Tag: Lahore

  • ‘Workers ko kaha hai ke Imran Khan ko dekh kar gharri chor, Toshakhana chor ke naray lagaayein’: Rana Sanaullah

    Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah has said that he has instructed his party workers to “chant slogans of gharri chor (watch stealer) and Toshakhana chor,” whenever they see Imran Khan, Chairman of their rival party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

    During an appearance on Geo News’ programme “Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath,” the federal minister said: “He is the biggest thief, the most corrupt. Mei nay apnay workers ko kaha hai yeh [Imran Khan] aap ko jahan bhi nazar aye, gharri chor aur Toshkhana chor ke narey is ke khilaf lagaye jain.” (I have told my workers that whenever they see him [Imran Khan], they should chant ‘watch thief’ and ‘Toshkhana thief’ slogans against him.)

    On Thursday, Khan was heckled with gharri chor chants within the vicinity of the civil courts in the provincial capital of Punjab.

    The federal minister was of the view that Khan should feel pain when such slogans are raised against him. “He only knows the politics of hate as he calls his opponents thieves and continues his loose talk against them”, said Sanaullah.

    He also hinted towards the possibility of negotiations between the government and PTI over the election date. He said both parties could find a middle way.

    Moreover, Sanaullah claimed that Imran Khan wants to be the establishment’s ladla (favourite) again, however, he added that the establishment won’t agree to it.

    About the long march, the minister said, “Imran Khan has no popularity, it is all propaganda”. He also warned that PTI will face difficulties if they try to enter secure areas.

  • Khan announces establishing journalism university in Arshad Sharif’s name

    Khan announces establishing journalism university in Arshad Sharif’s name

    Imran Khan, the Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has announced the establishment of a journalism university in Punjab in the name of slain journalist Arshad Sharif.

    Addressing participants in his long march in Lahore, Khan announced the plan of establishing the university. He said that the name of the university will be “Arshad Sharif Shaheed University of Journalism”.

    The PTI has also dedicated its long march to Arshad Sharif and the media fraternity.

    The party continued paying tribute to Arshad Sharif by displaying a banner in Lahore which read: “Pakistani ki Haqeeqi Azadi ka shaheed (The martyr of Pakistan’s true freedom).”

    Arshad Sharif, a renowned journalist and television anchor, was shot dead by Kenyan police near Nairobi on October 23, Khan has claimed that Arshad was a victim of a targeted killing. The former Prime Minister has said that he himself warned the newsman that his life was under threat.

    Khan further said Arshad Sharif was the journalist he respected the most, using the term “martyred” for the late television host.

  • Lahore police initiates crackdown against professional beggars

    Lahore police initiates crackdown against professional beggars

    On the orders of Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Lahore, Additional IG Ghulam Mahmood Dogar, special squads of the Lahore Police have started a crackdown against habitual and professional beggars in an effort to free the provincial capital of this annoyance.

    In keeping with its campaign against professional panhandlers, Lahore Police has so far detained 254 panhandlers, comprising 249 men and 5 women, from various parts of the city in cooperation with the Punjab Child Protection and Welfare Bureau (PCPWB) and other relevant agencies.

    While adult addict beggars were admitted to rehabilitation wards of relevant institutions chosen by the government in this regard, Lahore Police turned over the children beggars to the PCPWB.

    In accordance with the “Anti Beggary Act,” Lahore Police have so far this year detained 3,681 professional beggars, comprising 3,518 men and 150 women, and have filed 3,623 cases against them at various police stations throughout the city.

    As a result, during the crackdown, the Model Town division police detained 640 beggars while the City division police arrested 763, the Cantt division 546, the Civil Lines division police 425, the Iqbal Town division 546, and the Sadar division 701 beggars. Beggars who obstruct traffic at intersections and traffic signals have been the subject of separate action by the city traffic police, according to The News.

    According to the CCPO of Lahore, all divisional SsP have been given the unique responsibility of apprehending professional, falsely disabled, and regular beggars because the majority of them have criminal histories yet pose as beggars. Traffic police officers have been working with Lahore police special units to combat organised crime groups and professional begging.

