Author: newsdesk

  • Teacher arguing with Maryam Nawaz not fired, Geo Fact-Check reveals

    Teacher arguing with Maryam Nawaz not fired, Geo Fact-Check reveals

    Following Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz’s visit to an all-girls’ high school in Lahore, social media had a large number of posts claiming that one of the school teachers was dismissed after posing questions regarding Nawaz’s male security members.

    Geo FactCheck, however, deemed the claims as false.

    Samina Shahid, the public school teacher who went viral, was contacted by Geo Fact Check and she confirmed that she has not been sacked.

    Her claims were also verified through other government personnel.

    “The [social media posts] are false. There is no truth to them,” Geo Fact Check quotes Shahid who spoke to the team over the phone on March 15, “I am speaking to you right now sitting in my office.”

    Additionally, the chief executive officer of Lahore’s district education authority, Pervaiz Akhtar, also confirmed that no teacher was fired following the visit.

    Azma Zahid Bokhari, the information minister in Punjab, stated likewise.

    “No action against any teaching or non-teaching staff has been taken by school administration after the visit of the chief minister Punjab to the government pilot girls high school Lahore,” Bokhari told Geo Fact Check via messages.

  • Agha Shiraz had a spiritual experience with a mysterious stranger

    Agha Shiraz had a spiritual experience with a mysterious stranger

    Agha Shiraz is a well-known face in television, also famous for his magic tricks to entertain his colleagues. While occasionally making awareness videos and appearing on talk shows, Agha Shiraz is currently not working on any acting projects.
    Recently, he made an appearance on PTV Home’s Ramadan transmission. During the show, he shared a supernatural experience that he experienced which positively impacted his life.

    He shared details of an incident that occurred in 2019, while he was offering Namaz E Asar in a mosque near Karachi Sea View. He said, “While I was praying, someone tapped my shoulder and asked me to offer the Salah again. They also told me that my prayers would not be accepted until I seek Allah’s love and guidance. Even though I didn’t pay attention to their advice and completed my Darood and Dua. When I turned to look at the person, they were nowhere to be found. I then asked the Imam Masjid, who said, ‘I observed you talking to someone invisible. Let me tell you something important, the spiritual beings (Jinn) pray here after Asar. I think you should follow the guidance you received just now.”

    He also said, “I was praying, asking for blessings for the person who ran away with my 1.5 million. His phone had been off for 1.5 years. When I raised my hands to pray after Namaz, I received a call from that person asking, ‘Agha brother, where are you?’ He said he would arrive within 15 minutes. I came outside, and in 2019, when COVID started, he handed me 1.5 million cash. He asked for forgiveness, saying he had left the country due to some problems.”

  • Indian actress celebrates birthday with respect to Ramazan

    Indian actress celebrates birthday with respect to Ramazan

    Indian Actress Zareen Khan had a special birthday celebration with orphaned Muslim girls at an orphanage. She shared videos of the celebration, expressing how happy she was to include these girls in her special day.

    Zareen is receiving praise for her kind act, with fans calling her incredibly humble and expressing the need for more people like her. In the video, Zareen shared heartbreaking details about the girls, including their ages, which deeply touched viewers. She wrote, “I had the most fulfilling experience spending the evening with the girls of ‘Anjuman – I – Islam Orphange’. These girls are aged from 6 to 18 years old. We had iftar together, chatted a little, and they prayed beautifully. They showed me so much love that my heart felt incredibly full and overwhelmed.”

    The actress added, “Sometimes we forget to appreciate all the blessings we have from God. I was feeling down lately, feeling upset and unloved. But when I met these girls, I realized that love comes in many forms. It washed away all my negative feelings.”

    She continued, “These girls don’t have parents or a home. Some of them are very young and small. The orphanage is their home, and the people who take care of them there are like their parents. The girls have each other as friends or siblings. Still, they had big smiles on their faces. Their warmth made my sad day bright.”

