Tag: home-politics

  • Fazl offered ‘tempting political package’ to call off Azadi March

    Fazl offered ‘tempting political package’ to call off Azadi March

    Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has rejected a “tempting political package” offered to call off his upcoming anti-government ‘Azadi March’, The Current learnt Saturday.

    The right-wing political party leader and a vocal critic of Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, has announced taking to the roads of the capital on October 31 against the incumbent government’s “selection to power” after “fake election”.

    With the announcement stirring up the country’s dormant political scene overnight and forcing the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to devise a counter-strategy against the challenge, sources have informed The Current of a covert offer recently made to Fazl.

    “Maulana [Fazl] was offered a tempting political package to call off his upcoming protest,” they said.

    Refusing to answer this scribe’s queries pertaining to the details of the offer, sources said that while some leaders had urged the JUI-F chief to consider it, others, including Fazl himself, were against striking any deals and his refusal had also led to “threats from certain quarters”.

    “But the threats didn’t deter him, in fact, he is more determined than ever. The main reason behind his determination remains the fact that the people trying to convince him have backstabbed him in the past.”

    “This is why Fazl has now told the people urging him to call off the march to fulfil their promises first,” sources added.

    To a question pertaining to the motive behind the offer, they said, “Maybe the ruling party fears that opposition will resort to actions similar to those carried out by its workers and leaders during its infamous 126-day siege led by Imran [Khan].”

    “But Maulana has clarified that it will be a peaceful campaign as he doesn’t want any clashes with state institutions.”

    Sources also quoted Fazl as saying that he was ready to join hands with any political leader except PM Imran. “Maulana told this to a close aide of the premier because he believes Imran has made their rivalry a personal one,” they said, adding that PTI government’s actions towards the JUI-F chief and his companions had also played a major role in it.

    ‘NO COMPROMISES NOW’:

    Speaking to The Current, Fazl’s brother and JUI-F Senator Attaur Rehman said that the party had given the federal government an August deadline to step down some three months back, but the warning wasn’t taken seriously.

    “Fazl had demanded Imran Khan to step down or be ready for a long march to Islamabad. Now we’re all set for it,” he said.

    Adding that he was not aware of any offers being made to his party chief, Rehman further said that the government had lost its chance to strike a deal. “We won’t make any compromises now.”

    AZADI MARCH:

    Voicing his concerns against the alleged rigging that marred the country’s last general election, Fazl has announced staging a sit-in at D-Chowk in the federal capital’s red zone — the same place where Imran had demonstrated for five months against then PM Nawaz Sharif in 2014.

    Fazl was earlier approached by leaders of the two major opposition parties — Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) — and requested to postpone the lockdown plan and Azadi March till November, but he has made it clear that it was not his individual decision and he was obliged to stand by that of JUI-F’s Central Working Committee.

    The march — earlier scheduled for October 27 — will now be held three days later on October 31 as according to Fazl, his party would now join Kashmiris in observing the previously announced date as black day in protest against the Indian occupation of Jammu and Kashmir.

  • VIDEO: Sheikh Rasheed claims discussing ‘nuclear attack’ with ISPR chief

    VIDEO: Sheikh Rasheed claims discussing ‘nuclear attack’ with ISPR chief

    Federal Minister for Railways Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed has claimed having discussed with Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major General Asif Ghafoor what “fireworks” to use and when.

    “In Beijing, I told [the] ISPR DG that I wittingly made the statement regarding the use of quarter or half kilogram fireworks when the time comes,” he said while speaking to journalists on Saturday.

    The minister had earlier warned India that Pakistan “even has small nuclear bombs weighing 125-250 grams”, which can hit and destroy targeted areas.

    “We know if we want to use our 1-inch, 2-inch or half an inch [atomic bombs],” the minister had said last month, leaving netizens all cracked up.

    “My information is more accurate than most of the people… and Pakistan doesn’t want war. But I stand by my words that it would be the last war. I told Asif Ghafoor that I understand better as to what is to be said in public,” he said Saturday.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    He further said that the nation cannot remain silent while Indian atrocities continue in held Kashmir. “We’re standing with Kashmiris. Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan is standing with Kashmiris and so are the country’s armed forces.”

    “India committed two blunders. The first one was carrying out atomic explosions while presuming that Pakistan would not do so and secondly, it scrapped special status of Kashmir on August 5 this year, believing Kashmiris won’t react”, the minister had said last month.

    His statements had come as tensions started to soar on either side of the border ever since New Delhi on August 5 revoked Article 370 of the Indian constitution, robbing the people of the troubled valley of their autonomous state.

    India has since kept Kashmir under lockdown.

  • ‘PTI illegally amassed $3 million from offshore firms in 2014,’ founding member

    ‘PTI illegally amassed $3 million from offshore firms in 2014,’ founding member

    A founding member of the Pakistan Tehreeke Insaf (PTI) party, Akbar S. Babar, had filed a case in 2014, alleging that the party had collected nearly $3 million in illegal foreign funds through two offshore companies, Dawn reported.