  • Air Quality: Lahore is the most polluted city in the world right now

    Air Quality: Lahore is the most polluted city in the world right now

    Lahore on Monday topped the list of the most polluted cities in the world with the worst air quality levels on the globe.

    Karachi is second on the list while India’s New Delhi is third on IQAir.

    Lahore was measured to have 172 Unhealthy particulate matter and Karachi had 106 particulate matter, according to the air quality index.

    The numbers keep changing.

    As per United States Environmental protection agency, a hazardous category indicates an AQI of 301–500. The ‘good’ category is 0–50, which is followed by ‘moderate’ at 51–100 while anything in the 101–301 AQI range is considered unhealthy.

  • Court suspends Rana Sanaullah’s arrest warrant

    Court suspends Rana Sanaullah’s arrest warrant

    The Lahore High Court (LHC) has suspended Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah’s arrest warrant today (Friday) in an inquiry related to the purchase of plots in a housing society. The court also stopped the Punjab Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) from arresting the minister and raiding his house.

    According to Adviser to Punjab Chief Minister for Anti-Corruption, retired Brigadier Musaddiq Abbasi, Sanaullah had taken two plots as a “bribe” from an “illegal housing society” known as the Bismillah Housing Scheme in Chakwal district.

    The court has sought case record from ACE by October 17.

    On October 10, an ACE team said that they couldn’t arrest the minister because Islamabad police didnt cooperate with them.

    Earlier, a judicial magistrate issued a non-bailable arrest warrant for the federal minister over his non-appearance in an anti-corruption inquiry.

  • FIA says no money was directly deposited into PM Shehbaz, Hamza’s accounts

    FIA says no money was directly deposited into PM Shehbaz, Hamza’s accounts

    The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) informed a special court in Lahore that no money was “directly deposited” into the bank accounts of Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif and his son, Hamza Shehbaz, in a Rs16 billion money laundering case.

    On Tuesday, the court was told that PM Shehbaz could not appear due to official engagements and requested an exemption for a day. However, Hamza appeared in court.

    Answering questions raised by the judge today, FIA’s prosecutor informed the court that Malik Maqsood – the deceased key figure in the money laundering case – had been operating eight bank accounts and that all details had been mentioned in the challan submitted before the court.

    FIA’s prosecutor, Farooq Bajwa, further argued that the record shows that neither the amounts had ever been deposited nor withdrawn from PM Shehbaz Sharif or from his son Hamza’s bank accounts.

    Hamza’s counsel argued that there is no allegation of kickbacks on the accused persons. He added that the investigation was carried out before the political situation changed and the statements were recorded on political bases.

    Earlier this month, the FIA had given a clean chit to PM Shehbaz and Hamza Shehbaz in this case, saying there was no direct evidence against them in the case.

    The case:

    In 2021, FIA submitted a challan against Shehbaz and Hamza to the special court for their alleged involvement in laundering Rs16 billion in a sugar scam.

    The report added that the amount was kept in “hidden accounts” and “given to Shehbaz in a personal capacity”.

    At the time, FIA had said that the amount of Rs16 billion has nothing to do with the sugar business of Shehbaz’s family. The money allegedly received from the accounts of low-wage employees was transferred outside Pakistan, ultimately destined for the beneficial use of his family members.

  • Uber ceases operations in 5 Pakistani cities

    Uber ceases operations in 5 Pakistani cities

    According to a statement released by Uber on Tuesday, it has stopped operating in Karachi, Multan, Faisalabad, Peshawar, and Islamabad.

    A statement on the company’s website says, “Uber is dedicated to Pakistan. We will continue to serve these five cities via our subsidiary brand Careem and continue to run the Uber app in Lahore.”

    Uber will keep providing its services in Lahore while also introducing new products to “help earners through these challenging times.”

    It declared that it would inform its customers and business partners in the five locations of how to use and seamlessly switch to Careem.

    “When we acquired Careem, it was always our belief that the two companies could come together to complement each other’s strengths and better serve the region through tailored experiences,” the statement added.

