Tag: trending

  • Musharraf’s hand-written note for son is endearing

    Musharraf’s hand-written note for son is endearing

    Son of former president and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General (retired) Pervez Musharraf, Bilal Musharraf shared an emotional letter that his father had sent him back in 1994.

    The letter, dated July 18, 1994, was penned when the former president was posted as Director General Military Operations in the Pakistan Army and contained career advice for Bilal.

    “Be honest, straightforward and upright in all your dealings; fair and just in your decisions,” read the letter. “Be bold and just in decision making – not impulsive and definitely not over-calculating. You have to strike the correct balance.”

    Musharraf further stressed that confidence is the key to life and asked his son to be humble and sympathise with the needy and the helpless.

    Bilal later deleted the letter from Twitter saying that it felt “self-promotional.”

    On December 17, a special court in Pakistan had sentenced Musharraf to death in the long-drawn high treason case against him. The case against the former president related to the imposition of emergency rule in Pakistan in 2007.

  • VIDEO: Asad Umar sets dance floor on fire on son’s wedding

    Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar sets the floor on fire on his son’s wedding.
  • EXCLUSIVE: Mahira Khan reveals what she was like in school

    EXCLUSIVE: Mahira Khan reveals what she was like in school

    It’s Mahira Khan’s birthday. The actor who turned 35 on December 21 is without a doubt one of Pakistan’s biggest stars and she’s had a stellar year – her film Superstar is the highest-grossing Pakistani film of the year, she walked the ramp at the Paris Fashion Week and she has been appointed a Goodwill ambassador for United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

    But did she know that she was going to be a superstar? In an interview with The Current, Mahira said that she never thought she would reach so high but she always wanted to be an actor even though she was a very shy person in school.

    “I was in my own little world at that time,” said Mahira when told that the boys in school used to ask their female friends to become friends with her so that they could hang out with her [Mahira].

    Mahira further revealed that she was a backbencher in school. When asked the best thing about being a backbencher, Mahira replied, “I had my best friend in class with me. The both of us used to chatter all day long. And I hardly attended [classes] that year in school.”

    Watch the complete interview here:

    Born in Karachi, Mahira started her career as a VJ in 2006. She made her screen debut opposite Atif Aslam in Bol (2011) and over the years climbed the ladder of success to become one of Pakistan’s biggest stars.

  • Death Penalty: Timeline of Musharraf’s high treason case

    Death Penalty: Timeline of Musharraf’s high treason case

    The special court on Tuesday handed over the death sentence to the former military dictator General (r) Pervez Musharraf after analysing the complaints, records, arguments and facts in the case for three months.

    The court ruled that it found Musharraf guilty of high treason according to Article 6 of the constitution.

    The special bench hearing the high treason comprised of Peshawar High Court (PHC) Chief Justice (CJ) Waqar Ahmad Seth Akbar and Justice Shahid Karim of the Lahore High Court (LHC). The bench was formed on the orders of the Supreme Court (SC).

    EXPLAINED: MUSHARRAF’S CRIMES, PUNISHMENT

    The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government had in 2013 filed the treason case against Musharraf over the president’s imposition of extra-constitutional emergency in November 2007.

