Tag: Top News

  • PTI’s Zartaj Gul nominated as parliamentary leader

    PTI’s Zartaj Gul nominated as parliamentary leader

    Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) has nominated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Zartaj Gul as a parliamentary leader, Express News reported on Saturday.

     Imran Khan approved the Gul’s name as the parliamentary leader.

    Earlier, the party proposed the names of four leaders, including Zartaj Gul, Sahibzada Mehboob Sultan, Zain Qureshi, and Ahmed Chatha, for the appointment for the National Assembly.

    Chairman PTI Barrister Gohar Khan also confirmed being informed about the nomination of Zartaj Gul as a parliamentary leader.

    SIC’s chief, Hamid Raza, will inform the NA speaker about Gul’s nomination on Monday.

    We interviewed Zartaj Gul when she was climate change minister in PTI’s government. Watch the interview here.

  • ‘Gentleman’ character inspired by Munna Bhai: Humayun Saeed

    ‘Gentleman’ character inspired by Munna Bhai: Humayun Saeed

    ‘Gentleman’ is the latest hit drama starring Humayun Saeed, marking his return to television after four years. In the show, he plays Iqbal Munna, a local from Korangi with an unexpected innocence. Fans can’t help but compare his character to the beloved Munna Bhai from the 2003 Bollywood film ‘Munna Bhai MBBS,’ portrayed by Sanjay Dutt.

    In a recent chat with his co-star Yumna Zaidi, Humayun revealed that his role was like Munna Bhai. He said Khalilur Rehman wrote it that way. Yumna added some mystery, saying, “Maybe,” suggesting surprises in the story.

    The actor also talked about the idea that Ahmad Ali Butt’s character, Dilbar, Munna’s faithful buddy, is like Circuit from Munna Bhai MBBS. He hinted, “Wait for the fifth episode; you’ll get the answer then. You gotta watch it.”

    Yumna assured fans that things would get clearer as the story goes on. She said, “I think it’ll make more sense after the next episode. And as the show goes on, I believe people will stop comparing and noticing these similarities. We’ve already moved past it ourselves.”

    Facing criticism for its portrayal of “gundagardi” in Korangi, Humayun defended the show, saying, “There aren’t real gangsters like we’ve shown in Korangi. It’s all make-believe. We tried to make it as real as possible in this fantasy world. We even thought about setting it in a made-up place, not Korangi. But we went with Korangi, and even then, it’s harmless.”

  • Khan appears before in FIA investigation after controversial X post

    Founder Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan, after refusing to appear twice before the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) investigation regarding the 1971 Fall of Dhaka controversial tweet case, has finally joined the agency’s probe on June 7, Geo News reports.

    “Every Pakistani should study the Hamood ur Rahman Commission Report and get to know who was the true traitor, General Yahya Khan or Sheikh Mujibur Rahman,” the caption read on the controversial video uploaded by Khan’s X account.

    Previously, Khan refused to appear before the FIA’s investigation team, stating that he would like his legal representation to be there.

    Khan was later interrogated with his lawyers present, Chaudhry Zaheer Abbas and Intezar Hussain Panjutha.

    Another PTI leader Omar Ayub Khan refused to join the probe due to a “busy schedule”, whereas, Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Central Secretary Information PTI Raoof Hasan appeared before the investigators on Wednesday.

    Additionally, the Islamabad High Court (IHC), following a petition against the FIA’s notices, also directed the probe agency not to take any adverse action against them, directing the PTI leaders to join the probe.

  • ‘Teri Chhaon Mein’ faces criticism over scene resembling ‘Tere Naam’

    ‘Teri Chhaon Mein’ faces criticism over scene resembling ‘Tere Naam’

    Actor Danish Taimoor’s new drama ‘Teri Chhaon Mein’ has started airing on Hum TV. Written by Radain Shah and directed by Abdullah Badini. The cast includes Laiba Khurram, Tara Mehmood, Sohail Sameer, and Behroze Sabzwari. The story is about Salaar, an obsessed stalker who falls in love with Wadeema after seeing her on the roadside.

    A scene from the drama has gone viral on social media for its striking similarity to a scene from the Bollywood film ‘Tere Naam.’ In the scene, Salaar sees Wadeema for the first time on the road, chases her, and expresses his love. He also reacts strangely to Wadeema’s speech at the university, making her feel awkward. Yasir Hussain criticized this scene, posting it with the caption, “What’s happening man? Who is the director of the drama serial?”

    See the post here:

    One social media user wrote, “Why didn’t Danish Taimoor read the script before signing it?” A fan commented, “Danish Taimoor should be ashamed for signing such scripts.”

  • Unidentified militants attack girls’ school in KP’s Kurram district

    Unidentified militants attack girls’ school in KP’s Kurram district

    Unidentified militants blew up a girls’ school in the Kurram district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Express News reported on Saturday.

    The local authorities confirmed that militants used hand grenades to destroy the Aisha Siddiqa Girls’ School, located in Central Kurram district. The powerful explosion destroyed the school building.

    No causalities have been reported.

    Relevant authorities, including intelligence agencies and police officials, are investigating the incident to arrest the terrorists responsible for the attack.
    Multiple girls’ schools had been attacked in North Waziristan. One of the locals has revealed to news outlets that the Taliban are demanding a significant amount of money from the schools’ funds.

  • 17-year-old waste collecting boy shot dead by guard in Karachi

    17-year-old waste collecting boy shot dead by guard in Karachi

    A 17-year-old boy, Samad, was shot dead by a security guard in North Karachi for not picking up waste.

