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.

  • Property dealer shoots himself allegedly due to financial dispute in Rawalpindi

    Property dealer shoots himself allegedly due to financial dispute in Rawalpindi

    A property dealer identified as Arshad Jamal has reportedly taken his own life by shooting himself in Rawalpindi.

    The video in which he is seen committing suicide has been widely shared which brought attention to the case, and the police launched an investigation.

    The video footage shows the dealer, sitting in the office of another property dealer within a housing society, inquiring about a particular individual to an office boy. Upon receiving an unsatisfactory response regarding the person’s whereabouts, the dealer takes out a gun from his bag, places it against his temple, and presses the trigger, resulting in instant death.

    The police, under the supervision of Rawat police station SHO Muhammad Zulfiqar, gathered evidence and transferred the deceased to a medical facility, reported The Express Tribune.

    SHO Rawat confirmed that a preliminary report has been initiated based on statements from Gulfam Shehzad, the nephew of the deceased.
    According to the nephew’s statement, the deceased Arshad Jamal had contacted him before the incident, mentioning a financial dispute with another man named Sheikh Tayyab amounting to Rs300 million.

    The video is disturbing and so for obvious reasons we are just including the image from the CCTV footage.

    A preliminary report has been lodged to dig deep into this matter.

  • French couple sentenced for keeping 159 cats, seven dogs

    French couple sentenced for keeping 159 cats, seven dogs

    A French couple has been given a one-year suspended sentence for keeping dozens of animals in closed spaces in a case pertaining to animal cruelty.

    The couple occupied an 80 square meter (861 square foot) apartment with 159 cats and seven dogs, as per BBC.

    The judge ruled that the couple had not given the animals proper care. The investigation found animals living in filth, many of them malnourished, dehydrated, or parasite-infected.

    The owners are a 68-year-old woman and a 52-year-old man, both of whom were banned from owning pets. They were ordered to pay more than €150,000 (£128,000) to animal rights’ charities and civil parties.

    When police broke up a fight at the couple’s apartment last year, they found each room contained numerous animals.

    Authorities also reported animal waste everywhere in the apartment.

    Due to their poor health, some dogs and cats later passed away. In a washroom, investigators discovered the bodies of two dogs and at least two cats.

    The apartment’s owner testified in court that although the animals were “the love of her life,” she had “screwed up.”

    It appears that in 2018, she moved in with her parents’ three dogs and three cats before bringing about thirty cats from an abandoned building to her apartment. After that, the animals procreated.

    The woman claimed that she would have felt like an “abandoned person for abandoning [the animals].”

    This condition is called Noah’s syndrome. It is a psychological need to save animals even when one is unable to do so, according to a psychiatric evaluation.

    An 18-month prison sentence was what the prosecution had asked for.

    In 2014, the couple was already under investigation for residing in an 18-square-meter studio with a dog and thirteen cats.

  • Torture, verbal abuse, heavy fines; shocking revelations about Avicenna Medical College

    Torture, verbal abuse, heavy fines; shocking revelations about Avicenna Medical College

    Following the death of a student at Avicenna Medical College and after scores of shocking stories of fellow students are being shared by netizens, the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) is taking notice of the death of the student and launching an investigation.

    The monitoring body of medical colleges, University of Health Sciences (UHS) has taken up the serious complaints of students regarding alleged heavy fines, harassment, torture and physical punishments. It has directed all the affiliated public and private sector medical colleges of Punjab to establish ‘Students Counselling Cells’ (SCCs). The cells must have senior faculty members, including teachers from the psychiatry departments, besides the students themselves to address the issues of alleged harassment of any kind and other such complaints. It declared the setting up of cells mandatory to prevent reported incidents like the one that recently surfaced at the Avicenna Medical College in Lahore.

    The decision was made in a meeting chaired by UHS Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Ahsan Waheed Rathore, exclusively called after the death of a female student, Mahnoor Nadeem, of the Avicenna Medical College, followed by a protest by its students.

