Tag: trending

  • What is your sound town on Spotify Wrapped? Twitter in hysterics after final results revealed

    What is your sound town on Spotify Wrapped? Twitter in hysterics after final results revealed

    Spotify Wrapped Day commences at the end of the year when Twitter users fear the dreaded results about the songs and artists they have listened to all year. Already, users are in hysterics over how Pritam continues to dominate everyone’s top five artists list, with not many even knowing who he is.

    But another feature included in the final results is the sound town, which matches fans to a city where other fans of their favourite artists come from.

    Pakistani Twitter users were in fits after majority of the results of this feature associated them with Multan.

    Hilarious memes began to commence on the bird app.

  • On Spotify Wrapped day, it’s no surprise that Pritam dominates all the charts

    On Spotify Wrapped day, it’s no surprise that Pritam dominates all the charts

    Spotify Wrapped Day commenced yesterday and everyone had to prepare going into hiding because of the astonishing song choices that appeared on their final list. But one thing remained certain, Bollywood composer and musician Pritam Chakraborty continued to dominate everyone- and I mean EVERYONE’S playlists.

    For those of you scratching your heads as to why this even happened when you don’t even know who he is- this is the composer responsible for some of the most hit Bollywood songs released today like “What Jhumka?”, “Ranjha”, “Kesariya” and even “Tum Se Hi”. So don’t get shocked when you see this name.

    Twitter users came up with some hilarious memes on how time and time again, the composer continues to dominate everyone’s final charts.

    Ghum Hour had forever changed when Pritam made ‘Ranjha’

  • ‘Police took nine-year-old son in raid,’ former PTI MNA

    ‘Police took nine-year-old son in raid,’ former PTI MNA

    In a startling turn of events, Gul Zafar Khan, a former MNA associated with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), has accused Bajaur police of raiding his residence in the Gat Kai area of Mamond tehsil on Wednesday night.

    He also claimed that police took his nine-year-old son, who reportedly has special needs.

    Khan took to X(formerly Twitter) to share the distressing incident.

    However, in a statement issued from the office of the district police officer (DPO) on Wednesday night, police confirmed that the raid was conducted on Khan’s house owing to his violation of Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, but said that no one was arrested in the raid as the former MNA was not present in his house.

    A day earlier, Khan had attended a party meeting at the residence of former provincial minister Anwerzeb Khan in connection with the PTI’s convention, to be held a few days later.

    Adding to the complexity of the situation, a police official said that Khan was also wanted by police in a case registered in Upper Dir district a few days ago.

    Meanwhile, police on Wednesday also arrested PTI’s former MNA Gul Dad Khan for violating Section 144 CrPC, police and party sources said.

  • Kyrgyzstan to remove ‘fickle’ sunflower from flag

    Kyrgyzstan to remove ‘fickle’ sunflower from flag

    Kyrgyzstan’s supreme council (Jogorku Kenesh) on November 29 supported a bill on changing the state flag in its first reading in parliament after 66 deputies voted for and eight people’s representatives voted against the document.

    President Sadyr Japarov had recently criticised the design, saying that its central element looked more like a sunflower which in the local culture symbolizes fickleness and servility. Others joined in the criticism and the bill was proposed in the parliament.

    Speaker Nurlanbek Shakiev, one of the authors of the document, said that if the flag is changed, funds will not be lost from the budget, and if the flag is changed in places where it is necessary, sponsors will bear the cost.

    However, critics are opposing the hasty adoption of the draft in the first reading without discussion, calling it rushed. Representative Erulan Kokulov said that the flag is for every citizen. “This issue should have been resolved by a referendum,” he said.

    The goal of the draft law is to “improve the flag, which is one of the main state symbols of the country.”

  • Early-morning rain lessens smog in Lahore, Karachi takes over second spot

    Early-morning rain lessens smog in Lahore, Karachi takes over second spot

    Usually the most polluted city in the Air Quality Index, Lahore has been demoted to number six in the chart after a short spell of rain.

    The late-night and early-morning drizzle in the city has improved the air quality to the extent that the sky seems a bit clearer and the status of air quality has moved from hazardous to unhealthy with 158 particulate matter in the air.

    On the other hand, Karachi has taken over Lahore’s spot, landing at number two on the list, right behind New Delhi with a very unhealthy status of 268 particulate matter.

  • Military takes control over two government colleges in Lakki Marwat

    Military takes control over two government colleges in Lakki Marwat

    A letter written by the principal of a public college in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lakki Marwat district to the Higher Education Department is doing rounds on social media. In the letter, the principal states that the Pakistan Army is taking control of the college building, and forcing the administration to halt all academic activities. He also states that the army had initially taken control over some part of the building and was now taking it over.

    Geo Fact Check has confirmed that the letter and the story is true after it spoke with three officials, including the principals of the colleges.
    The story first came up when an X user posted on his account, “Building security force bases in educational institutions is equivalent to ending education?”

