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.

  • PPP’s Gilani resigns as Leader of the Opposition in the Senate after absence from key session

    PPP’s Gilani resigns as Leader of the Opposition in the Senate after absence from key session

    Former Prime Minister (PM) Yusuf Raza Gilani announced in the Senate today that he has handed over his resignation to his party (PPP) as Leader of the Opposition in the Senate.

    Gilani’s statement comes after his absence from the Senate on January 28 when the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Amendment Bill 2021 was passed.

    Addressing Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjarai, Gilani said, “When the voting happened [on January 28], you adjourned the session for 30 minutes, which means you facilitated the government, not the Opposition. During the first round, the majority was of the Opposition. When the House assembled again for the vote, there was a tie.”

    “In the history of Pakistan Senate, it was the first time the Chairman senate had to give a vote. As a neutral person, you should have not done this. As the custodian of the House, you should have protected the rights of both sides of the House,” said Gilani.

    “The role of the Speaker and Chairman Senate has to be totally neutral. They cannot be biased in any way.”

    “I am not astonished by the harsh words of my opponents but I am astonished by the silence of my well-wishers. There are few ministers, if they would have said something [of this sort], it would have been an honour for me. But those who don’t have credibility, are turncoats, are saying that I helped the government. I am saying by your vote they won. At least the credit should be given to you [Sanjrani], not to me ke dhandali ho rahi hai [there is rigging]. There should be no rigging.”

    “In the end, I will say that I have already submitted my resignation to my party that I don’t want to be the Leader of the Opposition,” said Gilani.

    It is pertinent to mention here that it was Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) leader Dr Musadik Malik, who first pointed out the absence of Gilani from the Senate the day the SBP Amendment Bill 2021 was passed amid an outcry from the Opposition on suffering back-to-back defeats in the House, where it otherwise enjoys a dominating numerical strength.

    Taking to Twitter Malik said, “Leader of the Opposition Yusuf Raza Gilani is missing. One vote, i.e. of Mr Gilani, is missing and the bill to make Pakistan a slave of the IMF was passed. And those who made him Leader of the Opposition voted for the government.”

    Gilani later appeared on Geo News programme, ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’, and said that he had not received the agenda of the Senate till 1am of the night between January 27 to January 28.

    Speaking about his absence from the Senate as SBP Amendment Bill 2021 got passed, Gilani said, “It was humanly impossible for me to reach in six hours to Islamabad.”

    “If and when can’t make history. There were a lot of honorable members who were missing. I will question the Dilawar Khan group as to why they voted in favour of the government. The Dilawar group was pressurised to vote for the government.”

    Speaking on Dilawar Khan group, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator Raza Rabbani said, “The parties in the Opposition must carry out a purge of the soft-at-heart members and those senators who sit on the Opposition benches but vote for the treasury.”

    “Friday (January 28) was a collective day of shame for the parliament, in particular the Senate, when it passed a document of surrender, a document which financially makes Pakistan a colony of the international donors and imperialists,” said Rabbani.

    PPP Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar regretted that there was a group of people who sat on the Opposition benches but never voted for the Opposition on crucial occasions. He said these people came to the Opposition’s fold when they want to get some benefits and then they vote for the government to get benefits from it as well.

  • 50 per cent refund for army officers in electricity bills

    50 per cent refund for army officers in electricity bills

    General Headquarters (GHQ) has approached National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) for a 50 per cent rebate to commissioned officers on electricity bills, sources told Bussiness Recorder.

    Director Works and Chief Engineer (DG&CE) said, “Military Engineering Services (MES) is giving 50 per cent refund but on the basis of energy charges instead of variable unit charges. This has curtailed the electricity bills rebate to around 3.5 per cent instead of 50 per cent to Army officers.”

    Previously, a percentage of 50 per cent refund was set for the officers on electricity units consumed. Later, an amendment was made and the bills started to come in the name of the variable and other charges, i.e., variable charges, sale rates of electricity per Kwh, which covers the unit price.

    Last year, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) had drafted a summary for the Cabinet seeking a 50 per cent rebate to commissioned officers on electricity bills and sent it to the Finance Ministry for comments. The ministry of finance then asked MoD to approach NEPRA.

    Electricity prices have been increased about 60 per cent by the government. Another increase of Rs0.95 per unit for consumers is yet to be effective from February 1.

  • Supreme Court allows government to continue Ravi riverfront project

    Supreme Court allows government to continue Ravi riverfront project

    The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday suspended the ruling of the Lahore High Court (LHC) in the Ravi Urban Development Plan case and allowed the Punjab government to continue work on the project, reports The Express Tribune.

