Author: newsdesk

  • Imran Khan recognized selecting Usman Buzdar as CM Punjab was mistake: Zulfi Bukhari

    Imran Khan recognized selecting Usman Buzdar as CM Punjab was mistake: Zulfi Bukhari

    In a candid discourse at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) University of London, Sayed Zulfikar Abbas Bukhari, a close aide to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, publicly acknowledged that appointing Usman Buzdar as Chief Minister of Punjab was a monumental mistake for the party, as per Geo News.

    Speaking on the theme of “Democracy in Crisis,” organized by the SOAS Pakistan Discussion Forum, Bukhari delved into the intricacies of PTI’s nearly four-year tenure, addressing critical questions from the student audience.

    Bukhari disclosed that Imran Khan himself recognized the misstep in selecting Usman Buzdar for the pivotal role of Punjab Chief Minister.

    “There was Aleem Khan group and other power groups. There would have been a war within the PTI if Buzdar was removed and Imran Khan did the right thing by sticking to him, to avoid the war within,” said Bukhari.

    The former special assistant to the Prime Minister, now residing in London and active in advocating for Imran Khan’s case on international media, expressed his reservations about Buzdar’s performance.

    He asserted that Buzdar’s incapacity to deliver effectively was evident

    He said: “I don’t think he was a good chief minister and was able to perform and deliver. By the time calls against Buzdar grew after two years, it was too late and changing him after a year or two would have made the post a revolving door. Nobody would say Usman Buzdar was a good decision but we supported his decisions.”

    Addressing recent controversies, Bukhari distanced himself and PTI from Farah Gogi, best friend and confidante of former first lady Bushra Bibi. He emphasized that if allegations of Gogi’s corruption were true, she should face strict legal consequences.

    Responding to questions about Imran Khan’s defense of Gogi in the media, Bukhari clarified that Khan was unaware of Gogi’s business dealings and that investigating her was not within his purview.

    The former special assistant to PM also condemned the May 9 attacks on military installations.

    “We have condemned all forms of violence, especially the attack on Jinnah House which has a sacred value. We have always stood against violence. Ordinary people say things in the heat of emotions. It’s the job of the leadership to positively tunnel their emotions towards a democratic process to bring about a real change. We are the biggest stakeholder being the biggest political party and we will get more losses than others in any such scenario,” said Bukhari.

    Imran Khan’s former special assistant claimed that over 13,000 activists were arrested after May 9 and put in dire conditions but the rest have been released and around 7,000 remain in jails.

    Acknowledging PTI’s mistakes during their governance, Bukhari asserted that with a different leadership in place, those errors would not be repeated if given another chance.

    He expressed willingness to engage in dialogue with all political parties, including PML-N and PPP, for the betterment of elections and democracy.

    “We want them to sit with us and talk about elections and democracy,” said the PTI leader.

    He also revealed that things were initially fine between PTI and the army but issues started later on.

    He said: “As far as General Bajwa is concerned, he could have suggested things to the PM and not dictate.”

    Answering a question, Bukhari said that two people closest to Imran Khan during the PTI govt were behind making a false case against him.

    “The Ring Road case against me was framed by two people who were then closest to Imran Khan: one of them (Azam Khan) has now become an approver against Khan and another (Shehzad Akbar) has left Pakistan. The purpose was to campaign against me. I resigned from my position and didn’t return to the government after that.”

  • The one where the Friends say goodbye, co-stars bid moving farewell to Matthew Perry

    The one where the Friends say goodbye, co-stars bid moving farewell to Matthew Perry

    Hearts were shattered all across the globe when beloved ‘Friends’ star Matthew Perry passed away in his home on October 28. On the eve of the announcement, fans and co-stars who worked on the show shared moving tributes, celebrating Perry’s beloved character Chandler Bing.

    Now, the main cast members of ‘Friends’, Matt LeBlanc and Courtney Cox, have spoken up publicly about their late friend and colleague.

    Matt shared pictures of Joey and Chandler on his Instagram account, honouring Matthew as a friend.

