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.

  • ‘Mai ne video banaayi hui hai, agar mujhe kuch hua toh public ko sab pata chal jayega’: Imran Khan

    ‘Mai ne video banaayi hui hai, agar mujhe kuch hua toh public ko sab pata chal jayega’: Imran Khan

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan said on Tuesday that he knows the names of those who were involved in the conspiracy to oust his government but said he is quiet for the sake of the country as he doesn’t want to harm Pakistan.

    Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Khan claimed that he has recorded a video that involves information about those who have committed “treason”. He said, “Mai ne video banaayi hui hai, agar mujhe kuch hua toh public ko sab pata chal jayega“, (I have recorded a video. If something happens to me, it will be made public). He added that if “they keep sidelining and harassing us, I will tell everything”.

    About the cases registered against Khan and his party members, he said this is being done to “shut them up”.

    “I have never seen such fascism in Pakistan, such a situation is leading Pakistan towards anarchy,” he said. Khan further added that the government can control the media but not social media. “Everyone has a voice now.”

    Khan also condemned the recent incidents of attacks on journalists. He posed a question, ” I ask the judiciary, has martial law been imposed? I ask them whether human rights have been suspended in the country?” Khan said that terrorism cases have been registered against them to keep them quiet.

    Criticising the incumbent government, the PTI Chairman said, “They will accept Israel as a state, will provide Pakistan’s bases to the United States, and will discard the Kashmiri people to establish better relations with India.”

    Moreover, Khan urged the public to come out to vote on July 17 in the Punjab by-elections. “PTI has to win the by-elections despite the election rigging,” adding that this is “jihad ” for the country.

    Khan said that Pakistan can only be saved from this crisis through transparent elections while saying that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) cannot be trusted.

  • Anchorperson Imran Riaz Khan arrested, court summons IG Islamabad at 10am today

    Anchorperson Imran Riaz Khan arrested, court summons IG Islamabad at 10am today

    Anchorperson Imran Riaz Khan was arrested on Tuesday night near Islamabad toll plaza by the Attock police.

    Seventeen treason cases have been registered against Imran Riaz Khan across Punjab, while he was also filing a contempt of court case against the police, reports Dawn.

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhry took to Twitter and said that the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has taken notice of the issue and has summoned IG Islamabad at 10am today.

    In a recent video on his Youtube channel, Riaz directly addressed Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa and alleged that he was threatened after asking questions from military sources about the country’s current political and economic situation.

    PTI Chairperson Imran Khan condemned the arrest and tweeted, “The country is descending into fascism just to make our nation accept an Imported Govt comprising of mega crooks. It is time for everyone, esp the media, to unite & stand up against this fascism.”

    PTI Secretary General Asad Umar tweeted, “Expression of opinions are met with counterarguments and not through arrests.”

    Fawad Chaudhry tweeted, “Fascist government in the country is using third-grade tactics to stifle critical voices against it.”

    PTI’s central secretary information Farrukh Habib shared a video of Riaz after being arrested.

  • Anti-corruption department summons Bushra Bibi’s brother

    Anti-corruption department summons Bushra Bibi’s brother

    Former Prime Minister (PM) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi’s brother Ahmed Mujtaba has been summoned by the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) Punjab over his alleged involvement in a corruption case, reports Geo News.

    The former first lady’s brother illegally occupied government land in Depalpur, which is in Okara District. He is accused of “illegally leasing government land earmarked for a market and seizing government land through the chairman of market committee Tahir Zahoor”. Later, he had shops constructed there.

    ACE has asked Mujtaba, secretary Tahir Tanveer and eight others to appear before the Sahiwal office of the anti-corruption department on July 6 (tomorrow).

    The investigation has been opened following Bushra Bibi’s audio leak in which she directed PTI digital media head Dr Arslan Khalid to accuse the former Opposition parties of “treason”.

    Last month, ACE registered cases against former Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar and his brothers for the illegal transfer of state-owned 900 kanals of land. However, the land was transferred by Buzdar’s father to his sons when they were all minors in 1982.

  • ‘KU bombing planned by BLF and BLA, neighbouring country had a role’: Sharjeel Memon

    ‘KU bombing planned by BLF and BLA, neighbouring country had a role’: Sharjeel Memon

    Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon on Tuesday (July 5) said that the Karachi University (KU) suicide bombing on April 26 was a joint plan by the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and the Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF).

    On Monday, a 13-member Chinese delegation, led by a Chinese counterterrorism official, called on Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Murad Ali Shah and discussed with him security measures for Chinese nationals working in Sindh and the progress of the probe into the KU attack.

    An intelligence team of the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) revealed in the meeting that an “important accused” had been arrested.

    Addressing a press conference today, Memon said that the suspect, a terrorist, had revealed that the KU attack was the joint work of the BLF and the BLA.

    “During the investigation process, the suspect made important revelations. He said that he was the commander of a BLF sleeper cell in Karachi.”

    Memon further said that the suspect met the husband of the female suicide bomber (Shari Baloch), Dr Haibastan Bashir, and another “important terrorist” named “Zeb” in Karachi, and helped to carry out the KU attack.

