Tag: clarification

  • Asad Umar responds to viral video of heated conversation with Hammad Azhar

    Asad Umar responds to viral video of heated conversation with Hammad Azhar

    Senior leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Asad Umar, has issued a clarification after a video of him having a ‘heated’ conversation with his party fellow Hammad Azhar during the party’s long march went viral.

    In a tweet, Umar said that he was “Only angry because the generator had broken down”.

    “They are shocked to see yesterday’s Lahore show solidarity with their captain [Imran Khan] and determination for real freedom. There is a clip circulating about possible differences. I was only angry because the generator had broken down and the second one was taking longer to arrive,” he said.

    In the viral video, Umar can be seen having a ‘heated’ discussion with Azhar. PTI Chairman Imran Khan and the party’s vice president Shah Mahmood Qureshi can also be seen standing at the back.

    It was speculated that there may be a rift between Azhar and Umar but now the latter has put rest to the rumours.

  • Wasim Akram clarifies what he was saying to Babar Azam

    Wasim Akram clarifies what he was saying to Babar Azam

    After a huge amount of criticism on social media, former Pakistan pacer and Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise Karachi Kings’ president Wasim Akram responded to the backlash and has clarified what exactly he was saying to captain Babar Azam in the match against Multan Sultans.

    Read More – ‘Aap log dil bura na kareyn’: Babar Azam’s father comes to son’s defence

    Taking to Twitter, Akram wrote: “Hello! Surprised to see reactions on my talking to Babar at the boundary last night. What I was saying was ‘why our bowlers are not bowling yorkers or slower ones offside off’. Nothing else.”

    He further added that Babar is a “wonderful boy” and has tried his best.

    Wasim Akram said that he asked Babar about what he will have for dinner.

    Earlier, a video of Wasim and Babar was doing the rounds on social media, in which the veteran cricketer can be seen talking harshly to the Pakistan skipper.

    Meanwhile, it is pertinent to mention here that Kings lost their eighth consecutive match by the hands of Multan Sultans at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore on Wednesday.

  • Shaukat Tarin denies what he said on national television

    Shaukat Tarin denies what he said on national television

    Advisor to the Prime Minister on Finance Shaukat Tarin admitted to the present gas crisis in the country on Samaa News. However, a day later, Tarin denied his own words and issued a clarification.

    After the show was aired and various news media outlets covered the story,  Energy Minister Hammad Azhar took to Twitter and blamed Geo for manipulating Tarin’s words.

    Hammad tweeted, “What Tarin actually said: -intl prices high due to global shortage. -Noone can predict intl price. – some time ago (July) they had refused a tender (July) but that was for a limited time & wouldn’t have changed things now.”

    “Geo: Gas crises due to not purchasing LNG on time, Fin Min,” added Hammad.

    Shaukat Tarin, after admitting to the gas crisis, took to Twitter and shared his clarification.

    https://twitter.com/shaukat_tarin/status/1463427014711468036

    “News item published in Daily The News titled ‘Govt couldn’t purchase gas Cargoes in time, admits Tarin’ is completely misleading & out of the context,” read the statement.

    “When anchor (Nadeem Malik) asked about the gas shortfall situation in the country, he stated the reasons including the ongoing global LNG shortages which have created fiasco, and it was not in control of anybody.”

    “Government has been buying the gas as required, despite higher international prices. However, he has mentioned there was one tender scrapped in July, but this has nothing to do with winter gas. The Adviser Finance has not mentioned at any point that winter gas shortfalls are due to non-procurement of LNG on time.”

    On November 23, Shaukat Tarin appeared on Samaa News’ programme, ‘Nadeem Malik Live’, and said the very words being denied now.

    “We [government] should have bought the gas cargoes on time as the purchasing time for it was over,” said Tarin.

    Tarin further said nobody knew about the international prices, which he stated were quite high, and that the government should have bought some cargoes earlier.

  • PMC issues clarification on MDCAT 2021 results controversy

    PMC issues clarification on MDCAT 2021 results controversy

    The Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) released a clarification on the Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) 2021 results controversy.

    The PMC claimed that it sent out an e-mail before the scheduled time with the result certificates of students who appeared for their MDCAT 2021 due to “a system error”.

    The final MDCAT 2021 results were scheduled to be publicised after 1pm today on PMC’s website.

    But this morning, many students reported that they had received an e-mail from PMC’s noreply e-mail with their MDCAT 2021 result certificate attached, the PMC explained in a tweet.

    The commission explained that the final result was actually to be announced later in the afternoon after the last examination scheduled today in the morning for Covid-affected students.

