Tag: Shahid Khaqan Abbasi

  • PTI’s Shaukat Tarin booked for allegedly sabotaging IMF deal

    Former Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin has been booked in a sedition case by Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for allegedly sabotaging negotiations between Pakistan and International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader landed in the center of controversy in August last year when telephonic conversations between him and two provincial finance ministers surfaced. A voice, allegedly Tarin’s, was heard telling Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s (KP) finance minister Taimur Jhagra and Punjab finance minister Mohsin Leghari, both of the PTI, to tell the coalition government in the centre and the IMF that they would not be able to commit to a provincial budget surplus in light of the monsoon floods.

    The leaked audio came to light when the international lender’s executive board was scheduled to consider Pakistan’s request of releasing the $1.2 billion tranche under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF).

    On Monday, the coalition government also allowed the FIA to arrest the former finance minister after the agency sought the interior ministry’s nod to detain him.

    PTI lawmakers protested in Senate against the possible arrest of Tarin on the same day.

    Interestingly, senior leader of arch-rivals Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, lent support to Tarin, stating that there should be a trial and he shouldn’t be arrested.

    He pointed out that many arrests took place when Imran Khan was PM and that now the incumbent government shouldn’t follow in his footsteps.

  • Maryam Nawaz stops Safdar from speaking on behalf of party

    Maryam Nawaz stops Safdar from speaking on behalf of party

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz has reportedly stopped her husband—Captain (retired) Safdar—from delivering any ‘policy statement’ after he criticised the party’s leadership in an exclusive interview with ARY News.

    According to media reports, the senior vice president made it clear that no party leader, including her husband, should give any statement that goes against the party’s policy.

    She also warned the party that strict action would be taken against those who deviate from the directives.

    ‘Don’t see Maryam Nawaz becoming PM in near future’: Capt Safdar

    Earlier, Safdar said that he doesn’t see his wife becoming the Prime Minister (PM) of Pakistan in the near future.

    He said, “I don’t see Maryam Nawaz becoming PM in near future”, adding that if PM Shehbaz Sharif gets elected in 2025, the country will prosper.

    He said the ‘vote ko izzat do‘ narrative of the party was buried on the day when PML-N decided to vote in parliament in favour of an extension to the former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Qamar Javed Bajwa. Safdar said he thinks whoever voted for Qamar Javed Bajwa’s extension except for Pervaiz Rasheed, are “criminals”.

    Replying to a question about Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) dissident leaders, Safdar said the parliamentarians should not change their loyalties. “It is not right to win elections on PTI’s tickets and later change your loyalties for power,” he maintained.

    Safdar was of the view that elections in Punjab and KP shouldn’t be held now and went on to say to hold general elections in 2025 after the recovery of the economy.

    In a turn of events, he also regretted his personal attacks on his party rival, Imran Khan, and said that political rivalry should remain political, not personal.

    Talking about PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi—who recently resigned from his position as the party’s vice president after Maryam’s elevation— Safdar said that Shahid doesn’t need a position and praised him.

    On January 3, Maryam was appointed as the party’s “Chief Organiser” and “Senior Vice President”. Later, she returned to the country to take charge of her new responsibilities after a three-month absence.

  • Five years jail and arrest without warrant for criticising army and judiciary in new draft bill: Dawn

    Five years jail and arrest without warrant for criticising army and judiciary in new draft bill: Dawn

    A bill has reportedly been prepared by the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) led government where up to a five-year imprisonment sentence can be given to “whoever scandalises or ridicules the Pakistan Army and judiciary through any medium”, reports Riazul Haq for Dawn.

    It is to be noted that the bill is to amend the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC)

    The newspaper has reported that the summary and the bill will be forwarded to the federal cabinet soon.

    It says that whoever makes, publishes, circulates any statement or disseminates information, through any medium, with an intention to ridicule or scandalise the judiciary, the armed forces or any of their members will be found guilty. And the punishment may extend to five years or with a fine which may go as high up as Rs 1 million or both.

    Moreover, it says that the offender will be arrested without a warrant and the offence will be non-bailable and non-compoundable and can only be challenged in a sessions court.

    Dawn also reached out to PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi who said that he had not seen the draft but there had to be “some limit” to defaming someone.

    “Everywhere in the world there is a defamation law and this does not happen that anyone comes up willy-nilly and says whatever they want,” he was quoted saying by Dawn.

    However, later he denied his comments in a tweet as reported by Dawn, and said that he “simply cannot lend support to any draconian legislation”.

