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  • Race for leader of opposition in Senate

    Race for leader of opposition in Senate

    Reports indicate that the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) are fighting over the slot of leader of opposition in the Senate. On March 8, Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) Information Secretary Mian Iftikhar Hussain told the media that it has been decided that the candidate for deputy chairman Senate would be from JUI-F and leader of the opposition in the upper House would be from the PML-N. Yousaf Raza Gillani was the PDM’s joint candidate for Senate chairman.

    Sources say the PPP is now vying for this position as they have reservations over the nomination of newly elected Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar by the PML-N. Tarar is a senior lawyer and is representing two accused police officers in the Benazir Bhutto murder case. When he was asked about these reservations in Geo News programme ‘Capital Talk’, Tarar said that he has his own professional commitments [as a lawyer] and he was representing the two police officers who were being tried for negligence in BB murder case. “These two have no role in the assassination but are being tried for negligence related to washing the crime scene.”

    As per media reports, Sherry Rehman will be PPP’s candidate for leader of opposition but she has denied that she is the candidate for the position.

  • PIA to restart flight operations to Swat

    PIA to restart flight operations to Swat

    The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has decided to restart flights to Swat, Skardu and Gilgit in order to promote tourism in these areas.

    As per details, Pakistan’s national carrier will resume flight operations to the country’s scenic Swat valley after nearly 17 years from next week, a spokesperson for the airline said on Thursday.

    According to reports, ever since Taliban militants took over Swat, tourism in the picturesque valley was badly affected with flight operations suspended. Army operations to clear out militant safe havens and improved security in recent years have allowed tourism to re-emerge on the Hindu Kush mountain range.

    “PIA is going to resume flight operations to Saidu Sharif, Swat, after 17 years,” said PIA spokesman Abdullah Hafeez Khan while talking to a local media outlet. The spokesperson added that Swat’s only airport, equipped to handle small ATR-70 aircraft, has been closed since 2004.

    The purpose of resuming the flights now, Khan said, was “to encourage tourism in the region,” adding that “there is huge potential.”

    Khan further said that two weekly flights will also operate from Lahore, with a 15 minute stopover in Islamabad.

    In January 2019, Pakistan loosened travel restrictions in the hope of reviving tourism by offering visas on arrival to visitors from 50 countries and electronic visas to 175 nationalities.

    Pakistan was last a prominent tourist destination in the 1970s when the “hippie trail” brought Western travellers through the apricot and walnut orchards of the Swat Valley and Kashmir on their way to India and Nepal.

    Since then, deteriorating security conditions have prevented tourists and travellers from visiting the country.

    A 2019 Gallup report said tourist traffic at cultural sites in Pakistan had seen an increase of 317 per cent over five years. Prince William and Kate Middleton’s five-day visit to Pakistan in October 2019 also boosted interest in the country as a tourist spot.

  • Local court directs FIA to book Babar Azam in harassment case

    Local court directs FIA to book Babar Azam in harassment case

    A local court in Lahore on Thursday ordered the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to register a case against Pakistan skipper Babar Azam for allegedly harassing and blackmailing his former class fellow Hameeza Mukhtar.

    According to reports, Additional district and session’s Judge Hamid Hussain also directed the FIA to book two other women in the case.

    The order was issued after it emerged that the mobile phone number, which was being used to harass the complainant, belonged to the 26-year-old cricketer and two women identified as Maryam Ahmed and Salemi Bibi.

    The investigators have been directed to register the case within the stipulated time without any delay.

    In November 2020, Hameeza, who claimed to be Azam’s neighbour and schoolfellow, accused the Pakistan skipper of all cricket formats of blackmailing, adding that the cricketer had “tricked her into love” and “tortured” her when she demanded him to marry her.

    She alleged that Azam engaged in illicit relations with her on the false promises of marriage and that she got pregnant out of wedlock but had to go for abortion on the cricketer’s insistence.

    Hamiza further said that she had financially supported Babar when he was struggling with his career, adding that she spent millions of rupees on him.

