Tag: PTI

  • ‘Didn’t meet Tareen,’ Shahzad Akbar and Ali Zafar deny allegations

    ‘Didn’t meet Tareen,’ Shahzad Akbar and Ali Zafar deny allegations

    Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Advisor on Accountability Shahzad Akbar on Wednesday denied reports that he had met disgruntled Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Jahangir Khan Tareen (JKT).

    Both Shahzad Akbar and Barrister Ali Zafar denied having a joint meeting with Tareen in Islamabad, which was claimed by Raja Riaz, a member of the JKT group.

    Akbar took to Twitter to categorically deny he met Tareen.

    “Contrary to reports/statements on media, there has been no meeting with JKT. Barrister Ali Zafar has already denied any report being associated with him on the issue of pending FIA investigations,” tweeted Akbar.

    “PM Imran Khan’s commitment with the process of accountability and justice remains unshakable,” he added.

    Meanwhile, Senator Ali Zafar said he had meetings with Tareen but did not see him in the presence of Akbar on Tuesday.

    Raja Riaz also claimed that the one-man committee constituted by PM has given a clean chit to Jahangir Tareen.

    “Barrister Zafar had briefed advisor to the prime minister on accountability Shahzad Akbar and Jahangir Tareen in a meeting on Tuesday in Islamabad on his findings of the sugar scam probe. Zafar told them that Tareen had not been found guilty of the charges framed by the FIA Lahore,” said Riaz.

    Barrister Ali Zafar denied this news as well.

    “Some persons/media are busy guessing on what my findings in JKT (Jahangir Khan Tareen) turn out to be. Let me make it clear that there is no report submitted by me,” tweeted Zafar.

    “Any findings, not necessarily in writing, shall be purely internal to the PTI and have no legal value or status nor can the same have any relevance to or affect pending inquiries/investigations against the sugar barons or Tareen,” Zafar said in a series of tweets on Wednesday.

    “I have been tasked to see into complaints of JKT and will be making my recommendations directly and only to the PM once I conclude,” tweeted Zafar.

    The FIA had registered two FIRs against Jahangir Tareen and his son Ali Tareen under Rs5 billion money laundering and fraud charges in the sugar ‘scam’. Both are on interim bail till May 31.

    Last month, PM Khan had formed a one-man committee comprising Barrister Ali Zafar to ascertain whether there was any truth to the concerns that some people holding key positions in the government and the PTI were politically victimising Tareen.

  • Pakistan to host World Environment Day on June 5: PM Khan

    Pakistan to host World Environment Day on June 5: PM Khan

    Addressing a ceremony in Haripur in connection with the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Programme, Prime Minister Imran Khan said that Pakistan will be hosting World Environment Day on June 5.

    “This is a great honour and acknowledgment of the fact that Pakistan is among a handful of countries trying to reduce the impact of climate change and global warming,” said PM Khan.

    PM Khan said that his government had taken steps to protect the environment, adding that it was a worrying sign that Pakistan was included in the list of 10 countries that are worse affected from climate change.

    Earlier this month, Pakistan was chosen to host the World Environment Day 2021 in partnership with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) on June 5.

    This will be the first time in history that the country will be officially hosting the day.

    The day will be celebrated across the world through various events and activities under Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs).

    The theme for the day this year will be ecosystem restoration, with a special focus on creating a good relationship with nature.

  • ’PDM is not Shahid Khaqan’s bonded slave’: Kaira

    ’PDM is not Shahid Khaqan’s bonded slave’: Kaira

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Qamar Zaman Kaira said that the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) is not Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s personal slave or bonded labour that he can impose his views on the Opposition alliance.

    Kaira was talking to anchorperson Shahzeb Khanzada on Geo News’ programme ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath’.

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had said he would quit PDM if PPP was allowed to rejoin the Opposition alliance unconditionally.

    Kaira also said that while Shehbaz Sharif is making efforts to unite the Opposition, Shahid Khaqan was tearing it apart.

    Maryam Nawaz on Tuesday said Shehbaz Sharif’s dinner had nothing to do with PDM.

    PPP leadership also urged Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to take back his words against the party.

    Fazl on Tuesday said the PPP and the Awami National Party (ANP) could rejoin the PDM if they apologie to the Opposition alliance for going against its decisions.

    Fazl said both the PPP and ANP had been given sufficient time to get back to the PDM leadership, but they have not done so.

