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.

  • Smoking: ‘impermissible, undesirable, unlawful’, Islamic scholars issue fatwa

    Smoking: ‘impermissible, undesirable, unlawful’, Islamic scholars issue fatwa

    The Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) assembled a group of Islamic experts on Thursday who issued a fatwa (ruling) declaring smoking impermissible, undesirable and unlawful due to its negative consequences of health, reports Dawn.

    The Islamic experts were gathered at a conference that was organised by Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (Sparc) in collaboration with (CII).

    It was noted that increasing lethal effects of smoking are increasing in the society.

    Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Mohammad Khan said that in a youthful country like Pakistan, the impact of smoking will be magnified as the population ages and develops a variety of health problems linked to tobacco use, such as chronic lung and heart disease, as well as practically all cancers.

    He further said that in the absence of changes in tobacco taxation for years, policy planning to check tobacco consumption and meet international targets needs urgent revision.

    Chairman of CII Qibla Ayaz while addressing the audience talked about a saying of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and added that smoking is not only a danger to oneself but to others as well, as cigarettes have proved to be a source of several diseases, both for smokers and those exposed to second-hand smoke.

    He stated that, in light of the dangers of cigarettes, the CII and other major Islamic scholars present at the meeting agree that smoking falls into the category of behaviours that must be avoided under Islamic law.

  • ‘Brotherhood, humanity’: Sikhs open gurdwaras for Friday prayers after Muslims attacked by Hindu extremists

    ‘Brotherhood, humanity’: Sikhs open gurdwaras for Friday prayers after Muslims attacked by Hindu extremists

    After an official ban on Muslim prayers at open places in India’s Gurugram city near New Delhi, a local organisation taking care of gurdwaras, holy places of the Sikh religion, has announced opening the doors of a gurdwara for Muslims.

    Hindu extremists have been protesting against the Muslims’ act of offering Friday prayers at open places outside mosques for the last several weeks. As Muslims in larger numbers swarm to mosques to say their weekly Friday prayers, mosques mostly cannot accommodate these big numbers of worshipers and they have to use the open places outside the mosques to say their prayers.

    Keeping in view the protests by Hindu extremists, the local authorities in Gurugram city have stopped Muslims from using the open places outside the mosques to offer their Friday prayers and cancelled the permission letters issued earlier in this regard.

    Hindu extremists have also been disrupting the Muslim Friday prayers at open places by raising their religious slogans.

    Last week, Hindu extremists filled an open place with cow dung where Muslims were going to say their Friday prayers the next day. They said they wanted to turn that place into a volleyball court.

    Against this backdrop, an organisation associated with gurdwaras of the Sikh religion has come forward and announced opening a gurdwara in Gurugram so that Muslims can offer their Friday prayers there.

    Harteerath Singh, Community Development Director at Hemkunt Foundation, wrote on Twitter, “Gurgaon’s Sadar Bazaar Gurudwara is now open for our Muslim brothers to offer their daily namaz keeping in mind the recent events that took place in the city.”

    Despite of death threats, he said that he will “always stand up for truth and sewa (help).”

    https://twitter.com/HarteerathSingh/status/1461355592027496467?s=20

    In another tweet, he added: “The best part is tomorrow is Guru Nanak Dev jis Gurpurab and Friday namaaz too. What a spectacular sight it will be tomorrow- prime example of brotherhood and humanity!”

    Thousands of Sikh pilgrims will attend the 552nd birth anniversary commemorations in Kartarpur today. An 18-member delegation led by Indian Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh entered Pakistan from the Kartarpur corridor on Thursday.

    Prime Minister Imran Khan has also extended felicitations to Sikhs.

  • ‘Will not spare those responsible for his death,’ Umer Sharif’s wife speaks out

    ‘Will not spare those responsible for his death,’ Umer Sharif’s wife speaks out

    Zareen Umer, the wife of legendary comedian and actor, Umer Sharif, penned a heartfelt note about the “change” in her life after the demise of her husband.