    “It is our duty to ensure the holistic well-being of our students, particularly in light of the demanding nature of professional education in the medical and dental fields,” reads a letter issued by the Vice Chancellor to all the 12 public and 44 private medical institutes of Punjab. The letter was addressed to the principals of the medical colleges.

    Answer within 72 hours

    Additionally, the Avicenna Medical College has been directed to give its point of view within 72 hours so that ‘responsibility can be ascertained’.

    “The PMDC, as the apex regulatory body for medical and dental education in Pakistan, is deeply saddened by the loss of a promising medical student and extends its heartfelt condolences to the family and loved ones affected by this unfortunate incident,” the statement read.

    PMDC President Prof Dr Rizwan Taj stated, “We are deeply concerned about the circumstances leading to the untimely demise of a medical student and are committed to ensuring that justice is served. The welfare and well-being of students are of paramount importance to us, and any form of misconduct or mistreatment will not be tolerated.”

    He also added that the deceased student’s family will be welcomed to reach out to the council to file the complaint.reported Dawn.

    What happened at Avicenna?

    An Instagram handle ‘thenewspaper.pk’ shared a report slider detailing the alleged abuse students at Avicenna Medical College had to face by the management of the college. The slider was titled, “Avicenna Takes Another Life: Student found dead”. It laid out how the chairman, Abdul Waheed Sheikh, along with his daughters — both at key positions of the administration — are allegedly ‘abusing students mentally and financially’.

    The imposition of heavy fines

    The report detailed that heavy fines are allegedly imposed on students, as much as Rs60,000. Students are also not allowed to take any days off. Quoting the statement of a student in the slider, allegedly Sheikh said to a student, “Your father is alive, isn’t he? Ask for a leave when he dies.” According to the report, Sheikh’s daughters — Shandana Sheikh and Fazilda Sheikh — in-charge of leave applications and finances respectively are also allegedly complicit in the reported exploitation of students.

    The slider also explains how Mahnoor Nadeem, the student who according to them committed suicide, was stressed, according to her mother. The slider details that even though she was a bright student, Mahnoor was allegedly made to sit on floor for four hours as punishment and her ‘total fine for last year was 92,000 rupees’. A day before her death, Mahnoor had reportedly gone to ask for a leave as she was not feeling well but her ‘request was declined by management’.

    Alleged ‘Torture’

    Another slider by the same handled is titled as, “Horrors at Avicenna: Student testimonials and proof” and contains an alleged audio where Abdul Waheed Sheikh can be heard abusing a student using curse words like “motherfucker” whereas the student is apologising, asserting that his name has been wrongly added to a list. Another alleged video shows the chairman tearing up the shirt of the student because it was not properly tucked in. The report also mentions that girls in the college are allegedly verbally ‘abused and character assasinated’ for not wearing a dupatta.

    According to details, in 2018, The Express Tribune reported on a viral video of a man destroying cell phones of students at the college.

    The Instagram account has also posted the video and in the background a person can be heard saying, “I’ve said break them, break them.”

    Students are reportedly not allowed to bring phones with cameras to the colllege. This video was reportedly secretly filmed by one student to show how the phones were smashed.

    According to the Instagram post, the head of the Human Resource department, Amna Haroon allegedly kept track of all ‘posts on social media so if someone speaks against the college, he or she has to pay fines, and worse than that is the non-issuance of roll number slip.

    The Current talked to a student at the college and upon the condition of confidentiality, the student revealed that the attendance made mandatory by the monitory body (University of Health Sciences-UHS) of medical colleges is 85 per cent but students are not allowed any leave. “My phuppo (paternal aunt) passed away but they did not grant me leave.”

    She recounted that the punishment for failing a test in the college is that a student is made to sit for hours on the floor outside the chairman office. This policy is called “pink list” and according to the student, any teacher can impose it. “Fans and AC are turned off as punishment,” the student shared.

