Tag: Pakistan

  • Elderly blasphemy accused shot dead in court

    Elderly blasphemy accused shot dead in court

    An elderly man was killed during the hearing of a blasphemy case against him at the Peshawar Judicial Complex on Wednesday.

    A case had been registered against the deceased under blasphemy laws. The accused was brought to court from Peshawar Central Jail.

    Tahir Ahmed Naseem, 47, a resident of Pishtakhara, appeared before the court of Judge Shaukatullah when a man barged in and opened fire on him.

    He was a US citizen and the US State Department’s Twitter account for South Asia tweeted about the incident.

    “During the hearing of the case, the complainant said that the accused was an Ahmadi and asked him to recite the Kalima-e-Tayyaba,” according to a lawyer who was present in the courtroom at the time of the incident. He added that the complainant then fired at the elderly man and killed him.

    The 24-year-old shooter, Khalid, was arrested by the police on the spot. He is said to be a resident of Board Bazaar.

    The judicial complex is situated in a high-security zone on the main Khyber Road in the cantonment area where the provincial assembly building, the Peshawar High Court, chief minister’s secretariat and Governor House are also situated. Security at the main gate and inside the judicial complex is also high.

    Peshawar Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Mohammad Ali Gandapur and SSP (Operations) Mansoor Aman visited the courtroom where the man was killed.

    “At the moment we have little information but we have started investigation into the killing,” the CCPO said. Aman added that the weapon has also been recovered.

    Police shifted the body of the deceased to the Khyber Medical University for post-mortem.

    They said a first information report (FIR) had been registered against the deceased in 2018.

    According to the FIR, the complainant alleged that the deceased belong to the Ahmadi community and “befriended him on Facebook” and in subsequent conversations, claimed that he was the “fourteenth Mujaddid”.

    “He then invited me to have a discussion with him at a mall in the city where he started talking about his belief,” the complainant said in the FIR, going on to make more allegations.

    The deceased was charged under Section 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups), Section 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), Section 295-B (defiling etc. of the Holy Quran), Section 295-C (use of derogatory remarks against Prophet Muhammad PBUH) and Section 298 (uttering words etc., with deliberate intent to wound religious feelings) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

  • Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal offers financial support to juice seller boy who topped in matric

    Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal offers financial support to juice seller boy who topped in matric

    A 16-year-old juice seller from Multan, Muhammad Huzaifa topped in his matriculation exam scoring 1050 marks out of 1100 last year.

    Huzaifa is the only breadwinner of his family and had to work as a fruit juice seller to take care of his family. Reportedly, the boy was offered a scholarship at a private college but he could not leave his job at the time.

    People on social media cannot stop praising Huzaifa for his efforts and hard work.

    After the post went viral on social media, Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal reached out to the boy and offered him financial support for his higher education and his family.

    Managing Director of Bait-ul-Mal, Aon Abbas Buppi took to Twitter to announce that they would financially support the boy and his family so Pakistan doesn’t lose this bright student.

  • ‘Army chiefs should serve as president of Pakistan after retirement’

    ‘Army chiefs should serve as president of Pakistan after retirement’

    Twice former prime minister (PM) of the Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) region Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan has suggested that every chief of army staff (COAS) should be allowed to serve as the country’s president after retirement so as to enhance Pakistan’s foreign policy while keeping in view the defence and strategic significance of the country.

    “Pakistan has a lot of enemies and our politicians are unable to realise that the country’s defence is a lot more important than economy or democracy,” he said while speaking to a private media outlet.

    Ahmed said that the current parliamentary system had failed and it needed to be fixed while enhancing cooperation between different institutions. “Army’s help is sought every time the country faces any major challenge. The difference between help and interference must be made clear.”

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    He maintained that the constitution should be amended so as to help the executive branch and accompany any elected PM with a president who is an ex-army chief.

    “I believe the chemistry between the serving and the now-president-for-four-years army chiefs would benefit Pakistan’s defence and foreign affairs,” Ahmed said and also cited the example of former United States’ (US) secretary of state Colin Luther Powell.

    An American politician, diplomat and retired four-star general, Powell served as the 65th US state secretary from 2001 to 2005.

    Ahmed also said such steps were needed to strengthen the constitution and not individuals.

    While many differ on the ex-AJK PM’s statement, it merits a mention that experts believe the military is already continuing to shape Pakistan’s security and foreign policies.

    According to a forecast report released by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and cited by Dawn in November last year, Pakistan Army was likely to continue shaping the country’s foreign and security policy while the government was expected to largely amenable to this arrangement.

    While the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) boasts of civil-military relations in Pakistan being at their historic best — a claim verified by the military’s media wing as well — the report had also outlined Pakistan’s political and economic outlook for the period of 2020 to 2024 and forecast that the PTI would serve its full term while opposition parties would remain in a state of disarray owing to legal challenges facing their leaders.

