Tag: politics latest

  • India requests Pakistan to let Modi fly through its airspace

    India requests Pakistan to let Modi fly through its airspace

    India has requested Pakistan to let Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s aircraft fly through its airspace to New York for his week-long trip to the United States (US) from September 21 to 27.

    India has formally requested Pakistan to allow use of its air space for PM Modi’s flight, ANI reported.

    On September 22, Modi will address the Indian community as part of the ‘Howdy Modi!’ event in Houston, Texas. The event will be his third major address to the Indian-American community after he became the prime minister in 2014 and the first after his re-election in May.

    The previous two were at the Madison Square Garden in New York in 2014 and the Silicon Valley in 2016.

    Modi will then visit New York from September 23, where he will address the 2019 Climate Action Summit hosted by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. He is also expected to meet US President Donald Trump.

    Modi had in August used Pakistani airspace for the first time after February’s botched Balakot strike by the Indian Air Force (IAF).

    The flight carrying Modi, callsign Air India One (AI-1), used Pakistani airspace while en route to France from New Delhi.

    Pakistan closed its airspace in February this year after a standoff with India in the wake of an attack on a police convoy in occupied Kashmir that killed 40 paramilitary police.

    In the aftermath, two Indian fighter jets’ were downed. Pakistan also captured one of the Indian pilots who was later released.

    In June, Modi avoided flying over Pakistan during a trip to Central Asia, even though its airspace was opened as a goodwill gesture.

    Islamabad had fully reopened its airspace to civilian flights a month later.

  • Ali Tareen says ‘pepper spray for girls a better idea than abaya’

    Ali Tareen says ‘pepper spray for girls a better idea than abaya’

    Multan Sultans owner Ali Khan Tareen has said that giving pepper spray to schoolgirls to avoid harassment is a better idea than asking them to wear an abaya.

    The son of senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Jahangir Khan Tareen in a Twitter post wrote, “I still think pepper spray is a good idea if local policy-makers feel those girls need protection”.

    In another tweet, he criticised and questioned the logic behind the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government’s decision to make abaya compulsory in all-girl schools.

    “This is directed to girl schools. In all-girl schools what ‘unethical incidents’ are they worried about? If the male staff is so untrustworthy then I suggest the students be instructed to bring pepper spray instead of chadars.”

    In an official circular on Monday, KP Education Department had directed heads of government schools to ensure that girl students were wearing abaya or gown to “cover up in order to protect themselves from any unethical incident”.

    The government had withdrawn the notification after severe backlash on both social and mainstream media.

  • VIDEO: Putin quotes Quran to urge Muslim countries for peace

    VIDEO: Putin quotes Quran to urge Muslim countries for peace

    Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for an end to the conflict in Yemen by quoting from the Holy Quran to urge Muslim countries for peace.

    According to RT, the Russian president was speaking in Turkish capital Ankara alongside President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani when he quoted a verse from Surah al-Imran.

    “And remember the favour of Allah upon you — when you were enemies and He brought your hearts together and you became, by His favour, brothers,” he quoted.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    The Russian president’s references to the Holy Quran were noted with approval by both Erdogan and Rouhani, the report said.

    Tens of thousands of people have been killed in Yemen’s civil war and millions face the threat of starvation.

    The war in Yemen is an ongoing conflict that began in 2015 between two factions: the Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi-led Yemeni government and the Houthi armed movement, along with their supporters and allies.

  • Naya Pakistan: Police register blasphemy case against 50 rioters for attacking temple

    Naya Pakistan: Police register blasphemy case against 50 rioters for attacking temple

    Police have registered a blasphemy case against 50 rioters for vandalising a Hindu temple following blasphemy allegations against a local teacher in the Ghotki district of Sindh, journalist Mubashir Zaidi has claimed.

    “Police registers balsphemy case against 50 rioters who vandalized Hindu temple in Ghotki,” he tweeted Monday.

    Heavy contingents of police and rangers were deployed in the district Sunday after violent protests over alleged blasphemy by a school principal belonging to the Hindu community. A temple, school and businesses owned by Hindus in the city were ransacked by the rioters.