    Mukhatar also said that she had moved a total of five petitions in the court and would continue her struggle till she got justice.

    In January, she also promised to surrender her mobile for further inquiry into the matter but didn’t appear in the court nor provided any digital evidence.

    VIDEO: Did the woman who accused Babar Azam of harassment really drop charges?

    Later, on January 18, Babar Azam was summoned to court, at which his elder brother Faisal Azam appeared and sought some time for verifying the matter. He is yet to make an appearance in court.

    A copy of the court order

    However, Azam has rejected the allegations.

    In December 2020, Lahore police had declared Mukhtar’s accusations against Babar as false after the complainant remained unable to provide any concrete evidence to support her claims.

    Meanwhile, Azam’s counsel, Barrister Harris Azmat, while requesting the court to reject the petitioner’s plea, had said that Azam was a national cricketer and hero, adding that Hameeza had started blackmailing the national cricket team captain in 2016 whereas the police had cleared him in an investigation.

    Police also submitted an investigation report in the court, as per which the national cricketer was found innocent and the woman was leveling baseless allegations.

    Barrister Azmat said that Azam’s case was being covered by Indian media and the woman may have targeted the national cricketer once again at the behest of someone.

  • Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Amir confused over PCB’s player-selection criteria

    Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Amir confused over PCB’s player-selection criteria

    Shahid Afridi on Wednesday said that he was unable to understand the “standard of selection which the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) adopts,” while choosing players for the national team.

    Speaking at an event in Lahore, the former captain of the Pakistan Cricket Team not only expressed his confusion over PCB’s selection process but also said that the PCB did not have a solid plan in place for the Pakistan Super League’s (PSL) sixth edition because of which it had to be postponed.

    Afridi said that selectors, coaches, and captains form a team together.

    “Now, I am hearing that there are differences between them but these matters should not be leaked. It’s wrong to leak internal matters of the board,” said the skipping, adding that the most important role in the selection of the team is played by the captain as they have to make decisions on the field.

    “There is a lot of pressure on the skipper. He also has to answer questions to the media. If you want to take Babar Azam with you in the future, you have to give him power. We have to work with him,” he said. “Most importantly, the internal matters of the team shouldn’t be leaked.”

    Afridi said he does not understand the method of selection of the team and questioned the criteria based on which players are picked.

    “Players who have merely played two matches are being selected. For instance, Naseem Shah was selected and was allowed to play with very experienced bowlers. But now, Naseem is nowhere to be seen. If you invest in a player, you have to take them forward [with the team],” Afridi remarked.

    It is pertinent to mention here that Chief Selector Mohammad Wasim has refuted claims of a rift between him, Azam and head coach Misbah ul Haq, saying that there was no truth to them.

    Later, while talking about PSL6, which had to be called off after several players tested positive for COVID-19 despite staying in the biosecure bubble, Afridi said that the tournament should not have been postponed.

    “I don’t think the PSL should have been postponed. The Pakistan Super League is a very big brand of Pakistan. It is our honour, but the PCB did not seem to have a Plan B in place,” he said.

    Meanwhile, Mohammad Amir, who announced his retirement from Pakistan Cricket due to issues with PCB management, directly hit Wasim and said that the chief selector lacks the vision needed to take the country’s cricket forward.

    Speaking to Cricket Pakistan, Amir questioned the change in selection criteria for opener Sharjeel Khan.

    “There is no doubt that Sharjeel [Khan] should be in the white-ball squad because he is the most dangerous player in white-ball cricket in Pakistan,” said Amir. “One or two series ago, you were saying that he needs to work on his fitness to get selected so why have you taken this decision now? The only thing you considered is his performance, right?”

    “It is important that they [selection committee] keep the same criteria of selection for every player,” he added.

    “I don’t see any vision of the chief selector. I don’t know if he is asked to work like this or it’s his own mindset. Selecting teams on public opinion is not the right thing to do. He should select players who are best suited to play for Pakistan,” he further stated.

