Category: Lifestyle

The lifestyle of millennials is underreported in our mainstream media. The Current’s lifestyle news covers social events and issues that are unique.

  • Karachi court says woman convicted of murder is ‘not guilty’ seven months after she died in jail

    Karachi court says woman convicted of murder is ‘not guilty’ seven months after she died in jail

    A Karachi court on January 10 exonerated a woman, Saima Farhan, and four of her family members, for their alleged involvement in a murder case. 

    However, it was too late for Saima, as she was exonerated seven months after her death in Central Jail, where she remained incarcerated for almost a year-and-a-half.

    Saima, 35, who was an aalima and used to teach the Holy Quran to the person she was accused of killing, died in jail on June 14, 2021, due to severe abdominal and kidney issues. Jail authorities, in her death report, also revealed that she was a cancer patient.

    The defence counsel — Muhmmad Akbar Khan and his associate Sheikh Saqib Ahmed — while talking to Geo.tv said: “During the trial, Saima asked us at every hearing: ‘Wakeel sahib, hamein bail kab milegi? (when will we be granted bail)?”

    The lawyers, however, lamented not being able to share the happy news that she was finally exonerated.

    Saima’s incarceration began on February 14, 2020, after she was arrested for allegedly poisoning her neighbour and friend, Rukhsar.

    Following Rukhsar’s death, her mother, Shahnaz, sought to register a complaint against Saima and her family members for allegedly poisoning her daughter.

    Saima’s family members, speaking to Geo.tv, said the complainants built a “false case” against them with the “help of the police” to usurp the property Saima owned.

    Murder charges against Saima were officially framed on February 6, 2021.

    Even after winning a legal battle and emerging innocent, Saima’s family members still await action against the jail authorities, whose denial of her timely medical treatment led to her death.

  • Malaysia bound PIA flight delayed over hijacking scare

    Malaysia bound PIA flight delayed over hijacking scare

    A Malaysia-bound Pakistan International Airline (PIA) flight PK-894 from Islamabad was delayed on Thursday night because of a plane hijacking scare, reports Saama.

    The flight was supposed to take off at 12:30 am but it was cleared by 2 am as the plane was thoroughly searched.

    The national airline’s spokesperson said that as they had doubts about a terror attack, therefore they started a search and checked passengers. This took time and delayed take-off.

    He said that false information was circulated that a hijacking alert has been issued but this wasn’t true.

  • Wife breaks husband’s fingers when he reveals intentions to remarry

    Wife breaks husband’s fingers when he reveals intentions to remarry

    The quarrel between an Asian couple in Dubai took a violent turn when the husband told his wife that he intended to marry another woman in Dubai. After the revelation, the wife physically abused her husband and broke his fingers. In response, he slapped her on the ear, causing a 2% hearing loss, Gulf Today reported.

    A Dubai court has sentenced the couple to six months in prison for assaulting each other, after which they were deported.

     The report said that the 25-year-old wife was shocked when her husband revealed his intention to marry another woman and that he would no longer fulfill his marital rights to her.

     The report added that the altercation turned into a fight, with the man slapping his wife in the face, beating her and trying to strangle her. On the other hand, the 24-year-old husband said that his wife did not accept his decision to marry another woman and when he pushed her, he broke her fingers, attacked her and insulted her. 

     The wife had multiple wounds on her forehead, nose, neck and chest, as well as holes in her left eardrum.

  • Usman Mirza Case: Victims appear in front of court

    Usman Mirza Case: Victims appear in front of court

    The victims of the Usman Mirza case have appeared again on Wednesday in front of the court after being absent from the last hearing held on January 18.

    The Additional District and Sessions Judge Atta Rabbani resumed the hearing today in which the female victim revealed that she was being forced to pursue the case. She said, “I have given the statement that I don’t know anyone.”

    The prosecutor Rana Hasan Abbas questioned the male victim during cross-examination to narrate the background of the incident. To which he replied: “I cannot recall the details of the incident and also don’t remember what shirt I was wearing that day.”

    The female victim claimed that she was not in this video that is being circulated on social media. She also said that she has not taken Rs 10 million from one of the suspects.

    While replying to a question about whether she signed the blank papers under any influence to which she responded with: “I don’t know.”

    “There are seven people of the same face in this world,” she added when told that the video was authentic. She denied that it was her in the video.

    The court adjourned the hearing till January 25th.

    Last year, a video of Usman Mirza harassing a couple went viral on social media which created an outrage across the country. The following day Islamabad police arrested Usman Mirza who is the prime suspect in the case.

    Recently at the time of the hearing on January 11, the female victim refused to identify any of the accused and said she does not want to pursue the case. However, a journalist reported that the couple has reportedly taken one crore rupees from Usman Mirza.

