Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairperson Imran Khan revealed that he was aware that his government was in danger since July 2021 and as a result didn’t want the then Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Lt-General Faiz Hameed to be changed.
“I wanted him to continue serving as the director-general of the ISI during the difficult winter season when the fallout of the Afghan infighting was imminent.”
“I was aware of a possible civil war in Afghanistan last summer. I was afraid of the fallout in Pakistan as an aftermath of the possible war on Afghan soil. I didn’t want the ISI chief to be changed before winter, as it was a difficult time,” said Khan. “I was aware that the PML-N was planning to remove me. I was aware of their plans since last July so I didn’t want our intelligence chief changed.”
Imran Khan says he wanted ex ISI General Faiz to continue past the Winters both over the Afghan situation in the aftermath of obtaining freedom and his knowledge about the domestic no confidence opposition plans pic.twitter.com/FZtD1bt2pG
Khan accused his former aides Jahangir Khan Tareen and Aleem Khan of seeking illegal benefits from him. He further revealed that the differences were developed among them when he refused to do what they asked for.
Khan made these comments in a podcast on Thursday.
The former prime minister said, “Aleem Khan expected me to legalise his 300-acre land near Ravi”.
“I developed differences with Aleem after this. Their cases were in NAB and his name was in Pandora Papers as well.”
Commenting on Tareen, Khan said that his problem was the sugar crisis.
Imran Khan begged both PTI sponsors @JahangirKTareen and @abdul_aleemkhan till the last day of his govt to support him but calls them corrupt after losing govt in no confidence vote, sent delegations to them seeking compromise and alliance and found no corruption in them pic.twitter.com/gRAGSMqcKw
While responding to another question about his party’s ties with the establishment, Imran rubbished speculation that he wanted Lt-Gen Faiz Hameed to be the next army chief.
“You don’t replace an intelligence chief during difficult circumstances,” he said.
Khan also said that, unlike Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif, he never wanted to control the army as he had a ‘clean record’ and didn’t fear anyone.
Khan also commented that he was welcomed in British society but he never considered England his home because he is a Pakistani. Giving an example that if one draws lines on a donkey it doesn’t become a zebra. A donkey remains a donkey.
A model was killed in the name of honour in Okara, Punjab. Sidra, who was only 22, was allegedly murdered by her brother in Okara’s 51-R village. She was murdered by her brother while visiting her birthplace to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr.
Police have registered a case on the complaint of the victim’s mother. Police have arrested the victim’s brother and have recovered the murder weapon.
Hamza, the accused, used to forbid his sisters from modelling.
This murder is believed to be the result of a violent argument between Sidra and her brother over the girl’s refusal to give up her modelling career.
Qandeel Baloch, a social media star, was strangled to death in Multan in July 2016. Her brothers Waseem Azeem and Aslam Shaheen were accused of murdering her. A court in Multan sentenced her brother Wasim Azeem to life in prison for murdering his sister. Life imprisonment means 25 years in jail.
Police arrested driver Wajahat Ali, whose car hit Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Dr Shahbaz Gill on M2 Motorway, ruling out allegations of a “planned attempt to target” him.
As per Geo News, the Motorway Police said that the incident took place due to the negligence of Wajahat Ali and added that there was no planned attempt to harm Shahbaz Gill.
“Gill tried to paint the incident as a murder attempt and did propaganda. After the driver’s interrogation and investigation of the crash site, it can be concluded that it was an accident,” said the police.
A day earlier, Dr Shahbaz Gill sustained injuries in a vehicle accident on Thursday on the M2 Motorway.
The PTI leader had claimed that it was an attempt to murder him in which a vehicle chased and hit his vehicle deliberately.
مجھ پر قاتلانہ حملہ کروانے والوں کو بتانا چاہتا ہوں۔ اپنے مولا اور قوم کی دعاؤں کی وجہ سے زندہ ہوں۔ میری گاڑی کا پیچھا کر کے جان بوجھ کر ہٹ کیا گیا۔یہ ایک منصوبے کے تحت کیا گیا
میں نے کل ہی کہا تھا کہ کیا زیادہ سے زیادہ آپ ہمیں قتل کروا دیں گے ؟ کروا لیں۔ غداری نہیں کروں گا۔
The former special assistant to ex-prime minister Imran Khan was travelling to Islamabad from Lahore. According to reports, Motorway Police officials arrived on the scene.