    The results, it said, were accurate but the commission apologised for its “inadvertent error as it has resulted in concern amongst the students”.
    According to the PMC, an option was provided to download, print, or e-mail the result certificates to students on the PMC website to check their final result.

    “Unfortunately due to an error, the system generated all the result certificates and e-mailed them to students early this morning automatically.”
    The final score in all the result certificates received by students are correct and have been checked, the PMC said, clarifying that although in a small number of certificates e-mailed to students in the morning there are errors in subject marks, the total score is correct.

    This only happened due to the results being generated by the system automatically, PMC said, asking students to ignore these errors.
    Students can recheck and verify their final results once PMC uploads the live results online.

  • ‘Photoshopped image’, New York Times issues correction about PM Modi’s fake picture

    ‘Photoshopped image’, New York Times issues correction about PM Modi’s fake picture

    Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s ‘fake image’ started doing the rounds on social media.

    In the picture, which seems to be a cover photo for the New York Times (NYT), Modi can be seen writing something. The headline of the cover photo glorifying Narendra Modi is, “LAST, BEST HOPE OF EARTH”.

    Indian and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) followers shared the fake image so many times that the New York Times had to give a clarification.

    Taking to Twitter, NYT wrote, “This is a completely fabricated image, one of many in circulation featuring Prime Minister Modi.”

    “Resharing or circulating photoshopped images online only adds to misinformation and uncertainty, at a time when truthful, trusted journalism is needed most,” read the statement.

    Twitterati reacted to the fake image even more after the clarification was issued.

    Columnist and writer, Ashok Swain tweeted, “Nothing hurts when you have no shame left!”

    https://twitter.com/ashoswai/status/1442958821031174151

    Indian journalist, Rana Ayyub took to Twitter and wrote, “What an embarrassment !! If nothing, the photoshop skills of our politicians is making international news.”

    Congressman Saral Patel tagging PM Modi on Twitter wrote, “One more feather in @narendramodi’s hat.”

    Journalist Swati Chaturvedi tweeted, “I feel embarrassed as an Indian at this persistent fakery is @narendramodi embarrassed or not?”

    A Twitter user wrote, “Modi has made India the laughing stock of the world, with his IT Cell !!”

  • Samar Khan accused of faking cycling to K2 base camp, clarifies her stance

    Samar Khan accused of faking cycling to K2 base camp, clarifies her stance

    Samar Khan has clarified her stance after a handful of people tried to dismiss her achievement.

    The Current reached out to Samar after her audio clip was leaked on social media by a journalist Jamil Nagri in which she was allegedly being angry at the journalist and locals of Gilgit-Baltistan for dismissing her feat.

    When we asked her about the area she covered on her bicycle and on foot, she said: “Around 15-20 per cent of the trek is paddled by me, in remaining parts I mostly dragged and lifted my bike, as there was hardly a trek for proper walk.”

    When we questioned her about the leaked audio, she clarified: “It’s a leaked WhatsApp audio, where my response has been uploaded on Twitter by a local Balti Journalist Jamil Nagri, whose abuse on social media I was answering at that time. He, with his few friends, started mocking and abusing me on different platforms and the audio is more than this, but a specific chunk has been leaked to use it against me and to get sympathies by using GB (Gilgit-Baltistan) card and arousing emotions of the locals.”

    “Being an athlete, I just rode my bicycle, which made these weak men insecure enough to play these games against me,” she added.

    “I already released my statement on Twitter with an apology but still receiving life threats and abuse.”

    Taking to Twitter, she wrote: “I take complete responsibility of my words but keep in mind it was a personal voice note intended for a single individual, so all of my F’s goes to him only, because nobody can bring here a single public post of mine which spreads hate between #GB.”

    “I offer my apologies to Balti friends whose sentiments got hurt by my words. I am grateful for all the love I always received from GB. I wish the complete abuse would have been shared here instead of uploading a chunk from my response to manipulate people for personal sympathies,” she said in another tweet.

    https://twitter.com/SKhanAthlete/status/1428982990114213888?s=20

    Khan has become the only female cyclist to reach the base camp of the world’s second tallest peak K2. She holds the title of the first Pakistani to summit Mount Kilimanjaro and the Biafo Glaciers in the Karakoram Range on a bike, has set a unique record by reaching the base camp of the savage mountain via cycle.

    Earlier, Samar gave it back with the same dismissiveness.