    The bench was hearing appeals against the annulment of the project, earlier declared “unconstitutional” by the Lahore High Court (LHC) on January 25 as the project lacked a master plan.

    The court allowed the provincial government to continue construction activity on plots of land for which dues have been cleared. However, the apex court restricted the Punjab government from continuing construction activity on plots for which dues are still pending.

    During today’s hearing, notices were also issued to the respondents in the case and stated that a review will be done to determine if it constitutes an intra-court appeal. If it is an intra-court appeal, the case will be referred back to the LHC, added to the bench.

    Earlier in the hearing, the apex court reprimanded the legal team of the Punjab government for appearing before the bench in the case unprepared.

    “You do not know what the case is?” asked Justice Ijazul Ahsan when AGP Owais was unable to answer the question. “It seems that you have not prepared.”

    The Punjab AGP replied that the provincial government was not a party to the case in the high court’s verdict. “Not being party to one of 18 petitions does not matter,” Justice Ahsan remarked, adding that the Punjab government had presented its position in the high court.

    The petitions were against the public hearing of the environment agency, AGP Punjab stated further.

    The justice replied that according to the records, acquisition of lands for the project was also challenged and added that the provincial government’s legal team should not misrepresent in court.

    Last week, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan said that the government would move to the Supreme Court after LHC nullified the Ravi Urban Development Project.

    The prime minister during his visit to Rakh Jhok forest said that the case would be presented in a better manner to appraise the court about the significance of the project in view of urban development and civic facilities, further saying that the case was not presented correctly in LHC.

  • New Zealand denies re-entry of pregnant national, Taliban offers refuge

    New Zealand denies re-entry of pregnant national, Taliban offers refuge

    A former Al Jazeera pregnant journalist, Charlotte Bellis, who is a New Zealand national, was denied re-entry by her home country on the basis of strict Covid-19 protocol. She was offered refuge by the Taliban government in Afghanistan.

    While speaking to Radio New Zealand(RNZ) from Kabul, she said, “This just feels like such a breach of trust.”

    Bellis said that the Taliban told her, “We’re happy for you, you can come and you won’t have a problem”.

    She did not get to know about her pregnancy until she returned back to the Al-Jazeera headquarter in Doha, Qatar.

    She kept quiet about her pregnancy as it is unlawful to conceive a baby out of wedlock in Qatar.

    She left Al Jazeera in November 2021 while working in Afghanistan as a journalist and went to Belgium, the home country of her partner, Jim Huylebroek. As Bellis is not a resident of a country, she could not stay for a longer period.

    She was left with only one option: to travel to Afghanistan with her partner as they had visas. She is currently in Afghanistan.

    Meanwhile, she started her preparation to return back to New Zealand.

    Her application was rejected by authorities in New Zealand for an emergency return.

    New Zealand’s Covid-19 response minister, Chris Hipkins, said on Monday, “I understand she wanted to return on a specific date and that officials reached out to her for more information shortly after looking at her application. The emergency allocation criteria includes a requirement to travel to New Zealand within the next 14 days. Ms Bellis indicated she did not intend to travel until the end of February and has been encouraged by MIQ (Managed isolation and quarantine) to consider moving her plans forward.”

    Bellis applied for a MIQ option through the medical treatment pathway however authority asked her to sign up under the different category where its nationals are in a location that is under serious risk to their safety, she told to RNZ.

    Currently, she is in contact with officials in New Zealand who claimed her rejected application is under review now.

    The New Zealand government has closed down its borders after the emergence of the omicron variant, including for its nationals who want to return back to the country except for special circumstances.

  • Fawad Chaudhry says Bilawal and Maryam are incompetent, should run for mayor elections

    Fawad Chaudhry says Bilawal and Maryam are incompetent, should run for mayor elections

    Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry on Sunday took a jibe at the Opposition.

    Questioning the leadership qualities of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz, Fawad said that the two leaders were not competent enough for the general elections and should try their luck and contest in mayoral elections and make their way up the leadership ladder.

    “The leadership of this great country cannot be handed over to incompetent people like Bilawal and Maryam Nawaz,” said Fawad.

    “Both Maryam and Bilawal should strive to climb up the ladder of their political careers,” Fawad said, adding, “Maryam does not have the stature to call herself a national leader.”

    “Her [street power] depends on the students of Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s madrassas alone,” he said.

