All Posts in "Web Desk"

Maryam says top court ‘turmoil’ supports PML-N ‘bench-fixing’ narrative

Soon after two Supreme Court judges cast aspersions over Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial’s power, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz said Monday their verdict backed her party’s narrative on “bench-fixing”.

“If the constitution of the [Supreme Court] bench is not fair; then how will the decision be considered fair?” she said while presiding over a meeting of PML-N spokespersons.

In an unusual development in the top court, two judges from the five-member larger bench — hearing the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s petition over the postponement of elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa — raised questions over the powers of the chief justice of Pakistan (CJP), saying the apex court “cannot be reliant on the solitary decision of one man, the Chief Justice”.

Web Desk by — March 27, 2023 in News
Shahid Afridi-led Asia Lions win Legends League Cricket Masters

In a major attainment, Pakistan’s legendary former skipper Shahid Afridi-led Asia Lions hand World Giants a crushing seven-wicket defeat to win the third edition of the Legends League Cricket (LLC) Masters.

Chasing a target of 148 runs, Lions grasped home comfortably in 16.1 overs.

The Lions’ openers Upul Tharanga and Tillakaratne Dilshan scored brisk half-centuries and added 115 runs for the opening partnership in 10 overs during the final held at the Asian Town Cricket Stadium in Doha.

Dilshan scored 58 off 42 balls with eight fours while Tharanga smashed 57 off 28 balls with five fours and three sixes. The 115-run opening partnership ended when Brett Lee had Tharanga clean-bowled for 57.

Web Desk by — March 21, 2023 in Cricket 0
Ramadan 2023 office timing in Pakistan

The monitoring committee to oversee the application of austerity measures has discussed the working timings in Ramadan 2023 and decided that the new timing for office work.

The timings will be 7:30 am to 2:30 pm and up to 12:30 pm on Fridays starting from the first of Ramadan and will be followed in the summer season as per the verdict of the cabinet.

An official notification has not yet been issued yet. However, the verdict has been made by the committee.

The committee that met in Islamabad on Monday — with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar in the chair — reviewed the implementation of the decisions of its first meeting on the performance of austerity measures.

The meeting was updated on the status of the use of luxury vehicles and it was described that the cabinet members have returned a majority of the allocated vehicles.

Web Desk by — March 14, 2023 in News 0
Aurat March: Violent clash erupts between police and marchers in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: As women and trans persons gathered for the Aurat March rally Wednesday, a violent fight exploded outside the Press Club. The police beat the attendees with batons and allegedly tried to stop the rally.

Every year, women and gender minorities in Pakistan conduct a rally under the banner of the Aurat March movement on International Women’s Day with the aim of demanding their rights, voicing their complaints, and celebrating womanhood.

The fight broke out following an argument between the rally’s participants and the police when it enquired transpersons about their presence at the rally, the police said, given the large number of female participants in the march.

Meanwhile, women at the march alleged that the police “tried hard to stop the rally”.

Federal Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman also contributed to the rally and strongly condemned the violence.

Web Desk by — March 8, 2023 in News 0
NA speaker rules out PTI’s return to parliament

ISLAMABAD: As the resignations of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) former lawmakers have been accepted, National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf Monday told the party’s leaders that they could not return to the lower house.

A PTI allocation — led by Amir Dogar and including Kanwal Shauzab, Sajida Begum, Aamer Mehmood Kiani, Amjad Niazi, and others — met the NA speaker at his office in Islamabad.

In a declaration, the NA Secretariat mentioned that the PTI leaders spoke to the speaker about their resignations and demanded Ashraf revoke his decision to accept them.

Web Desk by — February 27, 2023 in News
Eight terrorists killed in Balochistan operation

As radicalism rears its head in the country, the security forces on Thursday shot dead eight terrorists in a sanitization operation in Balochistan’s Mazaaband Range which they started on Wednesday evening.

According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), terrorists attempted to ambush a convoy of security forces in the Kech District.