    The user also posted a supposed letter written by the principal of the Government Degree College Ghazni Khel in Lakki Marwat to the director of the Higher Education Department in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, urging the director to take notice of the army “occupying the whole college building” without permission.

    He urged in his letter that, “Lakki Marwat’s Ghazni Khel Degree College students should not be removed from studies. Security forces should find an alternative place.”

    The ‘letter’

    Geo reveals that the letter dated November 21 was written by the principal of the Government Degree College Ghazni Khel in Lakki Marwat to the Higher Education Department Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Peshawar to bring attention to the fact that Pakistan army had for the last year “occupied” half of the college’s building.

    It also stated that the army had “occupied the whole college building” without prior permission from higher education officials.
    The letter further added that the academic session was in full swing and in “such an ambiguous situation the college administration was compelled to stop the academic sessions due to lack of classroom accommodations”.

    Accounts of witnesses

    Akram Khan, the principal of the Government Degree College Ghazni Khel, told Geo Fact Check over the phone that he had indeed sent a report to the “higher-ups” on November 21.

    “There was a movement of [military’s units] in the area,” Khan said, “So they [the military] told us to shut down the college for a week or so.”

    The principal further explained that the army already had control over half of the college building since last year, while educational activities had continued in the other half. But then this month, the entire college had to be shut down when the control was further extended, he said, adding that the campus of the Government Degree College stretches over 250 canals.

    Khan also said that after a recent round of negotiations with the military, the military agreed to provide the students “some space”.

    Fareedullah Shah, a director at the Higher Education Department in Peshawar, said that in “emergency situations” government buildings had to be assigned to the military.

    “I am not very happy about this [situation] but when they [military] need [a government structure]… listen you cannot call such a thing an ‘occupation’, this is an internal government matter,” he said.

    He added that the Higher Education Department is trying to accommodate the students and the teaching staff by providing an alternative space to continue their studies.

    “This is our army, not a foreign army,” Shah added, refusing to go into detail about how long the building had been in control of the military or how long it planned to stay there.

    Separately, Yasir Nazir, the assistant commissioner in Lakki Marwat, told Geo Fact Check the military “needed” the college building, further confirming that the students of the college had also recently protested against the military presence on their campus.

    Meanwhile, another public college, the Government Post Graduate College, also in Lakki Marwat, was facing a similar incident, where the military had taken control of part of the college premises after which students had voiced their concerns.

    Saleem Khan, the principal of Government Post Graduate College, confirmed the news, adding that the issue had now been resolved with the military without explaining any further.

  • Female officer reportedly harassed by senior faculty members in Bahawalpur University

    Female officer reportedly harassed by senior faculty members in Bahawalpur University

    Incidents detailing the harassment of a female officer in the administration of Islamia University in Bahawalpur have been reported, following on the heels of earlier reports about female students facing the same.

    An application has been submitted to The Woman Ombudsman, Government of Punjab, by the female administrative staff stating clearly that the allegations of harassment against senior faculty members including the Dean of Faculty of Law, Dean of Faculty of Engineering, In-charge faculty of Management Sciences and SLO South Punjab Civil Secretariat.

    The victim is Farkhanda Tehseen, Director of Development and Planning, whose complaint was ignored, leading to her eventually presenting it in front of the woman ombudsman as she is receiving threats from the suspect.

    Dean Law Department Rao Imran Habib has threatened her on the phone about the dire consequences. She registered a complaint against him on June 10, 2023, but no action was taken. Instead of taking action against workplace harassment, another committee has been established which is not taking any active measures.

    The victim requested the ombudsman that the accused should be stopped from working so that he could not influence the case further. Ironically, the Dean Faculty of Engineering, who is nominated in the complaint, is also part of the established syndicate and Rao Imran is in cohorts with him.

    Dean Law Department Rao Imran Habib is reportedly notorious for his activities during his tenure in Bahauddin Zakariya University (BZU) and there are reports of him creating hurdles for students here in Islamiya University as well.

    Governor Punjab and the university administration have not taken up the matter yet.

  • Who is Barrister Gohar Khan?

    Who is Barrister Gohar Khan?

    Barrister Gohar Khan is an advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and appears in all high courts as well.

    He is from Khyber Pukhtunkhwa’s Buner district and was formerly affiliated with Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), contesting on a National Assembly seat from there in 2008 on PPP ticket.

    He joined Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in 2022 in the presence of former Chief Minister Khyber Pukhtunkhwa Pervez Khattak who himself has left PTI to form his own political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Parliamentarians (PTIP).

    The Barrister is a law graduate from Wolverhampton University, UK with LLM from Washington School of Law, USA. Gohar has been in active law practice with more than 50 reported judgments to his credit on subjects ranging from taxation, commercial, corporate, arbitration, banking, election, etc.

    The new chairman of PTI has civil and criminal trials experience, and even has the honour to appear before the Supreme Judicial Council, Field General Court Martial, and its Court of Appeal.