    The minister further added that the suspect revealed that “Zeb was the KU attack mastermind”, who entered Pakistan from a “neighbouring country” and had been staying in Karachi with Shari Baloch and her husband.

    Shari Baloch, a 30-year-old woman, committed a suicide bombing near the Confucius Institute of Karachi University on April 26. In the suicide attack, she targeted four people, including Chinese nationals and a van driver.

    She was an educated woman who belonged from Kech, Balochistan. She had been with Balochistan Students Organisation-Azad (BSO Azad) since college. She later joined the separatist movement of the Majeed Brigade of the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA). She completed her master’s degree in education from Allama Iqbal Open University in 2014.

  • ‘Blackest day in the history of Pakistan’: Bilawal Bhutto on Ziaul Haq’s coup 45 years ago

    ‘Blackest day in the history of Pakistan’: Bilawal Bhutto on Ziaul Haq’s coup 45 years ago

    Foreign Minister (FM) and Chairperson Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari termed July 5, 1977 as “the blackest day in the history of Pakistan”. He reiterated PPP’s commitment to democracy.

    On July 5, 1977, military dictator General Ziaul Haq ousted an elected government of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto through a military coup.

    Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was the founder of the PPP and the ninth prime minister of Pakistan.

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhry also tweeted about July 5 and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

    “Today is July 5 when Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was overthrown. Today’s political suffocation and situation is close to what it was back in July 5, 1977.” He added that the only difference is that the “PPP is a main player in today’s fascism’”

    Federal Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman called July 5 a dark day in Pakistan’s history.

  • MQM’s Babar Ghauri arrested in Karachi after ending seven-year self-exile

    MQM’s Babar Ghauri arrested in Karachi after ending seven-year self-exile

    Babar Ghauri, former federal minister and senior leader of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), was arrested at the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi on Monday after he returned to Pakistan from the United States (US) after ending his seven-year self-exile.

    In a video shared on social media, Ghauri can be seen being taken into custody by the Karachi police.

    Last month, the Sindh High Court (SHC) granted Babar Ghauri a two-week protective bail in a corruption reference and a money-laundering and terror-financing case. After the SHC orders, Ghauri announced his return without giving details of when he planned to return to Pakistan.

    Ghauri had been booked by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in 2017 in a money-laundering and terror-financing case.

  • Imran Khan’s upcoming alleged audio leak: PTI says if it happens, they will not sit quietly

    Imran Khan’s upcoming alleged audio leak: PTI says if it happens, they will not sit quietly

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s conversation with his former Principal Secretary Azam Khan at the time when he was Prime Minister of Pakistan (PM) can be leaked, writes journalist Ansar Abbasi for Daily Jang.

    Following this, Focal Person on Digital Media to Khan Dr Arslan Khalid took to Twitter and said, “Recording thousands of calls, editing voices, making custom phone calls and then spreading them through your envelopes, is all that’s left now.”

    PTI’s Babar Awan termed this act as treason and said, “First Bushra Imran’s fake audio and now Imran Khan’s. Is it a joke that someone can tap the call of the PM of a nuclear country or use it for media trial by tampering and editing?”

    Journalist Mansoor Ali Khan shared an old interview of Khan when he was in power. In the video clip, Khan can be heard defending Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) for recording calls.

    According to Khan, ISI knows who is he talking to over the telephone. He further said that they should know because they are responsible for the security of the PM.

    Addressing a press conference, both former federal ministers and PTI leaders Shireen Mazari and Fawad Chaudhry condemned Khan’s and Bushra Bibi’s leaked audios.

    Talking about Khan’s audio, Mazari said phone tapping of a PM’s secure line is illegal as only an intelligence agency can do that. She urged that Supreme Court (SC) take suo moto of the situation as it is a violation of SC order.

    In the verdict issued in the late 1990s, the top court had said that an individual’s privacy under Article 14 was not just restricted to physical boundaries of home or work but also extended to public places.

    Taking Ansar Abbasi’s name, she further said it is a clear violation of the Constitution. Mazari said that if such audio is leaked, it will be a violation of the Official Secrets Act as the conversation between a PM and his principal secretary.

    “If a journalist leaks this, they are not only violating Article 14, they will also be in violation of the Official Secrets Act. Beware, we will not sit quietly if this happens,” she added.

    Commenting upon the leaked audio of Bushra Bibi, the former minister said that “no substantial” conversation was there and “the actual problem here is of phone tapping”.

    “One wonders how much did the US help in tapping the phones?” Mazari posed a question. She said that the “neutrals and the government” could not find evidence of corruption against Khan that’s why they are leaking audios. She further claimed that they are diverting the public from real problems such as inflation, loadshedding, etc.

    Meanwhile, speaking on Geo News’ programme ‘Naya Pakistan’, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that if PTI claims that Bushra Bibi’s audio leak is fake, they can get its forensics done from a third party.

    On Saturday, an alleged audio of Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi was leaked in which she is instructing Arslan Khalid to make a statement against Khan’s opponents and run a campaign to ‘prove them, traitors’.