    The case against the individuals, who attacked the temple, was registered under sections 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship, with intent to insult the religion of any class),  147 (rioting) and 149 (connivance) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

    Dawn quoted Sukkur Additional Inspector General (AIG) Jamil Ahmed as saying that Section 295 was included because the protesters had vandalised a Hindu temple.

    “The Sindh government and its ministers seem serious to bring the culprits to book,” a rights activist from the Hindu community told a private media outlet on the condition of anonymity.

    However, the activist said that the people still felt insecure and wanted an end to injustice on the basis of faith.

    Another case was lodged against 150 people — 27 named and 123 unidentified persons — for blocking roads. A third FIR [First Information Report] pertaining to rioting and theft was filed against 23 people, including 11 unidentified persons, over reports that protesters had stolen goods from multiple shops in Shahi Bazar.

    RIOTS OVER ‘BLASPHEMY’:

    Law and order of Ghotki and surrounding areas deteriorated on Sunday as people in large numbers took to the streets to protest against an alleged incident of blasphemy.

    The protests began on Saturday after an FIR was filed against the principal of Sindh Public School on the complaint of Abdul Aziz Rajput, a student’s father who claimed that the former had committed blasphemy.

    The FIR was lodged under Article 295(c) — that pertains to “derogatory remarks in respect of the Holy Prophet (PBUH)” — of the PPC.

    Residents of the area demanded that the police arrest the principal, issued a call for a shutter-down strike, and took to the streets in protest. Videos of stick-wielding protesters were shared on social media on Sunday, in which they were seen vandalising a Hindu temple and damaging the school where the alleged incident took place.

    The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) also shared a video of protesters breaking the infrastructure of the school and expressed concern over the situation.

    “Alarming reports of accusations of blasphemy in Ghotki and the outbreak of mob violence,” it said in a tweet.

  • Shahzeb Khanzada destroys CM KP’s advisor on education

    Shahzeb Khanzada destroys CM KP’s advisor on education

    The most controversial discussion on television last night was the notice to parents by the Khyber Pakhtunkhua government that their daughters will have to wear an abaaya/chadar/burkha when going to and coming from school. This restriction was being placed on them for their “own protection”.

    Social media was in an uproar, as well as television programs. When anchor Shahzeb Khanzada did a program on the issue last night, he took the man who had circulated the notice: the Chief Minister’s advisor on elementary and secondary education, Ziaullah Bangash.

    Shahzeb asked him questions on what the government’s plan was on how to cover up little boys since there were more cases of sexual abuse against boys reported than girls. He also asked Bangash about the co-relation between clothes and abuse, showing data on how there was more sexual abuse of children in madrassahs than schools, and madrassahs being a place where students were fully covered and being given religious teachings, this should not be the case.

    Bangash had no pertinent answer. The notice has since then, been taken back by the Chief Minister.

    Watch Shahzeb’s explosive interview here:

  • PM Imran all set for another modest US trip

    PM Imran all set for another modest US trip

    After his austere United States (US) trip from earlier this year, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan is all set for another one of the same kind as merely $162,000 (Rs25 million) from taxpayers’ money will be spent, The Express Tribune reported.

    The premier will reach Washington on September 21, where he will not only hold meetings with US President Donald Trump among other top government officials, but also address the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session.

    It is also believed that PM Imran will once again take a commercial flight instead of opting to charter a plane in a bid to save money as the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government continues to attempt to reduce the burden on the national exchequer.

    Previously, the premier’s visit to the US had cost the treasury around $67,180 (Rs11 million). Around Rs1.35 million were spent on accommodation for PM’s 27-member delegation, while the PM chose to stay at Pakistan Embassy instead of some lavish hotel.

    According to the details of the expenditures, an amount of Rs92,120 were incurred on transport, Rs142,000 on gifts, Rs6,075,800 on airfare, miscellaneous expenditures stood at Rs1,287,460, tips at Rs706,001 and meals at Rs1,389,077.

  • Buzdar’s metro plan backfires, number of commuters falls by 20,000

    Buzdar’s metro plan backfires, number of commuters falls by 20,000

    Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar-led provincial government’s Metro Bus fare policy has backfired as both Lahore and Rawalpindi-Islamabad metro buses have faced a drastic decrease in the number of passengers.