    She recounted that the punishment for failing a test in the college is that a student is made to sit for hours on the floor outside the chairman office. This policy is called “pink list” and according to the student, any teacher can impose it. “Fans and AC are turned off as punishment,” the student shared.

    “The thing that I personally witnessed was that on our white coat ceremony, a boy’s shirt was untucked and he [Chairman Sheikh] called that boy: ‘Oye kuttey kay bachey idher ao tumhari shirt kyu bahir ha, isko 20,000 ka fine lagao.’ (O you son of a dog, why is your shirt not tucked in the pants? He should be fined 20 thousand rupees.)”

    The student also revealed that when students had any issues, “the chairman and his daughter say ‘they damn care’.”

    The student further added that students were allegedly financial exploitated as well. The student described how a practical notebook worth Rs3,000 is being given to students for Rs7,200. “If we don’t buy these, they tear our books,” she shared.

    Student Protest and the Chairman’s reaction

    Students and parents protested outside the college on April 29, in support of Mahnoor and against the alleged abuse faced by students at the college. “We are in medical college. We don’t deserve this,” said the student talking to The Current.

    Chairman Sheikh came out to address the protesting students and parents, as seen in a video shared on social media. A YouTube channel Digital Diary 7127 shared those videos but are now deleted.

    While the videos of Sheikh addressing the student protest have been deleted from YouTube, we have a recording.

    Sheikh assured students of ‘compensation for the grievances of the past’. He started off by saying, “I will be more sympathetic in the future.” Moreover, he said, “Mein aap ki har bat sunon ga, taqreeban manon ga” which can be translated as, “I will listen to you and will almost agree with you as well.”

    Later, while addressing the crowd, Sheikh announced that the “pink list” policy of punishing students will be terminated. Additionally, there shall be no fines in the future and the policy of issuing a leave will be in accordance with the monitoring body of UHS (University of Health Sciences). He promised the students that no action will be taken against those who are protesting.

    It was also notified that Professor M.N Tabassum, who was allegedly fired from King Edward Medical University on allegations of sexual harassment, will not be involved in any sort of teaching and academic activities.

    In another video on social media, a reporter asks Sheikh about the allegation that he uses abusive language with female students, which he denies it altogether. When he is asked about alleged physical altercations in viral videos, he said, “It used to happen in the past, probably before 2015 but it does not happen anymore.” The students behind the camera can be heard saying, “Woh mukar gaya hai” meaning “He has backtracked.”

    Student response

    The Current spoke with another student on the condition of anonymity. When asked if the student felt the issue was resolved, the student said, “For now, yes, but in the long run I don’t know. This thing has been going on for so long and on such big scale… it can’t be resolved just like this. According to many students we might have gotten this off our backs but we will still face the consequences,” the student said.

    Netizens reacted to the video in which Sheikh is pledging to address the students’ demand. Hmad Nawaz wrote, “Concern after being exposed is always hollow.”

    Dr Ahmad Rehan Khan on Twitter asked for the end of mistreatment of the students by the college and to “hold perpetrators responsible”.

  • ASP Shehrbano Naqvi’s Mehndi pictures are an absolute delight

    ASP Shehrbano Naqvi’s Mehndi pictures are an absolute delight

     ASP Shehrbano Naqvi, the brave police officer who shot to fame after rescuing a woman from an extremist mob in Lahore, is capturing hearts once again; this time for her wedding festivities.

     Recently, photos from her Mehndi circulated on social media, sparking an outpouring of praise and well wishes from users.

    The snapshots show Shehrbano glowing in a beautiful Mustard Lehnga, while her groom charms with his traditional attire. Online, the pictures of the couple holding hands are warming hearts as they start their new journey together.

    Previously, the Punjab Police recommended Shehrbano for the prestigious Quaid-e-Azam Police medal in recognition of her brave rescue operation. Now, as she celebrates her wedding, the public continues to admire her courage and determination, wishing her a lifetime of happiness.

