Category: Politics

News stories of Politics, for the topics that matter the most to young professionals and college students, political news reported with a different angle.

  • Ministers decide to give up salaries amid economic crisis

    Ministers decide to give up salaries amid economic crisis

    A total of 12 federal ministers and three state ministers have decided to give up their salaries and work on voluntary basis due to the worsening economic crisis in the country.

    The ministers themselves proposed to Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif that they will work without pay. The Premier has approved the request and appreciated their concern for the nation.

    This will be the very first time that such a large number of cabinet members will be serving without getting paid.

    It has also been reported that the Members of the National Assembly (MNAs) have decided to donate one-month salary each to the earthquake victims in Turkiye and Syria.

  • BBC India office raided by tax official after airing documentary on Modi

    BBC India office raided by tax official after airing documentary on Modi

    Indian tax authorities raided BBC’s New Delhi offices on Tuesday, weeks after it aired a documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s role in the deadly riots of 2002 in the western state of Gujarat.

    A BBC employee based in the office told AFP that the tax raid was in progress and that officials were “confiscating all phones”.

    Police were at the BBC’s office in the centre of the capital to prevent people from entering or leaving, an AFP journalist at the scene reported.

    “A government procedure is happening inside the office,” an official said, declining to disclose which department he was from.

    Last month, the broadcaster aired a two-part documentary alleging that the then-Chief Minister Modi ordered police to turn a blind eye to the riots. The violence left at least 1,000 people dead, most of them minority Muslims.

    Government adviser Kanchan Gupta had slammed the documentary as “hostile propaganda and anti-India garbage”.

    Earlier, the Indian foreign ministry dismissed the news as “propaganda”.

    According to the documentary, the inquiry team assessed that Modi had prevented the police from acting to stop the violence targeted against Muslims, stating that he had specifically ordered law-enforcing authorities not to intervene. The documentary also features a former top UK diplomat who says that the violence had been planned by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)

    Arindam Bagchi, spokesperson for the foreign ministry, has termed the BBC documentary a “propaganda piece”.

    India’s government blocked videos and tweets sharing links to the documentary soon after its release, calling it “hostile propaganda and anti-India garbage”.

  • PM Shehbaz says Pakistan will never leave Turkey, Syria alone in these circumstances

    PM Shehbaz says Pakistan will never leave Turkey, Syria alone in these circumstances

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif on Friday announced that the federal government has allocated Rs10 billion to help Turkey’s earthquake relief efforts.

    The premier said that Pakistan will never leave alone Turkey in these circumstances, urging the nation to pray for the victims of the earthquake in Friday prayers today.

    “I believe that the people of Turkey and Syria will come out of this difficulty,” he said, adding that Pakistan assured Turkey of assistance on the very day the tragedy took place.

    “A committee has been formed to send funds to Turkey. 1,486 tonnes of relief goods are being sent to Turkey and Syria,” he added.

    The premier said that the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) will purchase relief items — such as tents, clothes, blankets and dry food — from the fund and dispatch them to Turkiye.

    “Destruction of such magnitude is seldom seen, where parents have lost their children and infants have become orphans […] there are dreadful visuals everywhere,” he noted.

    However, the prime minister asserted that under the leadership of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the people of Turkiye would emerge out of the crisis. “And so will our brothers in Syria,” he said.

    More than 21,000 people have died in Turkiye after an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 struck the region in the early hours of Monday morning. The hope of pulling out survivors from underneath the rubble diminishes as the days pass and freezing temperatures continue unabated.

  • US sees TTP as a threat to Pakistan

    US sees TTP as a threat to Pakistan

    Counselor of the United States (US) State Department, Derek Chollet, has said that his country sees the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as a threat to Pakistan.

    While talking to ARY, Chollet said, “We have seen [TTP] in a terrible way a threat to Pakistan. The US considers any terrorist act as unexpectable.”

    The Counselor will pay an important visit to Pakistan during the ongoing week to explore possibilities of coordinating efforts to combat terrorism.

    He was also of the view that there is a great opportunity to further improve the relationship between Washington and Islamabad.

    The US diplomat said that Pakistan and US are working together to deal with the threats of terrorism.

    Since government talks with the TTP broke down in November, the militant group has intensified its attacks across Pakistan including attacks on the police.

    According to statistics released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), January 2023 remained one of the deadliest months since July 2018.

    Most recently, more than 100 people lost their lives during a suicide attack at a mosque in Peshawar’s Police Lines. The TTP initially claimed responsibility for the attack, however, it later backtracked and claimed that they did not perpetrate the bombing.