  • ‘I respect all women’: Abdul Razzaq responds to criticism for his comments on Nida Dar

    ‘I respect all women’: Abdul Razzaq responds to criticism for his comments on Nida Dar

    Former cricketer Abdul Razzaq has come up with a clarification note after receiving immense criticism for making sexist comments about women cricketers in general and Nida Dar in particular.

    Taking to Twitter, Razzaq shared that he has clarified his position on a phone call with Nida.

    “A clip from a TV show has surfaced, highlighting some comments I made towards my fellow cricketer Nida Dar. Although these comments were made in a lighted-hearted way and not to offend anyone, on reflection the choice of words and their presentation was poor and wrong,” he wrote.

    “I have subsequently called Nida Dar and clarified my position. I have the utmost respect for all women, especially our women cricketers, who have made great strides in our sport. Nida is our shining star and I hope she continues to make Pakistan proud,” the former all-rounder added.

    Razzaq and Nida appeared in G Sarkar with Nauman Ijaz on Neo Tv. During the show, Nida was asked if women athletes always have to leave the sport after marriage.

    “Do you have some kind of allergy with marriage? You don’t want to talk about it at all,” the cricketer was asked.

    Dar commented, “They try to play the sport as much as they can since you never know after the wedding.”

    While intervening in the conversation, Razzaq said women athletes do not marry as they always try to compete with their male counterparts.

    “Oh, they don’t get married,” Razzaq said. “Their field is as such. When they become cricketers, they strive to be as equal as their male counterparts, if not better than them. They want to prove that not only men but women can also do it,” said the cricketer.

    “The feeling [to get married] is gone [by the time they excel. If you shake her [Dar] hand, she is anything but feminine,” said Razzaq.

  • ‘It was just a mistake’: Iffat Omar clarifies her comment over Bollywood actor’s demise

    ‘It was just a mistake’: Iffat Omar clarifies her comment over Bollywood actor’s demise

    Famous Pakistani host and actor, Iffat Omar has clarified what she meant by a comment, which was severely criticised by netizens from across the border on Friday. The actor mistakenly wrote “wow” on an Indian portal post which announced the death of veteran Bollywood actor Surekha Sikri.

    Elle India took to Instagram to announce Sikri’s demise. The actress passed away at the age of 75 after suffering a cardiac arrest. She had also survived two strokes in the last three years. Surekha Sikri was one of the most prominent names in the Indian cinema and television industry.

    Omar commented on the post, saying: “Wow wow wow,” with a ‘fire emoticon’ which caused an uproar in India, with many people calling it insensitive.

    Iffat clarified that her comment, “It was just a mistake, I just saw the picture and found it so graceful that immediately commented and as soon I realised I apologised,” said Omar while exclusively talking to The Current. She had not realised or read that the Bollywood actor had passed away.

    The Family Front actor also shared the screenshot of her clarification comment with us in which she wrote: “(Oh My God) OMG just read the post. RIP (Rest In Peace) remember her since Bunyad days.”

    While the majority called her out, a few mentioned how this could be a misunderstanding, and the actor might have shared a comment without reading the caption.

  • ‘Band karo isay’: Twitterati suspect more than a technical fault on Shahzeb Khanzada’s Thursday show

    ‘Band karo isay’: Twitterati suspect more than a technical fault on Shahzeb Khanzada’s Thursday show

    With Lieutenant General (r) Asim Bajwa’s call dropping during his appearance on Geo News show ‘Aaj Shahzaeb Khanzada Kay Sath’ as he rebutted the news report linking his family’s businesses to his military career, Twitterati, owing to some background chatter, are suspecting more than just a technical fault.

    As per the details, Bajwa on Thursday issued a detailed press release rubbishing claims made regarding the assets of his family members by journalist Ahmad Noorani.

    The press release was followed by Bajwa appearing on multiple current affairs shows later in the day to further clarify the situation.

    In an on-air telephonic conversation with Shahzeb Khanzada, Bajwa reiterated his statements aimed at rubbishing the claims made in the story that he has called “malicious propaganda”.

    As the interview continued, the phone call dropped amid questions posed by Khanzada.

    WATCH INTERVIEW:

    But Twitterati suspected there was more to the dropped call than an alleged technical fault as they pointed out some background chatter.

    The former military officer, however, returned after a commercial break and responded to the question.

    What do you think of the interview? Let The Current know in the comments below

  • CPEC Authority chief Lt Gen (r) Asim Bajwa rubbishes report on family’s assets, resigns as Imran’s aide

    CPEC Authority chief Lt Gen (r) Asim Bajwa rubbishes report on family’s assets, resigns as Imran’s aide

    Lieutenant General (r) Asim Saleem Bajwa has categorically rebutted all corruption allegations levelled against him and resigned from the post of special assistant to prime minister on information and broadcasting, however, he will continue to remain the chairman of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Authority.

