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  • Meesha Shafi’s childhood friend testifies in favour of Ali Zafar

    Meesha Shafi’s childhood friend testifies in favour of Ali Zafar

    A childhood friend of singer Meesha Shafi, who recorded her statement before a sessions court in the one billion defamation suit filed by singer/actor Ali Zafar, testified in favour of the plaintiff and refuted the allegations of sexual harassment against him.

    According to details, Sara Razee in her oral and written statement said that she has known Meesha since Grade 7 and Ali for almost 20 years. The witness said that she was present on both occasions where the alleged incidents of harassment took place and did not notice any odd behaviour by both the parties.

    Sara said that that on the occasion of Ali’s wife Ayesha Fazli’s birthday, she “didn’t notice anything out of order. Meesha was very normal with Ali Zafar and in fact she was sitting at his piano.”

    Talking about the other incident, which was Hassan Sheheryar Yaseen’s (HSY) party in February 2018, Sara said she met both the parties that night and Meesha was very excited to meet Ali.

    “I did not notice any reservation on Meesha’s part towards Ali,” she added.

    Two more prosecution witnesses were also present in the court, however, their testimonies were not recorded as Meesha’s senior counsel from the legal team was not available. As per her Instagram, Meesha is currently in Canada while Zafar is doing a series of concerts in the United States.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B0sSQfqAzpC/

    The hearing has been adjourned for September 8 when Razee will also be cross-examined by the defendant’s side.

    So far, 13 witnesses have testified in favour of Zafar, including three women and Meesha’s former manager Rizwan.

  • Italy to invest Rs3.6 billion in Gilgit-Baltistan

    Italy to invest Rs3.6 billion in Gilgit-Baltistan

    The government has signed with Italy an agreement under which the latter would invest 20.5 million euros (Rs3.63 billion) for economic development in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of the country, Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) has reported.

    According to reports, the investment will be used for infrastructural support, capacity building and technical assistance to benefit rural areas of Gilgit-Baltistan.

    The objective of the Economic Transformation Initiatives (ETI) is the growth of irrigated crop areas, production and improved connectivity with markets through investments in economic infrastructure.

    It will improve incomes and reduce poverty, malnutrition in rural areas of the region while benefitting around 100,000 rural households.

    The Italian government has also joined hands with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) under the initiative, which is providing $76 million over a period of seven years.

  • Maryam was arrested to save her from assassination, Zaid Hamid claims

    Maryam was arrested to save her from assassination, Zaid Hamid claims

    Self-proclaimed defence and security analyst Zaid Hamid has claimed that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President (VP) Maryam Nawaz was arrested to save her life.

    The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Thursday had arrested the PML-N leader in the Chaudhry Sugar Mills case as she arrived at Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat jail to see her father, former prime minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif.

    Sharing “inside news” regarding the arrest, Hamid claimed that Maryam was taken into custody “to save her life from an Indian assassination attempt”.

    “Indians had planned to assassinate her [Maryam] in a political rally, just like Benazir,” he said and added that the result would have been total chaos in the country.

    Earlier, according to family sources, Maryam was taken away by NAB in the presence of her father while her teenage daughter was also present there.

    The bureau had summoned Maryam on Thursday at 3 pm in the Chaudhry Sugar Mills case, but she didn’t appear before the watchdog, which is said to have led to the PML-N leader’s arrest.

    The case pertains to government accusations that the Sharif family used the mills for money laundering and availing millions of rupees in subsidy without actually exporting sugar.

  • WhatsApp to introduce Instagram’s Boomerang feature soon

    WhatsApp to introduce Instagram’s Boomerang feature soon

    It is so much fun making boomerangs on Instagram and then
    sharing it with your friends. Soon we all will be able to make boomerangs not
    only on Instagram but also on the WhatsApp.

    WhatsApp is reportedly working on a Boomerang feature similar to the one on Instagram. It is in the development stage and soon it will be launched for the users.

    The feature will be available in the Video Type panel for the videos that are less than 7 seconds long. These boomerangs can be shared with friends in your contacts. Also, users can post them as their WhatsApp status.

