact till March says CM Elahi
    
			
    Chief Minister of Punjab Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi has said that the Punjab Assembly will not be dissolved for the next four months, increasing confusion over the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) plan to dissolve provincial assemblies.
    

    In an interview with a private TV channel, Elahi said, “One should do their homework till March. We have reservations about the Chief Election Commissioner. So we need to look into that. We will also see how the Opposition behaves. So yes, the assembly stays intact till March.”
    

    

    


    

    

    

    The Punjab Chief Minister said that both Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) made offers to Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q); however, the party supported the former on the advice of the former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General (retd) Bajwa.
    

    Elahi said that he received offers from both camps — PTI and PDM — but in line with the advice of the former army chief, his party preferred to choose Khan.
    

    The chief minister maintained that his son Moonis Elahi also suggested that they should side with the PTI.
    

    Commenting on his past experiences with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, CM Elahi said that there were always apprehensions about the Sharifs “lying” to them.
    

    “I was with the Sharifs for 18 years, they always lied to us. I would [often] say the Sharifs won’t let me do anything for the province,” he said recalling his discussions with the “institution” on whom to support during the Vote of No Confidence.
    

    “When we discussed this with the institution, they suggested thinking about what was better for us. We consult the institution when such a situation arises,” Elahi said, adding that the institution told them that choosing PTI was a “respectable and better option”.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    Three people shot to death in Balochistan
    
			
    Three people shot to death in Balochistan
    
			
    Three people were killed by gunfire in Jaffarabad, Balochistan on Monday, reports ARY.
    

    According to details, the incident took place in Dera Allahyar, Jaffarabad. Two men and a woman were killed by an unidentified man. Another woman was injured in the firing.
    

    She was moved to a hospital where the unidentified armed men tried to kill her too. The injured woman was saved by hospital staff.
    The police reached the location later and controlled the situation.