Journalist Khawar Ghumman tweeted a video of the accident vehicle: “Initial evidence suggests his vehicle had been hit deliberately. Let’s see and wait what does motorway police say about the incident.”
Former SAPM @SHABAZGIL has met a terrible accident on motorway. Initial evidence suggests his vehicle had been hit deliberately. Let’s see and wait what does motorway police say about the incident. Prayers for Dr Gill and his colleagues. pic.twitter.com/Z03CI6B9P4
Hollywood celebrity couple, Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly, who started dating in 2020, have sparked up their love for each other at a number of events leaving no doubts that they are together.
The lovebirds have graced many big-ticket occasions together, and every time, fans couldn’t stop themselves from adoring the couple. They have also said several times that they have serious future plans for each other and will continue staying together. It’s not the first time that the headlines are now in the speculation zone over the couple.
Whether it’s their occasion appearance or a kiss, their keen followers always want to know every detail. And in recent times, the couple has revealed something really shocking about their relationship, blood drinking.
The couple has accepted the fact that they drink each other’s blood and love doing that. In fact, Machine Gun Kelly even told that he carries a necklace that contains a blood drop of his girlfriend. Explaining it, he said people carry something or the other of the significance of their partner. “I carry her DNA,” he’s said.
Drinking each other’s blood is a little extreme though. And the reaction to this statement has been mixed, some were in favour and considered it a bold and daring representation of love while some couldn’t unwrinkle their faces in disgust at the fact of drinking one’s partner’s blood and say that the couple has been watching too much Twilight.
After they mentioned that they occasionally perform the ritual of drinking each other’s blood, it went viral and caught the attention of many.
Real-Life Vampire Organizations have warned them about the possible risks of drinking blood after the news of the couple slurping each other’s blood went public. Mentioning that although doing it is fine and there are people who decide to go for it, there are certain precautions that are needed to be kept in mind while performing the ritual. An important thing is to get tested for any blood-borne disease prior to trying to swallow someone’s blood.
They have highlighted the fact that even though having a monogamous relationship decreases the risk of getting diseases to a great level, yet there are possibilities of getting some ailments even then.
With effect from May 5, Dr Murtaza Syed, the senior-most Deputy Governor and a former Deputy Resident Representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), became the new acting Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
Prior to this, the federal government named Dr Syed as the Deputy Governor of the SBP for three years on January 27, 2020.
Dr Syed has taken up the position in light of Section 10(2) of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Act 1956 (amended), and has therefore succeeded Dr Reza Baqir, whose term ended on May 4, according to the notification.
He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Oxford’s Nuffield College and has more than 20 years of experience in macroeconomic research and policymaking, including 16 years at the IMF. He worked on IMF initiatives and monitoring of emerging markets and advanced economies such as the Eurozone, Japan, and Korea. Dr Syed also handled IMF training and technical support projects around the world, and between 2010 and 2014, he was the IMF’s Deputy Resident Representative in China.
Dr Syed started his career as a Senior Policy Analyst at the Human Development Center in Islamabad, where he worked under former Finance Minister D. Mahbub ul Haq. Afterward, he worked for the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), a London-based public policy think tank, where he did research on company investment and employment behaviour, as well as evaluating Latin American anti-poverty programmes.
Dr Syed has produced papers on a multitude of macroeconomic topics, including fiscal and monetary policy, financial stability, economic crises, investment, demographics, poverty, and inequality, in addition to teaching public policy at the universities of Cambridge and Oxford.
Star-singer Hadiqa Kiani took to her Instagram stories to address the frequent thieving of her songs. This time around, Bollywood singer Kanika Kapoor’s rendition of Boohey Barian, titled Buhe Baariyan, has become the focal point of Hadiqa’s anger.
Posted on Saregama Music’s YouTube channel, the song has credited Gourov Dasgupta and Shruti Rane as composers, with lyrics being credited to Kunwar Juneja.
