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  • Dar aaraha hai: Ishaq Dar flying back with PM Shehbaz

    Dar aaraha hai: Ishaq Dar flying back with PM Shehbaz

    Pakistan Muslim League -Nawaz (PML-N) leader and Senator, Ishaq Dar, is coming back home to Pakistan after almost five years.

    According to media reports, he is flying back with Prime Minister Shehbaz Shairf. Following his return, Dar — who is slated to become Pakistan’s new finance minister — will take the oath of his ministership on Tuesday, September 27, 2022.

    On Sunday, Miftah Ismail resigned as Finance Minister of Pakistan.

    “I worked to the best of my ability for four months, and remained loyal to the party and the country,” the PML-N statement quoted Miftah as saying during the meeting between Nawaz Sharif and other party leaders in London.

    Earlier, it was reported that Dar would take over the finance ministry from Tuesday (September 27).

    It is pertinent to mention that Ismail is an unelected member and thus couldn’t continue in office for more than six months. He took charge of the ministry in April.

    The Sharif brothers and Dar had a four-hour long meeting in London following the prime minister’s arrival from New York after attending the United Nation’s 77th General Assembly.

    While speaking to Geo News Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said that Dar, who has been Pakistan’s finance minister four times in the past, will “Facilitate PM Shehbaz on economic affairs.”

  • ‘Harassment, bad and immature behaviour ‘: Atiqa Odho schools Marriyum Aurangzeb’s trollers

    ‘Harassment, bad and immature behaviour ‘: Atiqa Odho schools Marriyum Aurangzeb’s trollers

    Actor and politician Atiqa Odho took to her Instagram handle to school the people involved in trolling of PML-N’s Marriyum Aurangzeb.

    The senior politician, who is currently in London was verbally harassed by several PTI supporters at a coffee shop and on the road. The supporters shouted at Aurangzeb. The crowd also included women who used abusive language.

    The Pyar Ke Sadqay star wrote, “You may not agree with someone’s piolitics but harrassment of this nature is unacceptable as this is not the way to solve national issues.”

    She added, “You achieve nothing with bad and immature behaviour. Don’t get carried away by emotion and lack of proof or correct information. Get your facts right, have evidence for them and then follow the law always. Otherwise you are playing with Pakistan’s future.”

    Last year Atiqa schooled Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan on not wearing a mask.

    “Madam, put your mask on please,” wrote the veteran actor on Twitter alongside a maskless picture of Dr Awan.

    “I’m amazed to see how even government officials are not wearing masks during events and press conferences,” lamented Odha, adding: “How do they expect people to follow COVID SOPs.”

    “Lead by example folks or then deal with the growing crisis,” said the actor further.

  • Sarah murder case: Shah Nawaz tried to tamper with evidence, broke mobile phones

    Sarah murder case: Shah Nawaz tried to tamper with evidence, broke mobile phones

    Shah Nawaz Amir, the main suspect in the murder of his wife Sarah Inam, had allegedly sought to tamper with the evidence, police reports released on Sunday have revealed.

    Six mobile phones were reportedly found at the crime site, five of which belonged to Shah Nawaz and one of which was registered in the victim’s name, according to the police.

    The accused used dumbbells, the murder weapon, to smash both his own and his wife’s phones in order to wipe the data, according to the police.

    Police have taken senior journalist Ayaz Amir in custody after obtaining arrest warrants for him and his former wife in the murder case. However, his wife have not been arrested yet.

    Sameen, the mother of Prime accused Shah Nawaz, and the wife of renowned political analyst Ayaz Amir, in a petition filed with an Islamabad sessions court has said that she has no link with the murder. Offering details of the grisly incident, she has stated that her son had sent her a message on Whatsapp to arrange his wife’s rukhsati by speaking to the her father just one night before the crime.

    She further said that Shah Nawaz called her on her mobile phone at 9:12 am the following day to inform her about the incident.
    “The petitioner asked Shahnawaz to sit in her room and Ayaz … had called the police and within a few minutes, the police had arrived and took custody of Shahnawaz,” she said in the plea.

    The petition stated that Sameena then rushed to Shah Nawaz’s room but by the time she got there, her daughter-in-law had passed away.

