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  • Gold price declines by Rs1,700 to Rs234,500 per tola amidst weakening rupee

    Gold price declines by Rs1,700 to Rs234,500 per tola amidst weakening rupee

    The price of gold in Pakistan continued its downward trend on Monday, having lost a cumulative sum of Rs1,100 per tola throughout the previous week. The All Pakistan Sarafa Gems and Jewellers Association (APSGJA) provided data indicating that the rate of 24-carat gold declined by Rs1,700 per tola and Rs1,457 per 10 grammes, reaching Rs234,500 and Rs201,046 respectively.

    On the international front, the price settled at $1,945 per ounce after a decrease of $1. The safe-haven bullion traded within a narrow range in the global market due to an agreement reached by US Democrats and Republicans to raise the federal debt ceiling, thereby averting a potential US default, which would have been unprecedented.

    Moreover, recent data suggested that the US Federal Reserve would raise interest rates for the 11th consecutive time in June. Consequently, the value of the US dollar surged, negatively impacting the gold price.

    These factors, coupled with ongoing political and economic uncertainty, high inflation, and currency depreciation, contributed to the volatility of the gold rate in Pakistan. As a result, individuals turned to purchasing the precious metal as a safe investment and a hedge.

    In the interbank market, the Pakistani rupee experienced a decrease of Re0.27 or 0.09 per cent against the US dollar on Monday, closing at Rs285.42, according to data from the State Bank of Pakistan.

    Furthermore, data shared by the jewellers’ association revealed a decline in the price of silver, which had remained relatively stable in the previous week. The rate of silver fell by Rs50 per tola and Rs42.87 per 10 grammes, reaching Rs2,850 and Rs2,443.41 respectively.

  • Here are all the winners from the IIFA awards

    Here are all the winners from the IIFA awards

    The most anticipated awards in Bollywood. the IIFA awards, took place in Dubai with a lot of celebration and joy. The creme de la creme of the Indian entertainment industry showed up dressed to the nines, including celebrities like Hrithik Roshan, Salman Khan and Farah Khan.

    There were entertaining performances with Hrithik Roshan shaking a leg with Vicky Kaushal on his 90’s hit ‘Ek Pal Ka Jeena’, Anil Kapoor’s captivating opening speech, Abhishek Bachchan and Kaushal driving audiences to hysterics with their infectious energy and charisma.

    Among the films that won accolades at the festive night, ‘Gangubai Kathiawadi’ reined as the star of the evening as Alia Bhatt walked home with the Best Actress award while Hrithik Roshan was awarded Best Actor for his performance in ‘Vikram Vedha’.

    Here is a complete list of the winners from last night:

    Best Actor: Hrithik Roshan for ‘Vikram Vedha’

    Best Actress: Alia Bhatt for ‘Gangubai Kathiawadi’

    Best Actress In Supporting Role: Mouni Roy in ‘Brahmastra Part One: Shiva’

    Best Actor In Supporting Role: Anil Kapoor in ‘JugJugg Jiyo’

    Best Director: R Madhavan in ‘Rocketry: The Nambi Effect’

    Best Original Story: Jasmeet K Reen and Parveez Sheikh for ‘Darlings’

  • Daily Crime Report: Is Lahore a safe place? Upsurge in street crime troubles Lahore

    Daily Crime Report: Is Lahore a safe place? Upsurge in street crime troubles Lahore

    It may be due to political anarchy or disability, or you can say negligence of institutes. But Lahore is not safe for roaming around late at nights or even in broad day light.

    Mobile snatchers, purse snatchers, dacoits, thieves, are everywhere and the looters are eerily common now.
    Moreover, the city’s residents feel that the Punjab Police is either devoid of solutions to curb the rising crime rate or simply does not care.

    A citizen Waqas living in Sundar has been robbed inside his office. Thieves looted Rs500,00 and mobile phone. Jahanzeb, resident of Iqbal Town, got robbed in broad day-light when dacoits snatched over Rs 2 lacs and other belongings from him.

    “it is very easy purchase illegal weapon in Punjab. If the citizen retaliates, he will be shot by dacoits so everyone protects his life first.”

    Thousands of rupees from Azam’s fast food shop in Factory area, Rs44 thousand and mobile phone from Hamza in Ichhra, Rs31 thousand and mobile phone from Yusuf in Chung, Rs35 thousand from Khalil in Iqbal Town, Rs55 thousand from Yasin in Mustafa Town, Rs65 thousand from Ghazanfar Ali in Johar Town along with mobile phone, Rs 65 thousand from Atiq Ahmed of Ravi Road.