    “Matthew, It is with a heavy heart I say goodbye. The times we had together are honestly among the favorite times of my life.
    It was an honor to share the stage with you and to call you my friend. I will always smile when I think of you and I’ll never forget you. Never.
    Spread your wings and fly brother you’re finally free. Much love.
    And I guess you’re keeping the 20 bucks you owe me.”

    Courtney Cox, who played Chandler’s wife Monica on ‘Friends’, honoured him by sharing a behind the scenes titbit of the special moment on the show when Monica and Chandler become a couple.

    “I am so grateful for every moment I had with you Matty and I miss you every day.

    When you work with someone as closely as I did with Matthew, there are thousands of moments I wish I could share. For now here’s one of my favorites.
    To give a little backstory, Chandler and Monica were supposed to have a one night fling in London. But because of the audience’s reaction, it became the beginning of their love story.
    In this scene, before we started rolling, he whispered a funny line for me to say.
    He often did things like that. He was funny and he was kind. ️”

    Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer have yet to give public statements. Multiple media outlets have said that sources close to Aniston confirm that the actress is having a very hard time dealing with Perry’s death.

  • Did not intend to hurt anyone’s sentiment’: Abdul Razzaq apologises to Aishwarya Rai for sexist comment

    Did not intend to hurt anyone’s sentiment’: Abdul Razzaq apologises to Aishwarya Rai for sexist comment

    Former cricketer Abdul Razzaq sparked outrage on Tuesday when a video of him passing degrading comments about Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai went viral. Former cricketers Shahid Afridi and Umer Gul were sitting with Razzaq at a panel where the current team’s performance was being discussed. They could be seen laughing at the misogynistic statement.

    Several X (formerly Twitter) users described their disgust by slamming the cricket player as sexist.

    Razzaq has now apologised for his comments, saying that he did not intend to hurt anyone’s sentiment.

    “Yesterday, we were talking about cricket coaching and intentions. I had a slip of tongue and mistakenly took Aishwarya Rai’s name while I was supposed to give another example. I apologise to her personally. I did not intend to hurt anyone’s sentiment,” Abdul responded.

    Shahid Afridi also apologised for laughing at Abdul’s sexist remark. Speaking to a private news channel, the former captain revealed he laughed because everyone was enjoying the moment.

    “I saw the clip when I went home and realised that Abdul Razzaq made a wrong statment. I knew he had a mike in his hand and will say something. He has a habit of getting beaten by shoes. I will just text him tio apologize for what he said as it was wrong.”

  • Halsey reaffirms stance for liberation of Palestine

    Halsey reaffirms stance for liberation of Palestine

    Singer Ashley Frangipane (stage name Halsey) has been criticised since October for remaining silent on the genocide in Gaza, a cause she had previously spoken up about. The singer finally took to Instagram to release a statement, confirming that her politics remain unchanged.

    The ‘Colors’ singer wrote that she chose to remain silent after receiving extensive death threats for her political stances in the past.

    “I am, truthfully, exceptionally anxious about navigating my responsibility as a career activist as it pertains to my daily life off of social media: Being the mother of a small child and a member of my community, in addition to the contribution of my greater voice and platform The global conversation has reached a volatility that I’m having a hard time navigating here and and offline.”

    “During my last tour,” continued the ‘Gasoline’ artist, “I had a volume of violent and threatening events occur that resulted in my home being swatted multiple times and required the presence of snipers in the sky during most of the shows that summer. After that happened , I made a conscious decision to protect my family from people who plan to enact violence towards me in disagreement of my opinions.”

    Continuing in the next slide, Halsey added that it didn’t feel right, her silence on the Palestinian genocide is keeping her from speaking out about families enduring violence in Gaza.

    “However it doesn’t sit right with me that a decision I made for my own family is in turn keeping me from vocalizing support for families enduring far worse violence. Families caught between the brawling hands of a militarized government and a terrorist organization, and the diaspora of both parties trying to get through each and every day.”

    “I have no meaningful statement or excuse to make that could justify my weeks of silence this time around. And I deeply despise the culture of deflecting responsibility to save face in front of the audience demanding comment. So instead I’m coming here to call it for what it is, admit my regret, and reaffirm my stance regarding the liberation of the Palestinian people.”