    Sarah’s murder rocked Islamabad on Friday morning, as news of the crime spread across social media and news networks.
    It has been reported that after murdering her, Shahnawaz dumped her body in a bathtub.

  • ‘Disgusted, heart broken’: Mawra Hocane raises voice for Sara Inam’s justice

    ‘Disgusted, heart broken’: Mawra Hocane raises voice for Sara Inam’s justice

    Actor Mawra Hocane took to her Instagram handle to seek justice for Sara Inam’s tragic murder.

    The Sammi star wrote, “While we haven’t still achieved #JusticeForNoor & many many others, here’s another appeal for #JusticeForSarah. Heart broken. may Allah give patience to their families to deal with such gut wrenching tragedies.”

    She also commented, “Absolutely disgusted, let’s please raise our voices collectively louder & clearer than the previous times.”

    This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is WhatsApp-Image-2022-09-26-at-1.15.43-PM.jpeg

    A harrowing murder took place in Islamabad on Friday morning. Daughter-in-law of senior journalist Ayaz Amir has been murdered in Islamabad. 37-year-old Sara was found murdered at a farm house in Chak Shahzad.

    According to details, journalist Ayaz Amir’s son Shah Nawaz killed his wife at their home with a gym dumbbell.

    After murdering her, the accused dumped her body in a bathtub.

    The police have arrested Shah Nawaz and the wife’s body has been sent to Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) for postmortem.

    As per media reports, Shah Nawaz and Sara got married only three months ago. According to the details, they met on social media. Sara came back from Dubai last night where she worked and resided.

    According to details, Shah Nawaz and Sara got into a fight on Thursday night after which he reportedly murdered her in the morning around 9AM.

    Sara was born in Canada. She was Shah Nawaz’s third wife, the police said.

  • University students beat professor for harassing girls

    University students beat professor for harassing girls

    A professor was beaten by a group of Jinnah Sindh Medical University (JSMU) students after he had been accused of sexually harassing female pupils.

    A video of the incident is being widely shared on social media, in which the professor, Manzur Ahmad, can be seen being beaten up by students while being hit with slippers.

    According to social media news reports, the female students claimed that the professor had been harassing them for some time.

    They said that in order to receive better scores, the teacher had previously insisted that they uphold their “relationships and friendships.”
    The university has suspended the lecturer after taking note of the harassment claims. According to the rules of the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, Harassment and Disciplinary Committees that already existed have begun an investigation.

    “The inquiry will be completed in a week and the results will be announced. [The] JSMU has a comprehensive anti-harassment policy and cases of harassment are dealt with seriously and strictly so that students feel safe,” JSMU Registrar Dr Azam said in a statement.

  • Pakistani rupee makes strong recovery against dollar during intraday trade

    Pakistani rupee makes strong recovery against dollar during intraday trade

    In the first hours of trading on Monday, the Pakistani rupee advanced significantly versus the US dollar, rising by more than 1.5 per cent.

    In intraday trade, the rupee appreciated by Rs3.66 (1.6 per cent), or around 10:30 am, to Rs235.99 against the US dollar.

    The local unit fared somewhat better the week before after the US Federal Reserve announced raising the main interest rate, ending the week 1.2 per cent weaker versus the US dollar.

    Before eventually snapping a 15-session losing streak to settle at Rs239.65 on Friday, the rupee lost value in four of the five sessions, edging perilously close to its all-time low in the inter-bank market.

    However, Monday’s triumph is the result of political development. Miftah Ismail, the Federal Minister of Finance and Revenue, stated in a statement on Sunday that he will submit his formal resignation after orally resigning at a party meeting in London.

    Ishaq Dar, a senior PML-N leader, would take Miftah’s post as finance minister.

    Dar is largely seen as an advocate for a higher rupee, and experts claim that since he was appointed finance minister, markets have tended to be optimistic on the local currency.

    Furthermore, in another significant step, the nation’s central bank on Friday prohibited ECs for cash sale transactions of $2,000 and above in order to further improve the regulatory regime for Exchange Companies (ECs) and promote the use of banking channels.

    According to the SBP’s new guidelines, ECs must now complete all foreign currency selling transactions against PKRs totaling $2,000 or more through banking channels.