    A resident of Shalimar was robbed of belongings worth Rs 11 lacs when robbers rushed into his house.

    With all of these street crimes, 7 cars and dozens of bikes reportedly got stolen from Gulberg area, Shahdara Town, Faisal Town, Badami Bagh or Litton Road.

    Police have no clue yet, on the cars and bikes which got stolen from different areas of Lahore.

  • Board awards student of Nawabshah College, Principal says he wasn’t enrolled there

    The Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) had awarded a student, Saif Ahmed from Government College Nawabshah, for receiving first place in the Intermediate Pre-engineering Examinations. However, the college’s principal has revealed that the student is not even enrolled in their school.

    According to The News, the board had notified the school that Ahmed received a total of 1200 marks, and had gifted him a gallantry sheild. But the principal confirmed to the newspaper that no boy with this name is in the college’s record of attendance, nor had he appeared in the examinations.

    It was also revealed that Saif’s father, Altaf Pirzada, was an influential man who was the head of security at Bilawal House.

    A college staff member also revealed to the newspaper that despite there being no mention of Saif’s name in the college enrollment or exams, the administration was being threatened by powerful members to cover up the fraud.

    The issue came to light when during a ceremony held at Darbar Hall of the Deputy Commissioner’s office, where the Comissioner Aleem Lashari, Deputy Commissioner Shaharyar Gul Memon and BISE Chairman Dr Farooq Matti were present as special guests on the occasion. When Saif’s name was announced, the principal of the college came to collect the shield and revealed that the aforementioned student was not a member of his school.

  • Bilawal Bhutto Zardari pays tribute to UN peacekeeping forces

    Bilawal Bhutto Zardari pays tribute to UN peacekeeping forces

    Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Monday paid tribute to United Nation (UN) peacekeeping forces.
    “On the occasion of International Day of UN Peacekeepers, we pay tribute to the 75 years long history of UN Peacekeeping. As a top troop contributor since 1960, over 200,000 Pakistani men & women have served with valour in 46 UN Peacekeeping Missions in all parts of the world 168 of our bravest have sacrificed their lives in this noble cause,” Bilawal wrote in his tweet.

    “Over 4,300 peacekeepers including female officers are serving with distinction under UN flag today. We reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that peacekeeping remains an effective mechanism for int’l peace & security,” the foreign minister added.

    The International Day of UN Peacekeepers is being observed today to highlight the role of the force in world peace.

    Over the past 75 years, United Nations Peacekeepers have saved countless precious lives for global peace and security.

    This day commemorates the efforts of the United Nations to eliminate human suffering, establish a situation of lasting peace and order in countries with wars and internal conflicts.

  • ‘I’m gonna be sick’: the final episode of Succession has people divided

    Warning: this article contains spoilers about the final episode of ‘Succession’. Don’t read if you haven’t seen it.

    Welp, it’s all over. On Sunday, the finale episode of the dark comedy ‘Succession’ aired on HBO, leaving fans blown away by the finale. For the past four years, the show explored the conflict within the Roy family, as patriarch Logan Roy decides to step down, leaving siblings Kendall, Siobhan and Roman to decide who should control the entertainment giant.

    After a conflicting season showing the death of the patriarch, more heartbreaking confessions, fights and plotting to grab control over the empire, in the end the winner was *drum roll*…

    Tom Wambsgans and his wife, Siobhan Roy.

    How did we come to this conclusion? The finale episode opens with the Roy siblings conflicted over the streaming giant GoJo’s aquisition of Waystar Royco, with Kendall (played by Jeremy Strong) wanting to kill the deal but Shiv (played by Sarah Snook) plotting with GoJo’s founder Luke Matsson (Alexander Skarsgard) to finalise the deal, in exchange for being made CEO.

    Before the deal is finalised, a heartbreaking feud takes place between the siblings, with Kendall begging Roman and Shiv to make him the CEO, as was promised to him as the eldest son of the family. Roman Roy (played by Kieran Culkin) instead mocks Kendall for having adopted children, and says that their father would have wanted Shiv to take the CEO position because she is the one pregnant with her biological child. Shiv also threatens to reveal Kendall’s crime for murdering a waiter in Season One.

    When the deal is finalised, Kendall walks to a river, looking horrified as he stares at the horizon. Roman visits a bar and orders a martini, while Shiv joins her husband in the backseat of the car, and both of them look incredibly tense which proves that they never loved each other.

    Twitter users had mixed opinions about whether the finale provided a satisfying conclusion or a butchering of its iconic characters.

    There were some users who felt that the show had effectively destroyed the relationship between the Roy siblings.

    Some also grieved for Kendall, who had been fighting since the start of the show to take control of the company, but then was stripped away from everything because of Shiv.