    “There are currently no proposals to invite PPP and ANP at the PDM meeting on May 29,” Fazl said. He added that during the upcoming PDM meeting, the Opposition leaders will decide the future of the PPP and ANP in the alliance.

  • Why doesn’t Maryam Nawaz drink lassi?

    Why doesn’t Maryam Nawaz drink lassi?

    Despite being told that how can one be Lahori and not drink lassi, PML-N’s Maryam Nawaz says that she doesn’t drink the heavy yoghurt drink. She was asked whether she was ‘having lassi’ by someone who tweeted a picture of her holding a silver glass.

    To which she responded and said, “I wish I could have it everyday but I have to watch my weight so coffee only”.

    After her tweet, another follower commented that being Lahori and not having lassi is a crime.

    to which she responded and said, “Isn’t it?”

    This is not the first time Maryam has expressed her love for chilled drinks. She tweeted in 2013 that she loved the “tang of diet coke”, and in 2019 Imran Khan’s ex wife Reham Khan criticised her former husband for not letting Maryam Nawaz have diet coke when Maryam was in jail.

  • Accountability to continue without any discrimination: PM Khan

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan on Sunday said that he will not be blackmailed by anyone, adding that even if the government has to dissolve, the process of accountability will continue.

    According to sources, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar informed the PM about his meeting with the Tareen Group after which it was decided that the just demands of the group would be accepted.

    PM Khan, according to a source, told the party leaders that he will not let Jahangir Tareen get away if he is involved in the sugar scam.

    The meeting also discussed the Azad Kashmir elections and Minister for Kashmir Affairs Ali Amin Gandapur briefed the committee about the amendments in the relevant laws.

    The premier stressed that in order to make the process of elections fair and transparent, seeking technological assistance in the form of electronic voting is essential. He said that in the next elections, electronic voting will ensure that rigging does not take place.

    PM Imran said immediate steps should be taken to remove obstacles in the issuance of long-term visas to foreign investors, especially Chinese investors, and consider introducing a separate category for those involved in the CPEC project.

    The prime minister said that CPEC was not only a harbinger of economic growth for Pakistan, but also a path to development for the entire region.

  • No new group being formed within PTI, says Fawad Chaudhry

    Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry, while addressing a press conference in Lahore with the members of Jahangir Khan Tareen group, said that no new group is being formed within PTI and the party “is one family”.

    “We are all in agreement on fundamental issues. Nauman Langrial and other leaders are second-generation politicians,” and the party should benefit from their experience. “There was just a need to improve communication between us,” he said.

    During the presser, the minister said that the JKT group has, “expressed confidence in Prime Minister Imran Khan’s leadership and they are proud of their relationship with the PTI and these are the basic things which we are all united on.”

    He continued by saying that everyone in the party is clear on these issues. “Imran Khan is our leader and PTI is our party.”

    “The opposition is under the false impression that there are differences within PTI, hopefully, now the opposition’s celebration will end.”

    Talking about the ongoing investigation against Jahangir Khan Tareen, Fawad said that “neither Jahangir Tareen is expecting any undue favours from Imran Khan nor the prime minister is the type of a person who will extend any.”

    Earlier on May 19, Jahangir Khan Tareen hosted a dinner at his residence and announced a ‘group of like-minded people’. The group appointed PTI’s Raja Riaz as Parliamentary Leader in the National Assembly while PML-N’s Saeed Akbar Nawani will lead in the Punjab Assembly.

  • CM Buzdar to meet JKT group today

    CM Buzdar to meet JKT group today

    Chief Minister Punjab Usman Buzdar will meet members of the Jahangir Khan Tareen (JKT) group today to hear their grievances.

    Talking to the media, Punjab MPA and JKT group member Nazir Chohan said they would meet the chief minister and tell him about his “faults”.

    “The purpose of our meeting is the betterment of the province. Punjab’s affairs are being run by the bureaucracy.” Chohan added that while the MPAs have elected Buzdar as the chief minister, he did not get them elected.

    Earlier, PTI MNA Raja Riaz had claimed that CM Buzdar is ready to address the reservations of the Tareen group.

    Riaz claimed CM House Punjab had contacted him and said that he expects to meet the chief minister soon.

    These development come after Jahangir Tareen announced that his supporters had decided to form a separate group after the Punjab government initiated vindictive actions against them. However, he clarified that this was not a forward bloc and all members of the JKT group are still part of PTI.