    Here is the timeline of the high treason case

    • July 22, 2009: The Supreme Court (SC) in an unprecedented move, calls Gen (r) Musharraf to defend his actions on November 3, 2007, following the president’s resignation after a nine-year rule on the country.
    • July 31, 2009: The SC rules that Musharraf’s decision to impose an emergency on November 3, 2007, as well as his PCO [Provisional Constitutional Order] were illegal and unconstitutional. The court gives him seven days to respond.
    • August 6, 2009: Musharraf refuses to answer the charges against him and leaves Pakistan for the United Kingdom (UK).
    • March 22, 2013: Musharraf plans to return to Pakistan after exile and gets a protective bail for 10 days in three high-profile cases against him.
    • March 27, 2013: Senior counsel A.K. Dogar, during a hearing pertaining to strict adherence to articles 62 and 63 during elections, refers to SC’s ruling on Musharraf’s actions on November 3, 2007. A.K Dogar argues that in overthrowing the constitution, Musharraf had committed the offence of high treason.
    • March 29, 2013: Sindh High Court (HC) grants an extension in bail for Musharraf, but rules that he cannot leave Pakistan without permission.
    • April 5, 2013: SC agrees to hear a petition seeking to prosecute the former military dictator under sections 2 and 3 of the High Treason (Punishment) Act 1973.
    • April 7, 2013: Chief Justice (CJ) Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry withdraws himself from the three-member bench formed to hear the treason case against Musharraf.
    • April 8, 2013: Supreme Court summons Musharraf in the treason case against him. The court also instructs the interior ministry to add his name to the Exit Control List (ECL).
    • April 18, 2013: Musharraf after the cancellation of his bail application flees from the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
    • April 19, 2013: The former president surrenders in a magistrate’s court in the judges’ detention case and his farmhouse residence at Chak Shahzad, Islamabad, is declared a sub-jail.
    • April 30, 2013: Peshawar High Court (PHC) bars Musharraf from ever contesting elections for either the National Assembly (NA) or the Senate.
    • June 5, 2013: IHC judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui recuses himself from hearing former president’s post-arrest bail plea in the judges’ detention case.
    • June 14, 2013: Minister for Law and Justice Zahid Hamid distances himself from the 2007 emergency. Zahid says there was no question of him having allegedly abetted Musharraf as the proclamation of emergency came from the former dictator’s person. The minister also denies having had any contact with Musharraf.
    • June 24, 2013: Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif tells the NA that his government will request the SC to try Musharraf under Article 6 of the Constitution.
    • November 18, 2013: SC, headed by CJP Iftikhar Chaudhry, agrees to set up a special board to try Musharraf for high treason.
    • November 19, 2013: The PML-N government submits five charges of high treason against the former military ruler in a special court. A three-member bench to hear the treason case is also formed.
    • December 12, 2013: Special bench summons Musharraf to face treason charges.
    • December 20, 2013: Musharraf, in an interview, seeks “forgiveness” for any wrongs he may have committed during his rule on the country for nine-years.
    • January 2, 2014: Musharraf is shifted to hospital after suffering a “heart problem” while on his way to a special court hearing of the treason case. His arrest warrant is not issued on medical grounds.
    • January 7, 2014: The Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology (AFIC) submits former army chief’s medical report to special court, detailing that Musharraf is suffering from “triple-vessel coronary artery disease and eight other diseases”.
    • January 16, 2014: Special court orders AFIC to constitute a medical board to assess Musharraf’s health and to submit a detailed report. The medical board subsequently declares Musharraf to be in a “critical state” and recommends his treatment at a place of his choice.
    • January 28, 2014: Prosecution expresses lack of confidence in former army chief’s medical report and requests court to summon the AFIC head for cross-examination.
    • February 7, 2014: Special court once again orders Musharraf to appear in the treason case.
    • February 18, 2014: Musharraf after avoiding 22 consecutive hearings, finally appears in special court, but no charges are framed against him as the defence argues that the case should be heard in a military court.
    • February 21, 2014: Special court rules that Musharraf is not to be tried in a military court.
    • March 30, 2014: The former army chief is indicted for treason and pleads not guilty to all charges.
    • April 1, 2014: The PML-N government offers to fly former president’s ailing mother to Pakistan from Sharjah.
    • April 2, 2014: The PML-N government rejects Musharraf’s petition seeking the removal of his name from the no-fly list.
    • April 3, 2014: Musharraf petitions SC for the removal of his name from the ECL so he may travel abroad to visit his ailing mother.
    • May 14, 2014: Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) declares it has “irrefutable proof” that former army chief illegally imposed emergency in 2007.
