Category: Uncategorized

  • Self-love: woman to marry herself, plans to go on a two week honeymoon

    Self-love: woman to marry herself, plans to go on a two week honeymoon

    A woman in India is all set to marry herself on June 11. Kshama Bindua a 24-year-old woman will take the ‘saat phere’ with herself on June 11.

    “I never wanted to get married. But I did want to become a bride. So I decided to marry myself”, said the girl while talking to Indian media. “Maybe I am the first to set an example of self-love in our country,” she added.

    “Self-marriage is a commitment to be there for yourself and unconditional love for oneself. It’s also an act of self-acceptance. People marry someone they love. I love myself and hence, this wedding,” she said, while explaining the reason behind the decision of marrying herself.

    She’s even planning a two-week vacation for herself, complete with wedding customs.

  • Transnational celebrities cheer Johnny Depp post legal victory against Amber Heard

    Transnational celebrities cheer Johnny Depp post legal victory against Amber Heard

    Actor Johnny Depp has won his multimillion-dollar US lawsuit against former wife Amber Heard after a jury ruled her 2018 article in the Washington Post was defamatory.

    Depp sued the Aquaman star for $50 million over the piece, titled: “I spoke up against sexual violence and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.”

    The jury also found in favor of Heard, who said she was defamed by Depp’s lawyer when he called her abuse allegations a hoax. Jury members found Depp should be awarded $15 million in damages, while Heard should receive $2 million.

    Transnational celebrities from South Asia have reacted to the verdict!

    Bollywood diva Disha Patani extended her support by sharing a photo of Johnny’s character Jack sparrow from the franchise Pirates of the Caribbean and said, “No body can ever replace you.” 

    India Tv - Disha Patani's post for Johnny Depp

    Ali Zafar retweeted a fan’s video collage of him and Depp and wrote, “Even a true empath could only understand a small percentage of what Johnny Depp must’ve gone through.” According to Zafar, no verdict or amount of money can “bring him (Depp) back 6 prime years of his life, the art he could’ve produced and smiles he could’ve brought.”

    Sana Javed shared a photo of the Pirates of the Caribbean actor Depp and announced that he has “won” the case.

    Mansha Pasha took to Twitter and wrote, “Abuse has no gender. June off to a good start.

    Actresses Aiman Khan and Mariyam Nafees also shared pictorial posts.

    Armeena Khan shared her thoughts on the win. She wrote in a tweet that she’s “happy for victims of DV (Domestic Violence) everywhere”. In additional tweet, she also mentioned what she disliked the most about the case and that was the “vile, misogynistic abuse (online)” directed towards Heard. “I read some truly despicable things” she wrote.

    https://twitter.com/ArmeenaRK/status/1532082573165330432?cxt=HHwWgICwwfS-hsMqAAAA

    Film producer Jemima Goldsmith took to Twitter and suggested that Depp “waive off Amber Heard’s damages” saying that it was never about the money and urge “trolls to stand down and wish her well.”

  • FIA Cyber Crime Wing arrests two Pakistanis involved in ‘secretly filming women in Turkey’

    FIA Cyber Crime Wing arrests two Pakistanis involved in ‘secretly filming women in Turkey’

    The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested two Pakistanis involved in criminal activities in Turkey.

    The two accused — Muhammad Junaid and Ameer Khan — were arrested during two separate operations. They are allegedly involved in ‘transportation of illegal immigrants’ and secretly filming and sharing videos of Turkish women on social media.

    “Their criminal act created an uproar and anger in the Turkish society and severely damaged goodwill which Turkish people have for their Pakistani brethren,” the FIA statement added.

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has also taken notice and ordered strict action against the accused. The statement further added that a crackdown has been launched against all agents involved in trafficking.

    “Pakistani Perverts” and “Pakistani Get Out” hashtags trended on Turkish social media in April after videos of Turkish women made by Pakistanis were shared on social media.

    Read more- Fact check: Has Turkey tightened visa policy for Pakistanis?