  • Marrying wife’s sister not allowed during iddat, rules Lahore High Court

    Marrying wife’s sister not allowed during iddat, rules Lahore High Court

    Lahore High Court (LHC) has ruled that a man cannot marry the sister of his former wife during her iddat period.

    Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh from the province’s high court issued this order while hearing a case filed by Sabir Ali, who in August 2023, accused his brother-in-law, Musawir Hussain, of having two sisters as his wives.

    Hussain claimed that he married his wife’s sister nine days after divorcing his wife, reports The Express Tribune.

    In a 11-page long verdict, Justice Sheikh elaborated that according to Islamic jurisprudence and the country’s law, a man cannot marry two sisters simultaneously.

    Resultantly, the court ruled that marrying the sister of one’s former wife before the completion of the iddat of his first wife is equivalent to simultaneously marrying two sisters. It is because a woman remains married to a man until the completion of the iddat period, as per Islamic jurisprudence and the decisions of the Federal Sharia Court.

    The verdict also pointed out that during the investigation, Musawir Hussain did not provide authenticated documents regarding his divorce.

    The court declared that marrying the sister of one’s former wife before the completion of the iddat period of the first wife would be punishable.

    It is mandatory for the husband and wife to separate as soon as they become aware of the invalid marriage. If they fail to do so, it is the responsibility of the judge to annul their marriage, the court noted.

  • King Charles’ cancer diagnosis leads to funeral-plan update

    King Charles’ cancer diagnosis leads to funeral-plan update

    Following a cancer diagnosis revealed earlier this year, King Charles III’s funeral arrangements are being regularly updated, Samaa has quoted a The New Zealand Herald report.

    The plans for the funeral for the monarch were planned the day after the late Queen Elizabeth was laid to rest in 2022, as is the usual case in British government.

    A royal commentator told the publication that “Everyone is staying optimistic, but he is really unwell.” The King, however, has been out and about in public, looking more or less the same.

    Operation Menai Bridge

    Assistants to King Charles III are always pouring over copies of his official funeral plans, also called ‘Operation Menai Bridge‘. The document was drafted on September 8, 2022, the day after Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral, and is hundreds of pages long.

    Every member of the monarchy has their funeral arrangements set, which are named after well-known bridges and updated on a regular basis. The plan for the Queen’s funeral was known as “Operation London Bridge”.

    An aide told local media, “It’s not an emotional thing, it’s a job, one taken very seriously, and understandably no one plans to get caught out.”

    This February, King Charles III was diagnosed with cancer. Last month, he was seen mingling with bystanders and shaking hands following an Easter service at Windsor Castle. He also met Prime Minister Rishi Sunak this week, looking normal in the photos released by the Palace.

  • 9-year-old child worker burnt to death in Lahore

    9-year-old child worker burnt to death in Lahore

    A 9-year-old domestic worker has died of burns in Lahore’s Millat Park area, reported Geo News.

    As soon as the incident was reported, police arrested the head of the house where the child worked and registered a case.

    The police said that the actual facts of the death will be revealed after the autopsy. The suspect has said that the girl was burnt when a gas cylinder exploded in the kitchen.

  • Canadian who died in Cuba mistakenly buried in Russia

    Canadian who died in Cuba mistakenly buried in Russia

    A Canadian man who died in Cuba last month was mistakenly buried in a Russian town north of Moscow, and officials on Friday were scrambling to repatriate his body.

    A government source who was not authorized to speak on the matter told AFP it had been a challenge to determine what had happened to the body of Faraj Allah Jarjour.

    Efforts were now being made to bring his body back to Canada, the official said, after it was found that two bodies had been switched in Cuba before being sent to the wrong countries.

    Jarjour, originally from Syria, was vacationing in Varadero, Cuba, when he died suddenly during a swim in the ocean in late March.

    His remains were believed to have been sent to Canada, but mortuary technicians in Quebec tasked with preparing the body for burial discovered the man in the coffin looked nothing like a photograph his family provided.