  • Rape convict’s death penalty converted to life imprisonment by LHC

    Rape convict’s death penalty converted to life imprisonment by LHC

    Lahore High Court (LHC) has on Tuesday changed the death sentence of a man convicted of raping an 11-month-old to life imprisonment. The decision was made in light of a negative DNA report and the age of the convict at the time of the incident.

    Justice Aalia Neelum headed the two-judge bench hearing the case, where she remarked, “We have concluded that the prosecution has proven its case against the appellant, Muhammad Rafique, beyond any doubt. However, the factors that have persuaded us not to uphold the capital sentence of the appellant are the negative DNA report and the appellant’s age at the time of the incident.”

    The verdict states that the High Court has maintained the fine of three lac rupees as charged by the trial court but the court believes that the death sentence awarded to the appellant is quite “harsh” considering the age of the convict at the time of the crime and the negative result of the DNA report. As per law, the accused always gets the benefit of the doubt and in this case this results in mitigating the severity of the punishment by changing it to life imprisonment.

    Justice Neelum observed that there is no doubt that the baby girl was raped because in our traditional society, no parent of a minor girl will risk her future by falsely implicating somebody of raping her.

    The case against Muhammad Rafique was registered back in 2019 at a police station in Kasur.

  • Babar Azam to be removed from captaincy, Geo sources say

    Babar Azam to be removed from captaincy, Geo sources say

    Babar Azam’s captaincy will end after the defeat in the ICC World Cup 2023 in India, Geo News has said.

    According to Geo sources, Test, ODI, and T20 captain Babar Azam will now play as a batsman and not captain. If Babar Azam resigns as captain, the board will accept it, but nonetheless, the board has decided to remove Babar Azam from the captaincy.

    According to Yahya Hussaini, Shan Masood is a strong candidate to become the Test captain on the tour of Australia, while Shaheen Afridi is a leading contender for T20 leadership in the tour of New Zealand. Shaheen Afridi will be the captain of Pakistan in the 2024 ICC World T20.

    It should be noted that in the ongoing Cricket World Cup in India, the Pakistan team could not make it to the semi-finals and lost five of their nine matches.

  • Girl forcefully married to Karachi man shot dead in upscale apartment complex

    Girl forcefully married to Karachi man shot dead in upscale apartment complex

    Karachi’s Sahil police has arrested a man on charges of killing his wife on Monday at an upscale apartment complex in DHA.

    Quratulain, also known as Ainee, 22, was reportedly killed in a mysterious shooting incident on Sunday night at Emaar Tower in DHA Phase 8. The case was registered by Quratulain’s father Zubairuddin Khan who nominated her husband Abrar Bugti as the murderer, on which police formally arrested the already locked-up culprit.

    Ainee’s father stated in the FIR that Abrar asked for Ainee’s hand in marriage but he kept declining because of the latter’s bad reputation. On October 12, Abrar came to their house with police, producing a fake Nikahnama and a court order to hand over Ainee to him as he is her lawful husband, says a report by Express Tribune.

    Khan asserted that her daughter called him multiple times from their house-help’s phone and narrated incidents of torture and abuse. The security staff of Emaar Tower called him on Sunday and informed him that Ainee has been shot. “I along with my son and brother-in-law rushed to the Jinnah Hospital and found that my daughter had died,” related the woman’s father.

    The physical examination of the girl’s body revealed that there were two bullet wounds to the head and three on the body. A murder case has been registered under section 302 against Abrar Bugti.

  • Pakistan Stock Exchange sets record at 56,665 points following strong buying activity

    Pakistan Stock Exchange sets record at 56,665 points following strong buying activity

    The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) experienced a positive trading session on Tuesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 index concluding at a record high of 56,665.93 after gaining 142 points.

    The day commenced with optimistic market sentiment, but a brief shift into negative territory occurred due to profit-taking activities.

    Nevertheless, a robust surge in buying activity during the latter part of the day allowed the index to finish in positive territory, reflecting a 0.25 per cent increase or 142 points. Despite notable profit-taking during the session, the market achieved a positive closure following periods of heightened volatility.

    Key contributors to the market’s performance during the session were identified in the power generation and distribution, technology, and communication sectors, as well as the automobile assembly sector, according to the brokerage house.