  • PM Shehbaz’s many alleged audio leaks in 24 hours, PTI raises questions

    PM Shehbaz’s many alleged audio leaks in 24 hours, PTI raises questions

    Audios allegedly of Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif and other Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders have been leaked.

    Following the leaks, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) senior leader Fawad Chaudhry took to Twitter, saying, “PM House’s data has been put on sale on the dark web. It is a major failure of our intelligence agencies, especially the Intelligence Bureau (IB). Besides political matters, important discussions on security and foreign affairs are in their hands.”

    Similarly, his party member Shireen Mazari said that the real issue is that who placed these hacking devices.

    “Real issue is who bugged the PMO/PMHouse in the first place. The hacking happened because devices were placed in these locations. So who is responsible and where did orders or decision come from? That is a question that must also be focused on,” she tweeted.

    ‘TV par ulti baatein karta hai’: Maryam Nawaz about Miftah Ismail

    In one of the audio clips, PML-N Vice-president Maryam Nawaz allegedly can be heard complaining to her uncle [PM Shehbaz] about Finance Minister Miftah Ismail. “

    “TV par ulti baatein karta hai” (He says strange things on television), she allegedly says.

    “He doesn’t take responsibility, says strange things on TV which people make fun of, he doesn’t know what he is doing,” the voice said to be Maryam’s says in the clip.

    “He clearly cut corners,” the voice said to be PM Shehbaz can be heard saying as she wishes for the return of former finance minister Ishaq Dar.

    It is pertinent to mention that Dar will take over as the Finance Minister in the coming week.

    The second clip allegedly concerns a conversation between PM Shehbaz, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Law Minister Azam Tarar, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and former National Assembly (NA) speaker Ayaz Sadiq about the resignations of PTI MNAs. The audio is said to be a recording of a cabinet meeting.

    Party leaders can be allegedly heard discussing whose resignations from PTI will be accepted. Moreover, the leaders can be heard saying that the final decision will be taken by PML-N Supremo Nawaz Sharif who is in London.

    At one point, Ayaz Sadiq can be heard saying that “Will tell them that the signatures were not correct,” allegedly talking about those PTI members whose resignations they did not want to accept.

    The third clip is allegedly a conversation between Maryam Nawaz and the PM where they are discussing the return of former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General (retd) Pervez Musharraf.

    A voice said to be Maryam’s can be heard saying that “Army has decided to bring Musharraf back to Pakistan so before it looks like that they have an imposed a decision on us, I asked Abu (Nawaz Sharif) to tweet in favour of Musharraf’s return.”

    At the time, Nawaz had tweeted, saying: “I have no personal enmity or animosity towards Pervez Musharraf. I don’t want anyone else to suffer the trauma I have had to endure.”

    ‘Her son-in-law is very dear to her’: PM Shehbaz

    ‘Her son-in-law is very dear to her’: PM Shehbaz allegedly says in another audio leak, referring to Maryam Nawaz’s son-in-law.

    In that clip, PM Shehbaz and an unidentified man can be heard allegedly discussing about facilitating Maryam Nawaz’s son-in-law Raheel.

    The unidentified man can be heard briefing the person, alleged to be the premier, about the consequences of taking the decision.

    At this, the voice thought to belong to the PM says: “The son-in-law is very dear to Maryam Nawaz. Tell her very logically about this and then I will talk to her.” He also said that he would personally meet him once he returns from Turkey.

    At this, the other person allegedly advises PM Shehbaz to get this work done from former finance minister Ishaq Dar, to which he agrees.

  • Pakistani men, time’s up: We will no longer tolerate another Zahir and Shahnawaz

    Pakistani men, time’s up: We will no longer tolerate another Zahir and Shahnawaz

    The age of uncertainty grappling Pakistan is rather appalling. Lately, women in Pakistan and around the world are nothing but just another hashtag. Their name, story, and pain last only till another hashtag replaces them. We as a country are still dealing with the horrors of the murder of Noor Mukadam. We haven’t healed as a nation and now we have witnessed the bone-chilling gruesome murder of Sara Shahnawaz at the hands of a man who too was raised as a result of the patriarchal world in Pakistan.