  • Police physically assault women in Quetta without presence of female constable

    Police physically assault women in Quetta without presence of female constable

    Policemen assaulted three women physically and dragged them towards a police mobile in Quetta in the absence of a female constable.

    Chief Minister of Balochistan, Abdul Quddus Bizenjo took notice of the incident after the video went viral and ordered strict action against the policemen who were involved in the incident.

    The senior superintendent of police (SSP) Quetta has suspended the additional Station House Officer (SHO) Naveed Mukhtar.

    According to the police, one of the girls allegedly escape from her house and was living with two friends.

    Police further revealed that the father of the girl filed a complaint and relatives told the police after spotting her location.

    Defending themselves, the police said that the girls were resisting and hitting them when they were trying to get hold of them.

    Today, the court of a judicial magistrate in Quetta handed over the arrested girls to their parents.

    The video got heavy criticism from netizens regarding the mistreatment of the girls by the police.

    According to the law, a woman cannot be arrested or searched without the presence of a female constable.

  • NCOC bans indoor events in cities with Covid positivity rate over 10%

    NCOC bans indoor events in cities with Covid positivity rate over 10%

    According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), all indoor gatherings and events have been banned in the districts and cities with Covid-19 positivity rate exceeding 10 per cent. However, only outdoor wedding events are allowed to be organised with a maximum of 500 guests.

    The ban will go into effect from January 24 , the NCOC said.

    The decisions were taken after the NCOC held a detailed review of the country’s current coronavirus situation along with the corresponding Nonpharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs). The forum differentiated the new NPIs depending on whether districts have Covid-19 positivity rate up to 10 per cent or above.

    The NPIs to be implemented are as follows depending on the positivity rate and specify that they are for fully vaccinated individuals:

    Gatherings

    • Indoor gatherings allowed up to 300 individuals, outdoor up to 500 for districts with positivity up to 10pc
    • Indoor gatherings banned, outdoor up to 300 for districts with positivity rate more than 10pc (with effect from Jan 24)

    Weddings:

    • Indoor weddings allowed up to 300 individuals, outdoor up to 500 for districts with positivity rate up to 10pc
    • Indoor weddings banned, outdoor up to 300 for districts with positivity rate more than 10pc (with effect from Jan 24 and will remain effective till February 15)

    Dining:

    • Indoor and outdoor dining both allowed for districts with positivity rate up to 10pc
    • Indoor dining banned (with effect from Jan 24), outdoor allowed for districts with positivity rate more than 10pc

    Education sector:

    • Education activities will continue for those under and over 12 in districts with positivity rate up to 10pc
    • Education activities will continue with staggered attendance at 50pc capacity for those under 12 and 100pc attendance for those over 12 in districts with positivity rate more than 10pc
    • Those over 12 will need to be fully vaccinated in both situations
    • Vaccination will be mandatory (at least one dose) for those over 12 from Feb 1
    • Aggressive sentinel testing to be carried out for targeted closures in institutes with high disease prevalence
    • Federating units in consultation with health authorities will decide limits for closure of educational institutions

    Gyms, cinemas, shrines, amusement parks:

    • Indoor activities allowed for districts with positivity rate up to 10pc
    • Indoor activities allowed at 50pc capacity for districts with positivity rate more than 10pc

    Sports:

    • All sports activities allowed for districts with positivity rate up to 10pc
    • Ban on contact sports (karate, boxing, martial arts, rugby, water polo, wrestling and kabaddi) for districts with positivity rate more than 10pc

     

    The NCOC decided that markets and business activities will continue without any restrictions. Employers are encouraged to let people work from home where possible.

    Similarly, intercity public transport has been restricted in districts with high coronavirus positivity ratios at 70pc and 80pc in railways. The ban on serving of meals was also maintained for public transport and domestic air travel.

    The curbs come as the country is in the grip of the fifth wave, which is being driven by the highly transmissible Omicron variant.

    It should be noted that in the last 24 hours, the coronavirus positivity ratio in Pakistan was 9.48pc when 5,472 infections were recorded, with Sindh and Punjab leading the charge in new cases reported.

    Owing to a surge in the number of Covid-19 cases, several educational institutions in Islamabad and Karachi have also decided to close all schools to curb the rapid spread of the virus.

  • Global tourism won’t return to pre-covid levels until 2024

    Global tourism won’t return to pre-covid levels until 2024

    With the highly contagious Omicron variant in the picture, global tourism arrivals have further been affected, and will not return to the pre-pandemic levels until 2024, the World Tourism Organization (WTO) said on Tuesday.

    The highly contagious Omicron variant, though mild, will “disrupt recovery” for 2022. Last year in 2021, tourism saw a four percent growth over 2020, according to the Madrid-based UN agency’s World Tourism Barometer.