  • PTI’s MNA justifies Hitler’s actions to show solidarity with Palestinians

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Member of the National Assembly Kanwal Shauzab, justified the actions of Adolf Hitler during a session in Parliament. She was giving a speech about Israel’s atrocities against the people of Palestine.

    Kanwal Shauzab’s speech went viral on social media with many people criticising her for her anti-semitic comments.

    Zarrar Khuhro, who hosts a show on Dawn News TV, also explained discussed Kanwal’s speech, discussing how the actions of a man who conducted a mass genocide should not be used in a ‘positive way’.

    In her speech, Kanwal said that Adolf Hitler had said that, “I spared some Jews to let the world know why I killed them,” but Zarrar pointed out that the quote was wrongly attributed to Hitler.

    Many people on the social media also called out the MNA for her ill-informed opinion.

    https://twitter.com/schaheid/status/1395274659147419648
    https://twitter.com/ABjeezExpert/status/1395038410407088131
    https://twitter.com/LeanneMohamad/status/1394007317113360385?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1394007317113360385%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fimages.dawn.com%2Fnews%2F1187254

    Adolf Hitler was responsible for the Holocaust, which took place between 1941 and 1945 and killed almost six million Jews in Germany and other parts of Europe.

  • ‘Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme’ was made in ‘Purana Pakistan’, alleges journalist

    ‘Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme’ was made in ‘Purana Pakistan’, alleges journalist

    Prime Minister Imran Khan inaugurated a low-cost housing colony for labourers and industrial workers on Wednesday.

    The PM said the housing scheme for workers in Peshawar was launched in 2011 but it remained incomplete since then as it was not a priority because it was meant for the poor labourers. He said he wanted to see how much the condition of the poor had improved after the five-year tenure of the PTI government. This new project has now been put under the ‘Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme’.

    However, a report by journalist Izharullah sets the record straight about the origins of the scheme. 

    

    The labour colony in the Regi Lalma area of Peshawar was approved in 2008 during the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) regime. Work on the project began in 2011, with a total of 1,200 flats. However, in 2013, construction of 1,000 additional flats was approved. 
    

    The project was funded by the Workers’ Welfare Board, an organisation working for the welfare of workers, and funding for it was obtained from the Workers’ Welfare Fund set up under the same board.
    

    Addressing the inaugural function, PM Imran Khan said that the government had launched a ‘new Pakistan housing scheme’ under which the working class and the poor would get houses. 
    

    At the time the colony was approved, there was a PPP-Awami National Party coalition government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Work on the labour colony began in April 2011, and was completed in 2020. Some work is still pending though.
    

    These flats were approved for labourers in Hattar, Peshawar, Takht Bai, and Haripur. These projects were later inaugurated in 2013 by the then PPP Provincial Labour Minister Sher Azam Wazir. The old name plates have been removed and the housing scheme has been inaugurated once again. 
    

    Special Assistant to Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhawa, Kamran Bangash, tweeted that about half of the flats were started in 2011, while the rest were started in 2013. “However, due to the Workers Welfare Fund being a federal department, the funds of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were cut off during the Nawaz era,” tweeted Bangash.
    

    

    


    

    

    

    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    ‘One SHO is enough for Jahangir Tareen’s group’: Faisal Vawda
    
			
    ‘One SHO is enough for Jahangir Tareen’s group’: Faisal Vawda
    
			
    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)  leader Faisal Vawda downplayed the significance of the leaders who support Jahangir Khan Tareen, saying they can be handled by a station house officer (SHO) alone.
    

    

    


    

    

    

    Faisal Vawda criticised Jahangir Tareen on a talk show on ARY News, ‘Off The Record’, saying, “There is no doubt that Jahangir Khan Tareen is an intelligent and successful person. But he is not Imran Khan, for sure.”
    

    The PTI leader said Tareen earned respect thanks to Imran Khan, adding that whatever reputation he had was only because of PM Khan. Giving his own example the leader said he came into power because PM Khan’s name was associated with him. He alone could not have done anything. 
    

    Vawda said no one should lose sight of their standing. He asserted, “Imran Khan is the leader and he will remain so and 50 million Jahangir Tareens, 500 million Faisal Vawdas, and 500 million cabinets put together could not create a single Imran Khan.”
    

    On Tuesday night, Jahangir Khan Tareen hosted a dinner at his residence and announced a ‘group of like-minded people’. The newly formed group has appointed PTI’s Raja Riaz as Parliamentary Leader in the National Assembly while PML-N’s Saeed Akbar Nawani will lead in the Punjab Assembly.