  • When will provincial assemblies elections take place?

    It’s been almost a month now since the dissolution of the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) assemblies, however, no consensus on the election dates has been reached so far.

    It is to be noted that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had recommended that the elections be held between April 9 and 17.

    On January 27, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) approached the Lahore High Court (LHC), seeking an order for the Punjab governor to immediately announce the date for elections in the province.

    Later, the high court directed Punjab Governor Muhammad Baligur Rehman and the ECP — to submit their replies to the court by Feb 10.

    In his reply, the Governor stated that he had not created any obstacle for the ECP to announce the election date.

    “If the governor did not dissolve the assembly on the so-called advice of the chief minister, then it is not the responsibility of the governor to give the date for the polls,” he said.

    No security forces avaible for elections

    Another hindrance in holding the election has come forth now as the government has said that it wouldn’t be able to provide full security during elections due to unavailability of personnel.

    Earlier this week, ECP had written to the federal government, seeking the deployment of troops of civil armed forces for the conduct of general and by-elections in various constituencies of the national and provincial assemblies.

    However, the interior ministry, headed by Rana Sanaullah, informed the ECP that the armed forces would not be able to perform security duties during the provincial assembly elections in Punjab and KP as well as by-elections on 64 National Assembly seats as it was busy conducting census and counter-terror operations.

    According to the ministry, both the armed and civil forces are overwhelmed with work on dealing with the threat of terrorism in the country. In addition, the troops are also required to undertake widespread deployment to achieve secure conduct of the census.

  • How many people does PM Shehbaz need in his cabinet to run the country?

    How many people does PM Shehbaz need in his cabinet to run the country?

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif has appointed seven more Special Assistants to the PM (SAPMs) on pro bono basis, as the federal cabinet swells to 85.

    As per details, the PM has appointed five new SAPMs including Members of National Assembly Rao Ajmal, Shaista Parvez, Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh, Muhammad Hamid Hameed, Malik Sohail Khan, Chaudhary Abid Raza and Muhammad Moeen Wattoo.

    Criticising the PM’s decision, PTI leader Farrukh Habib remarked that the government was close to making a century of cabinet members.

    The newly appointed SAPMs will enjoy the status of ministers of state, however they have not been assigned any portfolios yet.

    Of the 85 cabinet members, 34 are federal ministers, seven are ministers of state, and there are four advisers to the PM and 40 SAPMs.

    Besides the long list of federal cabinet members, 38 parliamentary secretaries in the National Assembly answer questions on behalf of the ministers in their absence.

  • GHQ excuses itself from deploying army and rangers’ personnel for upcoming elections

    GHQ excuses itself from deploying army and rangers’ personnel for upcoming elections

    The General Headquarters (GHQ) on Thursday excused from providing personnel from army, paramilitary Rangers and Frontier Constabulary (FC) for the upcoming elections in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
    

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had requested the Defense Ministry to deploy army and rangers for the upcoming elections in the two provinces.

    Responding to the ministry, GHQ said that the forces are occupied with national security duties due to the recent wave of terrorism.

    However, Punjab Rangers will be available as the Quick Response Force during these elections.

    On the other hand, replying to the ECP’s letter, the Finance Ministry has asked the election-conducting authority to postpone its demand for an additional grant in the wider national interest.

    The finance ministry requested the election commission to delay its request for the grant until the economic situation of the country improves.

  • ‘Benefit of doubt’ for Gen Asim Munir: Imran Khan

    Imran Khan, the Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), while talking to journalists at his Zaman Park residence, discussed his strained relationship with the establishment and said that he gives the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir, the “benefit of doubt”.

    When asked if the incumbent army chief is following the policy of former army chief General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa with regards to the PTI, Khan responded that that Munir had been in office for a mere two months and he was willing to give him the “benefit of the doubt”.

    Khan reiterated that a three-year extension given to Bajwa during his tenure as Prime Minister was a “big blunder”. He alleged that his rival Nawaz Sharif had struck a deal with Bajwa in return for endorsing his extension in parliament. In return, Bajwa started securing relief for Nawaz and others in corruption cases.

    “Nawaz had set two conditions for his return — my disqualification and victory in Punjab polls,” Khan claimed.

    He warned: “But let me tell you that my disqualification is not possible in any of the fake cases they have instituted against me if legal procedures are followed.”

