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.

  • Trouble for IK as ECP imposes fine on him for holding jalsa in Peshawar

    Trouble for IK as ECP imposes fine on him for holding jalsa in Peshawar

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has imposed a fine of Rs.50,000 on Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister (CM) Mahmood Khan, and other party leaders.

    The fine was imposed on them for violating the code of conduct issued for the upcoming by-elections by participating in a rally in Peshawar despite the commission’s warning.

    On September 6, PTI held a rally in the provincial capital Immediately after Imran’s arrival on stage, YouTube’s access in the country appeared blocked or greatly slowed down.

    Following the violation, District Monitoring Officer (DMO), Peshawar, Shahabuddin, had served notices to Khan, the Chief Minister and others, seeking an explanation. They appeared before the DMO and submitted written replies.

    However, the DMO deemed the reply unsatisfactory and imposed a fine of Rs50,000 on each of the leaders, directing them to deposit the fine to the state exchequer by September 18.

    It is pertinent to mention that a day before the Peshawar rally, the DMO had asked PTI not to attend the rally and warned of legal action.

    Another PTI rally is scheduled to be held in Charsadda on September 17 and for that, the commission sent letters to the KP governor and chief minister asking them not to attend it.

    This is not the first time that a fine has been imposed on PTI leaders. In March, ECP slapped a fine of Rs50,000 on Imran Khan, CM Mahmood Khan, Shah Mahmood Qureshi and others for violating the code of conduct as they all attended a public gathering in Swat on March 16 ahead of the no-confidence motion.

  • ‘Fitna’: Maryam Nawaz slams Imran for ‘using religion’ for personal benefits

    ‘Fitna’: Maryam Nawaz slams Imran for ‘using religion’ for personal benefits

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice-President Maryam Nawaz has said that religion should not be used for political benefits and blasted Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan for allegedly using faith for political gain.

    “Using religion for personal motives is very bad. I have suffered this and I am a victim”, she said while talking to members of the media.

    “I think religion is a personal matter but it does not remain a personal matter when you say in rallies that ‘voting for PML-N is a sin and voting for me [Imran] is righteous and if my party members switch loyalties then it’s shirk’,” she stated, referring to a recent controversy speech given by Imran Khan at a rally.

    “Shirk’s definition is associating partners with God. Are you changing the entire dictionary and the meaning of religion for your disgusting politics,” she asked the former Prime Minister.

    Shirk is considered to be one of the most heinous sins in Islam.

    At a rally, Khan had said that “people who vote for PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif will be siding with a convict and are on the wrong side. This also means that you will go against Allah’s orders.”

    At one point, he also said that those who defected from his party [PTI] committed shirk.

    “I think all institutions, whether the judiciary or army or politicians or government, should acknowledge he [Khan] is a fitna (chaotic miscreant) who was launched for destruction and from whom no one is safe.”

    Maryam said that she is not in favour of fuel or electricity price increases.

    “I will request the government to focus on it. I don’t support this decision and it should be corrected. However, it will take time to stabilise the economy after what Imran Khan did,” she said, adding that PM Shehbaz Sharif has saved the country from default and slowly the economy will begin to revive.

    Moreover, the PML-N vice president asked Khan to dissolve the provincial assemblies of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) if he wants fresh general elections.

  • ‘Our patience won’t last long’: Imran Khan wants early elections

    ‘Our patience won’t last long’: Imran Khan wants early elections

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, in an address to the nation has once again demanded early elections, warning that PTI’s patience was wearing thin.

    “If we want to save the country from discord and chaos, free and fair elections need to be announced immediately,” he said.

    “Our patience won’t last long if you continue like this, we will have to give a call to the nation,” said Khan, addressing the government.

    “If there is no political stability, the economy won’t stabilise. So I want to tell my people today that we need to have elections quickly to save Pakistan from this quagmire,” the former Prime Minister insisted, adding that it was his fear that there will be no economic progress without political stability.

    “The incumbent government does not have any credibility, both inside and outside Pakistan, especially in the financial markets,” alleged Khan, mentioning that the prices of fuel and electricity across Pakistan had reached an all-time high and warned that they would further increase in the near future.

    Unemployment is increasing, inflation is rising, and businesses are closing down, Imran said. “The danger I am seeing right now […] Our credit rating has fallen to negative […] do you know what this means? They think Pakistan doesn’t have the ability to repay and due to this, the cost of loans will increase,”‘ he warned.

  • Court grants bail PTI’s Shahbaz Gill

    Court grants bail PTI’s Shahbaz Gill

    Islamabad High Court (IHC) has granted bail to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shahbaz Gill in the sedition case filed against him.

