Author: newsdesk

  • ‘Police in Pakistan now have an anti-eggary unit to save kids from eating too many eggs’

    ‘Police in Pakistan now have an anti-eggary unit to save kids from eating too many eggs’

    Senior journalist Kamal Siddiqui has poked fun at the police for “having an anti-eggary unit to save our children” by making sure that “they do not eat too many eggs”.

    “So in Pakistan, we have a special police unit that saves children from eating too many eggs,” he jokingly wrote while tweeting a picture of an anti-beggary unit mobile minus the ‘B’.

    “Let’s save our children” could also be seen inscribed on the Sindh police vehicle.

    CRACKDOWN ON BEGGARS IN SINDH:

    In line with Sindh cabinet’s ban on child beggary and directions to the social welfare department to pick up children begging at traffic intersections and in streets and rehabilitate them at welfare centres, the aim of the anti-beggary unit is to tackle beggary, especially in the port city of Karachi.

    According to the findings of a committee on the issue of beggary, there are enough laws available to deal with the issue such as Section 7 of the West Pakistan Vagrancy Ordinance 1958 that prohibits beggary.

    A 2018 report of the committee said that beggars have also been seen with children who they use to create empathy in the givers’ eyes. This is a violation of Section 49 of Sindh Child Act 1955.

    It pointed out that in 2011, the Sindh assembly had passed the Sindh Child Protection Authority Act 2011 which called for ensuring the rights of the children in need of special measures and to provide matters ancillary thereto.

    Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Murad Ali Shah, in consultation with the cabinet, had earlier decided to ban beggary all across the province. He had also directed the Social Welfare Department to launch a special drive against child beggary.

    He had directed the district administration and the police to help the Social Welfare Department in the drive and round up the child beggars and send them to Sweet Home and Street Children Centre, Korangi, where they would be rehabilitated.

  • VIDEO: TikToker Adil Rajput’s wife responds to backlash after faking husband’s death

    TikTok star Adil Rajput’s wife Farah Rajput recently shared a video of herself crying and announcing the news of her husband’s death.

    “Adil is no longer with us,” she said in tears. Farah said she got a call and was told that Adil had passed away in a road accident.

    Later, Farah posted another video in which Adil is seen meeting relatives with several injuries on his body.

    After she posted the video of her husband coming home alive, people on social media started calling them out for their “publicity stunt”.

    https://twitter.com/han3yy/status/1305899775569653760?s=20

    Following the backlash, Farah recorded another video in which said that she got a call from Adil’s brother. She shared that Adil was unconscious for hours because of which his brother “panicked” and declared him dead.

    “Please, I request you all to stop spreading fake and authentic news,” asserted Farah.

    Hailing from Rahim Yar Khan, Rajput is a famous TikToker with over 2.6 million followers.

  • Affordable SUV gifted to Imran Khan by ex-Malaysian PM to be launched in Pakistan market

    Affordable SUV gifted to Imran Khan by ex-Malaysian PM to be launched in Pakistan market

    Malaysian auto giant Proton has collaborated with Al-Haj — the makers of FAW automobiles in Pakistan — to launch its crossover SUV X70 by December along with a sedan named Saga.

    According to reports, the said cars, that are actually Chinese manufacturer Geely’s vehicles directly imported and licensed by Proton for the Malaysian market, will be offered in completely built-up (CBU) form in Pakistan.

    The company will start assembling the cars locally in the year 2021.

    X70 is powered by a 1.8 liter turbocharged 4-cylinder petrol engine that makes 182 horsepower, 285 newton/meters of torque, and comes mated to a 6-speed automatic or a 7-speed DCT gearbox. The vehicle will be available in both Front-Wheel Drive and All-Wheel-Drive forms.

    The car is loaded with features such as an air purifier system, rear air vents, automatic dual-zone climate control, steering wheel switches, tilt, and telescopic adjustment, advanced gauge cluster with an LCD information screen, central door locking with auto-lock, a push-start button and a myriad of other modern features. Given that the X70 is a compact crossover SUV, it will go up against the Kia Sportage and the Hyundai Tucson.

    The X70, back in December 2019, was gifted to Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan by former Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad.

