Tag: Pakistan

  • Imran Khan’s trial to be conducted in Adiala Jail

    Imran Khan’s trial to be conducted in Adiala Jail

    The Ministry of Law has released a notification stating that the trial of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan in the cipher case will be conducted in Adiala Jail.

    Special court’s judge, Abdul Hasnat Zulqarnain, wrote a letter to the Ministry of Law for issuing a letter to conduct the hearing of the cipher case in Rawalpindi Adiala Jail due to security concerns.

    The judge said that the special court intended to hold trial in the Adiala jail and asked the law ministry in a letter to issue an appropriate notification for the hearing of the case, scheduled to be held tomorrow.

    The Law Ministry said in a notification that it didn’t have any issue with conducting Imran Khan’s trial in Adiala Jail.

    Earlier on Monday, the special court under the Official Secrets Act summoned PTI chief and Vice Chairman Imran Khan on October 4 in the cipher case.

    Judge Zulqarnain had also directed Superintendent Adiala Jail on Monday to present Imran Khan and Shah Mahmood Qureshi in court on October 4.

  • Earthquake predicted in Pakistan hits India, Nepal

    Earthquake predicted in Pakistan hits India, Nepal

    An earthquake of magnitude 6.2 on the Richter scale has jolted New Delhi and parts of Nepal late on Monday afternoon.

    However, according to the Solar System Geometry Survey, the magnitude of the earthquake was 5.7 while its depth was 7km.

    The earthquake is said to have lasted for more than 40 seconds, as reported by Hindustan Times.

    Simultaneously, as per the NDTV, two earthquakes shook Nepal with magnitudes of 4.6 and 6.2 in a time span of 25 minutes.

    The tremors were also felt in Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow, Hapur, and Amroha along with parts of Uttarakhand.

    On October 1, a Dutch research organisation predicted that a severe tremor that may hit Pakistan in the coming days.

    But the scientific community did not pay much heed to Solar System Geometry Survey (SSGS) of the Netherlands because scientifically, it is impossible to actually predict an earthquake.

    As per the predictions, nonetheless, the earthquake was to hit along the Chaman fault line, in Balochistan.

  • Nawaz Sharif will address gathering at Minar-e-Pakistan on October 21, Rana Sanaullah confirms

    Nawaz Sharif will address gathering at Minar-e-Pakistan on October 21, Rana Sanaullah confirms

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and former interior minister Rana Sanaullah disclosed on Tuesday that party head Nawaz Sharif will address a rally after arriving in the country on October 21 at Minar-e-Pakistan, Lahore.

    While addressing a press conference in Lahore, Sanaullah said, “Nawaz Sharif will arrive in Lahore on October 21 at 5:30 p.m.”

    Pakistan needs an experienced leader to take the country out of the crisis, the former federal minister emphasized in the presser, adding that Nawaz Shaif is coming back to lead the country.

    While addressing speculations pertaining to any deal, Sanaullah maintained that Nawaz, “neither made a deal while leaving nor is coming back under any deal”.

    According to the former security czar, Nawaz Sharif’s legal team is ready to request prior bail from the court upon his return.

  • Ahsan Iqbal reveals what Gen Faiz Hameed wanted in Faizabad sit-in deal

    Ahsan Iqbal reveals what Gen Faiz Hameed wanted in Faizabad sit-in deal

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader and former interior minister Ahsan Iqbal has disclosed that former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Lt Gen. (retired) Faiz Hameed had expressed a strong desire to be included as a signatory in the agreement reached during the Faizabad sit-in in 2017 with the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP).

    Speaking on Monday on the Geo News programme ‘Capital Talk’ hosted by Hamid Mir, Iqbal expressed that neither he nor the then Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi supported the idea of a high-ranking military official becoming a signatory to that agreement.

    However, the former interior minister said Gen. Faiz maintained that the protesting TLP would only agree to the accord if he was the guarantor.

    “When I read out the contents of the agreement to the prime minister, he also suggested that it would be better that General Sahib didn’t sign it,” said Ahsan Iqbal.

    He also stated that “I also conveyed to General Sahib that it wouldn’t be good for him and his institution to sign the agreement given its political nature.”

  • No more advantage points for Hafiz-e-Quran in medical admissions

    No more advantage points for Hafiz-e-Quran in medical admissions

    As per the new policy, Hafiz-e-Quran candidates applying to medical colleges will no longer be given additional marks in their application process.