    IHC Chief Justice (CJ) Athar Minallah directed the authorities to release Gill on bail after hearing arguments from all of the parties in the case. The court also directed Gill to submit Rs500,000 as surety against his bail.

    Last week, Gill approached the high court after his failure to get bail from a trial court despite continuous efforts.

    Following his bail, Gill tweeted on his official handle.

    It is pertinent to mention that Shahbaz Gill was taken into custody on August 9 from Bani Gala Chowk for inciting the public against state institutions.

    Shahbaz Gill behind bars: Islamabad court approves two-day physical remand, again

    An Islamabad district and sessions court on Wednesday (August 17) approved a two-day physical remand of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Dr Shahbaz Gill in police custody. The court was hearing a review plea seeking Gill’s remand in a sedition case.

    Last Friday (August 12), a district and sessions court in Islamabad hearing a sedition case against Shahbaz Gill rejected the prosecution’s request to extend Gill’s physical remand. Instead, the court had sent him to jail on judicial remand. A plea was then filed by Islamabad Advocate General Jahangir Khan Jadoon in the Islamabad High Court on August 13 challenging the order.

    Shahbaz Gill told the court on August 12 that he was being subjected to extreme torture in custody.

    “I am a professor, not a criminal,” said Gill, adding that he was not permitted to sleep and not even allowed to meet his lawyers.

    ‘He was stripped naked’: Imran Khan

    PTI Chairman Imran Khan recently revealed that his chief of staff Shahbaz Gill was stripped naked and beaten up in custody.

    This is political victimisation: Shahbaz Gill

    Gill was presented in a court earlier today after the completion of two-day physical remand.

    He said that his arrest was political victimisation.

    “No honourable Pakistani will ever say anything against the Pakistan Army,” added Gill.

    Gill denied reports that he admitted his guilt or that he made the statement on Imran Khan’s instructions.

    “No. Not at all. I did not say any such thing.”

    Two-day physical remand

    A court in Islamabad on Wednesday (August 10) approved a two-day physical remand of Gill in a sedition case. The police had been directed to produce Gill before the court on August 12 (Friday), while the investigating officer was told to get the PTI leader medically examined.

    Gill, who is PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s chief of staff, was taken into custody on August 9 from Bani Gala Chowk for inciting the public against state institutions.

    ‘Not ashamed’ says Gill

    While talking to the media, Gill said he was not “ashamed” of the statement that he made on the private television channel.

    “There was nothing in my statement that I am ashamed of [….] my statement was of a person who loves his armed forces,” said Gill.

    The PTI leader said he did not attempt to provoke anyone and that he was only pointing toward bureaucrats who were involved in “wrongdoings”.

    Shahbaz Gill arrested for ‘inciting members of state institutions’

    Dr Shahbaz Gill was arrested for inciting the public against the state institutions, a spokesperson of the Islamabad Police clarified.

    “Shahbaz Gill has been arrested for making statements against the state institutions and inciting the people to rebellion,” said a police spokesperson.

    A case has been registered against Gill at the Bani Gala Police Station, said the spokesperson. Besides other charges, clauses relating to inciting people against the state institutions and their heads were added to the First Information Report (FIR).

    Gill served in Imran Khan’s cabinet as a Special Assistant to the Prime Minister till April 10, 2022

    ’Abduction not an arrest’: Imran Khan

    PTI Chairman Imran Khan termed the arrest as an abduction.

    “This is an abduction not an arrest. Can such shameful acts take place in any democracy? Political workers treated as enemies. And all to make us accept a foreign backed government of crooks,” tweeted PTI Chairman Imran Khan.

    Khan shared a video in which Shahbaz Gill’s assistant said, “I wasn’t unlocking the car so after moving it to the side, they also subjected me to violence — look at my neck — and after that, he [Gill] was also handcuffed and they broke the car windows with Kalashnikovs,” adding that Gill was “dragged around as well and there were around eight to 10 cars”.

    CCTV footage of arrest

    The CCTV footage of Gill’s arrest has surfaced and it contradicts the claims made by PTI leadership after Gill’s arrest.

    Claims of Gill’s driver

    In a video, Gill’s driver claimed that they were manhandled by those who came to arrest Shahbaz Gill.

    “Around 15 to 20 cars with black mirrors were there. They did not show us any warrant or any paper. They broke the car windows with Kalashnikovs as if there was a terrorist sitting in the car. I sat silently, they kicked him [Shahbaz Gill] and then handcuffed him. They treated us like we had murdered someone. Then they stopped me and hit my neck with the Kalashnikov. They asked me to give his [Gill’s] phone, they were asking about the data. There was no number plate on the cars. All were in private cars.”