    Akbar alleged that money was sent through illegal ‘hundi’ channels from the Middle East to certain accounts of “PTI employees” and that the foreign accounts used to collect the funds were not mentioned in the annual audit reports submitted to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

    For investigation in this matter, a scrutiny committee was formed in March last year to complete an audit of PTI’s funding sources in one month. Its mandate was later extended for an indefinite period.

    After the beginning of the probe, PTI submitted four applications to the ECP seeking secrecy during the scrutiny of its foreign funding sources.

    However, the ECP rejected all four applications of PTI and instructed the scrutiny committee to continue its work and instructed PTI representatives to appear before the committee on Oct 14.

    Foreign Funding Case

    Akbar S. Babar had filed the foreign funding case before the ECP in 2014 after he developed differences with PTI Chairman Imran Khan over alleged internal corruption and abuse of laws governing political funding.

    For over a year, the proceedings of the case were delayed in the ECP as the PTI had filed a writ petition in October 2015 in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking to restrain the ECP from scrutinising its accounts.

    Later in February 2017, the IHC had remanded the case back to the ECP for a fresh review of its jurisdiction. On May 8 of the same year, a full bench of the ECP had once again declared its complete jurisdiction over the matter and stated that the PTI had failed to produce any evidence that the petitioner had been expelled from the party and hence lost the right to question the PTI’s accounts.

    In March 2018, a scrutiny panel had been formed to look into PTI’s foreign funding accounts to search for any wrongdoing.

  • Warned Nawaz against fighting establishment, but he didn’t listen: Shehbaz

    Warned Nawaz against fighting establishment, but he didn’t listen: Shehbaz

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Shehbaz Sharif has criticised his elder brother and jailed former prime minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif “for picking fights with the establishment and not paying heed to his advice”, SamaaTV reported.

    Reports quoted Shehbaz as saying at a party meeting on Thursday that he had told Nawaz during his last stint “to stop fighting with the establishment and serve the people”.

    “[I] advised him [Nawaz] to not remove General (r) Jahangir Karamat and General (r) Pervez Musharraf as army chiefs, but my brother didn’t listen.”

    “Tayyip Erdogan had served his country for 15 years, that’s why people came out in his support [and foiled the coup]”, he said, adding that if the PML-N government had completed another two or three terms, people would have come out in their support as well.

    “We suffered major losses at a crucial time because my brother didn’t listen to me,” Shehbaz said further.

    “I also advised him against joining the Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl’s (JUI-F) Azadi March later this month. We cannot fight and always end up hurting ourselves.”

    SHARIF BROTHERS DIVIDED:

    However, Nawaz while speaking to reporters during his hearing at an accountability court in Lahore on Friday said that he fully supported the forthcoming JUI-F rally against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

    “Our viewpoint is the same as that of Maulana [Fazlur Rehman],” the former premier said.

    He recalled that Rehman had called for resignations and protest after the 2018 general elections and added, “But [now] I feel that his argument was solid.”

    “Not paying heed to Maulana’s call for the march would be a mistake,” he said.

    “I have already written a letter to Shehbaz in this regard, detailing the future course of action of the party and the PML-N president would brief the media soon.”

  • ISPR chief defends Indian pooja of new jet, trolls neighbours for their ‘incompetence’

    ISPR chief defends Indian pooja of new jet, trolls neighbours for their ‘incompetence’

    With India finally receiving the first unit of Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Rafale fighter jet from France, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) chief Major General Asif Ghafoor has defended Indian defence minister’s “weapon worship”, but also trolled the neighbours for their incompetence.

    The French-made aircraft was acquired by the IAF at a handover ceremony in Merignac where Defence Minister Rajnath Singh performed “shastra pooja” on Rafale.

    The act was severely criticised by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BRP) rival Indian National Congress (INC) as opposition leaders questioned the Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi-led government for “saffronising” the handover.

    With Pakistani Twitterati also taking to the microblogging site to call out their neighbours over Singh’s move, the ISPR chief has said that there was nothing wrong in it.

    “Nothing wrong in #RafalePuja as it goes by the religion and that must be respected [sic],” Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor wrote.

    He, however, also trolled Indians over their incompetence in words that appeared to be hinting at the aerial standoff between airforces of the two countries from earlier this year.

    “Please remember… it’s not the machine alone which matters but competence, passion & resolve of the men handling that machine. Proud of our PAF [Pakistan Air Force] Shaheens. #PAFtheMenAtTheirBest [sic].”

  • Textile industry marks record growth after 10 years

    Textile industry marks record growth after 10 years

    The textile industry in Pakistan has achieved a record increase of 26% growth in quantitative terms after 10 years, according to a statement issued by All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA).

    APTMA states that the growth did not directly reflect in dollar amounts due to a substantial worldwide decrease in textile prices, however, if this growth in quantity had not been achieved the exports would have been less than $ 8.5 billion as the international prices have now recovered.

    Further records reveal that the profits of companies were over 5% and that the companies have posted a turnover of $ 16 billion out of which $ 13.3 billion was exported and $ 2.8 billion were sold in the domestic market.