    Criticising the Opposition’s way of working, Fawad said that they did not have any policy to abide by.

  • Union of Dawn newspaper ask PM Khan to call Dawn management to increase salaries, revert pay cuts

    Union of Dawn newspaper ask PM Khan to call Dawn management to increase salaries, revert pay cuts

    The Pakistan Herald Workers’ Union has requested Prime Minister Imran Khan to take notice of “the plight of media workers” at Dawn newspaper. The statement was issued by the Union in their apparent Twitter account, which represents the staff of daily Dawn newspaper.

    “We appreciate the sympathy and the concern you have shown for hardworking, honest but poorly paid workforce in the private sector in particular media organisations.”

    The union directly appealed to the PM to draw attention towards the plight of media workers in the newspaper.

    “First, the Dawn management cut employees’ salaries by up to 35 per cent in February 2019 on the pretext of ‘anticipated losses’,” the statement added.

    “Our appeal to the management to reverse the drastic pay-cut have fallen on the deaf ears, despite the company’s handsome profit in the fiscal year 2020-2021.”

    “Secondly, a truncated 8th wage board award, in August 2021, was ‘implemented’ in a lopsided manner- after a gap of 19 years. It ironically, further contracted the employees’ salary instead of raising it by 145 per cent, as required under the WBA.”

    “We, therefore request the honourable prime minister to make a phone call to Dawn’s management as well and exhort it to reverse the unlawful pay-cut, pay arrears and increase the salaries of the employees. We hope like ARY and Serene Air, Dawn’s management will also listen to your advice and do the needful,” the statement concluded.

    The Current has confirmed with Dawn that while they are not sure if the Twitter account is run by the Union, the letter seems genuine.

    Following PM Khan’s appeal to the corporate sector to increase the salaries of their staff, President and CEO ARY Digital Network Salman Iqbal last week announced a pay raise for lower-level employees.

    Read more- After PM’s Khan’s appeal for increase in workers’ salaries, ARY announces pay raise

    Salman Iqbal said the staff receiving a monthly salary of up to Rs20,000 will be given a raise of 80 per cent. “We have reached this stage with the blessing of Allah Almighty and countless efforts of the team,” he said.

  • Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Gulzar Ahmed retires tomorrow

    Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Gulzar Ahmed retires tomorrow

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Gulzar Ahmed reties on Tuesday (tomorrow). Justice Gulzar had taken oath as the CJP in December 2019.

    CJP Gulzar mainly focused on removing encroachments in Karachi. He ordered the demolition of Nasla Tower as well as illegal houses built around Gujjar Nullah. In the end, he also ordered the relevant authorities to end commercial activities on military land in Karachi.

    Justice Gulzar further ordered to demolish a mosque and other encroachments built on amenity parks near Tariq Road in Karachi. Despite strong protests, he did not withdraw any order for the removal of encroachments in Karachi.

    CJP Gulzar could not give attention to reforms to improve the criminal justice system like his predecessor former CJP Asif Saeed Khosa.

    A three-judge bench led by him summoned Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan in a suo motu case on the martyrdom of children in the Army Public School (APS) Peshawar attack.

    The efforts of Justice Gulzar cannot be ignored to end the sense of insecurity among minority communities. He took courageous steps to send a strong message to extremist elements that the judiciary would not spare anyone involved in usurping the rights of minorities.

    Taking to Twitter, federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhary said, “The historic stand CJP Gulzar has taken on minority places of worship has greatly enhanced his prestige, at a time when India’s judiciary seems helpless at the hands of extremists.”

    The outgoing CJP also made history by nominating Lahore High Court’s Justice Ayesha Malik for her appointment as the first female judge of the Supreme Court.

    Justice Umar Ata Bandial will replace Justice Gulzar Ahmed, and will take oath as Pakistan’s 28th Chief Justice of Pakistan on February 2.

  • PPP’s Gilani says he couldn’t reach Islamabad in time so had to miss important senate session

    PPP’s Gilani says he couldn’t reach Islamabad in time so had to miss important senate session

    Leader of the Opposition in Senate Yusuf Raza Gilani, while speaking on Geo News programme, ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’, said that he had not received the agenda of the Senate till 1 AM of the night between January 27 to January 28.

    Speaking about his absence from the Senate on Friday as the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Amendment Bill 2021 got passed, Gilani said, “It was humanly impossible for me to reach in six hours to Islamabad.”

    “If and when can’t make history. There were a lot of honorable members who were missing. I will question the Dilawar Khan group as to why they voted in favour of the government. The Dilawar group was pressurised to vote for the government.”