Turning to her Instagram stories, the Dobara star spoke out about yet another rendition of her classic ‘Boohey Barian’ by an Indian singer adding to the long list. “Another day and another shameless rendition of the song my mother wrote,” Hadiqa penned along with the clip of Kapoor’s latest release.
In 1998, Hadiqa released her second album, Roshni, that featured songs which still remain etched onto the hearts of music fanatics. Amongst the many songs on the album, Boohey Barian, the sixth single on the album by Kiani, resonated and struck a chord with so many people that it is still considered to be one of the most well-known Pakistani songs.
In her stories, the Zindagi Gulzar Hai crooner addresses how in “another shameless rendition of the song [her] mother wrote,” no one has asked for permission or given her royalties, using the song as an easy “money-making scheme.” She then lists examples of when the song has been stolen.
She mentions that if she can chart the due process of royalties when covering songs, others continue to fall short, especially given that she is alive and well. She talks about how she wants to be flattered by these covers, given that it can be seen as a form of paying tribute, but others profiting off of her work is simply not right. Hadiqa also makes it clear that she has nothing against the singer or anyone else who sings her song – it is the process that irks her. She ends the first story by saying, “Anyways, the theft of Pakistani music continues.”
Ace director Nabeel Qureshi took to his stories to call Kanika Kapoor a “chor,” suggesting that Hadiqa Kiani take action against the song, given the YouTube channel a strike. He stated that the need to take a stand is essential.
The Dobara star took to her stories once again to double down on the fact that she owns all rights to Boohey Barian, stating that with all documents proving her ownership, her team will be taking action. She reiterates that no company or entity has been given masters or rights to the song. She ends her story by stating that she has stayed silent for long enough.
Recently, an Indian influencer Diet Sabya claimed that Saregama owns the rights, whereas another claim stated that the original owner sold the full rights to the master, speculating that Hadiqa’s mother may have sold the rights to a label in Pakistan, which was then probably acquired by Saregama.
This was promptly refuted by Hadiqa, who reiterated that she has never sold any rights to her songs. She went on to mention that many people have illegally claimed her songs since the 90s, but she and her team are now taking appropriate action to prevent this from happening, ensuring justice is served.
Now Kapoor has responded to Kiani’s accusations of plagiarising her popular hit number, Boohey Barian on her social media handle.
Speaking to Hindustan Times, the Baby Doll hit-maker alleged that anyone who heard the song would know that from “antras to everything”, the song is “completely original”.
Kapoor told the publication, “It’s a folk song and there are many that we have heard online and nobody has ever said anything about it.”
The Kamlee crooner also mentioned that they have not “copy-pasted” any old folk song.
“We used two lines as inspiration. It is very unfair to the writer Kunwar Juneja and Shruti Rane who composed this new song. Also, it is unfair to me if anybody says that I am trying to steal someone’s work,” she had explained.
The singer also expressed her disappointment with the allegations about “not giving them right credit”.
She commented, “I think instead of going negative, we have to come together and help each other to grow.”
Adding to this, she also stated that nothing was done intentionally.
“We all are credible people. There has not been any intent of fleecing any videos or stealing anybody’s work,” she noted.
Meanwhile, the Chittiyan Kalaiyan artist extended her apology and said that she was sorry “if they upset anybody’s emotions”.
To this end, Kapoor also said that she had huge respect for “Pakistani singers and music”.
Turkey’s inflation rate skyrocketed to almost 70 per cent last month, creating a substantial challenge for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose unusual economic strategies are frequently blamed for the country’s economic woes.
Erdogan, defying economic conventional wisdom, insists that major interest rate cuts are essential to reduce spiralling consumer costs.
Turkey’s consumer price index (CPI) climbed by 69.97 per cent on a year-on-year (YoY) basis in April 2022, compared to 61.14 per cent in March 2022, according to the national statistics agency, indicating a massive increase.
The transportation industry saw the largest price rises in April, up 105.9 per cent, while food and non-alcoholic drinks cost increased by 89.1 per cent.
Likewise, lira’s depreciation has quadrupled the cost of energy imports, and international investors are progressively fleeing the formerly emerging economy. Energy price hikes and production constraints have been worsened by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the coronavirus outbreak.
