Tag: home-politics

  • Sheikh Rasheed calls Naeemul Haque ‘sick’ for criticising VIP culture

    Sheikh Rasheed calls Naeemul Haque ‘sick’ for criticising VIP culture

    Federal Minister for Railways Sheikh Rasheed has called Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s close aide Naeemul Haque “sick” for criticising VIP culture and ministers who “have police squads accompanying them”.

    “Naeemul Haque is sick. Pray for him,” Rasheed said when asked to comment over PM’s special assistant on political affairs’ remarks during a press conference on Saturday.

    Earlier, Haque had tweeted to criticise protocol being used by VIPs and ministers.

    “A large number of VIPs and ministers are still promoting VIP culture by having police squads accompany them everywhere,” he had said, adding that it was against the directives of the premier.

    “Police squads are allowed to only those who face a real threat to their lives. This practice must stop.”

    The war of words is being termed as another episode of the tussle that is allegedly continuing between elected and non-elected members of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

    Elected members, including Federal Minister Fawad Chaudhry, have time and again expressed their concerns over the “interference of non-elected members in affairs of different ministries”.

  • Indian anchor claims ‘aliens behind IAF aircraft disappearance’

    Indian anchor claims ‘aliens behind IAF aircraft disappearance’

    The mystery of Indian Air Force’s (IAF) missing AN-32 transport aircraft has taken a rather comical turn as an Indian anchor has said that “extraterrestrials may be behind its disappearance”.

    As per the details, search is still on for the plane that went missing near the India-China border in Arunachal Pradesh last week with 13 people on board.

    With Indian media starting to criticise the government for failing to trace the aircraft despite using all-out resources, a new theory has claimed possible alien abduction.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    On Saturday, IAF had announced a reward of Rs500,000 to anyone providing information about the missing transport aircraft.

    Indian authorities have launched a massive search operation to locate the disappeared plane but to no avail so far.

  • India: Govt meeting disrupted after porn video plays on big screen

    India: Govt meeting disrupted after porn video plays on big screen

    A meeting of top Indian government officials was disrupted after a pornographic video clip played for at least two minutes at the Rajasthan State Secretariat, Independent reported.

    As per the details, the meeting, which took place last week, was being chaired by Food Department Secretary Mugdha Singh at a room in the state government headquarters in Jaipur.

    “In the middle of the video conference, an obscene clip started playing on the big screen. I immediately called the director and asked him to probe the matter and give a report on this,” Singh told the Press Trust of India (PTI).

    She said that 10 people, including department officials and representatives from the National Information Centre (NIC) of India, were present in the room while some 33 other officers were participating in the meeting through a video-link.

    “We were reviewing different schemes when out of nowhere lewd sounds and images popped up on one of the laptops hooked up to the video call,” Singh said.

    As the IT team rushed to the meeting room, officials sat red-faced. The initial inquiry revealed that some “privately owned laptops were used for the conference”, PTI reported.

    One of the laptops accidentally started playing the clip and the footage was projected on the giant screen until the technical team managed to stop it.

    “We’ve launched an investigation into the incident. Whoever is responsible will be found and taken to task,” NIC senior technical director has been quoted as saying.

  • VIDEO: ‘Hand govt over to Popalzai so Peshawar metro can be completed’, KP minister roasted

    VIDEO: ‘Hand govt over to Popalzai so Peshawar metro can be completed’, KP minister roasted

    Ruete Hilal Committee chief Mufti Muneebur Rehman has roasted the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government for seeking Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai’s appointment in his place so as to “end the moon-sighting controversy”.

    Popalzai is an Islamic cleric and head of the private moon-sighting committee at the historic Qasim Ali Khan Mosque in Peshawar.

    With his announcement on Monday that the moon of Shawwal had been sighted in KP and Eidul Fitr will be celebrated on June 4, Provincial Information Minister Shaukat Yousafzai suggested Popalzai’s appointment as the moon-sighting committee chairman, replacing Muneeb “to end the controversy”.

    “Eid is celebrated on one day all over Pakistan except a certain area of KP. We should stop this from happening. Mufti Popalzai has claimed to have sighted the moon and his claims have proven to be true a few times,” Yousafzai said.

    He added that Mufti Muneeb “should be rested for a while and Mufti Popalzai should be made the head of the moon-sighting committee”.