    Anchorperson Shahzeb Khanzada negated Gilani’s comments on the Dilawar Khan group and said that the group says the Opposition failed to convince them for support. The government succeeded in doing so.

    Khanzada questioned Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Dr Musadik Malik, who was part of the guest panel on the programme about his tweet where Malik questioned Gilani’s absence and had said that one vote, i.e. of Mr Gilani was missing and the bill to make Pakistan a slave of the IMF was passed. And those who made him Leader of the Opposition voted for the government.

    “It was very important that Gilani should have been part of the panel today. He is our very respected leader. But was very clear that the bill was been circulated by the government for the past 10 days and circulated amongst the members of the Senate. We were aware that the government had not placed the bill. We were already aware that the IMF was holding this session on February 2,” said Malik.

    “Before February 2, today [January 28] was the only day the government could have done something. If all members of the Opposition were present as respected Gilani Sahib says he did ask them to, we would have had the support and respect in the Senate if Gilani Sahib would have tried and shown up,” added Malik.

    On January 25, the Senate session was adjourned for Friday, January 28.

    The SBP Amendment Bill, 2021, promises complete autonomy to the central bank and places a complete restriction on the government’s borrowing from the central bank. However, the government can now borrow at a market rate from commercial banks, which will benefit private banks owned by business elites, according to the Opposition.

    The bill was passed by a majority vote. Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani then adjourned the session till January 31.

  • Ravi Urban project not presented correctly in court, govt will approach SC: PM Khan

    Ravi Urban project not presented correctly in court, govt will approach SC: PM Khan

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan said Friday the government would move the Supreme Court after the Lahore High Court (LHC) nullified the Ravi Urban Development Project.

    Prime minister during his visit to Rakh Jhok forest said that this time the case would be presented in a better manner to appraise the court about the significance of the project in view of urban development and civic facilities, further saying that the case was not presented correctly in LHC.

    PM Imran Khan said wealth creation would help run 40 affiliated industries.

    “We need to set up new cities in view of the growing population, otherwise we will not be able to provide civic facilities to people,” he said.

    The premier mentioned that Lahore in near future could face similar civic problems like Karachi as a result of unplanned urban development.

    The LHC on Tuesday had declared the Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project (RRUDP) illegal while announcing a verdict on the petitions against the project.

    The court also declared Section 4 of the Ravi Urban Development Authority (amendment) Ordinance 2021 unlawful and unconstitutional.

    The mentioned section is contradictory to Article 144 of the Constitution of Pakistan, it said.

  • PM Khan says treatment of Uighurs not true on ground

    PM Khan says treatment of Uighurs not true on ground

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, prior to his upcoming trip to China from February 3 to February 5, during which the premier will attend the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics and meet Chinese leaders. He also spoke to journalists on various issues concerning both Pakistan and China.

    The premier reinforced that his visit will reinforce a strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries, and further advance the objective of building a closer China-Pakistan community with a shared future in the new era.

    Appreciating China for how it developed over the years, PM Khan said the world should see how China helped the poor develop and eradicate poverty.

    Talking on China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) PM Khan said that the first phase of CPEC was connectivity and power generation. “Now the CPEC has moved into the next stage where it’s about the relocation of industry. We want to develop our industrial zones, our special economic zones. Then we want special help in agriculture to increase our productivity. In China, productivity is very high as compared to Pakistan. “

    When asked about how the West presented the picture of Chinese Muslims suffering in Uighur, PM Khan said, “There is a lot of criticism about the treatment of Uighur’s by China in the West. Our ambassador went there, Moin-ul-Haq, our ambassador in China went there. We had asked him, he went there and he sent us information and said this is actually not true on the ground.”

    “What we in Pakistan find it very difficult to swallow is that while they talk about Uighurs, they do not talk much in the West about Kashmir. Because in Kashmir the worst violations of human rights have taken place by India. And somehow there is selective silence about human rights in Kashmir,” said PM Khan.

    The premier further said, “Where there is something like nine million people, who are basically living in the worst conditions in almost open prison by these 800,000 Indian troops. So we find it very difficult that while on one side they talk about Xinjiang but on the other hand the silence about Kashmir is demeaning for us. And that double standard is what we in Pakistan find difficult.”

    The premier, talking about Afghanistan, said that is the foreign countries who turned have Afghanistan into a battleground and for 40 years the people have suffered. He further said that the people of Afghanistan have gotten a chance after 40 years to live in peace.