    The cadaver, public broadcaster CBC reported, had a full head of hair, tattoos and looked 20 years younger.

    Jarjour, who landed in Canada in 2016 after fleeing war in Syria, was 68 years old and had no hair.

    Cuban Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodriguez apologized to the family for the mix-up, describing it in a social media post as “an unfortunate incident.”

    His Canadian counterpart, Melanie Joly, said she “shares the utmost concern for the unimaginable situation his family faces.”

    “They’re going to un-bury him and send him to Canada,” Jarjour’s daughter Miriam told CBC. “It’s not a good situation, but we don’t have a choice. It’s not in our control. We can only be patient.”

  • Mohsin Naqvi criticised for allowing security bikes on Margalla trails

    Mohsin Naqvi criticised for allowing security bikes on Margalla trails

    Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi recently ordered the launch of ‘Marghalla Trail Patrol’ to provide security on the trails that zigzag across the hills. The decision has been widely criticised by netizens for its potential to harm the wilderness of the trails.

    Naqvi said in a tweet, “We’re launching the Margalla Trail Patrol to secure the beautiful trails of Margalla, especially for the safety of foreigners who love exploring them. Our tri-pronged security cover includes Trail Motorcycles, mounted Police (horses), and foot patrolling.” The minister even shared pictures of patrol police.

    Renowned journalist Gharida Farooqi responded by pointing out how the motor vehicles will violate the wilderness and climate protection concept. She wrote, “Wrong decision to introduce motor vehicles to Margalla Hills Trails. Basically against the preservation of wilderness and climate protection concept. This must be reversed.” Gharida demanded, “Protect and save Margalla Hills”. In the end she added that “safety of everyone is vital alike; be they [are] locals or not.”

    Netizens also jumped in the debate as another user agreed with Gharida by posting, “True. Safety matters”

    Social media climate activist Dawar Butt shared his two cents by posting , “So, Motorcyclists are banned in the National Park because it disturbs wildlife, but Motorcycle mounted security guards constantly patrolling the national park are fine?”

    Urban development specialist Momin Sheikh’s had a cynical response as he said, “This is the first time I’m seeing a country introduce petrol motorbikes on a hiking trail inside a national park. Who says we don’t innovate, we are the world leaders in horrible ideas”

    Another user pointed out that Rangers are already appointed in Margallas. It could have been better had they been empowered more by the government.

    Others pointed out that bikes will being noise and air pollution in the trails.

  • Chinese girl diagnosed with ‘love brain’ after calling boyfriend 100 times in a day

    Chinese girl diagnosed with ‘love brain’ after calling boyfriend 100 times in a day

    An 18-year-old girl in China, Xiaoyu, was hospitalised after exhibiting obsessive behaviour towards her boyfriend. Doctors believe she may be suffering from borderline personality disorder ‘Love Brain’, Chinese media has reported.

    Xiaoyu’s odd behaviour began during her first year of university when she reportedly became overly dependent on her boyfriend, demanding constant communication and updates on his whereabouts, causing significant strain on the relationship as the boyfriend felt stifled.

    The situation got aggravated when Xiaoyu called her boyfriend over 100 times in a single day and he did not answer. She became extremely upset and began damaging household objects. Fearing for her safety, the boyfriend contacted the police.

    Officers arrived just as Xiaoyu was threatening to jump from their balcony. She was taken to the hospital, where she was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. While ‘love brain’ is not a term itself, it is used colloquially to describe this type of obsessive behaviour in romantic relationships.

    Dr Du Na, a doctor at the hospital where Xiaoyu was treated, explained that borderline personality disorder can sometimes co-occur with other conditions like anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorder. Dr Du also suggested that such conditions might be linked to unhealthy childhood attachments.

    Du did not disclose the cause of Xiaoyu’s illness, but said it often occurs in people who had not had a healthy relationship with their parents during childhood.

    Dr Du stressed that severe cases, like Xiaoyu’s, require medical intervention.