The country has been engrossed by a spate of terror attacks since the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) announced the end of the ceasefire in November last year.

“While alert and combat-ready troops not only foiled this cowardly attempt without any loss of life, they also immediately commenced a follow-up operation to hunt down the fleeing extremists using ground and aviation assets,” read the statement.

The ISPR said that a suspected hideout of terrorists was identified in Mazaaband Range today morning, where a sanitisation operation was launched.

“In ensuing, heavy exchange of fire, eight terrorists have been killed while a large cache of arms and ammunition including explosives has also been recovered,” it added.

Web Desk by — February 23, 2023 in News
Terrorism badly affected the mental health of the masses: Shazia Marri  

KARACHI: Federal Minister for Poverty Alleviation & Social Safety and Chairperson Benazir Income Support Programme, Shazia Marri, speak to the conference organized by the Sindh Mental Health Authority in local hotel of Karachi.

Titled “How Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) can help with Mental Health Issues”, the conference focused on the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rain and flood havoc, and environmental issues, in deteriorating mental health issues around the country.

Lauding the work of the Sindh Mental Health Authority, in highlighting the importance of targeting mental health issues in society, the Minister also thanked the doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists, and members of civil society who were attending the conference.

Web Desk by — February 19, 2023 in News
Three gunned down at Michigan State University

At least three people were killed and five damaged after a gunman opened fire at Michigan State University on Monday night, as law execution swarmed the main campus in East Lansing searching for a lone suspect, police said.

Few official details about the gun violence were immediately available, but Chris Rozman, interim deputy chief of the university police, said shots were fired in two locations — at an academic building called Berkey Hall and the Michigan State University Union building.

Police replying to the shooting, which began shortly after 8pm Eastern time, found victims at both locations, Rozman told reporters at a televised late-night briefing about three hours later.

He confirmed that at least five victims were transported to the hospital, some of them with dangerous injuries, and MSU police issued an update by Twitter a short time later saying that at least three additional people had been killed.

Hours after the first gunfire erupted, several campus buildings had been cleared and secured by police as officers swept the campus in search of possible additional victims and a single suspect, MSU police said.

Web Desk by — February 14, 2023 in News
IHC set to hear plea seeking Imran’s disqualification in Tyrian White case

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has formed a larger bench to hear a plea seeking disqualification of former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan for allegedly concealing information regarding his alleged daughter Tyrian Jade White in his nomination papers for the 2018 elections.

The three-judge bench, headed by IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and comprising Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani and Justice Arbab Muhammad Tahir, will take up the petition on Thursday (February 9).

In his petition, Mohammad Sajid — a citizen — said that Khan provided incorrect information while submitting his nomination papers for the general elections held in 2018.

The petitioner also said that even though the former prime minister has three children, he had mentioned only two in the papers and concealed the existence of his third child.

He also pleaded with the court to disqualify Khan under Article 62(i)(f) of the constitution.

It is pertinent to mention here that the IHC decided to shift the case to the larger bench after objections were upraised against the single-member bench.

On February 1, the PTI chairman filed a plea to dismiss the disqualification petition against him submitted in the IHC for “hiding” his alleged daughter in the nomination papers.

The response stated that the IHC’s four judges had previously excused themselves from hearing the matter.

Web Desk by — February 7, 2023 in News
Aussie batter Khawaja’s India visa deferred ahead of Test tour

Pakistan-born Australian batter Usman Khawaja said on Wednesday he was still waiting for an Indian visa, even as his teammates began desertion for the four-Test tour that starts on February 9.

Khawaja — who moved to Australia aged four — has toured India before, but also faced delays in that circumstance with his visa taking longer than Australia-born teammates. “Waiting for my Indian Visa,” Khawaja said on Instagram, above an image from the Netflix series “Narcos” where a forlorn Pablo Escobar — played by actor Wagner Moura — sits alone on a swinging seat.

Web Desk by — February 1, 2023 in Cricket