    This positive trend follows Monday’s milestone, where the KSE-100 Index surpassed the 56,500 level for the first time, recording a historic gain of over 1,132 points.

    Conversely, the Pakistani rupee sustained losses against the US dollar for the 16th consecutive session, depreciating by 0.11 per cent in the inter-bank market on Tuesday.

    According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the currency settled at 287.87, indicating a decrease of Re0.32.

    Market metrics revealed a decrease in volume on the all-share index, registering 526.3 million compared to the previous session’s 660.6 million.

    However, the value of shares witnessed an uptick, reaching Rs22.4 billion from Rs21.1 billion in the preceding session.

  • Deadly attacks, decomposing bodies, lack of services: What we know about day 39

    Deadly weapons used against Gaza

    The Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor has revealed that Israel has dropped more than 25,000 tonnes of explosives on the Gaza Strip since October 7, equivalent to two nuclear bombs.

    In comparison, the United States dropped the Little Boy nuclear bomb on Hiroshima during World War II, yielding 15,000 tonnes of high explosives and wrecking everything within a 1.6km (1-mile) radius.

    Plan to bury decomposing bodies in Al Shifa compound

    Reuters reported that a doctor Ahmed Al Mokhallalati and Gaza health ministry spokesman Ashraf Al-Qudra have claimed in separate telephone interviews that more than 100 dead bodies are presently unburied and have begun to decompose, “creating an acute sanitary crisis”.

    “We are planning to bury them today in a mass grave inside the Al Shifa medical complex. It is going to be very dangerous as we don’t have any cover or protection from the ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross), but we have no other options, the corpses of the martyrs began to decompose,” said Qidra. “The men are digging right now as we speak.”

    Qidra claims the number of bodies accumulated at Al Shifa at about 100 whereas Mokhallalati said it was about 120.

    More than half of Gaza hospitals non operational

    According to the World Health Organization, 22 of 36 hospitals in Gaza are out of service “due to lack of fuel, damage, attacks and insecurity”.

    While calling for an immediate ceasefire, the UN’s health agency also warned that the remaining 14 hospitals “have barely enough supplies to sustain critical and life saving surgeries and provide inpatient care, including intensive care”.

    Water supplies on hold due to lack of fuel

    The United Nations reported that infrastructure for the operation of water and waste management in southern Gaza is no longer functioning.

    “Due to lack of fuel, public sewage pumping stations, 60 water wells in the south, the two main desalination plants in Rafah and the Middle Area, the two main sewage pumps in the south, and the Rafah wastewater treatment plant have all ceased operations,” the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stated, citing the organisation’s Palestinian relief agency UNRWA.

    “Coupled with the shutdown of municipal sanitation work, this is posing a serious threat to public health, increasing the risk of water contamination and the outbreak of diseases.”

    At least 42 journalists killed since October 7

    The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has revealed that at least 42 journalists and media workers have been killed since October 7 as Israel intensified its attacks, stating that the period was the most deadly for journalists since the CPJ’s data collection began in 1992.

    Credits: Al Jazeera

  • ‘Stop assuming things’: Mohib Mirza slams cheating rumours

    ‘Stop assuming things’: Mohib Mirza slams cheating rumours

    Actor Mohib Mirza has addressed rumours surrounding his second marriage to actor Sanam Saeed, debunking claims he cheated on his first wife Aminah Sheikh, his spouse from 2005 to 2019, and the mother of his child. The secrecy behind his and Sanam’s relationship led to allegations that Mohib had cheated on Aminah, leading to a divorce.

    The actor appeared on the FHM podcast where he cleared the air by saying that the two began a relationship after his divorce.

    “Who is assuming this?” the actor responded to the accusations. “Do you have my divorce certificate or does Wikipedia say so? My marriage had ended when I pursued Sanam.”

    “No one can question this because I have my divorce deed with me, I know what had happened,” the ‘Razia’ actor fired back. Mohib reminded the audience his and Sanam’s relationship was a private affair, and it is their prerogative to reveal it to the public or not.

    Opening up about the couple’s wedding, Mohib revealed that it was a private event with only five people present at Sanam’s house.