  • ‘Speaks Nonsense, ignores husband, tries to become Benazir’: Nausheen slams Maryam Nawaz

    ‘Speaks Nonsense, ignores husband, tries to become Benazir’: Nausheen slams Maryam Nawaz

    Actor Nausheen Shah took to her instagram stories to take jibes at the Vice President of Muslim League Nawaz, Maryam Nawaz.

    The Deewar-e-shab star wrote, “Being Maryam Nawaz is so fun. Just wake up and ignore your husband. Go out in protocol of your father’s slave, speak nonsense, and try to become Benazir by shouting to the limits of the throat. Sleep.”

    Recently Nausheen adviced politician Firdous Aashiq Awan, on Tabish Hashmi’s chat show, “She must do less makeup and focus on politics”. 

    PML-N leader Hina Parvez Butt grilled Nausheen for her remarks. Butt sarcastically hit out at her by saying that being Nausheen is a joke as she wakes up, rants and strokes controversy.

    Earlier when a clash started off between Nauman Niaz and veteran cricketer Shoaib Akhtar on national television, the Pehli Si Mohabat diva, Nausheen Shah extended her to support to the ‘national hero of Pakistan’.

    She took to her Instagram stories and stated:

    In an exclusive conversation with The Current, the Deewar-e-Shab star mentioned that Nauman is just a journalist not the owner of the channel and hence he should behave and conduct himself accordingly.

    On the work front, Nausheen was last seen in Bebasi co-starring Alizeh Shah and Ali Rehman Khan.

    Uske bohat baray dant hain': Nausheen Shah opens up on comparisons with Kareena Kapoor - The Current
  • Pakistan records 13.8 per cent inflation in May

    Pakistan records 13.8 per cent inflation in May

    The latest data provided by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on June 1, inflation continued to rise in May 2022, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based reading coming in at 13.8 per cent year on year, up from 13.4 per cent the previous month and 10.9 per cent in May 2021.

    In May 2022, inflation climbed by 0.44 per cent month over month, compared to 1.6 per cent the previous month and 0.1 per cent in May 2021. This brings average inflation in 11MFY22 to 11.29 per cent year over year, up from 8.83 per cent in 11MFY21.

    Rising prices have emerged as a major source of concern for the economy of the South Asian country, which is grappling with dwindling foreign exchange reserves and a growing import bill.

    The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) hiked the main interest rate by 150 basis points to 13.75 per cent last month in an attempt to combat economic headwinds.

    The existing administration, on the other hand, has indicated that it will partially remove subsidies by raising petroleum product tariffs by Rs30 per liter, a move that is projected to raise inflation.

    As per a report from Brecorder, on a month-on-month basis, Inflation in Urban areas increased by 0.3 per cent in May 2022 as compared to an increase of 1.6per cent in the previous month and increase of 0.2per cent in May 2021.

    In the meantime, CPI inflation in urban areas grew 12.4 per cent year over year in May 2022, compared to 12.2 per cent the previous month and 10.8 per cent in May 2021.

    It climbed by 0.3 per cent month over month in May 2022, compared to a 1.6 per cent increase the previous month and a 0.2 per cent increase in May 2021.

    In rural areas, CPI inflation climbed by 15.9per cent year over year in May 2022, compared to 15.1 per cent the previous month and 10.9 per cent in May 2021. It climbed by 0.6 per cent month over month in May 2022, compared to an increase of 1.6 per cent the previous month and a fall of -0.03 per cent in May 2021.

    In May 2022, the SPI inflation grew by 14.1 per cent year over year, compared to 14.2 per cent a month earlier and 19.7 per cent in May 2021. On a month-over-month basis, it climbed by 0.6 per cent in May 2022, compared to 1.5 per cent a month earlier and 0.8 per cent in May 2021.

  • ‘Govt backed by establishment took repressive measures against us’: Shireen Mazari writes letter to the UN

    ‘Govt backed by establishment took repressive measures against us’: Shireen Mazari writes letter to the UN

    Former Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari has written a letter to the United Nations (UN) to hold an “independent and impartial investigation” into the “state excesses and human rights violations” during Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Azadi March, held on May 25.