    She said that it has been 40 days since she has cooked because she used to cook only for Umer Sharif.

    Zareen added that she has no life after her husband’s death, saying, “Now the TV in the bedroom doesn’t turn on in the morning. Now no one sits on your (Umer Sharif) chair. Some of your things are kept on it. Everything has changed.”

    Death is inevitable, but she said that she will not spare people responsible for Umer Sharif’s death, adding that she won’t forgive those who made Sharif cry.

    Pakistan’s ‘king of comedy’ died at the age of 66 in Germany.

    Read More – ‘Alvida Legend’: Transnational stars mourn the death of Umer Sharif

    Sharif, who was battling cardiac ailments, was flown out of Pakistan on an air ambulance on September 28 for surgery in the United States.

    However, he was admitted to a hospital in Germany during a stopover as his condition deteriorated.

  • School teacher arrested for allegedly raping seven-year-old student in Rawalpindi

    School teacher arrested for allegedly raping seven-year-old student in Rawalpindi

    The Rawalpindi police have arrested a school teacher for allegedly raping a seven-year-old student, reports Tahir Naseer for Dawn.

    Police spokesperson Sajjadul Hassan told Dawn that the suspect was taken into custody on Wednesday night.

    The case was registered at Saddar Wah Cantt police station on the complaint of the victim’s mother.

    According to the first information report (FIR) registered on November 16, the mother said her daughter, A*, aged six or seven, was subjected to rape when she was at school.

    “Upon returning home, the girl told me while crying that a male teacher — whose name she did not know — at her school had sexually assaulted her,” the FIR quoted the mother.

    The complainant said she took her daughter to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital for a medical examination but was told by the hospital staff to come back with the police.

    “I request that justice be provided to my daughter by initiating legal proceedings against the school teacher,” the mother requested in the FIR.

    Potohar Division Superintendent of Police Tasawar Iqbal said a “zero-tolerance policy” on violence, abuse and harassment against women and children was being ensured.

  • Zahir Jaffer refuses legal representation in Noor Mukadam case

    Zahir Jaffer refuses legal representation in Noor Mukadam case

    Zahir Jaffer, the prime accused in the Noor Mukadam murder case, has refused to sign the power of attorney during the hearing of the Noor Mukadam murder case, Urdu News has reported.

    Zahir Jaffer refused to authorise Amjad as his attorney, saying: “He is not my lawyer. I won’t sign. My lawyer is Babar, who is a barrister [and] he is coming.” After which the judge remarked that his signature should now be secured at the jail. Earlier, Zahir had refused to accept a public prosecutor recommended by the court.

    Earlier, Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) on Sunday issued a notice to TV channels asking them to stop broadcasting CCTV footage of Noor Mukadam.

    The CCTV footage of Noor Mukadam from the house of Zahir Jaffer, the prime suspect in her murder has been making rounds on social media from last few days.

    Noor was found murdered at a residence in Islamabad’s upscale Sector F-7/4 on July 20. Her death sparked national outrage, including protests and candlelight vigils across the country.

  • Minister asks FIA to take action against ‘fake’ air quality data, closure of schools under consideration

    Minister asks FIA to take action against ‘fake’ air quality data, closure of schools under consideration

    Punjab Environment Protection Department (EPD) Minister Muhammad Rizwan has written a letter to the director of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), requesting him to take action against those spreading fake/unauthorised data of air quality on social media and internet, Geo News has reported. He requested FIA to take action against such people under cyber laws.

     The letter stated that that EPD is in charge of enforcing the Punjab Environmental Protection Act of 1997. “It is an Act to provide protection, conservation, rehabilitation and improvement of the environment, for the prevention and control of pollution and promotion of sustainable development,” read the letter.