  • ‘Made a mistake, want to fix matters’: Khawaja Asif says Khan wants to make amends with the US

    ‘Made a mistake, want to fix matters’: Khawaja Asif says Khan wants to make amends with the US

    The United States (US) State Department restated its claim that there is no truth to the allegations that Washington was involved in a conspiracy to oust the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

    The reiteration came on Sunday after media reports that PTI’s Secretary of the Office of International Chapters (OIC) Dr Abdullah Riar had contacted the US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu and asked him to forget the past and move forward.

    A US State Department spokesperson, when asked about Riar’s reported contact with Lu, said: “As a standard practice, we do not comment on private diplomatic meetings,” reports Dawn.

    Imran Khan’s claim of the US involvement in ousting him reiterated: “As we have said before, there is no truth to these allegations.”

    Khan wants to fix matters with America

    Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that there was evidence of a meeting of the PTI leader and an apology to the US government.

    Speaking on Geo News’ programme ‘Naya Pakistan’, Khawaja Asif said: “We [the coalition government] have obtained all records regarding PTI’s apology to Lu. Evidence has been received regarding PTI leaders’ meeting with the US government where they tendered an apology.”

    Asif said that Imran Khan has sent a message to America that we have made a mistake, he wants to fix matters with America and the process should start from where it was broken.

    ‘Let’s move on’: Is PTI trying to be friends with Donald Lu?

    Reports suggest that Dr Abdullah Riar sent a message to Donald Lu.

    According to media reports, Riar in a message to Lu has said, “Let’s move on.”

    It is pertinent to mention here that Lu is the same person who has been accused by the PTI Chairperson Imran Khan of being behind the conspiracy to remove him from power. Khan accused Lu of using undiplomatic language to threaten his government in the wake of the no-confidence motion.

    Khan in his interview with CNN’s Becky Anderson said that Lu should be sacked for his sheer arrogance.

    The PTI chairman said that the US diplomat told Pakistan’s ambassador that unless “you get Imran Khan removed in a vote of no-confidence — which was not tabled but he seemed to know about it — Pakistan will suffer consequences”.

    “And then goes on to say, of course, if you get rid of him through the vote of no-confidence, all will be forgiven — such arrogance […] by the way Becky, this guy should be sacked for bad manners and sheer arrogance,” said Khan.

  • ‘Will get fresh tear gas if needed,’ Rana Sanaullah warns PTI

    ‘Will get fresh tear gas if needed,’ Rana Sanaullah warns PTI

    Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said if the need arises, fresh, effective and updated tear gas will be used against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters who are ready to hold a rally at Islamabad’s Parade Ground today.

    Meanwhile, it has been reported that a pistol was recovered from a man who was present at the rally venue.

    The police have arrested the man and he is now being investigated.

    In a press conference today (Saturday), Sanaullah said that the expired tear gas, which he claimed was bought by his “predecessors”, had finished. “Now they [police] will get everything effective, fresh and updated if the need arises.” However, he advised participants at PTI rally not to cause chaos. “It would be better if they don’t create a situation.”

    He said that in the future, any such “seditious” rallies won’t be tolerated in the capital.

    Regarding a question about PTI Chairman Imran Khan, the federal minister said he should “correct” his matters and refrain from “creating rebellion and instability” in Pakistan.

    “All the political parties in the country at the moment are on one side, trying to solve the ongoing crises, while Imran Khan is busy abusing everyone and playing the politics of hatred,” the interior minister added.

    Prior to this, PTI alleged that the Islamabad police had used expired tear gas against them on May 25. Later, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Islamabad Dr Akbar Nasir Khan had stated that expired tear gas shells were not used.

    On Friday, the Staff Duties Directorate at the General Headquarters (GHQ) Rawalpindi permitted PTI to organise its jalsa at Parade Ground in the federal capital.

    The permission is only valid for July 2. The NOC was given on the condition that the public gathering shall not disturb or disrupt the fundamental rights of the citizens of Islamabad and adjoining areas nor shall it block Islamabad Expressway or any other road. The gathering shall end at midnight.

  • GHQ allows PTI to use Parade Ground for jalsa

    GHQ allows PTI to use Parade Ground for jalsa

    The Staff Duties Directorate at the General Headquarters (GHQ) Rawalpindi on Friday permitted the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to organise its jalsa at Parade Ground in the federal capital.

    PTI Central Secretariat President Ali Nawaz Awan was informed that permission to use Parade Ground had been granted by the GHQ.

    A letter issued to Awan by the deputy commissioner said: “With reference to clause xlii mentioned in the NOC, you are hereby intimated that permission to use the venue i.e Parade Ground, Islamabad has been granted by the concerned quarters.”

    The NOC was given on the condition that the public gathering shall not disturb or disrupt the fundamental rights of the citizens of Islamabad and adjoining areas nor shall it block Islamabad Expressway or any other road. The gathering shall end at midnight.

    The permission shall only be valid for July 2. It was reiterated that Section 144 had been imposed on the gathering of persons within a one km radius of the Red Zone and the organisers will ensure that no participant entered there.