    Speaking about the ‘court arrest’ movement, which he announced last week, Imran Khan said he would be at the forefront of the struggle. “I will be leading the Jail Bharo Tehreek — which is a non-violent drive — after recovering from bullet wounds in two weeks or so,” he said, adding that preparations for the movement have already begun.

    Imran Khan has had an estranged relationship with the military since he was removed from power in April 2022 through a Vote of No Confidence. Since being deposed, the former Prime Minister has criticised high-ranking officials in the army, including General (retd) Bajwa.

  • Court suspends National Assembly Speaker’s order to accept PTI MNAs’ resignations

    Court suspends National Assembly Speaker’s order to accept PTI MNAs’ resignations

    The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday suspended National Assembly (NA) Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf’s order accepting the resignations of 43 Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers last month, putting by-elections in these constituencies on hold.

    During the hearing today, PTI lawyer Ali Zafar contended that PTI MNAs had withdrawn their resignation before the NA speaker had accepted them.

    The former ruling party had filed a petition stating that PTI lawmakers had requested the speaker not to de-notify them, as they had withdrawn resignations but the speaker still went ahead and accepted their resignations “without following due process”.

    Pervez Ashraf ‘approves’ resignations of 43 more PTI MNAs

    Earlier, Ashraf approved the resignations of 43 lawmakers in the lower house.

    Reacting to the development, senior PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said the main reason to return to the assembly in small numbers was to remove Raja Riaz as the opposition leader because the legislature had “no importance”.

    “Right now, Shehbaz Sharif has lost the support of 172 members and is relying on lotas (turncoats) to save his government,” tweeted Fawad.

    He also pointed out that 40 per cent of seats in the NA were now empty. “The only solution to this crisis is elections.”

    NA speaker accepts resignations of 35 more PTI lawmakers

    Ashraf on Friday, January 20, accepted the resignations of 35 more PTI Members of Provincial Assembly (MNAs), days after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) de-notified 34 PTI MNAs after their resignations were accepted by Ashraf.

    PTI lawmakers had resigned en masse from the lower house of parliament following the ouster of PTI chief Imran Khan in April last year through a Vote of No Confidence.

    A total of 69 resignations were accepted this week after the PTI announced to return to the assembly and threatened to move a no-trust motion against the incumbent Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif.

    According to reports, President Arif Alvi had been all set to ask PM Shehbaz Sharif to take a vote of confidence from the lower house of the parliament.

    Raja Pervez Ashraf had previously accepted the resignations of only 11 MNAs in July last year.

    After ECP de-notified 35 PTI MNAs, the party’s senior leader Fawad Chaudhry announced that party Chairman Imran Khan himself will contest on all 33 National Assembly constituencies.

    This is not the first time that such an announcement has been made.

    Last year, in October, Khan announced that he would contest on seven seats of the national assembly. At the time, he lost from only one seat and won the remaining six.

  • ‘Naked fascism’: Khan condemns repeated police raids on Pervaiz Elahi’s home

    ‘Naked fascism’: Khan condemns repeated police raids on Pervaiz Elahi’s home

    Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan, has condemned continuous police raids at former Chief Minister Perviaz Elahi’s home.

    “Strongly condemn the repeated police raids on Pervez Elahi’s home in Gujrat as well as arbitrary arrests & abductions of his supporters & those who worked with him.”

    “This is naked fascism on the part of Imported Govt & their Handlers, simply to spread fear in all who support us,” added Khan.

    “Just to remind, arrests of & actions ag Sharifs & others during our govt, were a result of NAB cases with over 95% filed before we were voted into power & of the int Panama revelations. While in custody they were given VIP treatment. But what they wanted was NRO which we refused,” tweeted Khan.

    ‘Bhatti may be subject to forcible disappearance’: Pervaiz Elahi concerned about Secretary’s arrest

    Punjab Assembly Secretary Muhammad Khan Bhatti was arrested in Sindh on Monday.

    According to news reports, his house in Gujranwala was also raided by police, and a domestic employee was arrested on the same day.

    The news report stated that Bhatti was wanted by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in different cases.

    Former Punjab Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi expressed fears that Bhatti may be subject to forcible disappearance.

    In a statement Elahi said, “The way our legal advisor Amir Saeed Ran remains missing, he too may be subject to disappearance.”

    “What kind of message is being sent if officers from Punjab start disappearing from Sindh?” he asked.

    Meanwhile, Moonis Elahi tweeted, “Police , FIA and others again at Kunjah House . They keep raiding without warrant. By raiding our house you think you will make us leave @ImranKhanPTI . Think again!!”