    In another video shared by PTI Chairman Imran Khan, the driver also showed his wounds.

    What does the CCTV footage reveal?

    The CCTV footage shows that the security personnel gather around Gill’s car and signal him to come out of the car.

    It can be seen that Gill doesn’t comply with the order. Later, a security official breaks the window of the car with his gun.

    Gill comes out of the car and is seen walking up to the police vehicle himself and sitting in the car.

    After Gill is taken away, his driver can be seen parking the vehicle by the roadside.

    PTI leaders react to Gill’s arrest

    Fawad Chaudhry, in a tweet, stated that Gill was picked up from Bani Gala Chowk by unidentified personnel in cars with missing number plates.

    Earlier, Murad Saeed said that Shahbaz Gill has been taken into custody from Islamabad.

    “The imported government is in panic,” Murad Saeed said in a statement on social media.

    PTI’s official Twitter account shared a video of Gill’s vehicle showing broken glasses.

    On Twitter, PTI further demanded the immediate release of Gill. The statement said: “After the ban on ARY yesterday, they’ve today arrested Gill. Pakistan is living under a fascist imported government, that doesn’t care about the human rights of the people of Pakistan. We strongly demand the immediate release of Dr Gill.”

    Former human rights minister Shireen Mazari said Gill’s abduction and ARY being taken off air was part of the “grand design of US regime change conspiracy and its abettors”.

    A day ago, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) had issued a show-cause notice to ARY News for airing comments by Gill and said they were “highly hateful and seditious” remarks tantamount to “incite armed forces towards revolt”.

    The notice went on to say that Gill was invited via a telephonic call for his comments and during which he alleged that the government was trying to provoke the lower and middle tier of the army against the PTI.

    Gill had said that the government leaders, including PML-N leader Javed Latif, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and former National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq, had lambasted the army in the past “and they were at the government positions now”.

  • Aik aur language: Shehbaz interacts with diplomats in Tajiki

    Aik aur language: Shehbaz interacts with diplomats in Tajiki

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday, September 15, reached Samarkand, Uzbekistan, to attend the annual meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) Council of Heads of State (CHS) during a two-day visit.

    Finance Minister Miftah Ismail, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Defence Minister Khawaja Asif are also accompanying the premier. Uzbekistan PM Abdulla Aripov received Shehbaz Sharif upon his arrival at the airport.

    On the first day of his two-day visit, the Prime Minister will hold separate meetings with Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon.

    The Prime Minister is expected to meet other world leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov.

    PM Shehbaz met President of Tajikistan H.E Emamoli Rahmon in Samarqand, Uzbekistan.

    PM Shehbaz also interacted with officials in Tajiki, before starting the formal meeting with the president. PM’s Focal Person on Digital Media, Muhammad Abubakar Umer, shared the video on his Twitter account.

    Read more: Exclusive: You will not believe how many languages PM Shehbaz Sharif can speak

    The premier and Russian President H.E Vladimir Putin shook hands ahead of their meeting in Uzbekistan.

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also met President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi in Samarqand, Uzbekistan.

    Before the summit, there was speculation that Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, who is also attending the summit, would hold bilateral talks with his Pakistani counterpart.

    However, Foreign Office Spokesman Asim Iftikhar told Dawn thar PM Shehbaz had no plans to meet Modi.

    It is being said that a brief courtesy meeting between the two was possible, however, they would not be holding talks as none of the sides had sought a meeting.

  • ATC grants bail to Ali Wazir in fourth sedition case

    ATC grants bail to Ali Wazir in fourth sedition case

    Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) leader and MNA Ali Wazir has been granted post-arrest bail by Karachi’s Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in the fourth sedition case registered against him.

    Wazir has been behind bars since December 31, 2020, for allegedly delivering provocative speeches inciting hate against the state institutions.

    The ATC judge announced the verdict on Wazir’s bail plea after hearing arguments from the defence and prosecution. He directed the applicant to submit a surety of Rs100,000 to secure his release.

    Cases have been registered against Wazir under sections 147 (rioting), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of an offence committed in prosecution of common object), 500 (punishment for defamation), 505 (statement conducing to public mischief), and other sections of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) read with the Section 7 (Punishment for acts of terrorism) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.

    In November 2021, the Supreme Court granted bail to Wazir in one case lodged against him, along with Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) chief Manzoor Pashteen and other leaders, for delivering incendiary speeches at a rally within the jurisdiction of Sohrab Goth police station.