    In the letter, Mazari told the UN officials that Pakistan has been engulfed in a “political crisis” since former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan was ousted.

    The letter stated that the government “backed by the establishment” had taken “repressive measures” against the “Azadi March”.

    Mazari has requested the UN officials to “take urgent notice of the issues raised as they not only threatened democracy in Pakistan but also the lives of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, his party leadership…and intervene on these with the government of Pakistan”.

    Demands of PTI in letter

    The PTI in its letter also put forward five demands to the UN:

    Demand an independent and impartial investigation into these state excesses and human rights violations.

    Demand that the government immediately cease harassment of PTI workers and leaders.

    Demand the release of all political workers and cease lodging politically-motivated FIRs against workers and leaders of the PTI.

    Stop media censorship, which is in violation of basic democratic norms and of the ICCPR to which Pakistan is a party.

    Stop denying the right to peaceful protest through repressive measures and blocking access to protest sites.

  • Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: Death penalty or life imprisonment for a child abuser, 14 years for child pornography

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: Death penalty or life imprisonment for a child abuser, 14 years for child pornography

    The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly has passed “Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare (Amendment) Act, 2022”.  The bill was introduced by provincial Law Minister Fazle Shakoor.

    According to the bill, anyone involved in child abuse might face a death sentence or a life sentence, as well as a fine of not less than Rs 20 lakhs. Meanwhile, child pornographers, will be sentenced to a minimum of 14 years and a maximum of 20 years in prison, with a fine of Rs 20 lakhs.

    For child trafficking, punishment of at least 14 years behind the bars or life imprisonment have been suggested with a fine of upto Rs 50 lakhs.

    Read more- FIA arrests man for child pornography, blackmailing teenager

    The recently passed bill states that any case related to child abuse must will be completed within 30 days.

    Furthermore, traveling on public transportation and accessing public areas is prohibited for anyone whose name is entered or appears on the Register of Sexual Offenders.

    Read more- 10 children sexually abused in Pakistan every day from Jan to June: report

    More than ten children were victims of sexual abuse on average every day between January 2021 and June 2021, a report by the child protection organisation Sahil states.

  • Nadal beats Djokovic in a riveting showdown

    Nadal beats Djokovic in a riveting showdown

    Once again, Rafael Nadal proved why he is the best player in French Open history by defeating long-time rival Novak Djokovic in a late-night thriller to advance to the men’s singles semi-finals.

    Nadal, seeking his 14th French Open title, got out to a strong start and held off defending champion Djokovic to win 6-2 4-6 6-2 7-6 (7-4) at Roland Garros.

    After more than four hours on the court, Nadal won at 1:15am local time. On Friday, the 21-time Grand Slam winner will meet third seed Alexander Zverev. After surviving a comeback by teenage phenom Carlos Alcaraz earlier on Tuesday, Germany’s Zverev, 25, advanced to the semi-finals for the second year in a row.

    “To win against Novak there is only one way: to play your best from the first point to the last,” said 35-year-old Nadal, who thanked the Paris crowd for showing their “love”.

    “This is one of those magic nights for me.”

    Fifth seed Nadal avenged his semi-final loss to Djokovic last year and improved his Roland Garros clay record to 110 wins in 113 matches.

    The pair’s rivalry is the longest durable in men’s tennis, with Nadal narrowing the deficit to 30-29 in the head-to-head after winning their 59th meeting.

    “Nadal demonstrated why he is a great champion by remaining psychologically strong throughout the match. Without a doubt, he is deserving of it “Djokovic stated.

  • Miftah Ismail says no response by Russia for buying oil at discounted rates

    Miftah Ismail says no response by Russia for buying oil at discounted rates

    Finance Minister Miftah Ismail on Tuesday in an interview with CNN’s Becky Anderson said that he does not know where former premier Imran Khan gets his numbers from, refuting Khan’s claims that Russia has not offered a 30 per cent discount on oil or wheat.