    “I believe that Pakistan needs defamation laws with financial recourse to protect everyone from unsubstantiated accusations,” he explained.

    PML-N’s Rohail Asghar also made it clear that no such laws should be passed by the government as he believed that there should be space for criticism.

  • Shahid Khaqan resigns, says my leader is ONLY Nawaz and Shehbaz

    Shahid Khaqan resigns, says my leader is ONLY Nawaz and Shehbaz

    Former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has resigned from his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) post, spokesperson for Nawaz Sharif Mohammad Zubair confirmed the development.

    “He [Shahid Khan Abbasi] is a big leader, and quitting the post will not affect him,” Zubair told the media. He also added that Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb had also confirmed the resignation.

    Zubair said that he doesn’t want to “wash dirty laundry” in public, adding that Miftah Ismail is still with PML-N.

    “He is a very senior leader and a former prime minister. The party needs his experience.”

    It was reported in The News on Wednesday that Abbasi decided to step down after Maryam Nawaz was elevated as the party’s chief organiser and senior vice president by Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif, who is also the President of PML-N.

    According to media reports, Abbasi said that he had made it clear to Nawaz Sharif three years back that it would not be possible for him to continue with Maryam Nawaz if she was elevated to party’s top office.

    To a query, he said he had not talked to Maryam Nawaz ever since her return from London. “I am happy that her surgery has been successful,” he said.

    On January 30, Abbasi had said that he believed Maryam Nawaz will be able to organise the party. Speaking on Dawn News, Abbasi was asked if he accepted Maryam Nawaz as his leader. The former premier responded by saying that his leader is Nawaz Sharif, and after him, Shehbaz Sharif is the president of PML-N. “Apart from this, I don’t say a yes or no to anyone else.”

    However, Abbasi’s spokesperson said that the news of Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s resignation is “baseless”. “He did not leave the party in difficult circumstances; why will he leave today?” the spokesperson asked.

    As per reports, former PM Abbasi was unhappy with the decision being taken without consulting other party members, adding Abbasi tendered his resignation a day after Maryam Nawaz’s appointment.

    Earlier this month, Maryam was promoted as the PML-N’s senior vice-president and was also asked to reorganize the party which has faced a series of electoral defeats in 2022.

    It was also reported that Abbasi said, “Maryam Nawaz is appointed senior vice president and in this situation, there’s no reason for me to work as party’s SVP.”

    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    ‘Rethink and reimagine Pakistan’: Politicians, bureaucrats call for political consensus
    
			
    Former Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar has announced that he along with a group of politicians and bureaucrats, will be organising a series of seminars across Pakistan aimed at bringing about a “political consensus for restructuring the governance structures of Pakistan”.
    

    Former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former Finance Minister Miftah Ismail, Fawad Hasan Fawad, Asad Ali Shah, Haji Lashkari Raisini, Mir Humayun Kurd, Khawaja Mohammad Hoti, along with others, will be part of this effort to create political consensus.
    

    Khokhar tweeted, “In a nonpartisan effort, I have been talking to friends & colleagues about the current economic, political and social crisis of Pakistan which are now striking at the core foundations of the state and the society.”
    

    

    


    

    

    

    “At the same time individual and collective rights are under severe stress causing a widespread dissatisfaction of people across the regional and ethnic divides in Pakistan. These trying times require us to “rethink” or “reimagine” Pakistan.”
    

    

    


    

    

    

    Talking to The News, Khokar said, “From political uncertainty to economic meltdown to polarisation in society that has reached dangerous levels of intolerance, Pakistan is not facing just one crisis but multiple crises at the same time. Today we are at a juncture where we are actually at a ‘naazuk morr’ — a phrase that we always hear but only when powerful quarters don’t want something to be talked about”.
    

    Ismail too took to Twitter and said, ” I and many other colleagues are trying to bring about a national consensus on major issues. Thus we are starting with holding seminars across Pakistan.”
    

    

    


    

    

    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    ‘Imran se mil ke dosti ka ailaan kareinge’: Gen Faiz convinced Modi to visit Pakistan in 2021, claims Javed Chaudhry
    
			
    Journalist Javed Chaudhry continues with bringing inside details of the working of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led government in his column. In the fourth part of the series published today, Chaudhry alleges that in 2020 the establishment had convinced Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi to visit Pakistan, and former Bahawalpur corps commander Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed played a significant role in arranging the proposed trip.
    

    The journalist writes that in this regard Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed, who was then the head of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) met Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and both agreed upon Modi visiting Pakistan on April 9, 2021.
    