  • Thai, British Airways to resume Pakistan flights from August

    Thai, British Airways to resume Pakistan flights from August

    Thai Airways and British Airways have decided to resume Pakistan flights from August after suspension due to COVID-19 spread.

    Pakistan aviation took to Twitter to announce that Thai Airways will be resuming its Pakistan operation from mid-August. The airline operates direct scheduled flights between Bangkok & Islamabad, Lahore Karachi.

    British Airways will also resume its flights from August between London Heathrow and Islamabad. This time it will be the only airline offering direct flights. In the beginning, there will be three flights per week.

    As per reports, the airlines wrote a letter to the Islamabad airport manager and asked for details of the arrangements before restarting flight operations.

    Authorities have been asked to give details about cleanliness arrangements at the airport and facilities available there to ensure the safe landing of the planes.

    “Ensure that fix bridges connected with the planes are safe to use”, the letter read.

    British Airways’ first flight to Pakistan, BAW-261 had landed at Islamabad International Airport from Heathrow, with 240 passengers on board on June 3, 2019, after a long gap of 10 years. 

  • Police constable threatens boy who filed complaint against him on citizen’s portal

    Police constable threatens boy who filed complaint against him on citizen’s portal

    A police constable is allegedly threatening a boy to withdraw his complaint filed on Pakistan Citizen’s Portal against him.

    The boy shared the detailed story on social media. He said that he went to the police station to reclaim his bike that he left in front of a mosque a few days back. However, he was asked to pay for his bike’s return.

    “I went there and did that but they refused to hand it over to me unless I pay them,” said the boy.

    He paid the money and registered a complaint against constable on the citizen’s portal.

    He was called by DSP Sabzazar for confirmation but at that time constable was out on a raid. The boy started receiving threats after that.

    ” From that time onwards, people who I do not know have been calling me asking me to withdraw complain first nicely then authoritatively and finally by threatening me”.

    https://www.facebook.com/ali.moeen.nawazish/photos/a.10152091889369862/10157855907039862/

    After this incident, a few people also shared their experience with the citizen’s portal.

    Prime Minister Imran Khan launched ‘Pakistan Citizen Portal’ in 2018 to timely address problems of the people and get their feedback.

  • Pakistan cricket team’s equipment could be siezed by company NAB owes money to

    Pakistan cricket team’s equipment could be siezed by company NAB owes money to

    The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has played down reports that a company based in the Isle of Man may seize assets owned by the Pakistan team currently in the United Kingdom (UK), as part of an old legal dispute between the firm and the Pakistan government.

    A report quoted a letter from Broadsheet LLC to the Pakistan government in which it said it would “seize the assets of the Pakistani cricket team” because of longstanding dues owed to it by the government.

    The PCB has been in touch with the Pakistan Embassy in the UK and is believed to have been satisfied that there is little prospect of this actually happening. That belief lies in the legal opinion that the Pakistan team is representative of the PCB, an autonomous body, and not of the Pakistan state or government, and so is not a party to the case or liable for the damages.

    In the letter, Broadsheet says that the Pakistan team is “by the very nature, an asset of the defendant and that monies due to the team and assets of the team are assets of the defendant to the litigation”.

    The legal dispute dates back to the early 2000s, when Broadsheet was hired by General (r) Pervez Musharraf, who was the head of state of Pakistan then, to trace out hidden assets of Pakistan nationals in foreign countries. Pakistan’s National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had signed an agreement with Broadsheet, which was eventually terminated in 2003. The termination had led to a legal dispute, one resolved in 2018, when an international arbitration court in London ruled in favour of Broadsheet, and established that the NAB was liable to pay damages. It is this payment that remains outstanding.

    The letter quoted by the report was written by Broadsheet to Allen & Overy, the firm that represented the Pakistan government and the NAB in the case, and said that Broadsheet was owed “more than $33 million” after it won the arbitration.

    ESPNCricinfo reached out to NAB for a comment, but the body has not confirmed or denied any threat to the cricket team’s equipment being seized.

    The Pakistan team will play three Tests and three T20 International (T20I) matches against England, with the first Test scheduled to start on August 5 in Manchester. The final T20I will take place on September 1.

  • Did you know Diamond Supreme Foam has an ‘Islamic mattress’?

    Did you know Diamond Supreme Foam has an ‘Islamic mattress’?

    One of Pakistan’s leading mattress manufacturers, Diamond Supreme Foam, has an ‘Islamic mattress’, which the bedding industry giant boasts is the first in Pakistan.

    According to details available on the company’s website, the mattress called ‘Saha’ has “scientifically been developed and balanced for every body type based on Islamic principles”.

    “The Saha is Pakistan’s first Islamic mattress engineered for people who sleep on their back or their right side which is the Islamic way for sleeping,” says the description of the mattress that costs around Rs17,000.

    Medical science tells us that that the best healthy sleeping position is to sleep on your back or on your right side which is also the Islamic way of sleeping, practiced and taught 1400 years ago, it adds.

