Tag: The Current

  • PM Shehbaz set to visit Saudi Arabia for two days  

    PM Shehbaz set to visit Saudi Arabia for two days  

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif will depart for a two-day trip to Saudi Arabia for Umrah on Saturday night. During his stay in Jeddah, he will also meet his Saudi Arabian counterpart, The News reported on Friday.

    The Premier will discuss various projects during a meeting with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

    Shehbaz Sharif will also invite MbS to visit Pakistan soon.

    During his stay in Saudi Arabia, both countries will finalise multiple development projects, and continue bilateral cooperation in various sectors, including agriculture. 

    The sources of The News claimed that Saudi Arabia will also invest $1 billion in the Reko Diq project.

    The schedule for PM Shehbaz’s visit will be finalised on Friday (today), said the sources.

  • Arsenic found in suspicious letters sent to judges

    Arsenic found in suspicious letters sent to judges

    The Counter Terrorism department (CTD) has obtained a forensic report of the powder found in the suspicious letters sent to judges of the High Court and Supreme Court (SC).

    At least four SC judges and judges of the high court—eight of the Islamabad High Court and six of the Lahore High Court—received the letters, creating fear among the judiciary.

    Justice Ali Baqar Najfi of Lahore High Court (LHC) was the last judge to receive a letter filled with white powder.

    The CTD registered two FIRs against unknown people and initiated an investigation into the matter.

    The report revealed that arsenic was mixed in powder found in the letters. The sources of GEO also uncovered that 10 percent arsenic was mixed in the powder, as a higher amount of arsenic could be “very poisonous” and harmful to the human body.

    The investigators have obtained videos of the CCTV cameras installed near the letterboxes in the sub-divisional post office in Satellite Town, Rawalpindi.

  • PM vows to uphold 18th Amendment

    PM vows to uphold 18th Amendment

    Agreeing with Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s remarks, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed to transfer all relevant ministries and departments back to provinces – which are constitutionally under the purview of provinces.

    The Prime Minister stated that the federation will strengthen the provinces by devolving all relevant ministries under the 18th Amendment and national expenditures will be minimized to cut loss.

    During the campaign for the general elections, Bilawal suggested that if his party were elected, then the federation would eliminate 17 federal ministries to save the taxpayers’ Rs.300 billion.

    Similarly, the former foreign minister has suggested that 17 federal ministries should be devolved to provincial authorities.

    The 18th Amendment, passed on April 8, 2010, was a landmark bill that gave provinces autonomy. It devolved multiple federal ministries and powers to provinces. It divested the president of all his executive authority and made him a ceremonial head of the state.

  • Hafiz Naeem Ur Rehman elected as new emir of Jamaat-e-Islami

    Hafiz Naeem Ur Rehman elected as new emir of Jamaat-e-Islami

    Prominent politician Hafiz Naeem Ur Rehman has been elected as the new emir of Jamaat-e-Islami for the next five years on Thursday.

    JI Central Information Secretary Qaisar Sharif said that during the recent intra-party polls, almost 45,000 party members cast their votes to elect a new emir.

    “Naeem received over 80 percent of the votes and became the sixth emir of the party,” he added.

    Hafiz Naeem Ur Rehman will remain the party chief till 2029, the party’s information secretary confirmed.

  • Kakar out, Gillani in; PPP takes final decision

    Kakar out, Gillani in; PPP takes final decision

    Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has nominated former prime minister and party loyalist Yousaf Raza Gillani as its candidate for the slot of Senate Chairman on Thursday.

    Jamil Soomro, political secretary of PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, issued a notification on Thursday, putting to rest all speculation that the party will nominate another former Prime Minister, Anwaar Kakar, for the covered post.

    Following an agreement between the PPP and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on certain positions, like the post of president, Senate chairman, and governorship of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, were given to the PPP. However, the posts of Senate deputy chairman, National Assembly speaker, and governorship of Sindh and Balochistan were provided to PML-N.

    The former prime minister has the support of a total 54 senators, including 24 from the PPP, 19 from PML-N, four from the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), three from the Awami National Party (ANP), three independents, and one from the National Party.

    However, if he gets the support of three MQM-P and five JUI-F senators, this number will become 64, which means Yousaf Raza Gillani will be in a comfortable position to get elected to the seat of Senate Chairman.