    The other car, Saga, is a compact sedan that has recently entered its 4th generation. Saga features a 1.3 liter naturally aspirated 4-cylinder petrol engine that makes 94 horsepower, 120 newton/meters of torque and is mated to a 5-speed manual or a 4-speed CVT automatic transmission.

    The vehicles will be launched at a relatively lower price for success in the Pakistani market.

  • IN PICTURES: Celebrities demand justice for rape victims, safe space for women

    IN PICTURES: Celebrities demand justice for rape victims, safe space for women

    The gang-rape of a woman on the Lahore-Sialkot motorway has sparked nationwide outrage, with countless protests being organised across the country to demand justice for the victim and safe space for women in the country. Members of the Pakistani Entertainment Industry also took the initiative of organising a peaceful protest outside the Karachi Press Club to raise their voice on the matter and give it more momentum.

    Among those present at the occasion was Mahira Khan, Sarah Khan, Ayesha Omar, Adnan Siddiqui, Ali Rehman Khan, Aijaz Aslam, Frieha Altaf, Bushra Ansari, Sarwat Gilani, Yasir Hussain, Asim Jofa, Anoushey Abbasi and Gul-e-Rana.

    Sharing pictures from the event, Mahira said: “We demand a secure nation for all women! At home, on the streets, at work, alone, not alone, with kids, without kids, in a skirt or in a burkha. Wherever she may be, whoever she may be – we demand basic rights of safety.”

    Holding a placard, which read “Real men don’t rape”, Sarah Khan said: “No mercy for rapists.”

    Sarwat Gilani said that the entertainment fraternity came out to “demand justice and security for our women and children”. Sarwat also lauded Prime Minister Imran Khan’s decision to punish rapists with castration — the process of removal of testicles of a man.

    We stand together as one voice,” said Ali Rehman. “One voice to demand the protection of our women, children and transgenders. One voice to demand their freedom. “We stand together.”

    Aijaz Aslam held a placard which read: “Stop rape”.

    Mansha Pasha said she stepped out after a long time to “join a protest and speak about the state of women’s safety in Pakistan and the fact that there is none.”

    “We aren’t safe on the street, at work or even in our homes,” she added.

    “Rape happens because of: 1) Rapist; 2) Failure of law enforcement agencies,” asserted Mansha.

    Yasir Hussain and Adnan Siddiqui addressed the protesters gathered at the venue.

    Bushra Ansari stood by her earlier stance, saying that hanging the rapist is not enough.

    According to details, the protest was organised by Yasir Hussain, Frieha Altaf and Asim Jofa.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CFHfSydAWtj/

    Read more – ‘We took her kids to the bushes to make her follow us,’ says man who gang-raped mother of three

    Meanwhile, some social media users are criticising the actors for holding a separate protest instead of attending the main one organised by the Aurat March.

    Sarwat later clarified that a second protest was held because “a lot of celebrities were busy with work on the first protest’s date, [so] we decided to get out a day when most of us were available.”

  • Educational institute in Islamabad sealed after coronavirus cases emerge

    Educational institute in Islamabad sealed after coronavirus cases emerge

    An educational institute in Islamabad has been sealed after the emergence of the coronavirus cases, confirmed the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Tuesday.

    As per details, the institution was sealed after 16 coronavirus cases were reported. Meanwhile, contact tracing is currently underway to contain the spread of the deadly virus.

    Educational institutes across Pakistan have reopened today (Sept 15) after nearly a six-month-long break due to the pandemic.

    Earlier in the day, Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood welcomed the students and advised them to follow all the SOPs (standard operating procedure) 

  • Aviation vlogger Noel Philips shares experience of travelling on ‘banned’ PIA

    Aviation vlogger Noel Philips shares experience of travelling on ‘banned’ PIA

    Travel expert and aviation vlogger, Noel Philips, recently released a vlog, sharing his experience of travelling on Pakistan International Airline (PIA) that is now banned in Europe and the United States (US) after it was revealed by the aviation minister that a large number of commercial pilots hold fake licenses.

    Noel shared his experience in a video titled ‘Flying a banned airline – Pakistan International Airline‘.

    Phillips said he was quite surprised after “seeing so many people with so much excess baggage”. As he entered the plane, he was welcomed and guided to his seat by a PIA official. 

    He then shared that a few passengers were shouting on flight attendants.