  • ‘Zindagi Tamasha’ sweeps awards at 6th Asian World Film Festival

    ‘Zindagi Tamasha’ sweeps awards at 6th Asian World Film Festival

    Zindagi Tamasha may not have seen the light of the day in Pakistan, but it is receiving accolades and recognition internationally.

    Pakistan’s official entry to the Oscars, Zindagi Tamasha bagged the Snow Leopard Award for Best Film at the 6th Asian World Film Festival (AWFF) held on March 15. Lead actor Arif Hassan won the Snow Leopard Award for Best Actor for his performance in the film. Director Sarmad Sultan Khoosat received the award from Jury member Luba Balagova Kandoor, while Jury member Joanne Goh presented the award to Hassan.

    According to a press release, “Almost 40 films from over 20 participating countries were presented during the six-day Festival that included 11 Oscar submissions for Best International Feature Film and 12 Golden Globe submissions for Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language.”

    Directed and co-produced by Khoosat and written by Nirmal Bano, Zindagi Tamasha features Hassan, Eman Suleman, Samiya Mumtaz and Ali Kureshi in the lead roles. The film is centred around a naat khwan Rahat Khawaja (played by Hassan) and his family who are outcast from society when a video of him enjoying a song is leaked. The film premiered at the Busan International Film Festival held in October 2019 where it also won the prestigious Kim Ji Seok Award.

    The official synopsis states: “The film is an intimate portrait of a family as well as a scorching political commentary on little gods on this earth who police our private passions.”

    Meanwhile, Zindagi Tamasha is yet to release in cinemas in Pakistan. It was initially scheduled to hit screens on January 25, 2020, but immense backlash from religious circles forced the federal and provincial government to halt its release. However, in July 2020, the Senate HR committee cleared the film and allowed it to be screened once cinemas open post-COVID-19.

    While the director and team are yet to comment on their big win, Wahab Riaz congratulated the makers of the film for their achievement.

    About the Asian World Film Festival

    The Asian World Film Festival (AWFF), founded by Kyrgyz public figure Sadyk Sher Niyaz, brings the very best of a broad selection of Asian World cinema to Los Angeles to draw greater recognition to the region’s wealth of filmmakers and strengthen ties between the Asian and Hollywood film industries. Uniting through cross-cultural collaboration, the Festival champions films from over 50 countries across Asia, spanning from Turkey to Japan and from Russia to India and South-East Asia. The Festival is unique in that it predominantly screens Oscar and Golden Globe submissions for Best International Feature Film and Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language respectively. All films are showcased to members of the Motion Picture Academy, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and all Guilds for enhanced exposure, media attention and awards consideration. AWFF is a non-profit organization under Aitysh USA.

  • VIDEO: ‘How to deal with corruption’ ft. Ali Gul Pir

    Comedian and rapper-vlogger Ali Gul Pir, who is known for his sarcastic and funny takes on different issues, has now shared a video on Prime Minister Imran Khan’s plan to eradicate corruption.

    “How to deal with corruption #NoMoreParty #NoMoreShaadi,” wrote Ali in the caption. He also PM Khan and added the original clip in the thread.

    In the video Ali, who has dubbed PM Khan’s voice on him, can be heard saying: “Woh koi jail se niklta hai. Arbon rupay ki corruption ke charges per, log phool pheank rahe hain uske uper.”

    “Mujhe yeh batein kaise corruption khatam hogi?,” says Pir further. “Jo corruption karega, rishwat dega, woh hamare me se nahi hai.“

    “Unn gharon me[jahan corruption hoti hai] log shaadi nahi karein gein, unko log parties per nahin bulaein ge,” adds the comedian.

    Meanwhile, netizens are loving the video. Check out some reactions below:

    https://twitter.com/farazazhar/status/1372205552898506755

    Earlier, on February 27, Pir released a song as a humorous tribute to the four trees Pakistan lost in the Balakot airstrike. In the song, the rapper talked about fantastic tea and fallen trees while gyrating in a forest in the video.