    According to Dawn, the company said it was aware this was a “difficult time” for its teams, which had “worked incredibly hard to build this business over the past few years”.

    “We greatly appreciate everyone’s contributions and our priority is to minimise the impact on our employees, drivers, riders, and Hero partners who use the Uber app during this change in Karachi, Islamabad, Faisalabad, Multan and Peshawar,” the statement reads.

    Uber finalised the $3.1 billion acquisition of rival Careem in 2020. At the time, it was said that Careem and Uber will continue to operate as distinct businesses and provide their own regional services.

    By the time the purchase was completed, Uber had acquired Careem’s mobility, delivery, and payments operations throughout the larger Middle East, including its key markets in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates.

  • Lahore man puts 13-year-old iPhone 3GS for sale for Rs300,000

    Lahore man puts 13-year-old iPhone 3GS for sale for Rs300,000

    An iPhone 3GS that is still in brand-new condition and functions beautifully has been placed for sale by a Lahore man on the local OLX classifieds website in Pakistan.

    It is important to note that the iPhone 3GS was introduced in June 2009, and obtaining an iPhone in functioning condition is practically miraculous given that the majority of models have long since become obsolete and the firm has stopped sending updates for many years.

    Given how uncommon it is to come across an old iPhone like the 3GS, the seller has set a high asking price of Rs300,000.

    It’s interesting to note that the seller even stated that he would only accept an exchange offer for the newest iPhone 13 pro max PTA approved, which now sells for more than Rs300,000 in the Pakistani market. Additionally, the vendor said that this is the final price and that he will not entertain cheap bids.

  • PFA seizes 1,600 kg outdated meat and expired edibles during a raid in Lahore

    PFA seizes 1,600 kg outdated meat and expired edibles during a raid in Lahore

    On Saturday, the Punjab Food Authority (PFA) foiled an attempt to move a massive stock of unhygienic and expired food from cold storage to some other facility.

    According to The News, PFA Director General Mudassar Riaz Malik and an enforcement team raided a cold storage at Bhobatian Chowk, Lahore based on vigilance-based evidence, and they seized a vehicle (a chiller truck) that was entirely loaded with 1,600 kg of outdated meat, 150 kg of expired butter, and 20 kg of cheese.

    He claimed that unhealthy food was being transported around just to avoid the PFA’s action, however the officials were able to foil the fraud mafia’s plans. Selling or providing expired stock along with new food is illegal and deceptive, according to the PFA DG.

    He asked everyone in the food industry to work with the PFA to comply with the law and fulfill the objectives of the reform.

  • Moeen Ali sparks a never-ending Twitter debate by favouring Karachi’s food over Lahori cuisine

    Moeen Ali sparks a never-ending Twitter debate by favouring Karachi’s food over Lahori cuisine

    The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has received high praise from the English delegation for the tight security and excellent hospitality, while stand-in skipper Moeen Ali’s post-match remark about which city has the best food has reignited the country’s never-ending debate after he said that the food in Lahore had let him down.

    https://twitter.com/Junaid_khichi/status/1576917689146441728

    The cricket team from England defeated Pakistan on Sunday by a score of 67 runs, winning 4-3 and clinching the seven-match series. A journalist questioned Ali about the team’s satisfaction with the security during their visit to Pakistan and whether they had the opportunity to sample any of the cuisine while they were there during a news conference after the game.

    Ali drew a distinction between Karachi and Lahore, the two cities where the matches were held, saying that the security had been “excellent” and had above their expectations.

    Speaking of the food, he said, “I’ve been a little bit disappointed in Lahore, Karachi was really nice. Everything’s nice but this time I found it a little bit disappointing maybe because I lost my tastebuds a bit.”

    After 17 years, the crew returned to Pakistan, and it was obvious that food was a top priority. Mark Wood, an England bowler, cited daal as one of his favourite Pakistani foods in an interview.

    The one topic that may quickly transform a casual conversation between Karachi and Lahore residents into an argumentative disagreement is food. Here are some Twitter reactions: