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  • Bilawal going to meet Nawaz to make Zardari president: report

    Pakistan People’s Pakistan (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari is expected to meet Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif in London, reports Geo News.

    As per the news outlet’s sources, Bilawal will discuss the inclusion of Balochistan National Party (BNP) and Moshin Dawar in the federal cabinet with Nawaz Sharif during his visit to the UK. PPP Secretary-General Farhatullah Babar told The News, “The main purpose of meeting Nawaz Sharif is to congratulate him on the coalition government and discuss the current political situation.”

    However, according to Journalist Saleem Safi, “Bilawal is giving a false impression that he is going to London for the sake of allies. He is going to beg for the governorship of Punjab, more ministries and to make Zardari President.”

    As per the media outlet’s sources, there is no deadlock between PPP and PML-N on the issue of the Foreign Ministry. There is an understanding between the PPP and the PML-N that Bilawal would take over as the Foreign Minister (FM). There are speculations that there are some issues in the coalition government that’s why Bilawal did not take oath as FM despite attending the cabinet oath-taking ceremony on Tuesday.

    Earlier, it was reported that Asif Ali Zardari and other PPP leaders are not in favour of Bilawal joining the cabinet.

    Recently, PPP Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar has excused from taking oath as minister of state for personal reasons and said he wants to focus on the upcoming general elections.

  • Shah Rukh Khan, Taapsee Pannu to star in ‘Dunki’

    Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan and Taapsee Pannu will be starred in Rajkumar Hirani’s new dream project, Dunki. It will release in cinemas on December, 22,2023. It will be based on a social comedy plotline.

    Shah Rukh Khan announced the title and release date of his new film by sharing teaser on his Instagram on Tuesday, calling Rajkumar Hirani, a Santa Claus for him.

    He wrote, “Dear Rajkumar Hirani sir, aap toh mere Santa Claus nikle. Aap shuru karo main time pe pahunch jaunga. actually, main toh set par hi rehne lagunga. (you turned out to be my Santa Claus. You begin the work, I will reach on time or actually start living on the set itself). Feeling humbled and excited to finally work with you. Bringing to you all Dunki in cinemas on 22nd December 2023,”

    Taapsee Pannu also shared her excitement for starring with Bollywood King, Shah Rukh Khan on Twitter

    She tweeted, “Yes it’s hard to make it till here, and it’s harder when you are all by yourself but then a superstar once said ‘agar kisi cheez ko shiddat se chaho to puri kayanat tumhe usse milane me lag jati hai (if you wish for something with all your heart, the entire universe conspires to get it for you)’ cheers to honesty, hard work and perseverance. Almost 10 saal lage (it took 10 years) but finally ‘All is Well’.”

    Rajkumar Hirani has been working on this project for a couple of years and was in talks with Shah Rukh Khan for collaboration. Rajkumar Hirani has joined hands with Shah Rukh’s Red Chillies Entertainment and Jio Studios.

    According to Bollywood Hungama, Rajkumar Hirani also began the shooting of Dunki on April 15. SRK’s upcoming movie, Pathaan is set to release on Republic Day of India, January 26, 2023.

    Shah Rukh Khan already wrapped up his other untitled film with Tamil director Atlee Kumar that will reportedly release a teaser on August 15 this year. A.R. Rahman is rumored to compose music for this film.

  • Thal Express set to hit track back after 2 years on April 21

    Thal Express set to hit track back after 2 years on April 21

    Railways Minister Saad Rafique on Wednesday announced restoration of Thal Express between Multan and Rawalpindi after remaining suspended for over two years.

    According to ARY News, “It has been decided to restore the Thal Express (129-Up/130-Dn) running between Multan – Rawalpindi – Multan via Attock with effect from 21-04-2023,” the minister announced in a tweet.

    The Thal Express would run between Rawalpindi and Multan via Muzaffargarh, Layyah, Bhakkar, Kundian, Attock and Golra Sharif.

    Back in 2019, former prime minister Imran Khan inaugurated the Thal Express. Pakistan Railway had suspended the train service in 2008 due to financial losses and the shortage of locomotives.

  • Activist Jibran Nasir shares horrific details of Nazim Jokhio’s postmortem report

    Activist Jibran Nasir shares horrific details of Nazim Jokhio’s postmortem report

    Trigger Warning: violence

    Lawyer and Activist Muhammad Jibran Nasir has shared horrific details about the postmortem examination of Nazim Jokhio, who was found murdered at the farmhouse of a PPP lawmaker in Malir area of Karachi in November last.