    His clients include public and private companies and important persons, including Imran Khan.

  • Twitter users outraged after Gigi Hadid apologises for Ahmad Mansara story, calls it ‘wrong example’

    Twitter users outraged after Gigi Hadid apologises for Ahmad Mansara story, calls it ‘wrong example’

    On November 25, Gigi Hadid shared a post using the example of Palestinian child Ahmed Mansara to point out how Israel beats and rape’s children and uses them as captives of war. She criticised Israel as the only country that does this, however now has walked back on her claims. In a new post, the model apologised for using Ahmad as an example, writing that was misinformation.

    “This weekend I shared something that I did not fact check or deeply think about prior to reposting…Unfortunately I used the wrong example to make that point and I regret that.”

    Ahmad Mansara was kidnapped by IDF forces at the age of 12, with videos showing that he has developed severe mental health issues during captivity. Amnesty International reports that he was 12 when his cousin Hassan was shot dead in front of dead, and Ahmad received severe head injuries after being hit by a car. He was sobbing on the ground and footage shows Israeli soldiers shouting at him. He was sentenced to nine years in prison for attempted murder.

    Khulood Badawi, Amnesty International’s Campaigner on Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, reported that Ahmad was tortured and abused by Israeli authorities to the point where he has developed severe schizophrenia and depression, and his life remains at risk while being in prison.

    “Israeli authorities have treated Ahmad Manasra with inhuman cruelty, intent on pushing him past breaking point. He is now so gravely unwell that he could not attend his own hearing. Yet when Ahmad is discharged from the clinic, prison authorities will return him to solitary confinement and reschedule the court hearing. Ahmad’s nightmare goes on and on.

    “Ahmad Manasra has been diagnosed with serious mental health conditions, including schizophrenia and severe depression, for which he has been hospitalized before. Israeli authorities continue to ignore the warnings of independent psychiatrists, who have said that Ahmad Manasra’s life is at risk if he remains in prison. Worse still, they have condemned Ahmad to spend years in isolation despite his conditions, demonstrating once again their contempt for Palestinians’ rights, wellbeing, and lives.”

    Twitter users were horrified at how Gigi slandered the struggle to free Ahmad Mansara, and called it a betrayal of the Palestinian movement.

    “Gigi Hadid is apologising for using Ahmad Manasra as an example??? Does she even know his story or the torture he’s had to endure since he was a child? I’m so sick of her, idc if she’s Palestinian. This is a disgustingly huge betrayal of her people that won’t be forgiven.”

    “Gigi Hadid just slandered Ahmad Manasra & expressed regret over sharing his story. I will never forgive you, Gigi, especially with all your influence & affluence, for how you harmed those most noble & oppressed in our community,” wrote a user.

  • Nawaz Sharif free in Avenfield apartments reference

    Nawaz Sharif free in Avenfield apartments reference

    In a massive relief for the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N), the Islamabad High Court (IHC) acquitted PML-N supremo and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in the Avenfield reference on Wednesday.

    The verdict was announced by a two-member bench comprising IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb.

    Nawaz Sharif was facing a 10-year jail sentence in the Avenfield properties corruption reference since July 2018, charged with owning assets beyond known income. An additional one-year sentence was imposed for non-cooperation with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), both to be served concurrently.

    Having been declared a proclaimed offender in two cases, Al-Azizia and Avenfield, in December 2020, Nawaz Sharif spent nearly four years in London on medical grounds before returning to Pakistan last month. Upon his return, he sought the restoration of appeals against his convictions, which had been dismissed for non-prosecution during his medical stay abroad.

    The second case against Nawaz was the Al-Azizia Steel Mills corruption reference, for which Nawaz Sharif received a seven-year jail term on December 24, 2018, accompanied by a fine of Rs1.5 billion and US$25 million. The decision for this case is yet to be taken. 

    The IHC restored these appeals in a decision last month, leading to today’s pivotal hearing. Nawaz Sharif’s legal counsel, Amjad Pervaiz, argued before the court, pointing out perceived loopholes in the Avenfield reference.

    Nawaz’s lawyer Amjad Pervaiz questioned the ownership of the properties, arguing that there was neither verbal nor documented evidence indicating Nawaz’s ownership. The defense emphasized the lack of evidence proving that Maryam Nawaz and other family members were under Nawaz’s patronage.

    Pervez argued that the NAB failed to prove any of the allegations against Nawaz Sharif. “The properties in question were acquired at different times, with some being acquired between 1993 and 1996. The appellant had no connection to these properties, and the prosecution did not clarify their relation to the properties in the reference.”

    He said that Wajid Zia, former DG FIA, admitted that there was no evidence to establish Nawaz Sharif’s connection to the properties. The charge sheet stated that the assets were not in accordance with declared assets.

    The court based the sentence on assumptions, and the decision was generally written without specific evidence. It was written that children are generally under the guardianship of their father, he said.