    Concurring with Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), Punjab Health Department confirmed that the policy has been revoked.

    According to the previous policy, Hafiz-e-Quran candidates were given an addition of 20 marks in merit calculation during the admissions process

    The marks remained a part of the admission procedure till it came to Supreme Court’s notice in April under a six-member bench, led by Justice Ijazul Ahsan.

    The PMDC’s lawyer, Afnan Kundi, stated during the proceedings that the policy had already been revoked.

    With no conflict over the matter raised, Justice Ijazul Ahsan closed the suo motu case.

    Eliminating advantage points is considered to be a fair move in creating an equal opportunity and chances for candidates to qualify through a merit-based system.

  • CJP Isa hints at winding up ‘Practice and Procedure’ Act case today

    CJP Isa hints at winding up ‘Practice and Procedure’ Act case today

    A full court bench comprising 14 judges headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa has resumed hearing  petitions challenging the SC (Practice and Procedure) Act on Tuesday.

    State-run PTV is live-streaming the court’s proceedings.

    The full court bench includes CJP Isa, Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, Justice Ijaz Ul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Ayesha A. Malik, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Shahid Waheed, and Justice Musarrat Hilali.

    At the previous court hearing, the full panel of judges in the apex court had requested responses from all involved parties by September 25th.

    At the beginning of the hearing, Faez Isa said that the court will try to wind up hearings on the case today (Tuesday).

    There are many cases already pending in the court, CJP added.

    CJP Isa also directed the petitioner’s lawyer to end his arguments in 10 minutes.

    The CJP stated that this legislation does not diminish the authority of the chief justice; instead, it distributes these powers among the judges.

    He commented that this law will have a specific impact on the chief justice and the two most senior judges.

    “When martial law is imposed, everyone surrenders their weapons. There are many pictures [of judges] in this room who forgot their oath after the imposition of martial law,” CJP Isa remarked after the lawyer read out the judges oath in the court.

  • Sheikhupura woman beaten by father-in-law for serving food late

    Sheikhupura woman beaten by father-in-law for serving food late

    A video has been making rounds on X (formerly Twitter) in which an old man can be seen beating his daughter-in-law while three children try to protect her. It is being claimed that the daughter-in-law delayed serving food to the man, resulting in the beating.

    The incident happened in Sheikhupura. In the video, the man can be seen hitting the woman with an item resembling a wooden rolling pin and then he proceeds to pull her arm and kick her in the face as she struggles to protect herself. All the while, three little children can be seen defending the daughter-in-law (we do not have the confirmation if they are her children or not).

    After the video got attention, Sheikhupura police replied to the post, stating that an FIR has been registered against the man seen in the video and that a police team is conducting raids to arrest him.

    Additionally, as per claims, the police got in touch with the daughter-in-law who was brutally beaten.

    “Justice will be served”, the police replied.

    However, later, in a video message posted on X, the daughter-in-law addresses the incident stating, “I misbehaved which is why he hit me”, adding that it is a personal, domestic matter which has now been resolved and that she does not intend to take any action against her father-in-law.

  • Pakistan’s imports drop sharply, leading to 42% reduction in trade deficit

    Pakistan’s imports drop sharply, leading to 42% reduction in trade deficit

    Pakistan’s trade deficit for the first three months of the fiscal year 2023–24 has notably contracted by 42.25 per cent to reach $5.29 billion. This remarkable reduction is primarily attributed to a significant decrease in imports, a direct consequence of carefully administered measures.

    Data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reveals that the trade balance, which represents the difference between exports and imports, stood at a deficit of $5.29 billion for the period spanning July to September 2023–24. This is in stark contrast to the $9.16 billion deficit recorded during the same period in the preceding year.

    Both exports and imports experienced declines in this timeframe, with imports showing a more substantial decrease compared to exports, effectively narrowing the trade deficit. During these three months of 2023–24, Pakistan’s exports contracted by 3.8 per cent to $6.9 billion, despite facing significant currency depreciation when compared to the corresponding period in the previous year.

    Conversely, imports registered a notable decline of 25.4 per cent, totaling $12.19 billion in the July–September period, down from the $16.33 billion recorded in the same period of the previous fiscal year.