    The minister in the letter further wrote that, “unscrupulous elements with malafide intention” are reporting fake Air Quality Index (AQI) on different media platforms with an intent to harm the country’s image. “Fake/unauthorised data on air quality of Lahore or any city of Punjab is harming international reputation of the government and creating fear among the citizens, which can’t be tolerated,” said the provincial minister while speaking to The News.Read more- Lahore tops the worst air quality list, again

    The minister also added that the government was considering closing schools for a certain period of time in Punjab, as a precautionary measure. In addition, options of smart lockdown in sensitive areas and a ban on all kinds of construction activities in the city are also being considered.

    Earlier, the minister claimed that there has been no smog in Punjab, including Lahore, for the last two years.

  • Number of smokers declining in the world, WHO report reveals

    Number of smokers declining in the world, WHO report reveals

    A report published by World Health Organisation has revealed that the number of smokers globally has declined in recent years, AFP has reported.

    According to a new WHO estimate, 1.30 billion individuals worldwide used tobacco in 2020, down from 1.32 billion two years earlier. The number is further expected to go down by 1.27 billion by the end of 2025.

    While about a third of the global population over the age of 15 used tobacco products in 2000, only about a fifth is predicted to do so by 2025, according to the report.

    Read more- Over 1,200 children start smoking every day in Pakistan

    “It is very encouraging to see fewer people using tobacco each year,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement, “we still have a long way to go, and tobacco companies will continue to use every trick in the book to defend the gigantic profits they make from peddling their deadly wares.”

  • VIDEO: Man hires woman to slap him every time he uses Facebook

    Maneesh Sethi, the Indian-American founder and CEO of wearable device company Pavlok, once hired a woman to slap him every time he used Facebook to increase his productivity.

    In 2012, Mr Sethi wanted to increase his productivity, so he went to Craigslist to hire a person who would be willing to slap him every time he used Facebook while he should have been working.

    Craigslist is an American classified advertisement website with sections devoted to jobs, housing, for sale, items wanted, services, community service, gigs, résumés, and discussion forums.

     “I hired a girl on Craigslist to slap me in the face every time I used Facebook,” he explained in his blog, adding that the results of his experiment were surprising.

     According to the Pavlok CEO, he hired a woman named Kara for $8 an hour to slap him every time he diverted from his task — and his productivity increased rapidly to 98%. 

    A photo of Mr Sethi being slapped by Kara for opening Facebook recently resurfaced on Twitter and gained the attention of Elon Musk. 

    The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX responded to the picture with two fire emojis. The emoji is used to indicate something cool or awe-inspiring. 

  • Alleged healer Mala Ali Kurdistani in Pakistan, greeted by PPP’s Yusuf Raza Gilani

    A video was posted from the media cell of former prime minister Yusuf Raza Gilani, in which he be seen meeting alleged healer Mala Ali Kurdistani, who is termed as a faith healer in the caption of the post.

    Several videos has also emerged of Mala Ali Kurdistani holding public gatherings in the capital.

    However, the credibility of the alleged healer is being seriously questioned. Journalist Zarrar Khuhro shared the link of an article on his Twitter handle, in which several complaints about Kurdistani beating up customers “to heal them” were received in Istanbul. In February 2020, he was arrested in Saudi Arabia and was released later.

  • Corporal punishment allegedly led to the death of a teenage student in Lahore

    Corporal punishment allegedly led to the death of a teenage student in Lahore

    Lahore Police has filed a first information report (FIR) against several teachers, for allegedly beating a student to death, ARY News has reported.

    The FIR was registered after the victim’s father, Wajid Hussain, lodged a complaint at Badami Bagh Police Station Lahore. As per the complaint, the 14-year-old Hamza died after being subjected to corporal punishment by his teachers.

    The complaint further states that the father found his son in an unconscious state as teacher Mohammad Majid, along with his colleagues, subjected him to torture. The student was rushed to Mayo Hospital and he died there two days latter.

    As per details, the accused have left the area and the police is trying to locate them.