    Defending the businesses and enterprises owned by his brothers in countries abroad, he said that shameless allegations were levelled against him to tarnish his image.

    Lt Gen Bajwa, in rejoinder to a story published on an “unknown website”, lamented that the allegations were “false and incorrect”. He insisted that on the date of filing of his declaration, i.e. June 22, 2020, his spouse was no longer an investor or shareholder in any business of his brothers.

    “My wife had disinvested all her interests as at 01.06.2020 in any entity abroad and such fact has been duly documented in the official records in the USA. It may be pointed out that the company registered in the SECP [Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan] in Pakistan was Liaison Office of the companies in the USA,” he maintained.

    About the investments abroad, Lt Gen Bajwa said that since 2002 till June 1, 2020 his wife had only invested $19,492 in his brothers’ companies. He said that all investments came from his savings over the last 18 years, and no regulations of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) have been broken.

    Concerning the alleged investment of businesses in the pizza chain Papa John’s in the US and DQ, UAE, Lt Gen Bajwa said that facts and figures were fully documented.

    He insisted that Bajco Global Management, LLC did not have any ownership interest in any Papa John’s in the USA, DQ, UAE or any real estate.

    READ: ‘Who is this Mr Bajwa you are talking about?’ NAB DG on alleged assets of Lt Gen (r) Asim Bajwa’s family

    “The author further makes a false claim that Bajco owns 99 companies. The author has listed many companies multiple times on his list. There is a total of 27 active companies in the US and two in the UAE,” he said.

    “For eighteen years, the actual out of pocket cash investment into the said businesses by my brothers and wife has been about US$73,950/-. It is further pointed out that out of US $73,950/-, my wife’s contribution, as stated aforesaid, is US$19,492/-. Thus, the total out of pocket cash contribution of my five brothers, for eighteen years, has been US$54,458/-,” Lt Gen Bajwa added.

    He added that the cash contributions of $54,458 by his five brothers were fully accounted for and traceable to their sources. He further said that apart from his five brothers and his wife, the businesses have at least 50 other investors. He maintained that any further investments were a result of profits generated from the business, while also mentioning the various qualifications of his five brothers as a source of income.

    “One question that may be underscored is whether three persons who have worked in the US up to the positions of a Vice President in a US Bank, a Controller in a restaurant operating company, and as an operating partner of a restaurant; and two persons having worked as doctors, would not be able to save US$54,458/-,” argued Lt Gen Bajwa.

    Responding to the allegations made about businesses of his children, he said that the company Scion Builders and Estates (Pvt.) Ltd owned by his sons and registered in the SECP had never done any business and same is dormant since inception. He said the same about other businesses owned by his sons, namely Advance Marketing (Pvt.) Ltd, Scion Natura LLC, and Mochi Cordwainers.

    READ: ‘Lt Gen (r) Asim Bajwa to issue clarification on report linking military career to family’s businesses’

    Regarding an allegation about a house owned by his son’s Scion Management Group LLC, he asserted that the house was only 31,000 and had been bought by his sons through their independent resources in “cheap foreclosure proceedings”.

    “Baseless allegations have been levelled that a business entity of my two brothers by the name of Silkline Enterprises (Pvt.) Ltd has been formed to acquire CPEC contracts. It may be stated that this company has never acquired any CPEC contract. This company is in Rahim Yar Khan and has only provided labour/human resources to industries in Rahim Yar Khan region,” he added.

    He said that one of his sons owns a house in the USA but it has been acquired through a mortgage in the manner that 80 per cent of loan/mortgage remains unpaid.

    “This again is a small time-house. All my sons are above 18 years and none are my dependents. Masha’Allah their ages are 33, 32 and 27 years respectively. It shall be noted that my sons completed their business degrees from reputable universities in the United States and have had well-paying jobs,” concluded the retired general.

    On August 27, a website known as Fact Focus published a story, claiming that Lt Gen Bajwa’s family had set up 99 companies in four countries, including a pizza franchise with 133 restaurants.

    The website further claimed that Lt Gen (r) Bajwa’s wife was a “shareholder” in at least 86 companies. Of them, 71 were set up in the US, seven in the UAE and four in Canada.

    The rebuttal followed the statement of Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Shibli Faraz, who had earlier this week said that Bajwa will soon be issuing a clarification on the news report.

    Bajwa had earlier called the report a “malicious propaganda story”.

    The story had been called an attack on CPEC by the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).