    A security guard and a boy had an argument over picking up garbage, after which the guard got angry and shot the boy in the stomach. The injured child was shifted to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for medical assistance, where he succumbed to his injuries and died, as per the initial report. However, the accused guard escaped after the incident.

    Police say that there was an argument between the guard and the child about picking up garbage, during which the guard of the private security company opened fire and fled.

    The police told Geo News that the security guard has been identified as Ramzan, and they are looking for him.

    Earlier this week, in Sakhi Hasan Sarina mobile market in Karachi, a security guard shot and killed a TikToker for making a video about a match.

  • Censorship, Surveillance; mysterious firewall being installed to block content

    Censorship, Surveillance; mysterious firewall being installed to block content

    Umar Cheema, a senior investigative reporter at The News, has revealed that a national firewall is being installed on different internet service providers (ISPs) to rein in social media. The filters will block unwanted content from reaching a wider audience online.

    The Current also spoke with Shahbaz Rana, a senior journalist at The Tribune, to inquire about the details of the mysterious firewall. He stated, “This is a Chinese technology that the government is importing. It’s a $135 million project out of which some amount has been delivered and the remainder amount will be paid by next year.”

    “It is already bought. Now it is being installed and commissioned,” said sources of The News.

    “The national firewall will serve two purposes: identify the locations from where the propaganda material is being originated and the subsequent blockade or diminished coverage of those accounts”. He added: “But, I think the main focus will remain on locating the source of such propaganda to nip the evil in the bud”.

    According to Cheema, there will be a keyword filtering system to detect content that is undesirable to the state of Pakistan. That type of content will likely be hidden and made invisible to outside users. In other words, dissenting voices will likely be passed through this inspection before they’re visible.

    Preparation is also in progress to prevent the ‘misuse’ of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) as the government can declare it mandatory for citizens to inform the PTA about the VPNs they are using. Anyone failing to do that could land in trouble.

    Previously, the government’s action against VPNs triggered a backlash from the corporate community as VPNs are primarily used by big businesses worldwide to protect their business secrets as their internal communication travels within a private network. It was due to this that action against VPNs was stopped for some time.

    Blocking social media website X (formerly Twitter) has cut the users from 4.5 million to 2.4 million, a government official told The News. It has affected Twitter’s business in Pakistan and unlike in the past, the management of the social media company has also started paying heed to government demands.

    For instance, blockade of an account of the Pakistan Ex-Servicemen Society (PESS). Maj (r) Adil Raja was using this account even after he was no longer an office-bearer of the PESS — and refused to return control of the account.
    X (formerly Twitter) wouldn’t respond to requests generated through the PTA for a block on the account. However, it is now blocked on X.

  • Acting Punjab governor signs controversial defamation bill into law

    Acting Punjab governor signs controversial defamation bill into law

    On June 8, acting Governor Punjab Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan signed the highly controversial Punjab Defamation Bill, 2024 into law, Geo News reports.

    The bill has invited strong criticism from journalists, human rights organisations, and the opposition calling it a “black law.” However, it was passed into a law today disregarding all concerns and opposition.

    Lahore Press Club President Arshad Ansari slammed the Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) deceptive attitude, stating that the party deceived journalists.

    “The bill was signed by the acting governor by sending the Punjab governor on leave under a plan,” said Ansari.

    He also said that the PPP was apparently showing support to journalists and even assured that it wouldn’t be passed into law but in reality, it was in cahoots with the provincial government.

    The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) also expressed grave concern over the defamation bill.

  • PTI alleges ‘pre-planned’ delay in trial against Khan, Bushra Bibi in Iddat case

    PTI alleges ‘pre-planned’ delay in trial against Khan, Bushra Bibi in Iddat case

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has alleged a “deliberate delay in the provision of justice” to sentence former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife, as the Iddat case has been transferred to different court on the request of Judge Shahrukh Arjumand.

    PTI’s core committee issued the statement on Friday
    , after an internal meeting, regarding trials against Khan and his wife.

    According to the statement issued by the core committee, Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi need to be immediately released from Adiala jail. The statement adds that delaying tactics are being used to prolong the case.

    The former ruling party hopes that “false, baseless, and unfounded cases” will soon be declared null and void.

  • PTV hasn’t made a good quality drama in 20 years: Yasir Hussain

    PTV hasn’t made a good quality drama in 20 years: Yasir Hussain

    Veteran actor Aurangzeb Laghari, who received the Pride of Performance award for contributing to Pakistan’s entertainment industry, revealed in a recent interview that he had to change careers because of the severe lack of acting opportunities. Multiple news outlets reported that Laghari has opened a furniture showroom in Lahore.

    In response to this news, Actor Yasir Hussain, took to social media to highlight the diminishing opportunities for drama actors who do not live in Karachi.

    The ‘Karachi Se Lahore’ actor shared his disappointment on Instagram. He reposted the news and wrote, “All the dramas are made in Karachi, and they don’t invite anyone from Lahore to join. PTV used to give work to people from all cities, but now they don’t.” He also criticised the channel for not producing good-quality dramas. “PTV hasn’t made a good drama in the last 20 years. It’s such a shame. Where are shows like ‘Tanhaiyaan,’ ‘Dhuwan,’ ‘Aangan Terha,’ ‘Waris,’ ‘Angar Wadi,’ and ‘Guest House’?”

    In the same interview where Aurangzeb Laghari revealed his new career, he also confirmed that he hasn’t found acting work because the industry has moved to Karachi. “All the main offices for channels are in Karachi. There is little work in Lahore, so I work very little,” said the actor. He added, “I feel like Punjabis aren’t given the same encouragement because we aren’t in the same city.”