  • ‘Crack open the heads of the officers who ask for bribe,’ Ali Amin Gandapur

    ‘Crack open the heads of the officers who ask for bribe,’ Ali Amin Gandapur

    In a recent address in Syed Alian village, Dera Ismail Khan, Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ali Amin Gandapur, has stirred controversy with an unconventional and violent proposal on dealing with corruption within bureaucratic ranks.

    Speaking to attendees, Gandapur said, “Crack open the head of the officers who ask for a bribe with a brick and then come to me instead of complaining about the bribe taker.”

    Gandapur told the attendees to “announce that Ali Amin asked me to do so,” after the violent act.

    He further went and said, “Tell the offspring of that officer that you have saved their father from hell.”

    Gandapur’s remarks, delivered in a no-nonsense tone, urged citizens not to lodge complaints about bribery but instead to take direct action against the perpetrators.

    CM KP emphasized that both the bribe-taker and the giver will be going to hell so the people should neither become hellish nor let him be.

  • Man given 29 years in jail for sexually assaulting minor girl

    Man given 29 years in jail for sexually assaulting minor girl

    Life imprisonment and 14- years jail time were handed down to a prisoner in a case pertaining to sexually assaulting a minor girl by a special court for gender-based violence in Lahore.

    On the complaint of the minor’s father, Sanda police had registered the FIR in 2021 against Imran, the brother-in-law of the complainant’s elder daughter who took his 5-year-old daughter to a shrine and sexually assaulted her there.

    Additional District and Sessions Judge Kaneez Fatima Bhatti, the presiding judge of the special court, handed down rigorous life imprisonment to the accused for rape under section 376 (iii) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), besides Rs50,000 fine.

    Section 376 (iii) of the PPC states, “Whoever commits rape of a minor or a person with mental or physical disability shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life and fine.”

    The judge also awarded a 14-year jail term for another offense of sexual abuse (in the same case) under section 377-B of the PPC and imposed a fine of Rs1 million.

    Section 377-B of the PPC states, “Whoever commits the offence of sexual abuse shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years and liable to fine which shall not be less than five hundred thousand rupees or with both.”

    Imran, who was on bail, was present in the court when the judge announced the guilty verdict. The judge got him arrested and ordered the police to shift him to Kot Lakhpat jail.

  • Gen Asim Munir, Saudi Prince Muhammad Bin Salman discuss military cooperation

    Gen Asim Munir, Saudi Prince Muhammad Bin Salman discuss military cooperation

    Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz on Wednesday to discuss military cooperation between both countries.

    Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) issued a press release saying that the army chief met with the Saudi prince during an official visit to the Gulf Kingdom.

    “Wide-ranging issues of mutual interest, including regional peace and security and bilateral defence and security cooperation, came under discussion,” the ISPR statement read.

    During the meeting, the prince stressed that Saudi Arabia and Pakistan shared strong and brotherly relations with each other, adding that they stood for each other. 

    After that, the COAS thanked the Saudi prince for his warm sentiments and support towards Pakistan.

    According to state-run Saudi Press Agency, Saudi Minister of Defence Prince Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, National Security Advisor Dr Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban, Chief of General Intelligence Khalid bin Ali Al-Humaidan, Chief of the General Staff Lieutenant General Fayyad bin Hamed Al-Ruwaili, and Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan Nawaf Al-Malki attended the meeting.

  • Babar Azam and Imam ul Haq leave for Umrah

    Babar Azam and Imam ul Haq leave for Umrah

    Former Pakistan cricket team captain Babar Azam left for Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah along with fellow Test cricketer Imam ul Haq.

    Azam left for Umrah immediately after the conclusion of Pakistan Super League (PSL) 9, along with his brother, from Lahore Airport.

    In the ninth edition of PSL, Babar’s Peshawar Zalmi reached the play-off stage.

  • Cleric involved in Icchra Bazar incident gets pre-arrest bail

    Cleric involved in Icchra Bazar incident gets pre-arrest bail

    An anti-terrorism court (ATC) granted pre-arrest bail to Maulana Aleemuddin Shakir on Tuesday — a cleric involved in the Icchra Bazar incident when a woman was harassed for wearing a shirt with Arabic alphabets printed on it.