    “Most of the customers are onboard and a few people are on wrong seats and we’ve got passengers shouting at flight attendants and things, flight attendants running around with bits of paper in the hands.”

    Because of the chaos, the flight took off half an hour later than the scheduled time. 

    Phillips said he liked the food served on his flight.

    Sharing the cons, he said he was shocked to see garbage under the seats after he pushed his seat back. He further said that when he laid down to take some rest, he was woken up by “the unmistakable smell of cigarette smoke.” 

     “Passengers are strictly prohibited from smoking onboard PIA flights. I mean, there is a sign and everything and I am sure that not a single member of the crew or passengers would ever want to bend those rules, not on PIA surely.”

    Phillips, who flew from India to Islamabad, said that he liked the capital’s scenic views, the hospitality of Pakistani people and masala curries. 

    He wanted to share what people think about PIA through his vlog and was of the opinion that even a little amount of investment can improve the airlines.

    “And I really do think that given a little bit of investment in their aircraft, PIA could be up there with some of the best airlines,” he said while signing off.

  • ‘Motorway rapists left Rs1,000 on dashboard of survivor’s car, which was for police bringing petrol’

    ‘Motorway rapists left Rs1,000 on dashboard of survivor’s car, which was for police bringing petrol’

    Journalist Fereeha Idrees, who has extensively been covering the Lahore-Sialkot Motorway gang-rape case and is also reportedly in contact with the survivor, has made a shocking revelation that has added to people’s doubts regarding the alleged involvement of law enforcement in the incident.

    Speaking to The Current during a live session on Monday night and separately to a private media outlet, Fereeha revealed that one of the accused left Rs1,000 on the dashboard of the survivor’s vehicle. The amount was meant for police upon their arrival at the spot after she had called the emergency helpline when her car ran out of fuel en route Gujranwala at midnight.

    The journalist quoted the survivor as saying that when she reached the toll plaza, she paid toll tax and asked for the nearest petrol station. “After covering some distance, her car ran out of fuel and she called the motorway helpline. They apologised but gave her the local number.”

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Over the phone, a person sought her exact location via WhatsApp and then asked her to wait, she said.

    Further quoting the victim, Fereeha said the woman was also asked as to how much petrol did she need, to which she requested for fuel worth Rs1,000. “She then waited for over an hour and a half before she was attacked and later raped in nearby fields off the main road.”

    When the woman was found by the police and her belongings were retrieved, eyewitnesses say there was a Rs1,000 currency note on the dashboard, Fereeha said and added that it was left by the attackers.

    “Apparently, the attackers wished that she would go home and not tell anyone. But is it a coincidence that she had said she needed fuel for at least Rs1,000 to reach home and that was exactly the amount the attackers left behind?”

    Did one of them go back to put it there as they took her purse with them?

    THE INCIDENT:

    A woman, along with her three children, was driving to Gujranwala in her car when she was forced to stop at the Gujjarpura section of the motorway after running out of fuel at around 1:30 am.

    She immediately called a relative and sent him her location. He asked her to also dial the Motorway Police helpline 130 but she was reportedly refused help.

    In the meantime, two robbers approached the car, broke the window and took the woman and her children to nearby bushes where they raped her repeatedly in front of the children. They also snatched her purse that had cash around Rs100,000, one bracelet, car registration and three ATM cards. 

    The Gujjarpura police have registered a case, while Motorway Police spokesperson said they had not been able to take action as the incident did not occur in the limits of Motorway Police.

    Amid a strong reaction by the public and countrywide protests, at least one of the two culprits has surrendered. His co-accused is still at large.

  • ‘We took her kids to the bushes to make her follow us,’ says man who gang-raped mother of three

    ‘We took her kids to the bushes to make her follow us,’ says man who gang-raped mother of three

    Lahore-Sialkot motorway gang-rape accused Shafqat, who has confessed to his role in the horrific incident along with absconding co-accused Abid, has made shocking revelations regarding the incident such as how did they force the survivor to follow them into the bushes off the main road.

    According to reports, the accused, while detailing the entire episode, said that key suspect Abid called him and one Bala Mistri to reach Lahore for some criminal activity.

    “All three of us left to commit a robbery but Bala ditched us on the way.”