According to economists, Turkey’s yearly inflation rate – the highest since Erdogan’s ruling AKP party took office in 2002 – is entirely due to Erdogan’s unusual economic thinking.
Erdogan has pushed the supposedly independent central bank to reduce interest rates. Despite strong inflation, the bank maintained its benchmark interest rate for the fourth month in a row in April, yielding to criticism.
Former Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shireen Mazari wrote a special letter to United Nations (UN) to stop the Pakistani government from misusing blasphemy law against former Prime Minister (PM) PM Imran Khan and his party leaders.
According to Dawn, the letter has been addressed to the UN’s special rapporteur on extrajudicial summary or arbitrary executions, special rapporteur on the freedom of opinion and expression, and special rapporteur on the freedom of religion and belief.
The letter states that the country had been engulfed in a political crisis since PTI was ousted in the aftermath of [which PTI claims] is “regime change scheme” and replaced with a government led by Shehbaz Sharif, who has been named in “multiple money-laundering and corruption cases and is out on bail”.
In the letter, Mazari pointed out major human rights violations conducted against Khan.
“One: A complete blackout of media coverage by state-owned media as well as almost all private channels through a carrot (advertisements) and stick (establishment). In this connection, the government-controlled PTCL, which provides cable connections to cable operators, has denied this access to any private channel seen covering Khan’s massive rallies.”
The second violation highlighted by Mazari was the registration of blasphemy cases against PTI leader in connection with the Masjid-e-Nabwi incident.
According to her, it was not a planned incident. “To use the Madina incident as an excuse to file charges of blasphemy means endangering lives of Imran and party’s leadership,” the former minister wrote.
She informed that one member of the NA from the PTI-allied party is already under custody on blasphemy charges.
Last week, Faisalabad police registered a case under ‘blasphemy laws’ against the PTI chairman and over 150 others following the Masjid-e-Nabwi incident.
Top leaders of the PTI and Imran’s close associates, including Chaudhry, Gill, Suri, Sahibzada Jahangir, Aneel Musarrat as well as Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and his nephew Sheikh Rashid Shafiq were nominated.
The complainant— Muhammad Naeem, a resident of Faisalabad alleged the Masjid-e-Nabwi episode was a “planned and thought-out conspiracy” and supported his claims by referring to videos and speeches made by certain PTI leaders.
Former Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday appeared in an interview with actor Shaan Shahid on Hum New. During the interview, Imran Khan also talked about his wife Bushra Bibi.
“It is because of Bushra Begum that my guests get such a warm welcome in my residence nowadays. Long ago, I remember an incident when I used to stay alone. The American ambassador was coming to my house so I asked my attendant to get something to eat. He brought a packet of biscuits and didn’t even bother taking out the biscuits from the packet and served tea with biscuits in a packet,” Imran Khan said.
Imran Khan added that Bushra Bibi gets angry if he does not serve his guests well now.
During the interview, Khan revealed that he has not seen his sons Suleiman Isa Khan and Qasim Khan in 2.5 years because of the pandemic.
He also claimed that the Sharif family is preparing to launch a campaign against him after Eid. Khan said that that the Sharifs had also made further preparations and “made videos” similar to the ones of former Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar and late Judge Arshad Malik.
TikTok announced an ad revenue-sharing programme with the social media platform’s most popular creators on Wednesday.
“To help brands be on the pulse of entertainment and culture on TikTok, we’re excited to introduce TikTok Pulse, a new contextual advertising solution that lets advertisers place their brand next to the top content in the For You Feed. TikTok Pulse is designed to give brands the tools and controls to be a part of these everyday moments and trends that engage the community,” said the video-sharing app in a statement.
Only accounts with at least 100,000 subscribers will be eligible for the first phase of the programme.
“Creators and publishers with at least 100k followers will be eligible in the initial stage of this program. We’re focused on developing monetisation solutions in available markets so that creators feel valued and rewarded on TikTok. From the very beginning, we’ve committed to working with our community to bring new features that enrich the TikTok experience, and we look forward to continuing that journey with TikTok Pulse,” the statement read.
According to the industry publication Business of Apps, TikTok generated an estimated 4.6 billion dollars in revenue in 2021.