    “Sleeping on the right side does not let the weight of stomach and intestine to suppress the heart, hence blood circulation is not affected.  By sleeping on the right side, the heart remains in the topside, and aids the process of rising early before sunrise to perform Fajr: the prayer that starts off the day with the remembrance of God.”

    What do you think of the mattress and the manufacturer’s pitch? Let The Current know in the comments below.

  • PM talks about rumours that govt wants to ban social media

    PM talks about rumours that govt wants to ban social media

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, who is known for having social media as his primary source of information, has said the government will not impose a ban on any social media application.

    “But at the same time, we also can’t let anyone insult or spread false information about government organisations or the people working for them,” the premier pointed out in a statement.

    PM Imran also took notice of the delay in the preparation of social media regulations by the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) and Ministry of Information Technology.

    He instructed the departments to present a report regarding it within this week.

    The PTI government has been criticised for its decisions regarding monitoring and regulating content on social media. This came after the government placed a temporary ban on popular online game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) and issued a warning to TikTok.

    The premier had in February also said that new rules were being introduced only to protect citizens and regulate social media in the country, which had come days after the PTI government led by him decided to impose restrictions in the name of citizens’ protection and national interest.

    Presiding over a meeting to review the social media rules, PM Imran had said that the new rules were not prepared to curb freedom of expression or victimise political opponents. He had claimed that the United Kingdom (UK), Singapore and other countries were also introducing such laws to protect their citizens.

    However, no action for the implementation of the proposed rules had followed.

  • Banning books

    Banning books

    German poet Heinrich Heine once warned, “Where they burn books, they will in the end also burn people.”

    In Pakistan’s case, we may not be burning books, but we are banning them. From banning online apps to games, from media censorship to censoring books, Pakistan is on a downward spiral. According to Geo, the Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board (PCTB) banned a hundred school books in a single day for containing content deemed “anti-national” and “blasphemous”.

    “We are currently examining over 10,000 books being taught in private schools,” said PCTB Managing Director Rai Manzoor Hussain Nasir. “So the banned textbooks could be in thousands once we are done.”

    Rai is taking these steps under the Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board Act, 2015, which was passed by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government. It seems that both the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the PML-N do not value critical thinking and fundamental freedom.

    This policy is a complete disaster. We saw what happened under the Zia regime back in the 1980s when our curriculum was infused with extremist ideology. It changed our society and led to intolerance. Now we are seeing a repetition of something along the same lines. Rai Manzoor has a problem with a book of mathematics where counting concepts were explained to the young students showing pictures of pigs. He also has a problem with Gandhi’s quotes being taught in another book. Gandhi was India’s founding father but he fought for the rights of Muslims in India and was consequently killed by an RSS extremist for propagating peaceful co-existence with the Muslim minority. Are we demonising someone just because we want to see him from the prism of animosity towards India?

    If we want to keep our children isolated in a globalised world by teaching them only about ourselves, and not any non-Pakistanis, the solution was not to ban books with Gandhi’s quotes but probably to add more quotes from Pakistani historical figures. Do we not want to teach our children about the struggles of Nelson Mandela, who is quite often quoted by Prime Minister Imran Khan? Banning books or taking out quotes of non-Pakistanis is ridiculous at best and dangerous in the long term. The path we are taking today will impact our coming generations.

    The power of deciding curriculum and books is a grave power. For it to be in the hands of someone who is no Chomsky or any other learned figure, we must raise our voice at this grave injustice that is being inflicted upon our future generations. Our national interests are not so weak that they will be endangered by some quotes from non-Pakistanis. But it seems that we want to ban critical thinking. We want to ban the foundation of learning, i.e. asking questions and being inquisitive. We want to produce robots instead of intelligent human beings. We must resist this type of indoctrination. Closed minds cannot lead this country to progress. Stifling freedom of expression and censoring books will push Pakistan back by decades. Let us not go down this dark path. 

  • Madrassa students qualify for finals of Turkey’s biggest tech competition

    Madrassa students qualify for finals of Turkey’s biggest tech competition

    Students from Jamia Bait-ul-Salam, Talagang, have qualified for the final round of TEKNOFEST 2020 that will be held in Istanbul, Turkey from September 22 to 27.

    According to reports, Blatu, the Bait-ul-Salam team has topped the category of Technology for Humanity-Social Innovation with 87 points out 100.

    Earlier in 2019, Jamia Bait-ul-Salam has won robotics competition beating participants from 20 other universities that were held at HITEC University Taxila.

    Hamza Ali Abbasi also took to social media to applaud the students.

    https://www.facebook.com/hamzaaliabbasi/posts/3369483186448665

    Turkish Ministry of Industry and Technology and the Turkish Technology Team Foundation (T3) organize the TEKNOFEST Aerospace and Technology Festival every year in a bid to make Turkey a technology producing society.

    Many students from different institutions participate in TEKNOFEST to showcase their abilities in more than a dozen different categories.