    • June 12, 2014: SHC strikes down the government’s order barring Musharraf from overseas travel, ruling that “not a single ground was mentioned in the memorandum placing the former president’s name on the ECL”.
    • June 13, 2014: Special court rejects former president’s plea for details of “abettors” who had suggested, endorsed or implemented the 2007 emergency.
    • June 14, 2014: The government moves SC against the SHC ruling allowing Musharraf to travel abroad.
    • June 23, 2014: The apex court suspends the SHC judgment allowing former military ruler to travel abroad until it decides the pending appeal.
    • September 8, 2014: Musharraf’s legal team gets hold of crucial evidence pointing towards then prime minister (PM) Shaukat Aziz’s role in the imposition of the November 3 emergency.
    • October 15, 2014: Musharraf’s defence team asks the special court for a collective trial of all his accomplices.
    • November 21, 2014: Special court directs the federal government to resubmit its complaint in the high treason case, this time including the names of former PM Shaukat Aziz, former law minister Zahid Hamid and former CJ Abdul Hameed Dogar to the charge-sheet.
    • December 22, 2015: The former president says he invoked emergency after consulting Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani among other civilian and military leaders.
    • March 14, 2016: Musharraf seeks one-time permission to go abroad on medical grounds.
    • March 16, 2016: SC orders the fovernemnt to remove Musharraf’s name from the no-fly list, allowing him to travel abroad on medical grounds.
    • March 18, 2016: The former president leaves for Dubai to seek medical treatment, promising to come back to his “beloved homeland” in a few weeks.
    • May 11, 2016: Special bench declares former army chief an absconder in the treason case.
    • March 29, 2018: Special court dissolves after Justice Yahya Afridi recuses himself from hearing the high treason case against Musharraf.
    • April 7, 2018: CJ Mian Saqib Nisar reconstitutes special bench hearing Musharraf high treason case.
    • May 31, 2018: Interior ministry, complying with the special court’s orders, asks the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) and the Directorate General of Immigration & Passports to suspend former army chief’s national identity card and passport.
    • June 7, 2018: SC allows Musharraf to run for polls on the condition that he appear in person before the court.
    • June 20, 2018: Former president says he was set to return to the country but SC’s orders barring authorities from arresting him made him change his mind.
    • July 30, 2018: Prosecution head in the high treason case against Musharraf quits.
    • August 3, 2018: Special court decides to resume the trial which was delayed due to Musharraf’s departure from Pakistan — beginning August 20.
    • August 20, 2018: Musharraf citing threats to his life, seeks presidential security to appear before the special court in the high treason case.
    • August 29, 2018: Special court is told that Interpol refuses to issue red warrants for former army chief’s repatriation from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) where he has been living since 2016.
    • October 2, 2018: CJ Saqib Nisar grills Musharraf’s councel on the “brave commando’s” overdue return to the country.
    • October 24, 2018: APML discloses that former president is suffering from amyloidosis and has difficulty standing and walking.
    • November 19, 2018: Court tells Musharraf’s lawyer to convince former president to return and provide his itinerary so the high treason case could proceed.
    • March 31, 2019: Supreme Court orders Musharraf to appear before the special court in the treason case on May 2 or lose his right of defence.
    • April 1, 2019: SC, under CJ Asif Saeed Khosa, issues a decree telling the special bench to proceed in the high treason case without Musharraf’s statement if he fails to appear the following month.
    • June 11, 2019: SC orders NADRA to unblock former dictators’s CNIC and passport.
    • July 30, 2019: Prosecution head in high treason case against Musharraf quits.
    • October 8, 2019: Special court decides to hear the high treason trial on a daily basis from October 24.
    • October 24, 2019: The Pakistan Terhreeke Insaf (PTI) government sacks the prosecution team in the high treason case.
    • November 19, 2019: The special court concludes its proceedings in the treason case against Musharraf, saying that a verdict will be pronounced on November 28.
    • November 23, 2019: Former army chief petitions the Lahore High Court (LHC) to challenge the reservation of the judgment in the treason case.
    • November 25, 2019: The case takes a new turn as interior ministry files a petition in the IHC requesting it to set aside the special court’s decision to reserve a judgement in the case without hearing from the prosecution.
    • November 26, 2019: LHC accepts for hearing former president’s petition challenging the special court’s decision.
    • November 27, 2019: IHC stops special court from announcing verdict in Musharraf high treason case.
    • December 2019: Special court says it will announce the verdict in the case on Dec 17. Former army chief moves the LHC to stay the trial at the special court until his earlier petition pending adjudication by the high court is decided.
    • December 17, 2019: Special court hands Musharraf death sentence in the long-drawn high treason case against him.
  • VIDEO: Bilawal, Bakhtawar go to the beach