    All the details of the trip had been planned out. Modi would have first visited the Hinglaj Mata Mandir in Balochistan and on his way back home he would have met Imran Khan who was Prime Minister. Chaudhry said that it was planned that “Modi would shake hands with Khan and declare peace between the two countries and opening of trade”.
    

    Continuing with the sensational claims, the journalist writes that both leaders would announce that there will be no interference or terrorist activities from both countries. At the time, Modi was of the view that both countries would sit together after 20 years to decide about the future of India-occupied Kashmir.
    

    However, this tour was cancelled because Khan—on the advice of his foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi—backed out. Chaudhry writes that Qureshi scared Khan by telling him it would give a perception to the masses that he [Khan] has compromised on Kashmir.
    

    Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed helped Khan in confidence motion
    

    According to the journalist, the establishment helped Khan throughout the confidence motion that Imran voluntarily announced he will take, right after Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) candidate Yousaf Raza Gillani defeated PTI’s Hafeez Sheikh in the senate elections. Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed ensured full numbers for PTI so Khan could win the motion. Calls and visits were made to ensure that disgruntled MNAs voted in favour of Khan.
    

    Moreover, the journalist writes that as per his sources, Khan advised showing leniency towards former President and co-chairman of PPP, Asif Ali Zardari, from National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and the court.
    

    LNG deal was ruined by Khan
    

    In the column, another detailed passage says that former army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa admits that former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz signed the best LNG deal with Qatar to ensure supplies for Pakistan during winters but it was ruined by Imran Khan.
    

    Chaudhry said that then-Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Petroleum, Nadeem Babar, asked for just three gas shipments from Qatar despite a one-time generous offer to take ‘as much as required’ amidst a looming gas crisis at home, so he could sell his own furnace oil.
    

    In another episode, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) caught a ship loaded with cheaply bought Iranian petrol. It was for none other than Babar. According to him, Khan was informed about it but chose to stay quiet.
    

    Also, prior to Nadeem’s appointment, Khan was warned by the establishment but he didnt listen.
    

    Babar isn’t in the country anymore but Pakistan is still paying the price of his decisions to serve his own interests, all because Imran wanted to retain him as his aide, writes Chaudhry in his column.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    ‘Agar mulk chalana hai toh NAB ko khatam karey’: Shahid Khaqan Abbasi
    
			
    ‘Agar mulk chalana hai toh NAB ko khatam karey’: Shahid Khaqan Abbasi
    
			
    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and former Prime Minister (PM) Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has demanded the abolishment of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), blaming the watchdog institution for the ongoing crisis in the country.
    

    While speaking outside an accountability court in Islamabad after attending a hearing in the LNG case, he said, “Agar mulk chalana hai toh is idaray [NAB] ko khatam karain (If you want the country to progress, this institution [NAB] should be abolished).
    

    He said the “so-called” accountability was aimed at defaming only politicians. “The so-called process of accountability operates just to ridicule politicians,” he added.
    

    Lambasting ex-chairman of NAB, Javed Iqbal, the former premier said that he should confess who told him to register false cases.
    

    It is pertinent to mention that PML-N has repeatedly criticised NAB and said that false cases were made against party leaders.
    

    In August, the National Assembly passed the National Accountability (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022, which sought to exclude private transactions from the scope of NAB.
    

    Under the amended bill, the pecuniary jurisdiction of NAB had been fixed to only take action against mega scandals. Furthermore, it had been proposed that supplementary references can only be filed with the permission of the court to expedite the proceedings of the court within one year.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    ‘I am captain who brought neutral umpires’: IK on whether he wants military out of politics or not
    
			
    ‘I am captain who brought neutral umpires’: IK on whether he wants military out of politics or not
    
			
    Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has said that he is the one who in the entire history of the game, brought in a neutral umpire to get fair results.
    

    Khan was talking on TRT World’s “The Newsmakers” with Andrea Sanke, when the anchor asked, “You want the military out of Pakistan’s politics, or do you want the military on your side in Pakistan’s politics?”
    

    Khan replied: “Let me say one thing. In the two hundred year history of test cricket, and international cricket, I am the captain who brought the neutral umpires. I am the one who actually brought in the neutral umpires in cricket because we wanted a fair result.”
    

    “You must understand, for me right now, the most important thing in Pakistan is how do we get out of the quagmire, how do we get out of this situation”, he stated.
    

    

    


    

    

    

    During the interview, Khan again mentioned the names of PM Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and Major General Faisal Naseer as the minds behind the assassination attempt on his life. “We are governed by criminals”, Khan said.
    