  • Army chief cites unresolved disputes as reasons behind regional debt, poverty

    Army chief cites unresolved disputes as reasons behind regional debt, poverty

    Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Thursday said unresolved disputes in South Asia were dragging the entire region into debt and poverty, in a veiled reference to the Kashmir issue.

    Addressing a gathering on the final day of the Islamabad Security Dialogue, COAS Bajwa said the national security encompassed more than just matters and affairs related to strengthening the country’s security forces.

    “It included development and human security as well,” he said.

    “We feel it is time to bury the past and move forward,” he said, adding that the onus for meaningful dialogue rested with India.

    “Our neighbour will have to create a conducive environment, particularly in occupied Kashmir.”

    “The world has seen the ravages of the world wars and the Cold War, wherein polarisation and neglect of virtues blighted the future and brought catastrophic consequences for humanity,” he said.

    “Today the leading drivers of change in the world are demography, economy and technology. However, one issue that remains central to this concept is economic security and cooperation. Frayed relations between various powers centres of the globe and boomeranging of competing alliances can bring nothing but another stint of Cold War.”

    Congratulating the National Security Division on organising the dialogue, Gen Bajwa stated that the contemporary concept of national security was not just about protecting countries from an external and internal threat.

    It is also about providing a conducive environment for ensuring human security, national progress and development, he said.

    The army chief’s comments come a a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan said that India would have to make the first move to normalise ties with Pakistan.

    “We are trying, but India would have to take the first step and unless it does that we cannot move ahead,” the prime minister had said while inaugurating the Islamabad Security Dialogue.

  • Maulana tells workers to continue long march preps despite PDM falling out

    Maulana tells workers to continue long march preps despite PDM falling out

    Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has directed the party’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) chapter to continue preparations for the March 26 long march to Islamabad, reports said Thursday.

    A letter was written to the party’s KP leadership on Fazl’s directives, directing the leaders not to slow down the preparations. The letter said the long march has only been postponed until Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) makes its decision on the march.

    Nine of the 11 component parties of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) are ready to participate in the long march while PPP has sought time to make a final decision concerning en masse resignations, the letter said.

    The development comes two days after the opposition alliance announced to postpone the long march after PPP linked its resignations from the legislative assemblies with deposed prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif’s return — a condition PML-N termed out of the question.

    “Nine parties [of PDM] were in favour of resignations along with the long march but PPP had expressed some reservations,” Fazl told reporters on Tuesday, adding the PPP would discuss the matter during its upcoming central executive committee (CEC) meeting.

    A day earlier, Fazl held a telephonic conversation with Nawaz and urged him to return to Pakistan, saying with top PML-N leadership living abroad in self-exile, it was difficult to execute decisions taken by the opposition alliance.

    After spending a year in prison, Nawaz, 71, secured a conditional bail in November 2019 to travel to London on the pretext of medical treatment and has since refused to return.

    His party insists that despite being summoned by the courts, which declared him a proclaimed offender in multiple corruption trials, the former premier will only return after the completion of his medical treatment.

  • KHI Zoo’s Elephants In Trouble

    KHI Zoo’s Elephants In Trouble









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    Hey, *|MERGE1|*. Its March 18.To make the platform safer for kids, Instagram will no longer let adults message teens who don’t follow them. It is a good first step but there is still a long way to go to make social media safe for children. What do you think?

    It will be sunny in all major cities today!

     

    Laila-The Current 

    MORNING MEME
     

    Reform the electoral process  

    Prime Minister Imran Khan has requested National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser to “immediately” constitute an inter-party parliamentary committee in order to discuss electoral reforms and end the issue of corrupt practices in polls.

    On the other hand, Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry has said that the government will begin contempt proceedings against the members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), including the chief election commissioner (CEC) if they do not resign from their posts.

    Read On

    Firdous Ashiq Awan lashes out at talk show host and other guests
     

    Special Assistant to Chief Minister Punjab on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan lashed out at PPP’s Agha Rafiullah during Geo News’ program, Aapas Ki Baat, after which PML-N leader Mian Javed Latif walked out from the show.