    According to The News, after the Punjab Metro Bus Authority increased the bus fare from Rs20 to Rs30, the number of commuters on Lahore Metro Bus has decreased by up to 20,000 per day while around 10,000 to 20,000 passengers have stopped commuting via the Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro Bus.

    “We were expecting an annual increase of Rs800 million in the revenue of Punjab Mass Transit Authority (PMTA) by increasing the fare. However, it is quite surprising that the number of passengers has decreased up to 20,000 in Lahore and 10,000 to 20,000 in Rawalpindi-Islamabad on a daily basis,” reports quoted an official as saying.

    It is very strange for us to know that passengers are so sensitive about the fare, the official said further. “The PMTA management is preparing the report on this unexpected outcome which will be presented to the authorities concerned in a week or two.”

  • Supreme Court orders Modi govt to restore normalcy in Kashmir

    Supreme Court orders Modi govt to restore normalcy in Kashmir

    The Supreme Court of India (SCI) on Monday ordered the Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi-led government to restore normalcy in occupied Kashmir “as soon as possible while keeping in mind national safety and security.”

    “Schools, hospitals, public transport should function properly,” said the ruling of a three-member bench of India’s apex court.

    According to Dunya News, the ruling came as the SCI took up multiple pleas against the Indian premier’s August 5 decision of revoking the special autonomy of Indian-occupied Kashmir (IoK).

    The court has ordered the government to submit a report mentioning the actual situation in the region that has been lockdown for 43 days with communication blackout.

    During the hearing of petitions, Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi remarked that if “requirement arises”, he would himself visit Jammu and Kashmir and expressed concerns over reports of inaccessibility of Kashmiris to the high court.

  • Pakistan unveils schedule for sending first-ever astronaut to space

    Pakistan unveils schedule for sending first-ever astronaut to space

    Federal Minister for Science and Technology Chaudhry Fawad Hussain has said that Pakistan is committed to sending its first astronaut to space by 2022, ARY News reported.

    According to the details, the minister said that China would collaborate with Pakistan in its space mission and the selection process for the astronaut would start in 2020.

    He added that 50 people will be selected in the initial selection process and then the list would come down to 25 in 2022, out of them only one would be sent to space.

    The minister also said that the debris of India’s first space mission namely ‘Shakti’, which had failed, was even posing dangers to the space missions of other countries.

    Furthermore, Fawad said that the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) will play an important role in the astronaut’s selection.

    Earlier, on July 25, the minister had announced that Pakistan would send its first citizen to space by 2022 following a selection process.

  • Punjab govt misses tax collection target by over Rs20 billion

    Punjab govt misses tax collection target by over Rs20 billion

    The Punjab government has missed its tax collection target in July, costing the provincial exchequer an amount of Rs20.45billion, The Express Tribune reported.

    According to reports, the provincial government collected Rs11.91billion, down by 63 per cent from its target of Rs32.33billion, and economic experts associate the reduction in tax collections with the fiscal crisis that currently grips the country.

    “If the economy remains in this condition, revenue will continue to fall,” the report quoted an expert as saying.

    Several factors, including lower than usual property tax, irrigation tax, income tax, and land revue, contributed to the overall shortfall. During July, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) collection under stamp duty, property tax, irrigation tax, income tax, and land revenue fell by 20.41 per cent, due to which the tax authority was only able to bag Rs5.38billion instead of Rs6.76billion.

    Similarly, a reduction of 22.16 per cent in property transfer, professional tax, professional excise, and other indirect taxes resulted in a shortfall of Rs0.73 billion.

    The provincial exchequer received another blow in lower than expected collection of sales tax and other indirect taxes. Out of the Rs13.87billion, only Rs318.6million ended up in the provincial coffers.

    Experts believe slowing economic growth will result in lower revenues for the government. And if current trends continue, the government revenue receipts will fail to match the budgeted targets.

    Official sources, on the other hand, confirmed the English daily that the targets were not being met due to the current economic crisis. However, they were hopeful that the coming year would yield better results and bring in greater revenue through taxation.