Tag: PM khan

  • PM Khan to address Mansehra today despite ECP warning, fines

    PM Khan to address Mansehra today despite ECP warning, fines

    As part of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) campaign for the March 31 local body elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan is set to address the public in Thakral Stadium, Mansehra on Friday.

    Previously, it was reported that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had taken notice of PM Khan’s visit to Mansehra. The commission called it the breach of code of conduct as it had earlier restricted the premier and other government officials from attending any public gathering ahead of local elections.

    Despite this, the PM ignored the warning and attended a public gathering in Swat on March 16 for which the commission slapped a Rs50,000 fine on the PM and government officials. The premier also attended a gathering in Lower Dir on March 19 where the region’s District Monitoring Officer (DMO) Hameedul Lah had imposed a fine of Rs50,000 on him.

    According to Dawn, DMO of the Provincial Election Commission Hayatullah Jan has written a letter to the chief secretary asking him to convey to PM Khan that his visit to Mansehra is a violation of the election law and he should cancel it.

  • CJP Bandial says not counting a vote during no-trust proceedings against Khan would be ‘contemptuous’

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial on Thursday observed that not counting a vote that has been cast during the no-confidence vote against Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan would be “contemptuous”.

    CJP Bandial further questioned that for how long a dissident Member of the National Assembly (MNA) could be disqualified.

    He made the remarks during the hearing of a presidential reference seeking the Supreme Court’s opinion on Article 63-A of the Constitution.

    Earlier, during the hearing, Justice Mandokhail questioned whether the MNA’s vote could be counted in the proceedings conducted before he was de-seated, observing there was no mention of not counting a vote in the 18th Amendment.

    Justice Akhtar observed that the purpose of Article 63-A was to stop defection from party policies. “The party’s collective opinion is above an individual opinion. The collective opinion is important for the stability of democracy.” He said one interpretation of Article 63-A was that the vote of dissidents should not be counted.

    Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP) Khalid Javed Khan argued that the real issue was about clarifying Article 63-A(4). “Someone who violates the Constitution by defection cannot be praised. We cannot read what’s not written in the Constitution. Article 62(1)(f) states that an MNA should be honest and righteous.

    “Should defecting from the party be rewarded? Can those who are dishonest be considered righteous?” he asked.

    Justice Mandokhail replied that every MNA had the right to vote in accordance with Article 95, which deals with the procedure to bring in a no-confidence motion against the prime minister.

    “If vote can be cast, it can also be counted,” he observed, asking the AGP why the government was seeking the court’s opinion if it already had the answer. “If you agree with this point, then withdraw this reference,” he added.

    Earlier, SCBA submitted its response in the apex court, stating that voting is an individual right of an MNA instead of a political party’s collective right under Article 95.

    It declared the MNAs’ right to vote for the no-confidence motion against the prime minister to be an individual capacity in its response to the presidential reference for the interpretation on Article 63A of the Constitution Pakistan.

  • Nawaz Sharif’s close aide Chaudhry Nisar refuses to join PTI

    Nawaz Sharif’s close aide Chaudhry Nisar refuses to join PTI

    Estranged Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party member and former Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan revealed that he will not join Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) despite his meeting with Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, according to Daily Jang.

    “Nisar will neither return to PML-N nor work under Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, hence will maintain his independent status,” said the news outlet’s sources.

    On Wednesday, PM Khan said that he met Chaudhry. “I have had an association with him [Chaudhry] for the last 40 years,” he revealed, adding that Nisar will be “taking all political decisions himself”.

    Jang report further reveals that Chaudhry was offered chief ministership of Punjab when PTI came to power. However, at the time, Nisar refused it and thought that in an assembly, where the PML-N is in the Opposition, he would not be able to speak against PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif.

  • Pakistan reports no deaths due to Covid for the first time in two years

    Pakistan reports no deaths due to Covid for the first time in two years

    For the first time since the outbreak of Covid-19 in the country, Pakistan has reported zero Covid deaths today (Wednesday).

    The country witnessed a slight rise in cases, with a 1.28 per cent positivity rate and 443 reported new cases, as per the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC).

    However, the country has been maintaining a positivity rate below 2 per cent since mid-March.

    Earlier, NCOC chief Asad Umar had announced the decision to lift all the Covid-19 related restrictions but made it clear that the vaccination restriction would not be lifted.

    On March 12, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (PM) on National Health Services, Regulations, and Coordination, Dr Faisal Sultan announced the government’s decision to shut down NCOC.

    In recent months, the rate of Covid cases in Pakistan has remained low after almost three years of fighting the global pandemic.

  • ‘MQM-P will announce they are with us in a day or two,’ Fazl claims

    ‘MQM-P will announce they are with us in a day or two,’ Fazl claims

    After meeting with Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said that the party [MQM-P] will announce that they are with the Opposition in a day or two.

    Fazl made the announcement alongside MQM-P’s party members in Karachi where he further said that the government allies are no more with them, adding that he is completely satisfied that the no-confidence motion will be successful.

    The PDM chief said the language Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has used during the recent rallies in Khyber Pakhtunkwa (KP) is not of an “honourable person”. “I think it is disrespectful to have such people assume such big offices,” he added.

    With the no-confidence motion date approaching soon, both the Opposition and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) are trying to woo government allies ahead of no-confidence motion which is to take place on March 25.