    The industry has contributed a total of Rs40 billion to the exchequer through income tax as well as various other indirect taxes and levies of over Rs 35 billion.

    As a result of the profits posted, the industry has strong balance sheets and an equity fund of $ 1 billion earned directly from the international market. These funds can be leveraged to invest at least $ 4 billion in the next year alone.

  • Nawaz’s assets jumped from Rs2.7 million to Rs1.8 billion in 20 years of politics: report

    Nawaz’s assets jumped from Rs2.7 million to Rs1.8 billion in 20 years of politics: report

    Ousted prime minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif’s assets jumped from Rs2.7 million to Rs1.82 billion in twenty years of his political career from 1993 to 2013, media reports have revealed.

    As per the details, Nawaz owned assets worth Rs 261.6 million in 2012, but that saw a six-fold increase and reached Rs 1.82 billion in 2013 — the first year of his third stint as the country’s chief executive, making him a declared billionaire for the first time.

    His assets in 2014 crossed the Rs2 billion-mark, but in 2015 declined slightly to Rs1.96 billion. Earlier in 2011, he owned assets worth Rs166m.

    According to the statements of assets of lawmakers, released by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in 2017, the value of his assets further declined to Rs1.72 billion in the year that ended on June 30, 2016.

    The former premier, however, only owned assets worth Rs2.7 million by the year 1993, media reports said.

    Citing the details submitted to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) in the assets beyond known sources of income and money laundering cases against the Sharif family, a private media outlet claimed that Nawaz’s total assets in 1986 stood at a bit over Rs0.13 million.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    The assets kept on increasing over the years, the report said, adding that Nawaz’s assets rose by only Rs23,319 in 1986. “According to FBR records, the same swelled by Rs98,588 in 1987.”

    These assets also included those owned by his children, the report claimed.

  • Azadi March: PML-N asks PTI govt to provide container, tents and biryani

    Azadi March: PML-N asks PTI govt to provide container, tents and biryani

    A lawmaker of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has submitted in the Punjab Assembly a resolution demanding a container, tents and biryani from the government for Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl’s (JUI-F) forthcoming Azadi Marchi.

    “Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan had promised giving opposition parties a container, tents and biryani for their sit-in after his election as the country’s chief executive,” PML-N’s Uzma Bukhari stated in the resolution submitted to the secretariat of the provincial house.

    Speaking to journalists earlier this year, the premier had said if the opposition wanted to stage a protest, his government was “ready to provide them a container at D-Chowk”.

    “We [the now ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf] staged a sit-in for 126 days, let’s see for how many days can the opposition protest,” he had said, challenging his rivals to launch a movement.

    The resolution in the Punjab Assembly comes after JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s announcement to set out on a long march against the government on October 31, which will culminate in the capital, where the party also plans to hold a sit-in.

    With Fazl repeatedly reminding the government of its promise to provide the protesters with said facilities, the resolution by the PML-N leader has also demanded the same.

  • World Bank to give $10 million to help solve Karachi’s waste problem

    World Bank to give $10 million to help solve Karachi’s waste problem

    The World Bank (WB), on the recommendation of Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Murad Ali Shah, has allocated $10 million to help solve Karachi’s garbage problem through the Sindh Solid Waste Management Authority (SSWMA), Profit reported.

    According to the details, the allocated amount will be used for capacity building, technical expertise and construction of a new landfill site for the SSWMA.

    CM Murad held a meeting with an eight-member WB delegation on Wednesday, where he said, “It is a new organisation and would definitely take time to achieve expertise, but even then there is a dire need to operate in a scientific manner and make it a leading SWM organisation in the country.”

    At this, WB Global Director Dr Dameh said that in Karachi Neighbourhood Improvement Programme (KNIP) there was a provision for solid waste management and agreed to help in solving the city’s waste problem.

    The provincial chief executive also said that he was keen to develop a most modern and environment-friendly landfill site on the outskirts of the city.

    “This landfill site must be equipped with all the necessary machinery, gadgets, equipment and technical staff and useful for power generation,” he added.

    Moreover, on the request of the CM, the World Bank agreed to construct a landfill site over an area of 500 acres in the outskirts of the city for which the government would provide land.

  • Breakthrough expected on Kashmir during PM Khan’s Saudi visit: report

    Breakthrough expected on Kashmir during PM Khan’s Saudi visit: report

    A breakthrough on Kashmir is expected during Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to Saudi Arabia.

    According to Geo News, the major development will happen during PM Khan’s meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman.

    As per a Foreign Office schedule, PM Khan is expected to leave for Saudi Arabia on October 29 on a two-day official visit to attend Future Investment Initiative Conference on the invitation of King Salman. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also be attending the conference which will take place in Riyadh.

    PM Khan has been vocally raising the matter of Kashmir ever since the Modi-led government revoked the special status granted to Indian occupied Kashmir on August 5. He also highlighted Indian atrocities in the occupied territory while addressing the United Nations General Assembly session in September.

    Meanwhile, PM Imran is also expected to visit Iran this month to mediate between Riyadh and Tehran.