    Read On

    Karachi Zoo management denies foreign animal experts access to ‘ailing’ elephants

    The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) has allegedly denied international veterinarians and animal experts access to Karachi Zoo and Karachi Safari Zoo elephants, preventing them from assessing their health. 

    On the other hand, KMC spokesperson Ali Hassan Sajid has refuted the claims saying that the elephants are in good health and that all this is just propaganda to raise ‘chanda’.
    .

    Read On

        TikTok star Jannat Mirza to make her film debut with Saima

    TikTok star Jannat Mirza is all set to make her film debut with a Punjabi movie Tere Bajre Di Rakhi, expected to release this Eid-ul-Fitr.

    The movie has been written and directed by Syed Noor and features Saima, Saleem Albela, Shafqat Cheema, Mustafa Qureshi besides Mirza and other Lollywood stars.

    Read On

    Drama review |  The Current Top 5   

    From Mehmal’s husband’s pawry in Fitoor to Meerab ka endless rona in Log Kya Kahengay, tune into The Current Top 5 Drama Review to have a good laugh!

    Watch

    On this day: 18 March

    FIRST MAN TO WALK IN SPACE

    On this day, In 1965 a Soviet cosmonaut and Air Force General Lt. Col. Alexei Leonov became the first person to conduct a spacewalk, exiting the capsule during a mission for 12 minutes and 9 seconds. This took place just days before the U.S. planned to launch its first two-man spaceship.

    Current Baba’s prediction

    Be cautious of unknown calls and messages, don’t believe in every message you get on your phone. No, you have not won 10 lakhs in Fahad Mustafa’s show and the Corona vaccine is certainly not a conspiracy against Muslims.

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  • Asad Umar warns stricter lockdowns if SOPs not followed

    Minister for Planning and Development and National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) chairperson Asad Umar has said the country has witnessed a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases, warning that if the standard operation procedures (SOPs) are not followed, the government will be forced to take stricter measures.

    “Sharp spike in COVID positivity,” wrote Umar in a tweet. “Hospital daily admissions and people in critical care rising fast.”

    “If SOP compliance does not improve, we will be forced to place stronger restrictions on activities,” warned the minister, adding: “The new strain spreads faster and is more deadly.”

    The NCOC also warned the same in a statment.

    “The NCOC was apprised on implementation of various health guidelines as already issued to all federating units. NCOC was apprised that implementation on those guidelines needs comprehensive review. NCOC showed serious concern on rising disease trend and mortality rate,” read the statement.

    “The forum was briefed that a sharply rising trend in disease is visible and positivity has crossed 7.5 percent. Almost all major cities have crossed 5% positivity,” it said further. “Provincial administrations have been asked to take immediate actions for strict implementation of SOPs.”

    The NCOC added that “serious concern was shown on general disregard of SOPs by masses. Mass violations of SOPs and disrespect of orders including not wearing of mask, disregard of social distancing are widely reported.”

    It appealed to the citizens “to display good example of social behavior and follow the SOPs in letter and spirit, otherwise, strict measures will have to be taken which may result into closure of business and restrictions on economic and social activities.”

    The NCOC further said that COVID vaccination centers across the country will remain closed on Sundays and national holidays.

    Read more – COVID-19: Here’s what you can and cannot do amid lockdown in Punjab

    Later, Minister for Industries Hammad Azhar also urged businesses and corporations to strictly implement COVID protocols to avoid inconvenience.

    According to the latest statistics, Pakistan has reported a total of 3,495 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours. This is the highest number of daily cases recorded since 3,795 cases on December 6, 2020.

    A total of 61 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, the national positivity rate has risen to 7.8 per cent as the country battles a third wave of the pandemic.

    Meanwhile, Umar on Wednesday also announced that over 41 thousand people were vaccinated the previous day marking the highest daily vaccination rate. Vaccinations for those aged 60 and above commenced on March 10.