    Accompanied by his lawyer, the cleric appeared before the court, promising to cooperate with the police investigation to demonstrate his innocence. However, he raised concerns about the possibility of his arrest by the police.

    The lawyer highlighted that the petitioner was among those who shielded the woman from the hostile crowd and noted the police’s acknowledgment of his role in the incident.

    Requesting pre-arrest bail, the lawyer stated that the petitioner was prepared to provide surety bonds.

    Judge Arshad Javed granted bail to the petitioner, holding back the police from arresting him until March 25.

    Background:

    A woman wearing a dress with Arabic writing printed on it was attacked by a violent mob in February, last month. Videos of the incident quickly spread online, showing the mob surrounding her while she was at a restaurant in Lahore’s Ichhra Market.

    Some people there accused her of having Quranic verses printed on her dress, which they found offensive. They were angry because of the Arabic writing on her dress, not knowing what it really meant. The dress actually has the word ‘sweet’ written on it.

  • Sara Chaudhry’s journey from showbiz to spirituality

    Sara Chaudhry’s journey from showbiz to spirituality

    Sara Chaudhry, former Pakistani model and TV actor, gained immense popularity for acting skills.However, Sara left the media industry in 2010 after a religious awakening, joining the ‘Al Huda’ institute for preaching. Now happily married with children, Sara reflected on her journey.

    Recently, Sara appeared on Hafiz Ahmed’s podcast, talking about her journey. “My parents were very into Islam. They focused on prayers and the Quran. My dad made sure I prayed daily, and my mom prayed regularly, even when she was young. We celebrated Ramazan with excitement. I was spiritual and prayed for guidance, wanting to be the person Allah wanted me to be. I found peace in Allah and being good.”

    She realized at one point that following Allah’s wishes brings true guidance. “Another incident that guided me was my young aunt’s death at 38. That’s when I chose to leave showbiz. It was a shock and made me rethink. Family restrictions also helped me spiritually. As Sara Chaudhry, I couldn’t hang out much with friends outside. These limits were good for me and helped me on my spiritual path. I didn’t get too involved in the modern side of the media industry.”

    Sara Chaudhry explained that she entered showbiz to help her parents have a better life, as she desired a home and basic necessities for them. Being an only child, she prayed for financial stability and siblings due to her parents’ past financial struggles from their early marriage. She recalled, “My father’s friend fetched me a few modelling assignments after which I properly pursued media as a career. Even as a star, I used to be with my parents all the time, so they protected me as well.”

    Watch the video :

  • Seminary students sentenced to death for teacher’s murder over blasphemy allegations

    Seminary students sentenced to death for teacher’s murder over blasphemy allegations

    In a significant legal development, Additional Sessions Judge-II Mohammad Jameel has handed down death sentences to two seminary students and life imprisonment to another for their involvement in the brutal murder of a young teacher over false blasphemy accusations.

    Public prosecutors Tanseer Ali and Haji Shakeel Advocate appeared on behalf of the prosecution, while Asad Aziz Advocate represented the accused.

    The judge imposed a fine of Rs2 million each on the convicts. He imposed Rs1 million fine on the girl given a life term for being a juvenile.

    According to a police report, on March 29, 2022, three female students of Jamia Islamia Falah Al-Banat located in Anjumabad area on the Dera-Multan Road within the limits of the cantonment police station had slaughtered a young female teacher of their madressah for allegedly committing blasphemy.

    The initial investigation revealed that the accused students assaulted Safoora Bibi with a stick at the seminary gate before fatally slitting her throat. Their motivation stemmed from a purported dream shared by one of the students, suggesting that the teacher had committed blasphemy and that her killer would be rewarded in paradise.

    Both the perpetrators and the victim hailed from the Mehsud tribe of South Waziristan and were residing in the Anjumabad area.

    Following the gruesome incident, Zahid, an uncle of the slain teacher, was informed by the seminary administration about her murder. Upon reaching the scene, he discovered his niece’s tortured and lifeless body abandoned in the street.

    Subsequently, the police apprehended the three students and recovered knives and sticks from their possession.