    WhatsApp
    does allow users to convert their videos into GIFs. But Instagram’s Boomerang
    feature on WhatsApp will be something new and interesting.

    Initially,
    the feature will launch on iOS and later on Android phone.

  • VIDEO: ‘Because I don’t polish boots,’ jailed Maryam responds to journalist’s question

    VIDEO: ‘Because I don’t polish boots,’ jailed Maryam responds to journalist’s question

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President (VP) Maryam Nawaz’s response to a journalist’s query, as she reached an accountability court on Friday, has gone viral over the internet.

    The PML-N leader was arrested by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Thursday in connection with the Chaudhry Sugar Mills case. A day later, Maryam was brought to court by NAB authorities who sought her 15-day physical remand.

    As she spoke to media persons after appearing before the court, a journalist asked the PML-N VP as to what built up to “people not liking her” and if it dated back to the Dawn Leaks fiasco or something that followed.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    “[It’s] because I do not polish boots,” the PML-N VP replied. “And I consider [it] a bad thing [to do].”

    The PML-N leader further said she believed that representatives of the people should be respected. “Running the country is the representatives’ job. I will raise my voice against anyone who violates constitutional boundaries,” Maryam added.

    “This is what people don’t like.”

    In response to another question, Maryam accused the government of “using state machinery to victimise political opponents”.

    “They fear Maryam Nawaz. Selected is after me, his government is after me, there are restrictions on media,” she said, adding that the government was also trying to restrict opposition parties from holding public rallies.

    “But none of that worked. To compete with Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz, they needed to be put behind bars,” Maryam maintained.

  • Kashmir crisis: Pakistan’s aggressive diplomacy at UN puts India on backfoot

    Kashmir crisis: Pakistan’s aggressive diplomacy at UN puts India on backfoot

    Islamabad’s aggressive diplomacy, ever since India revoked Article 370 of its constitution to snatch occupied Kashmir’s autonomy, has put New Delhi on backfoot at the United Nations (UN), ARY News reported.

    According to reports, Pakistan’s Representative to the UN Maleeha Lodhi has highlighted the need to ensure that the crisis triggered by India’s unlawful annexation of Jammu and Kashmir is addressed in accordance with UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolutions on the disputed region.

    During Lodhi’s meeting with UN Political Affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo on Thursday, she focused on the illegality of Indian actions and called on the UN, especially the secretary general, to clearly enunciate its position on the subject.

    The meeting was part of a series of contacts Pakistan’s envoy has been making to brief senior UN officials from all regions of the world about Pakistan’s stance on the Indian government’s decision to strip Indian occupied Kashmir (IoK) of its special status and placing the disputed state under a lockdown.

    She also informed DiCarlo about the complete lockdown in IoK, including shut down of internet services and landlines that had begun even before the announcement of the controversial decision.

    A statement issued on behalf of UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has also acknowledged the critical importance of UN Resolutions on Kashmir to deal with the crisis.

    Lodhi also met three non-permanent members of the UN Security Council — Kuwait, Indonesia and South Africa — as India, on backfoot, also stepped up its campaign to have the world believe that the decision was taken for the socio-economic development of the Kashmiris and that they enjoy the same rights as Indians.

  • VIDEO: PML-N’s Uzma Bukhari beats up Lahore cop, ends up in hospital

    VIDEO: PML-N’s Uzma Bukhari beats up Lahore cop, ends up in hospital

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and former Punjab lawmaker Uzma Zahid Bukhari on Friday beat up a Punjab police constable as a scuffle broke out between party workers and cops outside the accountability court in Lahore.

    As per the details, National Accountability Bureau (NAB) authorities had brought PML-N Vice President (VP) Maryam Nawaz, who was arrested Thursday, to the court in connection with the Chaudhry Sugar Mills case.

    With PML-N leaders and workers gathering outside the court to express solidarity with the detained VP, enraged party activists were seen pelting stones at the police, reportedly resulting in injuries to one of the cops.

    This led to the scuffle during which Uzma Bukhari was seen thrashing a constable. A video available with The Current, shows the cop approaching her from behind and allegedly groping her, as a reaction to which the PML-N leader gives him a sound beating.