    “Let’s be clear. I don’t know where Khan gets these numbers from,” said Miftah.

    “Khan just makes it up as he goes along. He is the guy who was saying we (PDM) were brought in through an American conspiracy. And now he has come up with this new thing. If Russia was selling him cheap wheat and oil, then why didn’t he buy it? He did not,” said Miftah.

    Difficult for me to imagine buying Russian oil

    Miftah said that Western sanctions have made importing oil from Moscow impossible despite the Pakistani government’s request to buy wheat from Russia and Ukraine.

    “Russia has not offered us any oil either. It is difficult for me to imagine buying Russian oil,” said the finance minister.

     Raising oil prices was ‘a trap for us‘

    Talking about talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Miftah said, “We have had talks with the IMF in Doha recently. We are talking to the IMF and particularly the IMF is looking at the budget that I am going to present in early June and after that, I am hoping that we will reach an agreement with the Fund.”

    He said the IMF was looking for Pakistan to reverse the subsidies on oil, petrol and diesel in particular “that the previous government had given”.

    Miftah added that the IMF also wanted Islamabad to reverse electric tariff subsidies that the previous government had done.

    “Then it is looking at the budget that I will present. So, I am pretty confident that we should be able to get an agreement with the Fund but there would be some austerity in the budget, some measures to increase taxation in the next budget.”

    The minister said that raising oil prices by the previous government was “a trap for us”.

    “Imran Khan in the last days of his government did a few things to violate all these agreements with the IMF, including giving these unsustainably high subsidies. And he knew we could not sustain this.”

    “And when we came to power, he is now going city to city, trying to rally the people with his theories about conspiracies and all that for putting a lot of political pressure on us.”

    The new government, he said, was finding it difficult to raise the prices right away, but it took a very important step last week.

    Moscow had not even responded to the previous government’s letter

    Ismail said that Moscow had not even responded to the previous government’s letter seeking to buy oil at a discounted price from Russia.

    “The two sides had talked about it, but since Russia is under sanctions, and they have not yet responded to the request sent by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, there was no movement on this front.”

    However, he said Islamabad had approached both Ukraine and Russia, “whichever country is willing to sell us wheat we would be happy to buy it”.

    Hammad’s claims

    Former Energy Minister Hammad Azhar said, “Miftah sahib is claiming on national tv that no letter or proof exists of Russian oil talks. And who he should speak to. Russia was enthusiastic on selling discounted oil to us and he should have spoken to Energy Minister of Russia.”

    Miftah’s response:

    Miftah responded to Hammad Azhar’s tweet: “Bhai please listen to my interview again. I did say your govt wrote a letter. But I said no response ever came.”

    He added, “I didn’t say that you waited more than a month after IK’s visit to write the letter & then too when you knew you’d lose the VNC & that it was only done for politics.”

  • OGRA slashes LPG prices by Rs13 per kilogram

    OGRA slashes LPG prices by Rs13 per kilogram

    The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has announced a Rs13 per kilog price cut for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

    The cost of an LPG household cylinder has been decreased by Rs155, according to a notification released today. Under the revised tariffs, it will be offered for Rs2,581.35, which includes the sale of a commercial cylinder for Rs9,931.65.

    Chairman of the LPG Distributors Association Pakistan, Irfan Khokhar, commented on the matter, claiming that LPG is 45 per cent cheaper than petrol and diesel at present pricing.

    If the government focuses on the sector, he claims that LPG prices can be decreased by another 60 to 65 per cent.

    This is somewhat good news, as many house owners in developing housing societies lack access to Sui Gas connections and rely on LPG cylinders, which are offered at exorbitant costs. The recent price reductions may help consumers cope with the effects of inflation.

    It is important to note that LPG is an alternative and fuel that is mostly utilised for cooking, heating, and lighting especially in rural and hilly sections of the country where natural gas pipelines are not available.