    For a more granular view, the PBS reported that in September 2023, Pakistan’s trade deficit further shrank by nearly 48 per cent to $1.489 billion, compared to $2.856 billion during the same month in the previous year. 

    Exports experienced a slight improvement of 1.1 per cent, reaching $2.47 billion in September 2023 compared to $2.44 billion in the same month the previous year, while imports significantly decreased by 25.5 per cent to $3.95 billion from $5.29 billion in the corresponding month last year.

    From a monthly perspective, the trade deficit contracted by 31.5 per cent compared to August 2023, with exports increasing by 4.2 per cent to $2.47 billion in September from $2.37 billion in the preceding month of August. Simultaneously, imports decreased by 12.9 per cent, amounting to $3.95 billion from $4.53 billion in the last month.

  • Pakistan to deport 1.1 million illegal foreign residents in security move

    Pakistan to deport 1.1 million illegal foreign residents in security move

    Due to security concerns, the caretaker government led by Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar announced on Monday its intention to repatriate 1.1 million foreign nationals who are currently residing in Pakistan without legal authorisation.

    The government’s plan involves a multi-phase approach. In the initial phase, those individuals who are residing in Pakistan unlawfully, colloquially referred to as “aliens,” will be subject to eviction, as will individuals who fail to renew their visas.

    Subsequent phases will target individuals with Afghan citizenship who possess proof of residence cards. The decision to take action against illegally residing Afghan citizens was made due to concerns that this group is linked to activities such as funding, facilitating, and smuggling terrorists. Additionally, a significant number of Afghan nationals have not renewed their proof of residence in Pakistan, further raising security concerns.

    A source familiar with the situation emphasised that illegally residing foreigners pose a significant security risk to Pakistan. The Ministry of Interior has collaborated with relevant stakeholders and the Afghan government to formulate a comprehensive plan for implementation.

    In parallel, the ministry has issued directives to identify and compile records of Afghans living in Pakistan without proper permits. Plans are being developed to facilitate their transportation back to the Afghan border. Authorities are also expediting the processing of applications related to the registration of Afghan nationals.

    Last week, it was reported that the government would soon announce a one-month deadline for all illegal foreign immigrants, including Afghans, to voluntarily leave the country or face legal consequences. Following this deadline, law enforcement agencies will conduct a nationwide crackdown to identify and deport illegal immigrants, the majority of whom are believed to be Afghan nationals.

    At the highest level, the government is committed to preventing Pakistan from becoming a sanctuary for illegal immigrants, many of whom are engaged in criminal activities and smuggling operations. Notably, some illegal Afghan immigrants have already been apprehended for engaging in illicit dollar trading, negatively impacting the country’s economy.

    Additionally, a considerable number of illegal foreign nationals are involved in various businesses across major cities, including the federal capital. The increase in street crime in Islamabad has been associated with the influx of illegal Afghan nationals.

    According to The News, it is estimated that approximately 1.1 million Afghan refugees are residing in Pakistan without legal authorization. Since the return of the Afghan Taliban to Afghanistan in August 2021, around 400,000 Afghans have entered Pakistan illegally, with an additional 700,000 identified as residing in the country without legal permission.

  • Fact check: Is this the cell in which Imran Khan is being detained?

    Claim: Multiple journalists including Sami Abraham and Sabir Shakir have implied in their tweets that Imran Khan is being held in a derelict jail cell, complete with a picture of a dark jail cell.

    Sara Taseer, daughter of late Governor of Punjab, Salman Taseer, also took to X (formerly Twitter) on October 1, writing:

    “This is what you call “zameen tang”. This inhumane treatment for the man you has given so much for the name fame betterment for #Pakistan I’m so ashamed to call myself Pakistani today. I never thought I’d ever feel this way. #ImranFightingForPakistan”

    The picture of the cell was quite disturbing, with peeling paint, a dark interior and derelict walls.

    Journalist Sami Abraham also tweeted the same picture.

    However, this is not actually Imran Khan’s cell.

    This photo was published by Jeannie Adams in ‘DOING TIME – MISSOURI STATE PENITENTIARY TOUR 26 JUL 2017’

    The cell picture shared by these accounts is actually in Missouri, from a now-closed facility where prisoners on suicide watch were detained.

    Imran Khan, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, has been recently shifted to Adiala Jail and is being tried for the Cipher case.

    True or False: The claim is false.