    Meanwhile, tourism revenue in 2020 was 72 percent lower than that in 2019.

    “The pace of recovery remains slow and uneven across world regions due to varying degrees of mobility restrictions, vaccination rates and traveller confidence,” the UNWTO said in a press release.

    In Europe and the Americas, foreign visitor arrivals increased by 19 percent and 17 percent in 2021, respectively, when compared to 2020.

    In the Middle East, however, arrivals declined by 24 percent in 2021, while in the Asia-Pacific region, they were 65 percent below the 2020 levels, and 94 percent lower than pre-pandemic levels.

    The statement said tourism professionals “see better prospects” for this year after turbulence in the early months because of the Omicron wave.

    Many countries are highly dependent on tourism and are eagerly awaiting a return to normal.

    “The economic contribution of tourism in 2021 (measured in tourism direct gross domestic product) is estimated at $1.9 trillion (1.68 trillion euros), above the $1.6 trillion in 2020, but still well below the pre-pandemic value of $3.5 trillion,” the statement noted.

  • Six Muslim students wearing hijab banned from Indian college, forced to sign false statements

    Six Muslim students wearing hijab banned from Indian college, forced to sign false statements

    A group of muslim students at a college in the southern Indian state of Karnataka were stopped from attending classes for weeks after the principal refused to allow them to wear headscarves in the classroom.

    “When we arrived at the door of the classroom, the teacher said we cannot enter with the hijab,” one of the students told Al Jazeera. 

    “She asked us to remove it.”

    The college is a government-run women’s college in Udupi district of India’s Karnataka state in the south. The students were forced to sit outside the classroom because the college administration alleges they are “defying the rules” since hijab is not part of the uniform.

    The girls told Al Jazeera the hijab is “part of their faith” and wearing it is “their right guaranteed under the law”.

     The girls have been marked as absent since December 31 despite visiting the college daily.

    “We are not going to budge, no way,” Aliya Assadi, who is a part of the group, told Al Jazeera.

    A photo has gone viral on social media of the students clad in hijab and college dresses sitting on the steps outside their classroom.

    “It is because of this photo that our issue got highlighted in the media,” said Assadi.

    Their protest has riled up the college administration which, according to the group, forced them to write a letter accepting they missed the classes by staying home on their own.

    “We tried to refuse but the principal and the teachers threatened us that they would ruin our careers,” Muskan Zainab, another student, told Al Jazeera.

  • Usman Mirza Case: Court issues non-bailable arrest warrant against victims

    Usman Mirza Case: Court issues non-bailable arrest warrant against victims

    A district and session court in Islamabad has issued a non-bailable arrest warrant on Tuesday against the victim couple in the Usman Mirza harassment case after they did not appear in the court hearing.

    Judge Mohammad Ata Rabbani expressed anger over the absence of the couple in court. On this account, the non-bailable arrest warrant was issued against the couple on the orders of the judge.

    However, the lawyer representing them pleaded that both victims are out of the city and it would take three hours to reach the court.

    The court has dismissed the hearing till January 19, 2022 (today).

    Last year, a video of Usman Mirza harassing a couple went viral on social media which created an outrage across the country. The following day Islamabad police arrested Usman Mirza who is the prime suspect in the case.

    Recently at the time of hearing on January 11, the female victim refused to identify any of the accused and said she does not want to pursue the case and a journalist reported that the couple has reportedly taken one crore rupees from Usman Mirza.

    READ MORE: State will prosecute Usman Mirza case despite victims refusal to give statement

    She also told the court that she did not want to appear for subsequent hearings in the case. However, the judge told her that she would have to appear and adjourned the hearing for January 18.

  • Sindh bans meals in public transport amid Omicron upsurge

    Sindh bans meals in public transport amid Omicron upsurge

    A notification issued by the Home Department, Government of Sindh, on Tuesday says that “in exercise of the powers conferred under Section 3(1) of the Sindh Epidemic Diseases Act, 2014 (The Sindh Act VIII of 2015) is pleased to impose ban on serving of meals / snacks in domestic air travel and public transport within the territorial jurisdiction of the province of Sindh with effect from 17 January 2022 and till further orders”.

    The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Saturday banned the serving of meals on domestic flights in line with the directives of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) to curb the spread of Omicron variant of coronavirus in the country while Sindh has also banned meals in public transport.

    The NCOC decided to extensively engage with provinces, especially with the Sindh government, for necessary measures to tackle the rising disease.

    The Sindh Home Department empowered the deputy commissioners, additional deputy commissioners, assistant commissioners, Mukhtiarkars, as well as the transport department and police officers not below the rank of inspector to take legal action against any violation of the direction.