    As per the postmortem report, there were “multiple bruises seen all over the face of the slain journalist ”. There were also “multiple abrasions, reddish in colour, seen all over the face”, the report read. It added that both eyes were found “swollen with deep bruises”.

    Furthermore, the post-mortem examination showed deep bruises over the lower lip and multiple bruises over “one aspect of the chest”.

    Additionally, the report states that both hands were found “swollen with deep bruising”.

    On Tuesday, civil society activists staged a demonstration outside the Karachi Press Club (KPC) to seek justice for Nazim Jokhio.

    What happened?

    Nazim Jokhiowho posted video of foreigners hunting Houbara bustard in Thatta district on social media was found dead in Karachi’s Malir district in November 2-21.

    A few days before his death, Jokhio had stopped a car with a foreign registration number plate and asked the people sitting inside the vehicle why they had blocked the road and what were they doing there. Jhokio filmed the entire episode, in which a passenger sitting next to the driving seat is seen stepping out of the car and snatching his phone.

    In another video, Nazim said he had been tortured and threatened over the video he shot of the Arab guests of some influential persons.

    The police recovered Nazim Jhokio’s dead body from Memon Goth in Malir and got his postmortem conducted at a hospital. The police then registered a murder case against Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) MPA Jam Awais, Niaz Salar, and others.

    Earlier this month, the names of 13 accused persons including Pakistan People’s Party MNA Jam Abdul Karim and his brother MPA Jam Owais, were removed from the charge sheet of Nazim Jokhio murder case submitted in the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) .

    The charge sheet was submitted in the trial court following instructions by the Sindh High Court. The investigation officer had informed the high court that the charge sheet of the case was pending with prosecutor general office for the past couple of months due to its scrutiny.

  • Gold price jumps Rs900 per tola as Rupee declines

    Gold price jumps Rs900 per tola as Rupee declines

    The price of gold in Pakistan increased by Rs900 per tola as the Pakistani rupee continued its downward trend against the US dollar, crossing the Rs184 threshold in the interbank market once more. The yellow metal increased by Rs900 per tola and Rs771 per ten gramme to Rs133,300 and Rs114,283, respectively.

    Gold fell $15 per ounce on the international market, settling at $1,976 per ounce. When compared to the Dubai market, gold prices in Pakistan are roughly Rs4,000 lower.

    Silver prices in the local market, meanwhile, remained stable at Rs1,520 and Rs1,303.15.

    The rupee declined by 0.54 per cent versus the US dollar, closing at Rs182.54 after winning three paisas and settling at Rs181.55 on Saturday, April 16. During the open market session, the Indian rupee (INR) touched an intraday high of Rs181.00 versus the US dollar.

    Read more: PKR declines against US Dollar after winning for a week

    The consumer market is still torn between those who see gold as a hedge against inflation, growth concerns, and high volatility in other financial markets and those who do not.

  • [VIDEO] Man hangs from balcony after fight with wife in India

    A man attempted to commit suicide by hanging from a balcony of his house after a fight with his wife in Ghaziabad, a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh (UP). A video of the incident went viral across social media in which his family can be seen trying to pull him up from the first floor of the house.

    According to police, the incident took place in the Ghaziabad area of Uttar Pradesh. The wife of the hanging man immediately called in Indian cops to rescue her husband.

    Indian Police officer shared the video on Twitter, “It’s serious… After a quarrel with his wife, a man tried to commit suicide by hanging himself from the balcony. Meanwhile, people pulled him up and saved him.”

    However, his family rescued him with help of some neighbours.

    Hilarious reactions from Twitter users were seen on the viral video

    One user wrote, “Ghar main ghuste hi ek rehpat pada hai 100%.” Another user suggested not to get married.

  • 3Qs of FY-2022: Food exports up by 18.92% to $3.961 bln: PBS

    3Qs of FY-2022: Food exports up by 18.92% to $3.961 bln: PBS

    The national food exports recorded a huge increase of 18.92 per cent during the first three quarters of the current fiscal year as compared to the corresponding period of last year, informed Pakistan Bureau of Statics (PBS).

    The PBS data showed the number increased to $3,961.469 million during July-March (2021-22) from $3,331.257 million in July-March (2020-21).

    Rice exports, with an increase of 14.96 percent, increased from $1,560.429 million to $1,793.909 million.

    The Basmati rice increased from $408.117 million to $496.389 million, which is a 21.63 percent increase. Moreover, an increase in other rice products were recorded from $1,152.312 million to $1,297.519 million, which is a 12.60 sharing growth increase.