    Later, the Sindh High Court in May granted him bail in a second identical case lodged at Sohrab Goth police station.

    However, Karachi police had then booked him in a third case lodged at the Shah Latif Town police station against the PTM leaders over alleged hate speech against state institutions.

  • Missing person returns home after court warning

    Missing person returns home after court warning

    Haseeb Hamza, who had reportedly gone “missing” in August has been produced before the Islamabad High Court (IHC) by the police, a day after the court issued a strict warning to the police and intelligence agencies to locate him by Wednesday.

    His father, Zulfikar Ali, told the court that his son phoned him in the morning to inform him that he was near the Shifa International Hospital in the capital.

    During the hearing today (Wednesday), IHC Chief Justice (CJ) Athar Justice Minallah asked Haseeb where he had been, to which he replied that he was blindfolded at the time he was taken and had no knowledge of where he was.

    Haseeb’s father had filed a petition in IHC, which stated that on the night between August 22 and August 23, around 20 people — 15 of them in black uniforms — entered his house without a warrant and whisked away his son along with a laptop computer, five mobile phones and some documents.

    After Hamza’s return, Justice Minallah ordered the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to conduct an investigation into the kidnapping case and to submit a report to the registrar of the high court by September 22.

    ’Produce missing person by tomorrow, else intelligence services must appear at court’, Court directs police

    A day earlier, Justice Minallah gave strict orders to find Hamze by 10am tomorrow (Wednesday).

    The court also added that if the person is not produced by tomorrow, sector commanders of Military Intelligence (MI), Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Special Branch and the Intelligence Bureau (IB) must appear before the court.

    His father Zulfikar Ali filed a petition in which he said his son was picked up from their home on August 22. According to him, he filed a First Information Report (FIR) at the time but all in vain.

    Zulfikar had said that his son was a labourer who worked in Layyah in Punjab.

    The IGP duly appeared before the court and confirmed that FIR had been lodged.

    Moreover, the petition said that the police say that Haseeb is with the intelligence agencies.

    Justice Minallah said that under an earlier court verdict IGP and other concerned officials should be held responsible for the disappearance of a citizen.

    Earlier, Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif appeared before IHC and assured the court that all-out efforts will be made to recover missing persons.

    “I cannot say that all of the missing persons will be recovered, but we will leave no stone unturned”, he had promised.

  • Imran se barra kaptaan nikla Shehbaz: Cabinet with 70 members

    Imran se barra kaptaan nikla Shehbaz: Cabinet with 70 members

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif this week appointed eight more special assistants for himself.

    With the eight new special assistants to the prime minister (SAPM), the cabinet now consists of 34 federal ministers, including one without a portfolio, seven ministers of state, four advisers to the PM and 25 SAPMs.

    According to the notification, the Premier was “pleased” to appoint MNA Iftikhar Ahmed Khan Babar, MNA Maahr Irshad Ahmad Khan, MNA Raza Rabani Khar, MNA Mahesh Kumar Malani, Faisal Karim Kundi, Sardar Saleem Haider, Tasneem Ahmed Qureshi and Mohammad Ali Shah Bacha on the post of SAPM.

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan had a 52-member federal cabinet, including 25 federal ministers, four ministers of state, four advisers and 19 SAPMs.

    PTI’s Senior Vice-President Fawad Chaudhry criticized PM Shehbaz for adding eight more members to his cabinet.

    “People are drowning in the quagmire of inflation and the imported government is increasing the army of cabinet members. Eight new non-important members have been added unnecessarily to the cabinet and this is an expression of the priorities of the Shehbaz Sharif government,” said Fawad while talking to The Nation.

    Chaudhry claimed that the back of the country’s economy had been broken and the middle class was shedding tears on monthly expenses while, at the same time, the “imported government” was playing the flute, like Nero.

    “It is a necessary evil in parliamentary systems, especially, when governments are based on a coalition,” said the president of Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT), Ahmed Bilal Mehboob, while talking to The Express Tribune.

  • Deep condolences: US assures Pakistan of support

    Deep condolences: US assures Pakistan of support

    United States (US) State Department spokesperson Ned Price has extended his condolences to Pakistan and affirmed his country’s support for flood victims.

    In a briefing, Price said: “We are deeply saddened by the devastation and the loss of life throughout Pakistan that these historic floods have caused. We stand with the people of Pakistan at this difficult time.”

    He revealed that the US has provided more than $53 million in assistance to Pakistan and stated that more assistance will be provided.