    Confessing to the robbery and rape, Shafqat told investigators that they were intoxicated at the time of the incident and initially had planned to only commit a robbery.

    “Abid smashed the windows and injured his hand in the process,” he said, adding that after looting the victim they decided to sexually assault her.

    “We decided to bring her off-road and after stiff resistance, took away her children to the nearby bushes so she would follow.”

    “As expected, the woman followed us off the main road where we raped her,” Shafqat said and added that they have committed various crimes at the same spot.

    According to his statement to the police, he further said that they spent the next day in the Qila Sattar Shah area of Sheikhupura district. “Then I went to Dipalpur while Abid went to meet his father in Manga Mandi.”

    “We last spoke to each other three days ago,” he confessed.

    Since it was not their first such criminal activity, Shafqat told the investigators during the probe that they also tried to sexually assault a woman during a robbery in Sheikhupura, however, the attempt was foiled after police reached the site of the incident.

  • ‘#IbshamZahidBehindTheBars’: Guy under fire for sending rape, death threats to girl

    ‘#IbshamZahidBehindTheBars’: Guy under fire for sending rape, death threats to girl

    A girl, named Fatima, has recently come forward to share her story of being harassed and tortured by a guy named Ibsham Zahid.

    She posted a few screenshots on an Instagram account.

    The girl shared images, audio and video clips that show how she was being forced into a ‘relationship’ by Ibsham.

    As per the girl’s account, Ibsham started threatening her after she refused to get into a relationship with him. The girl shared a video that shows the boy threatening the girl to kill her father if she doesn’t consent to the boy’s wishes.

    Ibsham can be seen flaunting his weapons to frighten the girl and her family.

     “Hum Baloch hain. Hum dil nahi tortay, hum hadian tortay hain. Samajh mein aa rahi hai baat? Warna wo jo cheezain pari hui hain na wo istemal ho jayain gi ap per,” Ibsham said in the video.

    Amid all this, Ibsham’s sister also took to social media to tell her side of the story, in a very long Instagram post, she revealed that Ibhsam is just 16 years old and he is suffering from mental health conditions. She revealed that her brother was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), anger management issues and is highly emotionally unstable.

    She also mentioned that her parents are making conscious efforts for his treatment through the help of multiple professionals but they have not been able to successfully do it.

    She further mentioned that she, along with her mother, had also gone to Fatima’s house to apologise for Ibsham’s actions.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CFFdetgBscV/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

    Upon receiving a clarification by Ibsham’s sister, Fatima stated that Maarosh was twisting the facts to tell another version of the story and she was “lying about the events that never happened”.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CFGSPP6haxn/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
  • VIDEO: PML-N takes credit for construction of Sialkot motorway while talking about gang-rape

    VIDEO: PML-N takes credit for construction of Sialkot motorway while talking about gang-rape

    President of the former ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Shehbaz Sharif, has sought credit for his party and brother, former prime minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif, for the construction of the Lahore-Sialkot Motorway while mentioning the gang-rape that took place there last week.

    “I request that an investigation be carried out… the motorway… because this horrible incident took place on the Sialkot motorway, I think it won’t be inappropriate to mention that it was also constructed under the leadership of Mian Nawaz Sharif,” Shehbaz said on the floor of the National Assembly (NA).

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Earlier, Monday’s session of the NA saw heated arguments between members of the government and opposition over the horrifying incident of gang-rape of a mother of three after her car ran out of fuel on the motorway past midnight last Tuesday.

    As per the details, the woman, along with her three children, was driving to Gujranwala in her car when she was forced to stop at the Gujjarpura section of the motorway after running out of fuel at around 1:30 am.

    She immediately called a relative and sent him her location. He asked her to also dial the Motorway Police helpline 130 but she was reportedly refused help.

    In the meantime, two robbers approached the car, broke the window and took the woman and her children to nearby bushes where they raped her repeatedly in front of the children. They also snatched her purse that had cash around Rs100,000, one bracelet, car registration and three ATM cards. 

    The Gujjarpura police have registered a case, while motorway police spokesperson said they had not been able to take action as the incident did not occur in the limits of Motorway Police.

    The authorities’ failure to protect the masses has drawn a strong reaction from the public as countrywide protests demand that justice is served at the earliest.