    On the other hand, the PTI has the support of 20 senators and one each from the BNP and PML-Q, taking the tally to 22.

  • ‘Bushra Bibi ko Zehr dia ja raha hai’, Khan tells court

    ‘Bushra Bibi ko Zehr dia ja raha hai’, Khan tells court

    Imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan has told the court that his wife, former first lady Bushra Bibi, is being poisoned in Bani Gala sub-jail, Geo reported on Tuesday.

    The PTI founder levelled the allegations during a hearing of a £190 million settlement case in Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail, telling an accountability court judge that Bushra Bibi had marks on her skin and tongue.

    He also requested the court for an investigation into the matter by conducting a medical examination on the former first lady.

    Khan said: “I know who is behind it.”

    He also requested in court that Dr Asim Yunus of Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre should medically examine Bushra Bibi.

    At this, the court directed Khan to submit a written application seeking the medical examination of Bushra Bibi.

  • Police arrest man sitting in aitekaaf for stealing clothes

    Police arrest man sitting in aitekaaf for stealing clothes

    In a strange robbery case, police have arrested a suspect for allegedly stealing clothes from a tailor’s shop in district Layyah, Geo has reported on Tuesday.
    The police arrested the man from a local mosque where he was observing aitekaaf.

    The police confirmed that the suspect, along with his accomplice, stole clothes from a tailor’s shop in Moti Bazar.
    At least 12 suits were recovered from the suspect, the police added.

    Cases of theft increase around Eid. Last year, thieves stole 70 animals meant for sacrifice before Eid ul Adha in Karachi.
    The stolen animals included mostly cows and goats, which are apparently relatively easier to steal, than camels.

  • JUI-F’s Noor Islam Nizami shot dead in North Waziristan

    JUI-F’s Noor Islam Nizami shot dead in North Waziristan

    Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl’s (JUI-F) prominent leader Noor Islam Nizami was shot dead on Tuesday in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s North Waziristan district.

    Unidentified persons opened fire in Miranshah, close to the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, on the JUI-F leader, Express News reported.

    The North Waziristan District Police Officer (DPO) also confirmed the death of the politician. His body was transferred to Miranshah Hospital for essential requirements.

    Authorities have started a proper investigation in the case, while evidence is also being collected. Police are carefully monitoring the district to catch the people who are behind the assassination.

    A report from the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) shows that Pakistan saw a rise in violence-related deaths during the first three months of 2024. The report reveals that there were 245 incidents of terror attacks and counter-terror operations, resulting in 432 fatalities.

  • Imran Khan removes Sher Afzal Marwat from key party roles

    Imran Khan removes Sher Afzal Marwat from key party roles

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has removed maverick leader Sher Afzal Marwat from main party roles, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

    An internal party source claimed that removing Marwat from key party roles was the decision of the party’s core committee.

    Marwat’s name is not on the list of individuals who can meet Imran Khan in Adiala jail anymore. The new focal persons are Umar Ayub, Barrister Ali Zafar, Shibli Faraz, and Barrister Gohar Ali Khan.

    Adiala jail authorities are also aware of the development.

    After Eid-ul-Fitr, PTI and other opposition parties are going to form an alliance to start an anti-government movement in the country.

    Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), Majlis-e-Wadhat-e-Muslimeen (MWM), and Balochistan National Party (BNP) will also be part of the opposition alliance.

  • Despite criticism, Nawaz Sharif continues leading administrative meetings in Punjab  

    Despite criticism, Nawaz Sharif continues leading administrative meetings in Punjab  

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif continues leading administrative meetings with his daughter, chief minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz, despite facing heavy criticism. 

    The PML-N head also chaired a meeting on Monday to review problems in Punjab’s agricultural sector.

    Since the general elections on February 8, the leader of the PML-N has mostly stayed out of the spotlight. But in the few times he’s been seen in public since then, he’s been taking charge alongside his daughter, leading administrative meetings of the Punjab government.

    Now the question is that if Nawaz Sharif has not held any official or administrative position, then why is he leading administrative meetings in Punjab as he is just a member of the National Assembly (NA)?

    Sharif said during a meeting that the quality of seeds is still a big concern even after decades.

    He called for “effective steps” to save 37 million acres feet (MAF) of water from being wasted during agricultural activities in the province.