    Giving details, the spokesperson said, “As of September 12th, earlier this week, a total of nine US Central Command flights delivered more than half of 630 metric tons of relief supplies from USAID’s Dubai warehouse for the response to the massive floods. In total, CENTCOM will airlift more than 41,000 kitchen sets, 1,500 rolls of plastic sheeting, tens of thousands of plastic tarps, and 8,700 shelter fixing kits – all in support of USAID’s flood relief.”

    Ned Price said that Pakistan’s F-16 program, is an important part of the broader US-Pakistan bilateral relationship, and this proposed sale will sustain Pakistan’s capability to meet current and future counterterrorism threats by maintaining the F-16 fleet.

    “This is a fleet that allows Pakistan to support counterterrorism operations, and we expect Pakistan will take sustained action against all terrorist groups,” he added.

    Last week, United Nations (UN) Chief Antonio Guterres visited flood-affected areas of Pakistan.

    He urged the international community to support disaster-hit Pakistan as the country needed substantial financial help to overcome post-flood crises.

    The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the International Commi­t­tee of the Red Cross (ICRC) warned that that the number of acutely hungry people in Pakistan is expected to rise substantially.

    Record monsoon rains and glacier melt in northern areas of the country have triggered unprecedented floods, sweeping away infrastructure and killing 1,481 people as yet.

  • IK rejects his own statement suggesting COAS extension

    IK rejects his own statement suggesting COAS extension

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan rejected his own statement on Tuesday suggesting the extension of the tenure of Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa till the next elections.

    In a meeting with journalists, Khan said: “I never talked about the extension of the army chief’s tenure, I just proposed to defer the appointment of the army chief till the new elections.”

    “I did not say anything to elicit a statement from Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR)”, Khan added.

    The PTI chief also decided to call on the nation to protest against the government in September.

    PTI ❤️ ARMY or PTI ARMY: PTI former ministers clash on Bajwa

    Shireen Mazari, senior leader of PTI, took a jibe at anchor Kamran Khan, accusing him and others of misquoting Imran Khan regarding his suggestion to extend the tenure of COAS.

    “What Khan actually said on army chief and what Kamran Khan and PMLN trolls deliberately tried to misquote. The problem here is when the anchor wants to assert his own view or agenda despite IK making his position clear on the same issue. Such anchors should do monologues instead”, she said.

    Fawad Chaudhry agrees with IK’s suggestion to extend COAS tenure

    On the contrary, another senior leader of PTI, Fawad Chaudhry, took to Twitter to give approval to his party chairman Imran Khan’s suggestion to extend the COAS tenure.

    “Yesterday, Imran Khan presented a practical formula for the country’s political future and the restoration of democracy. There is a need to move forward on this formula. The economic condition of the country will not be able to bear the burden of political instability. The status quo can be maintained for the elections.” he tweeted.

    Khan ko kya hua? IK says Gen Bajwa should be given an extension till the next elections

    In an interview with Kamran Khan on Dunya News aired on Monday evening, Imran Khan suggested that the COAS, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, be given an extension in his tenure of service.

    Talking about the possibility of appointing a new Army Chief, Khan said, “There can be a provision in relevance to the selection of the new COAS. When the next government comes, they can appoint a new COAS.”

    When Kamran Khan asked Imran Khan if he was suggesting that until a new government comes to power, Gen Bajwa should continue as army chief, Khan said the country is facing extraordinary circumstances because of floods. He was of the view that for now, the main focus should be on how to get the country out of the crisis.

    During the show, he reiterated that the appointment of a new army chief should be on merit.

    “Neither Asif Ali Zardari nor Nawaz Sharif is qualified for taking this decision on merit,” he said.

    It is pertinent to mention that COAS Qamar Javed Bajwa is due to retire in November this year.

    Speaking on general elections, Khan said, “Mai baat karnay ke liye tayyar hoon”, [I am ready to talk with the government].

    Khan confirmed meeting with former US ambassador

    Imran Khan confirmed that he met with former American ambassador and CIA analyst Robin Raphel. He said, “She is not associated with the government, but is working with a think tank”, adding that Pak-US relations should be good.

    However, earlier PTI had denied that the meeting took place. Fawad Chaudhry had categorically said that the meeting between Khan and Raphel took place three years ago.

    During the show, Khan also clarified that he is not anti-America.

    The PTI chief added that his party’s relationship with the US was not tense, but tensions arose after Khan visited Russia, right on the eve of when President Vladimir Putin attacked Ukraine.

    “I didn’t know”, he stated, adding that the US was upset following its tensions with Russia.

    Since being voted out of power, Imran Khan has blamed America for the “regime change”, while also attacking the establishment in thinly veiled words for turning “neutral”.