    It is pertinent to mention that the government’s ally in the Centre, the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA), has assured PM Imran Khan of complete support on the motion, while other allies i.e Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), MQM-P, and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) are still indecisive.

  • ECP slaps Rs50,000 fine on PM Khan for holding public gatherings despite warnings

    ECP slaps Rs50,000 fine on PM Khan for holding public gatherings despite warnings

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) slapped a fine of Rs50,000 on Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister (CM) Mahmood Khan, Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Minister for Communications Murad Saeed and two provincial ministers Dr Amjad Ali and Muhibul Lah for violating the code of conduct as they all attended a public gathering in Swat on March 16 ahead of the no-confidence motion.

    Earlier, the ECP had restricted PM Khan and other government officials from attending any public gathering in districts of KP as the second phase of the local bodies elections is due in the region. Despite this, the premier and his officials ignored the warning.

    According to Geo News, District Monitoring Officer (DMO) Swat imposed a fine on the PM for breaching ECP’s code of conduct. Similarly, for attending a public gathering in Dir on March 19, Lower Dir’s District Monitoring Officer (DMO) Hameedul Lah had imposed a fine of Rs50,000 on PM Khan.

    ECP has reportedly also taken notice of the PM’s upcoming visit to KP’s Mansehra and called it a breach of the code of conduct.

  • 44% say Khan should resign before no-confidence motion: survey

    44% say Khan should resign before no-confidence motion: survey

    According to a survey conducted by Ipsos, 44 per cent of respondents are of the view that Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan should resign ahead of the no-confidence motion while 33 per cent think he should fight it, reports Geo News.

    42 per cent of respondents are of the opinion that the no-trust motion would succeed against PM Khan while 26 per cent say the government would successfully defeat the motion and 31 per cent say that they are unsure about the outcome.

    To a question that if the no-confidence motion becomes successful, 27 per cent think Leader of the Opposition and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif should be the PM until new elections, 17 per cent say PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto and 6 per cent prefer PML-N’s Shahid Khaqan Abbasi as the new premier.

    However, after the general elections, 18 per cent want PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif to become PM, 16 per cent voted for Imran Khan, and 14 per cent for Shehbaz Sharif.

    According to the survey, a significant number of 48 per cent think that PTI’s allies should support the party’s rival, while only 27 per cent of the respondents said that the PTI coalition partners should come back to Khan.

  • ‘Crass choice of words’: Human Rights Commission of Pakistan condemns Shahbaz Gill for giving gaalis on TV

    The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) condemned Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) Dr Shahbaz Gill’s use of foul language towards his fellow party member of National Assembly (MNA) Ramesh Kumar.

    During Dunya News‘ programme “On the Front with Kamran Shahid” on Thursday, Gill verbally abused Kumar multiple times, paying no heed to the fact that he was speaking on national television.

    Earlier in the day, Kumar announced that he is “no longer associated with the party”.

    In a tweet, HRCP said it is “revolted by Shahbaz Gill’s crass choice of words for his colleague Kumar”.

    “What should have been a civilised debate on a politically critical issue crumbled into a litany of abuse.” HRCP also criticised anchor Kamran Shahid for ignoring such a serious matter.

    Another member of the ruling party MNA Aliya Hamza called Sindh House a “brothel” on Dawn News‘ programme “News Eye” hosted by anchorperson Absa Komal.

    Both Gill and Aliya’s words came after it was revealed that around 24 disgruntled members of the PTI were staying at the Sindh House who are likely to vote on no-confidence motion against Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan despite their party’s decision to “not vote”.

  • PPP says PTI is planning to attack Sindh House in Islamabad

    Several Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) members of the National Assembly (MNA) including Abdul Qadir Mandokhel, in a joint statement, said, “[Prime Minister] Imran Khan’s government is [hell]bent on [carrying out] terrorism” and planning to attack Sindh House.

    The members claimed they have information that Islamabad police and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s Tiger Force are planning the “assault”. The parliamentarians, further said that if any harm comes to Sindh House’s facilities or to their members then the government would be responsible for it.

    While referring to Parliament Lodges’ operation by capital police last week, the lawmakers said they had asked the Sindh police for protection because the capital police had “illegally raided and endangered the lives of people”.

    However, the government claimed the Opposition had detained some of their lawmakers at Sindh House ahead of the vote on the no-confidence resolution against PM Khan.

    Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed said that no one is taking any action against anyone right now. “The time is far away”, he said.

    “There are some people in Sindh House. They have called in 300-400 policemen. No problem. There are many days left,” the interior minister added.

    Earlier this week, PM Khan had said that Opposition leaders are sitting in Sindh House with “heaps of money” to purchase loyalties of their lawmakers.

  • Govt to close the National Command and Operation centre: Dr Faisal Sultan

    Govt to close the National Command and Operation centre: Dr Faisal Sultan

    Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (PM) on National Health Services, Regulations, and Coordination, Dr Faisal Sultan has announced that the government has decided to shut down the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC).

    According to Dr Sultan, PM Khan himself is expected to formally announce the shutting down of NCOC by the end of next month. He said that the responsibilities of the NCOC will be carried out by the National Institute of Health.

    March 27 will mark the 2nd anniversary of the establishment of the NCOC.

    NCOC was established after the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic in Pakistan. The centre is the main entity in charge of Pakistan’s national Covid-19 effort’s policies and implementation.

    In recent months, the rate of Covid cases in Pakistan has gotten low after almost three years of fighting the global pandemic.