    He reiterated that he wants an independent investigation. “We are a popular party in Punjab but we couldn’t get a case registered against them because the provincial police refused,” he told the host.
    

    “If they turned out to be innocent in the investigation so it’s fine. At least it’s my right, they almost killed me”, Khan said.
    

    He claimed that all the investigative agencies in the country are under these three people [Shehbaz, Sanaullah and Faisal Naseer].
    

    About Naveed, the gunman who shot at the former Prime Minister, Imran Khan said, “After 20 minutes of the incident, a man appears and says that I shot Imran”.
    

    Khan raised a question: “Who brought him on television? Police are not allowed to do this unless a proper investigation is carried out.”
    

    Stressing that he was more determined now, Imran Khan said that he was expecting something to happen. “I predicted this four months ago that there was a plot against me,” he said.
    

    Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former prime minister and a senior leader of the ruling coalition, also spoke with The Newsmakers and called the allegations levelled by Khan tragic. “It is a tragedy that a person of Imran Khan’s stature, who served as the prime minister of the country, would stoop so low to accuse the [sitting] prime minister and intelligence officials of being behind this shooting,” he said.
    

    Abbasi said the shooting took place in a province that Khan’s PTI party controls and called for an investigation to ascertain the motivation behind this shooting. “The shooter has been arrested and the truth should come out. I think for Imran Khan to speculate and try to gain political points out of this is something that is very much not acceptable,” Abbasi said.
    

    Imran Khan rejected Abbasi’s statement, saying he does not need popularity gained by accusing others.
    

    Khan called on the Chief Justice (CJ) of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial to be “more assertive” when it comes to dispensing justice.
    

    “Justice persists when every person, even the most powerful, is brought under the rule of law. I, as the head of a province, can’t get the three people to be investigated, imagine what the situation will be for the common man,” he said, adding that PTI’s movement for “real struggle” demanded rule of law.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    Govt not going anywhere; Shahid Khaqan Abbasi dismisses threat of long march
    
			
    Govt not going anywhere; Shahid Khaqan Abbasi dismisses threat of long march
    
			
    Former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has said that the coalition government will not fall as a result of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s long march.
    

    “Imran Khan may launch a long march or do as he wishes, the government will remain as it is,” said Khaqan while speaking at Geo News programme Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath while referring to the PTI Chairman who announced that the long march will commence from Friday.
    

    

    


    

    

    

    On Tuesday, Khan announced that his long march will commence from Lahore’s Liberty Chowk on October 28. After the announcement, federal ministers and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders came forward, stating that the government will deal firmly with the marchers who are planning to come to the capital city.
    

    Federal Minister for Planning, Ahsan Iqbal, said that the long march was announced because Khan wants National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) to escape punishment in the foreign funding and Toshakhana cases.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    ‘Long March will be dealt with iron hands’: PML-N leaders and ministers react to Khan’s long march
    
			
    ‘Long March will be dealt with iron hands’: PML-N leaders and ministers react to Khan’s long march
    
			
    After Imran Khan, the Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Tuesday announced that his long march will commence from Friday, federal ministers and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders came forward, stating that the government will deal strongly with the marchers who are planning to come to Islamabad.
    

    Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal said that the long march was announced because Khan wants National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) to escape punishment in the foreign funding and Toshakhana cases.
    

    

    


    

    

    

    PML-N leader and former federal minister Abid Sher Ali said that, “The government will deal with the long march with iron hands. There is no leniency for certified thieves”.
    

    

    


    

    

    

    Meanwhile, PML-N leader and former Prime Minister (PM) Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said that Khan can do whatever he wants but the government is not going anywhere. “Imran Khan may launch a long march or do as he wishes, the government will remain as it is,” he stressed.
    

    While speaking on the Geo News’ programme ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath‘ he said that neither politics nor democracy will survive in the country if a tradition takes hold to overthrow the government through long marches.
    

    

    


    

    

    

    He posed a question: “Why does a long march take place whenever bilateral relations with China get off the ground?” Moreover, he mentioned that the last time when the long march was announced, Chinese President Xi Jinping was set to visit Pakistan.
    

    It is pertinent to mention here that in 2014, President Xi had to call off his scheduled visit to Pakistan because of the political unrest in the country caused by long march in the federal capital. At the time, the Chinese ambassador had even approached Khan to suspend his protest for a few days in order to allow the visit to take place. However, he refused.
    

    On October 25, Khan announced his party’s much-awaited long march. The march will begin on Friday, October 28 from Lahore’s Liberty Chowk at 11am.