Category: ENGLISH

SIALKOT: After the disqualification of Khawaja Muhammad Asif by the Islamabad High Court (IHC), the PML-N is facing the daunting task of finding his replacement who could counter its opponents in the politics of the city and the area. The local political circles are keenly observing every move of the PML-N as it has landed in dire straits after the apparent ouster of a seasoned politician who stood by it in hard times during the Musharraf regime when many of party bigwigs had abandoned it. Some local independent political observers think the…

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Maryam Nawaz on Thursday criticised the court’s decision against Khawaja Asif, saying that the PML-N lawmaker has been disqualifiedin a “fixed match”. She was commenting on the Islamabad High Court (IHC) decision to disqualify Asif as a member of the parliament. Maryam took to Twitter soon after the announcement of the decision, saying: “Those who could not be defeated while playing fairly have been ousted after fixing the match.” “Mark my words, people will vote even the shadow of Khawaja Asif” in the upcoming election, she said. Maryam also changed her…

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105 A three-member special bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday disqualified Khawaja Asif as a member of the parliament under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution for not disclosing his employment in a UAE company as an occupation as well as the monthly salary he was receiving. Addressing the argument by Asif’s legal team that “since copies of the passport attached with the nomination paper also contained a copy of the ‘iqama‘, therefore there was no misrepresentation or concealment”, the judgement days: “Iqama is merely a residence visa issued…

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2 Justice Qazi Faez Isa of the Supreme Court on Wednesday lashed out at security agencies for “failing to produce a new report” on last year’s Faizabad sit-in. After a weeks-long protest at the Faizabad interchange that had disrupted life in the capital, the government and protesters reached an army-brokered agreement in November 2017, in which the former had conceded to the latter’s demands. Justice Isa is part of a two-member SC bench, along with Justice Musheer Alam, which has been hearing a suo motu case regarding the use of abusive language…

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ISLAMABAD: Rejecting three names proposed by Nawaz Sharif-constituted ministerial committee for Islamabad’s new airport, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has left the issue open for debate that may only add to the confusion rather than find a solution. Sources in the government and ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) told Dawn that during one of the recent meetings of the federal cabinet, the prime minister after listening to the arguments of his colleagues rejected all the three names that had been proposed by a four-member committee under Ports and Shipping Minister Hasil Bizenjo…

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The two-day CPEC Summit, being hosted by Dawn Media Group in collaboration with the Ministry of Planning and Development, kicked off at Karachi’s Bagh-i-Jinnah on Monday. Various speakers, including Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Chinese Ambassador Yao Jing, addressed the conference on the first day of the event. While addressing the summit, PM Abbasi said that while the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was unheard of merely three years ago, the world acknowledges it as a reality today. The prime minister and all of the other speakers discussed the importance of…

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88 LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: More than 13,600 police personnel deputed for the security of unauthorised persons across the country were withdrawn on Saturday in compliance with the order of Chief Justice of Paksitan Mian Saqib Nisar. The unprecedented action taken by the federal and provincial governments will affect many politicians, including former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, former interior minister Aftab Sherpao, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, ANP chief Asfandyar Wali Khan, as well as police officials, journalists, bureaucrats, foreigners and judges. The data provided by law enforcement agencies shows that 4,610 police personnel…

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Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar on Thursday censured the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government over its failure to provide clean drinking water to citizens and the unsatisfactory progress made by it for the disposal of sewage and industrial waste. The CJP, who was hearing a suo motu case at the Supreme Court’s Peshawar registry, ordered KP Chief Minister Pervez Khattak to appear before the court and explain the reasons behind his government’s shortcomings. When the chief minister appeared before the three-member bench, the CJP informed him that he had visited…

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Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan announced on Wednesday that the party was taking action against 20 lawmakers for “participating in horse trading” during the Senate elections last month. Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, the PTI chief said that the party will give the accused a chance to explain before their names are forwarded to the National Accountability Bureau. Khan claimed that PTI, by expelling nearly “30 per cent of its leaders”, was “truly protecting the sanctity of the vote” and wondered if other political parties will follow suit.…

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The Supreme Court on Monday summoned the editor-in-chief of Geo/Jang Group, Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman, to appear in court on Tuesday and explain why employees of his media group have not been paid for the past three months. A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar issued the directions while hearing a case about the media commission, which was formed by the SC in 2013 to review major points of concern in mass media against the terms of references (ToRs) formulated by the court. While addressing Geo TV’s anchorperson Hamid Mir, who…

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13 After a long round of negotiations with the Punjab government, Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) on Friday early morning called off its protest in Lahore and other cities. Life in Lahore was disrupted on Thursday when TLP leader Khadim Hussain Rizvi ordered his workers to “come out on streets” until the party’s demands were met. The workers had choked the provincial capital’s major roads while smaller protests were also held in other cities of Punjab, including Sialkot, Sahiwal, Gujranwala, Kasur, Mandi Bahauddin, Chunia, Multan, Faisalabad and Muzaffargarh. The announcement to end…

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The Supreme Court on Thursday barred the government from proceeding with privatisation of the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) without its permission. Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar passed the order while hearing a case pertaining to a suo motu notice against sales of national assets on lower prices. Irked by the heavy losses of the national flag-carrier and its proposed privatisation, the chief justice said that he may constitute a judicial commission to calculate and redress the losses incurred upon the airline. “Who is responsible for the loss of Rs360 billion?…

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Ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday alleged once again that three members of the joint investigation team (JIT) formed to probe his family’s business dealings abroad were “are our worst political opponents”, and expressed fears that Adiala Jail was already being prepared for him. Sharif, along with his daughter Maryam, made the remarks after appearing before an accountability court in Islamabad in a reference concerning his family’s Avenfield properties. “Bit by bit, the reality of the JIT’s investigative report is being revealed,” he said in his customary talk with the media…

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