    Reacting to the statements, Mufti Muneeb said that Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai can’t be enrolled in the government, but the “government can be given under his control”.

    “Then everything that faces delay can be done beforehand. 24 hours before the deadline,” he said.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    “The Peshawar metro project undertaken by the KP government should be given under Poplazai’s supervision so that it can meet timely success,” he said with implied sarcasm.

    The federal government has already announced that according to the Met Office, the moon will be sighted in the country on Tuesday and eid will be celebrated on Wednesday (June 5).

  • ‘PM Imran leaves Shah Mahmood Qureshi behind on Saudi Arabia trip’

    ‘PM Imran leaves Shah Mahmood Qureshi behind on Saudi Arabia trip’

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, who reached Saudi Arabia to attend the 14th Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit in Makkah last week, reportedly left his foreign minister (FM), Shah Mahmood Qureshi, behind.

    According to journalist Azaz Syed, FM Qureshi was left behind after “he was barred from boarding PM Imran’s special flight due to lack of space”.

    “The FM had to make alternate arrangements,” the journalist claimed in a tweet which has not yet received an official reaction.

    While sources have also confirmed the episode to The Current, they clarified that the FM wasn’t offloaded, but told beforehand to arrange his own trip since there wasn’t enough space in the premier’s aircraft.

    Earlier, a meeting of the OIC countries’ foreign ministers preceded the heads of states session to finalise the draft for ‘Makkah Memo’ that was presented and approved at the conference.

    FM Qureshi represented Pakistan at the meeting after managing to reach the Kingdom on time.

    The summit convenes every three years to make decisions about how to confront and contain conflicts and crises in Muslim-majority countries. This year, the conference focused on challenges faced by the Muslim community as it enters a new era with the aim to reach a unified stance.

    ‘WIDENING RIFT IN PTI’:

    The journalist’s claim regarding the FM being left behind comes two days after Federal Minister for Science & Technology Fawad Chaudhry hinted at a “cold war going on within the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)”.

    In an interview to a private media outlet, Fawad had mentioned interference of non-elected people in the affairs of the government. “At times, some important decisions are taken and we don’t even know. I still believe that we have some political weaknesses in decision-making,” he had said.

    FM Qureshi had earlier made headlines after an exchange of heated arguments with PM Imran’s close aide and former PTI secretary general, disqualified Jahangir Khan Tareen.

  • ‘Important decisions are made without us knowing’, Fawad loses it during TV interview

    ‘Important decisions are made without us knowing’, Fawad loses it during TV interview

    Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry, who was sacked by Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan as the information minister in April, has broken silence on the alleged rift widening within the government.

    “At times, some important decisions are taken and we don’t even know. I still believe that we have some political weaknesses in decision-making,” he said during an interview to a private media outlet.

    Earlier, sources had informed The Current that tensions are about to reach the boiling point within the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) as a cold war continues between elected and non-elected people in the government.

    Fawad too was replaced by non-elected Firdous Ashiq Awan, who was handed the reins of the Information Ministry in the capacity of special assistant to the PM (SAPM) on information and broadcasting.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    The former information minister, however, wasn’t the only one to be sacked as part of the major cabinet reshuffle. The then finance minister Asad Umar was also replaced by another non-elected member, SAPM for Finance Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh.

    Hinting at the war going on within the ruling party, Fawad said that “non-elected people had the power to change portfolios of ministers”.

    “As I have maintained before, there were too many people trying to manage it [Information Ministry],” he said and added that one can’t do much when so many people are involved.

    “Your real strength is the parliament and the elected people, and you cannot leave them,” Fawad said. “You’re not going to redo the party and hand it over to those who have not even been a councillor.”

  • Malaysian PM proposes freeing East Asia of US dollar for trade

    Malaysian PM proposes freeing East Asia of US dollar for trade

    Malaysian prime minister (PM) has said that East Asia should consider a common regional trading currency to promote commerce and free the region from relying on dollar transactions, a private media outlet reported Thursday.

    According to reports, Mahathir Bin Mohamad said the proposed currency could be used for regional trade, but would not replace national currencies for use at the domestic level.

    “In the Far East if you want to come together, we should start with a common trading currency, not to be used locally, but for the purpose of settling of trade,” he was quoted as saying.

    “At the moment, we have to depend upon the United States (US) dollar but it is also not stable. So the currency that we propose should be based on gold as it is much more stable.”