    Many felt that the show had destroyed Shiv by making her into a villain.

    But for others, Shiv’s sacrifice ultimately made her the hero of the show, because her sacrifice prevented her brothers from following the same fate of their abusive father. Some users pointed out how Shiv sacrificed her power to help free her brothers from the hurt and abuse they endured, by resigning herself to the role of mother and wife to a man she did not love.

    https://twitter.com/agneswickfields/status/1663012479117451264?s=20

  • Police catch gang using social media to rob people

    Police catch gang using social media to rob people

    Punjab Police has arrested a gang of robbers after the thieves opened fire on cops.

    The robbers allegedly made friends on social media, calling the victim to meet them at different places before kidnapping them and robbing them.

    Police arrested Abid, who was injured from defensive fire from the cops.

    Punjab Police was reportedly performing routine checks on cars when they spotted a suspicious car. The robbers panicked and sped up the vehicle while opening fire on the police.

    A hostage was also recovered from the vehicle of the accused.

    One of the robbers was arrested while two others ran away. Police saved the hostage Babar, a resident of Pak Pattan. Babar told the police that the gang first become friends with him on social media and then called him to meet in Kahna. There they robbed his bike, mobile phone and cash while also kidnapping him.

  • New law enforced: is road paved for Nawaz’s return?

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial on Monday postponed the hearing of the Election Commission of Pakistan’s petition asking the top court to reconsider its April 4 order of holding elections for Punjab Assembly on May 14.

    A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, comprising of Justice Ijaz Ul Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar, heard the case.

    The hearing was adjourned after Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan informed the court that the law amending the Supreme Court Rules has come into effect and was signed by the President. As per the law, judicial decisions made under Article 184 III of the Constitution can now be appealed.

    “Judgments and orders made prior to commencement of this Act. The right to file a review petition shall also be available to an aggrieved person against whom an order has been made under clause (3) of Article 184 of Constitution, prior to commencement of this Act.”

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif and Jahangir Tareen can now file new review petitions on their disqualifications within 60 days. 

The bill becoming law after the President signed it has taken the legal fraternity and media by surprise. 

The Chief justice termed the development as 'interesting'.

  • Talks with Imran Khan only possible if he apologises to the nation: Ishaq Dar

    Talks with Imran Khan only possible if he apologises to the nation: Ishaq Dar

    Finance Minister Ishaq Dar appeared on Geo News programme Jirga on Sunday where he discussed politics and the economy.

    While talking about the possibility of negotiating with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Dar said that negotiations with Imran Khan can be held if he took “corrective measures: apologises to the nation, admits his mistake and promises not to do anything like May 9 in the future.”

    The minister claimed that before May 9, when violent protests broke out, the government had “sincere intentions” when it talked with PTI, with the two parties reaching an agreement on all issues other than the election date.

    Separately, Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique said that there is no space for negotiations with PTI in current circumstances.

    “There used to be an environment and agenda for holding parleys on any issue. But the existing atmosphere is not suitable for talks,” he said while talking to reporters in Lahore.
    Imran Khan on May 27 constituted a seven-member negotiation committee for talks with the incumbent government over elections.

  • Pakistan set to share budget details with IMF, aiming to unlock stalled programme

    Pakistan set to share budget details with IMF, aiming to unlock stalled programme

    Finance Minister Ishaq Dar announced on Sunday that Pakistan intends to provide the International Monetary Fund (IMF) with comprehensive details of its upcoming budget, with the aim of facilitating the release of delayed funds. During an interview, Dar confirmed that the IMF has requested further information regarding the budget, and Pakistan is prepared to comply with this requirement.

    Pakistan’s receipt of $1.1 billion in funding from the IMF, as part of a $6.5 billion rescue package established in 2019, has encountered delays since November. In February, both the IMF and Pakistan engaged in two weeks of discussions in Islamabad, aiming to conclude the 9th review. However, the funds have not yet been disbursed by the IMF, which is crucial for Pakistan to access additional bilateral and multilateral financing.

    Expressing his concerns, Dar emphasised his desire for the IMF to release the funds prior to the budget’s scheduled presentation in early June. He asserted that combining the 9th and 10th reviews would be unjust, and therefore advocated for a separate assessment of the current situation.

    In summary, Pakistan’s Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has underscored the country’s commitment to fulfilling the IMF’s request for detailed budget information. This step is intended to overcome the impasse in the release of funds, which are vital for Pakistan to access other forms of financial assistance. Minister Dar has further urged the IMF to release the funds prior to the budget presentation, highlighting the unfairness of merging two distinct reviews.