    A harrowing murder took place in Islamabad on Friday morning. The daughter-in-law of senior journalist Ayaz Amir was murdered in Islamabad. 37-year-old Sara was found murdered at a farmhouse in Chak Shahzad. According to details, journalist Ayaz Amir’s son Shah Nawaz killed his wife at their home with a gym dumbbell. After murdering her, the accused dumped her body in a bathtub. Senior Journalist Ayaz Amir expressed his grief and shock over the murder of his daughter-in-law by his son.

    In Pakistan, men get away with crimes against women, which is why they think they can even commit murder without any repercussions. Our society and justice system have failed the women of Pakistan. It is because of these attitudes that Pakistan ranks as the second-worst country on the gender gap index.

    The story of Masha Amini from across the border is equally tragic. The 22-year-old Iranian woman breathed her last days after being arrested by a police unit responsible for forcing Iran’s strict dress code for women. She was arrested for not complying with hijab rules. Mahsa Amini was beaten while inside a police van when she was picked up in Tehran on Tuesday. Photographs of Mahsa lying in a hospital bed have gone viral, showing the young woman in a coma with her head wrapped in bandages and breathing through tubes. #MahsaAmini became one of the top hashtags on Persian-language Twitter as Iranians fumed over the death of Amini. Later we saw that women in Iran protested against the death of Amini by setting their hijabs on fire. Her death sparked widespread protests in Iran.

    What is happening to women across the world is a reminder that all this is about control, power, and oppression. One of the key reasons women are marginalised is because a powerful and educated woman leads to a powerful and educated community. Women need to be empowered by those in power. We as individuals have failed. We have failed our women and young girls. The silence of the state on matters that need the most attention is rather appalling. For how long will people keep suffering? What are our policymakers doing to make the lives of people in Pakistan better? Who should the families of the victims look up to? Who will give them justice? The beasts who killed their daughters are very much alive. Who will bring solace to the plight of the mothers and fathers of the one dead at the hands of men who could not take no for an answer or whose temper was so fragile that they had to kill women when they raised their voices for their rights.

  • PM Shehbaz paid own expenses during NY stay, claims digital focal person

    PM Shehbaz paid own expenses during NY stay, claims digital focal person

    Muhammad Abubakar Umer, Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif’s focal person on digital media, in a tweet has said that PM has paid for his own stay during his visit in New York last to attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

    It was being reported that PM stayed at The Plaza hotel on tax payer’s money in New York where a single room costs around $900 per night. However, according to AbuBakar, Shehbaz not only paid for his own stay but for his tickets also.

    The focal person also claimed that during his ten year tenure Chief Minister of Punjab, Shehbaz Sharif had also paid all expenditures for official visits from his own pocket.

    Regarding the prime minister’s choice to remain in The Plaza, Umer stated that it was the responsibility of the US secret service to assure the safety of the dignitaries attending the UNGA. Only those hotels that have received authorisation from the US secret service were allowed to host the visitors.

  • World Bank proposes $2 billion for flood-ravaged Pakistan

    World Bank proposes $2 billion for flood-ravaged Pakistan

    The World Bank has proposed $2 billion in finance to jump-start infrastructure restoration and rebuilding following severe flooding.

    Martin Raiser, the new Vice President of the World Bank for the South Asia Region, revealed that he had just returned from his first official trip to the country that had been devastated by floods and reaffirmed his commitment to helping the Pakistani people as the floods wreaked havoc all over the nation.

    The international lender expressed regret for the loss of lives and livelihoods and stated that they were collaborating with the federal and provincial governments to offer prompt relief.

    A World Bank official also disclosed that monies from ongoing World Bank-financed programmes are being repurposed to address immediate needs in the areas of health, food, shelter, rehabilitation, and cash transfers.

    The Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, has been requesting a freeze on loan repayment from the Paris Club and others, claiming that there is a huge discrepancy between what is being requested and what is actually available. He also asked the head of the UN and the leaders of Europe to help.

    Recently, the PM of Pakistan visited New York City for the UNGA. In his speech, the PM emphasised Islamabad’s predicament following the flooding disaster and pleaded with world leaders to band together and take action before it’s too late.