    VIDEO: Bilawal, Bakhtawar go to the beach

    Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Monday took a break from his political activities to bond with nature.

    Accompanied by his sister, Bakhtawar Bhutto Zardari, Bilawal made his way to Hawke’s Bay Beach where he released 300 baby green turtles into the sea. According to details, Bilawal was very excited to touch the baby turtles who were hatched at the Marine Turtle Conservation Nursery of Sindh Wildlife Department.

    The Sindh Wildlife Department, along with International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and World Wildlife Fund (WWF), has been carrying out a sea turtle conservation project in Pakistan since 1979. Adults are tagged and the eggs collected from the beach are incubated in special enclosures at Hawkesbay and Sandspit. Hatchlings are weighed and counted at the Sindh Wildlife lab at the beach and the relevant data is gathered.

    Though adult sea turtles spend most of their lives in the oceans, they return to the beach where they were born to lay their eggs. Every year in October and November, green sea turtles arrive at the sandy beaches of Sindh and Balochistan which are important nesting sites for sea turtles. The turtles lay their eggs there and leave after burying them. This is where the wildlife department steps in a takes care of the eggs, which are vulnerable and can easily be preyed. After an incubation period of about two months the youngsters hatch and scramble towards the water. Only one in a thousand survive to adulthood.

    Watch video of the Bhutto-Zardari siblings releasing sea turtles here:

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B6KzzXdBLCN/

    Meanwhile, Bakhtawar also shared her experience on Twitter:

  • VIDEO: ‘I’m ISPR DG’s nephew; friend of PM, Gen Bajwa,’ man threatens Motorway Police

    VIDEO: ‘I’m ISPR DG’s nephew; friend of PM, Gen Bajwa,’ man threatens Motorway Police

    A video of an unknown man misbehaving with motorway police is making rounds on the internet, claiming that he is the nephew of Major General Asif Ghafoor, the Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

    The video shows that the guy is misbehaving with police officials when they asked him to move his vehicle on the side of the road. The man while replying to officials demand said, “I am a son of an MNA and Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan and army chief are my friends”.

    He also said that he is a captain and all these officials will get dismissed.

    The person also insisted the police officials to dial a number.

  • VIDEO: Peshawar woman booked for aerial firing

    VIDEO: Peshawar woman booked for aerial firing

    A woman in Peshawar has been booked for aerial firing on Friday, after her videos went viral on social media, The Express Tribune reported.

    According to the details, an FIR [First information report] has been registered against Saba Jaffer, who is a resident of Hayatabad – an upscale neighbourhood of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s (KP) provincial capital.

    The police after the videos went viral, took notice of the incident by filing a complaint against the suspect.

    The authorities are conducting raids to get hold of the Saba as the investigation in the matter is underway.

    Watch Video:

  • KP woman ‘forced to resign’ for bringing baby to work

    An NGO [non-governmental organisation] in Peshawar named Community Appraisal and Motivation Programme (CAMP) has allegedly forced a woman to resign for bringing a 6 months baby to work.

    According to the details, Zeenat Khan — who worked as a media coordinator at CAMP’s office — while talking to Naya Daur said that when she started bringing her child to the office her employers raised objections and “told her to drop the kid at home or hire a maid”, adding that it was not much of an issue as the child used to sleep most of the time.

    Zeenat further said that she told her employers that she was unable to leave her kid at home as her parents and in-laws did not live in Peshawar.

    “I offered to arrange and pay for daycare facilities at the office, but my employees made excuses about there not being any space available for this purpose” said the mother, adding that they even told her that such a measure would increase their expenses.

    She said that the organization was well-funded and they had rented a bungalow in one of the most posh areas of the city.

    Zeenat revealed that the project she was working for — called Da Khor Barkha (behn ka haq) — was aimed at women empowerment and funded by the Commonwealth.

    “Despite being a project aimed at empowerment of women, most of those employed were men at high salaries” she added.

    In her resignation letter, Zeenat wrote about how the management had raised concerns over her bringing her kid to the office, and spoke of all the reasons why she had to bring her child to the office, and that she had offered to pay for daycare facilities as well.

    The organisation responding to Zeenat’s resignation letter has told her that the resignation was ‘her own decision’, and that they had advised her to make arrangements for childcare at home.

    https://twitter.com/saqiburrehman/status/1204593798552129542
  • Here’s how Qaim Ali Shah remains fit

    Here’s how Qaim Ali Shah remains fit

    Former Sindh chief minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah, who is over 80 years old recently shared the secret behind his fitness and energy.

    In a response to a question, Shah said that he was over 80 years old but was still active “within the party and in life as well”.

    “I am young at heart and have managed to stay fit by walking and eating only vegetables,” he said.

    Shah elaborated that he did not eat heavy foods and walked a lot, adding that he did not have ‘some habits’ due to which others became ill.

    It is pertinent to mention here that the politician was often caught on camera snoozing during the sessions of the Sindh Assembly and at other events.

  • Ayeza Khan sets the internet on fire with her latest shoot

    Ayeza Khan sets the internet on fire with her latest shoot

    If Ayeza Khan stealing our hearts and setting our TV screens on fire as Mehwish in Meray Paas Tum Ho was not enough, the actor decided to raise the hotness bar further up.

    Ayeza’s latest shoot with husband Danish Taimoor has gone viral and that’s honestly no surprise given the pictures.

    Check them out below.

    The intensity in that gaze though
    New ways to workout?

    Solo shots of the two are equally lit.

    Wish we looked half as good while squatting.