Tag: Azad Jammu and Kashmir

  • Court rejects poet Ahmad Farhad’s bail plea

    Court rejects poet Ahmad Farhad’s bail plea

    An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Muzafarabad has rejected the bail petition of Kashmiri poet Ahmed Farhad on Tuesday, one day after the court reserved a verdict after hearing arguments from both sides.

    The poet’s wife Urooj Zainab told journalists that she will challenge the court’s decision.

    “Details of why the bail was rejected were not disclosed,” she said addressing the press.

    The poet came into the spotlight when he went missing amid recent protests in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

    The Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP), Mansoor Usman Awan told Islamabad High Court (IHC) on May 29 that Kashmir police arrested Farhad after he went missing for 15 days.

    The poet’s wife, Urooj Zainab stated in a petition for her husband’s recovery that Farhad was allegedly abducted on May 14 from Islamabad.

  • ‘Gen Bajwa wanted concessions from India,’ British High Commissioner to Pakistan tells New Delhi

    ‘Gen Bajwa wanted concessions from India,’ British High Commissioner to Pakistan tells New Delhi

    British High Commissioner to Pakistan Christian Turner said that Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa was looking for concessions—among them, the restoration of the Article 35A of India’s Constitution, which gave the state of Occupied Jammu and Kashmir the right to designate “permanent residents” entitled to purchase land, writes Praveen Swami for The Print. The British High Commissioner was speaking at a gathering in New Delhi.

    The news report further states that the Pakistan army chief believes he has helped New Delhi by controlling jihadists and thus ensuring violence in Kashmir remains at historically low levels.

    “The General, in his telling of events to British interlocutors, has resisted pressure from hawks to escalate in Kashmir—among them, Prime Minister Imran Khan,” writes the news outlet.

    In a report published in Dawn on April 25, 2021, it was revealed that India appro­ached Pakistan in December 2020 with an offer to reduce tension and offered backchannel talks on all outstanding issues, including Jammu and Kashmir, and Pakistan reciprocated favourably.

  • How and where to get your free booster shot in Pakistan

    How and where to get your free booster shot in Pakistan

    The fifth wave of Covid-19 has recently emerged all over Pakistan. Authorities have urged citizens to get vaccination completely and follow strict SOPs. Those who completed two doses of the vaccine can get booster shots from designated centres.

    Eligibility of booster shot

    According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), health personnel, citizens who are above aged 30, and those children who are above age 12 and have weak immune systems can receive booster shots.

    It is important to note for those people who want to get a booster shot, the gap between the second dose of vaccine and booster shot should be more than six months.

    Which vaccine you can choose?

    People can choose booster shots of their choice from four available vaccines which are Sinopharm, Sinovac, Moderna, and Pfizer.  

     Director-General of Ministry of National Health Service, Dr Rana Safdar said, “mix and match has been allowed or booster of the same company, which was administered earlier, can be given as per the choice of the people.”

    Here, the term “mix and match” means those people who had been vaccinated with another vaccine, can get booster shots from the different manufacturing companies.

    Where people can receive booster shots?

    Sindh:

    The media coordinator of the Provincial Health Department, Mehar Khursheed told that people can get booster shots from any vaccination centre in the province. People need to take their vaccination cards and the National Identity cards to get shot in the vaccination centre.

    Punjab:

    According to the spokesperson for the Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department, doses for booster shots are available in all approved district headquarters hospitals (DHQs) and tehsil headquarters hospitals (THQs).

    Balochistan

    The administration of booster shots had started already from December 30 according to the Provincial Coronavirus cell in charge Dr Naqeebullah. The facility of booster shots is available at 96 vaccination centres in the province. He notified that the people who got the dose for booster were all above aged 30 with six month time period gap from the second dose of vaccination.

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

    Director-General Health Department Niaz Mohammad said that all approved vaccines are available to vaccination across the province for booster shots. People need to take their vaccination cards to get a dose of the booster.

    Islamabad

    According to the spokesperson of the Ministry of Health, Sajid Shah, all Chinese manufacturing vaccines, Sinopharm and Sinovac are available in all vaccination centres for booster shots however for other vaccines Moderna and Pfizer are available in mass vaccination centres.

    Azad Jammu and Kashmir

    Divisional Monitoring Officer for Covid-19 Vaccination, Shafaq Malik said that people can get booster shots from any of the approved vaccines available at currently 142 centres in the region.

  • #AbhiNoneDoneAward: ‘Classic case of Indian fabrication and pure fantasy to hide embarrassment,’ says Pakistan

    #AbhiNoneDoneAward: ‘Classic case of Indian fabrication and pure fantasy to hide embarrassment,’ says Pakistan

    In a statement issued a day after Abhinandan Varthaman was given the Vir Chakra medal by Indian President Ram Nath Kovind, the Pakistan Foreign Office (FO) said this was a “classic case of Indian fabrications and pure fantasy to appease the domestic audience and hide embarrassment”.

    “Pakistan categorically rejects the entirely baseless Indian claims that a Pakistani F-16 aircraft was shot down by an Indian pilot before he was captured by Pakistan in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) in February 2019,” said the FO in a statement.

    “India’s insistence on propagating a lie that has been thoroughly exposed is ludicrous and nonsensical. Granting military honours for imaginary feats of gallantry is contrary to every norm of military conduct. By giving such [an] award, also as an afterthought, India has only made a mockery of itself,” the FO statement added.

    “Indian Air Force was completely outplayed on the day. It is obvious that India’s farcical story has no credibility whatsoever before the international community.”

    “Pakistan stands as ready and resolute to thwart any hostile designs as it was in February 2019. India would do well to learn a lesson from its botched attempt to violate Pakistan’s sovereignty and refrain from any misadventure in [the] future,” the FO warned.

    Abhinandan was arrested on Feb 27, 2019, after his aircraft was shot down by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) upon violating Pakistani airspace.

    He was initially captured by locals in Azad Kashmir before being taken into custody by Pakistan Army personnel. 

  • PTI wins AJK elections with vast majority, PPP, PML-N reject results

    PTI wins AJK elections with vast majority, PPP, PML-N reject results

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has won the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) elections by clinching the most seats. The PTI won in 25 constituencies, followed by the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) in 11 constituencies and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz in six constituencies, according to unofficial results.

    The Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Party and the (JKPP) and the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference (AJK-MC) managed to bag one seat each according to the unofficial results.

    Turnout in AJK elections was recorded at around 62 per cent. More than 700 candidates from 32 political and religious parties contested for the 45 general seats.

    The official Twitter account of PTI celebrated the victory and called Prime Minister Imran Khan the ‘Ambassador of Kashmir’.

    PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz claimed that the PTI won the Kashmir polls through rigging and rejected the results of the elections held on Sunday.

    Maryam Nawaz tweeted, “I have not accepted the results and neither will I.”

    Maryam praised her party workers for “putting up a good fight” despite rigging by PTI.

    Taking to Twitter, Bilawal Bhutto claimed the election commission had failed to take action against the PTI for violating electoral rules.