    Mahathir, who is serving his second term in office, has a reputation of being a financial maverick.

  • Fayyazul Hassan Chohan appointed Punjab govt’s spokesperson

    Fayyazul Hassan Chohan appointed Punjab govt’s spokesperson

    In a rather shocking development, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MPA and former Punjab information minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan has been appointed as the provincial government’s mouthpiece.

    Chohan was removed as the provincial information minister following his derogatory remarks against Hindus in March this year.

    Taking notice, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan had said, “There is no place for such derogatory remarks against minorities in Islam.”

    However, according to a notification dated May 28, 2019, a copy of which is available with The Current, Chohan has now been appointed as one of the 38 spokespersons of the Usman Buzdar-led Punjab government.

    Punjab Information Minister Sumsam Ali Shah, PM’s Special Assistant Usman Dar, PTI Information Secretary Omer Sarfraz Cheema, Punjab Law Minister Raja Basharat among others have also been notified as the provincial government’s spokespersons.

  • PM Imran Khan proposes death penalty as law for raping kids

    PM Imran Khan proposes death penalty as law for raping kids

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has proposed that death penalty be fixed for all those involved in child sexual abuse cases, a private media outlet quoted PM’s Special Adviser on Information Firdous Ashiq Awan as saying.

    She said that the premier, during a meeting of the federal cabinet on Tuesday, expressed concern over the rise in misuse of internet for child pornography and subsequent increase in incidents of child sexual abuse.

    “He [PM Imran] addressed the ministries of human rights, law and interior in detail and gave them the responsibility of analysing the existing juvenile laws regarding sexual exploitation, rape of children and other violent behaviours,” she said.

    Awan added that all three ministries have been instructed to prepare an implementation plan and bring it before the cabinet so that the growing menace can be curbed with an effective law besides a mechanism of deterrence and awareness.

    CHILD ABUSE IN PAKISTAN:

    A recent minor rape and murder case is of 10-year-old Farishta, who was abducted from Islamabad earlier this month. The culprits are still at large, while at least two police officials have been arrested for negligence on PM Imran’s orders.

    According to a report released by NGO Sahil last month, cases of child abuse increased by 11 per cent in 2018 as compared to 2017, with more than 10 children suffering from some form of abuse every day in Pakistan.

    Last year had begun with the horrific rape and murder of six-year-old Zainab Ansari, sparking widespread outrage and protests across the country after the minor’s body was found in a trash heap in Kasur on January 9.

    ‘#JusticeforZainab’ became a rallying cry for an end to violence against children and Imran Ali, who was convicted for the rape and murder, was executed nine months after the child’s death.

  • Blasphemy accusations against Hindu doctor lead to violence in Sindh

    Blasphemy accusations against Hindu doctor lead to violence in Sindh

    A Hindu veterinary doctor has been arrested over blasphemy accusations in the Mirpurkhas district of Sindh.

    According to reports, Ramesh Kumar was taken into custody on Monday while angry protesters burnt tyres to block roads and set ablaze shops owned by Hindus in the Phuladyon town of the city.

    Reports quoted Zahid Hussain Leghari, the Station House Officer (SHO) of the local police station, as saying that a case was registered against the doctor.

    He added that a proper investigation would be carried out and the doctor had been shifted to a safe location amid all the unrest.

    https://twitter.com/timesofpak123/status/1132965562852810754?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1132965562852810754&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indiatoday.in%2Fworld%2Fstory%2Fpakistan-hindu-doctor-blasphemy-charges-mirpurkhas-violence-1536222-2019-05-28

    Earlier, the head cleric of a local mosque, Maulvi Ishaq Nohri, had filed the complaint with the police alleging that the doctor had torn pages of a holy book and wrapped medicines in them.

    “I urge the government to intervene and ensure the safety of Hindu Sindhis who have lived peacefully here for centuries,” said Facebook user Syma Jafri.

    “Also, action must be taken against those who initiated these riots and incited violence. There is a proper lawful procedure for such cases. How can we think of killing someone, especially when it’s Youme Ali,” she added.

    Being 7.5 million in number, Hindus form the biggest minority community in the country. Pakistan Hindu Council has time and again complained of minority members being “targeted under the blasphemy law by people because of personal enmity”.

    According to Center for Social Justice, at least 1,490 people have been charged under the country’s blasphemy laws between 1987 and 2018.