    While authorities or party sources have not yet reacted to the episode or confirmed what followed the incident, another video shows Uzma being shifted to the hospital in an ambulance.

    Meanwhile, the court has reserved its judgment on NAB’s appeal for a 15-day physical remand of Maryam Nawaz.

  • Uber driver, who raped nurse, being deported back to India

    Uber driver, who raped nurse, being deported back to India

    An Indian Uber driver, who raped a nurse in Australia while she was unconscious, will be sentenced and deported back to India, Daily Mail has reported.

    According to the details, Manpreet Singh, a year back, was driving through Melbourne’s inner-city of Mulgrave when he came across the intoxicated woman at around 2 am.

    The woman had stopped to vomit after leaving a nearby pub on her walk home when Singh got out of his car and approached her.

    The women, at first, broke free but he continued to follow her. The next thing the woman remembers was waking up at around 5 am to Manpreet raping her at his house.

    The woman managed to escape and alerted the police, who arrested the guy the next day.

    Singh was living in the country on a bridging visa from India and was driving an Uber through another person’s registration at the time of the attack.

    Bridging visas are temporary permits that let you stay in Australia lawfully while your immigration status is resolved.

    Manpreet on Thursday appeared before a court and pleaded guilty.

    Singh was remanded into custody, will be sentenced on September 11 and deported back to India.

  • Bollywood filmmakers rush to register films on the Kashmir issue

    Bollywood filmmakers rush to register films on the Kashmir issue

    Following the Indian government’s decision to revoke Article 370 which granted Jammu and Kashmir a special status, Bollywood filmmakers have rushed to register film titles such as Article 370, Article 35A, Kashmir Hamara Hai and Dhara 370, among others.

    According to a report in the Mumbai Mirror, over 50 titles related to the move have been registered at various Hindi film bodies. A source close to the development shared, “Taking a cue from the success of (Anubhav Sinha’s recently released Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer) Article 15, filmmakers have rushed to register films relating to the Kashmir incident with the titles Article 370 and Article 35A being their first choice.” He added that the associations have received at least 25-30 applications for them.

    Previously, after the Indian Air Force’s strikes at Balakot in February, Bollywood producers had rushed to film bodies to book names such as Pulwama: The Deadly Attack, Surgical Strike 2.0, Balakot and Pulwama Attacks, among others.

    Trade analyst Atul Mohan noted that filmmakers had rushed to register titles around such subjects because they “pique the audience’s curiosity.”

    Like in the case of the Vicky Kaushal-starrer Uri: The Surgical Strike which was a huge hit.

    Meanwhile, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan has reiterated that no Indian movie will be screened in Pakistani cinemas. Talking to media outside Parliament House on Thursday, Awan said a policy was being formulated to ban all kinds of Indian cultural content in Pakistan.

  • Eid ul Azha: 5 things that can only happen in Pakistan

    Eid ul Azha: 5 things that can only happen in Pakistan

    Eid is just around the corner and we as Pakistanis see a lot of interesting things that probably only happen in our country. These things enhance the spirit of Eid and give us something to smile about.

    From our roofs to our plates

    Crane lifting the cattle from the rooftops have become a common sight in Karachi. Amused pedestrians stand on the sides and enjoy watching the cows and goats being lifted from the roofs to the grounds.

    Animal service stations

    Have you ever thought of taking your Qurbani animal to a service station? If not, then you should now start planning to go to the service station where your animal will get a shower for as less as Rs 100.

    Runaway animal

    Oh, this one is the most interesting. We all are united when it comes to catching the runaway animal. If (God forbid) your animal runs away, then everyone’s got your back – from your neighbours to random people on the street – everyone will drop what they are doing and run after the animal and join your struggle to catch it.

    Bakra on bike

    This is the most common. We all have seen this somewhere while on road. People taking their sacrificial goat or sheep on their bike with one person accompanying it on the back seat.

    Meet Trump at the cattle market

    You can see this only in Pakistan that animals are named after political leaders. And the cattle owners proudly introduce them with their interesting names.