    The fish and its related items exports increased from $303.782 million to $309.979 million which is 2.04 percent increase. About fruit exports, the PBS data revealed that the numbers increased from $378.575 million to $294.538 million, which is a 4.22 percent increase.

    The exports of vegetables increased by 1.09 percent, from $245.739 million to $248.413 million; leguminous vegetables (pulses) by 100 percent, from zero exports to $0.068 million; tobacco by 59.35 percent, from $24.736 million to $39.418 million; spices by 18.05 percent, from $70.524 million to $83.251 million; oil seeds, nuts and kernals by 131.41 percent, from $76.348 million to $176.678 million; meat and meat preparations by 1.18 percent, from $247.010 million to $249.934 million whereas the exports of all other food items increased by 56.86 percent, from $424.114 million to $665.282 million.

    Meanwhile, on a year-on-year basis, the exports of food commodities went up by 10.22 percent during March 2022 as compared to the same month last year. They were recorded at $526.466 million against the exports of $477.668 million.

  • Unavailability of head judge: LHC puts off plea seeking removal of Nawaz’s name from ECL

    Unavailability of head judge: LHC puts off plea seeking removal of Nawaz’s name from ECL

    The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday adjourned a petition seeking removal of Nawaz Sharif’s name from the exit control list (ECL) due to the absence of head judge of the divisional bench.

    According to ARY News, the division bench hearing the petition seeking removal of the name of Nawaz Sharif from ECL was disbanded after absence of Justice Shahbaz Ali. The LHC registrar office cancelled the cause list due unavailability of the head judge of the bench.

    It is to be recalled that the Islamabad High Court (IHC) declared former prime minister Nawaz Sharif as a proclaimed offender in the Avenfield and Al-Azizia references in December 2020.

    The IHC divisional bench declared the PML-N supremo as a fugitive over his failure to appear in the court despite being summoned repeatedly. The court issued show-cause notices to the guarantors of the former premier.

    It is to be mentioned here that the PML-N supreme leader has been declared a proclaimed offender in two other cases, including the Toshakhana reference and illegal land allotment case.

  • PML-N disbands Information Ministry’s Digital Media Wing for ‘opposition hate speech’

    PML-N disbands Information Ministry’s Digital Media Wing for ‘opposition hate speech’

    The new PML-N government has decided to close the Digital Media Wing (DMW), which was formed by the previous PTI administration to publicise official information on social media platforms.

    In her first press conference as minister for information and broadcasting, Marriyum Aurangzeb, on April 19, said the PTI-established DMW was made up of its own workers and bot accounts who targeted the opposition and national institutions.

    The information ministry has established a cyber wing to disseminate the government’s accomplishments and publicise its strategic plan on social media platforms.

    Furthermore, she stated that the cyber wing needed to be more innovative and up to date with changing trends, as well as keep up with offices such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in order to maintain Pakistan’s good image abroad.

    The closure has split industry experts, with the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) welcoming the decision to disband the controversial Digital Media Wing.

    The HRCP has been rejecting the DMW, claiming that it is pursuing the PTI’s agenda against political rivals, and there have been allegations that state resources are being used to advance the party agenda, including trolling media persons.

    Read more: FIA picks up 24 over social media campaign against Pak Army

    Even so, a social media rights activist applauded the decision to transfer the DMW’s responsibilities to the information ministry’s cyber wing, claiming that it would strengthen checks on any misuse of digital media platforms by state entities.

    The PTI established the DMW shortly after taking power in 2018. It was the reincarnation of the Press Information Department’s Social Media Wing (PID).

  • Pakistanis can now stay for 60 days in Dubai on a tourist visa

    United Arab Emirates (UAE) has now allowed Pakistanis to stay for 60 days on a tourist visa as a standard policy from September. It will facilitate people who intend to stay for a long break in the country.

    The country also provides another visa type for job seekers that is called ‘ a job exploration entry visa ‘ which allows people to explore job opportunities in the region.

    The UAE government media office said, “Major improvements include facilitating the entry requirements for all visa types, offering flexible visa durations that meet the needs of the visitors and the purpose of the visit,” will be implemented.

    “In addition, all entry visas are available for single or multiple entry, can be renewed for similar periods, and are valid for 60 days from their issuance date.”

    In the past, UAE had a standard 30-days visa on arrival for many nations including Britain, America, and Australia. People who overstayed were given a nine-day grace period to return to their countries. Otherwise, they were subjected to fines that amounted to 200 dirhams for the first day and 100 dirhams for each consecutive day.

    Nations that do not have a visa on arrival policy such as India and Pakistan have to arrange for a visa through a travel agency before arrival in the UAE.