e-paper pakistantoday 20th december, 2012

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Malala is runner up as Time declares Obama Person of the Year

Outrage in India over New Delhi bus gang rape

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ISI, former DGs enjoy immunity in 26/11 case PAGE 19

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thursday, 20 december, 2012 safar 6, 1434

rs 15.00 Vol iii no 173 19 Pages lahore edition

Continued killings cripple polio drive PESHAWAR

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saJJaD aLi

ttAcks on volunteers of anti-polio drive continued in khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Wednesday, as unidentified gunmen killed a female anti-polio worker and her team’s driver in charsadda and injured another volunteer in Peshawar. the World Health Organisation subsequently suspended all field activities in the country after the targeting of four polio teams in various areas of khyber Pakhtunkhwa. the attacks came a day after similar attacks on the WHO polio vaccination teams in karachi and Peshawar on tuesday. At least four workers were killed in karachi and another in Peshawar.

On Wednesday, five incidents of attacks on anti-polio teams were reported, three in charsadda and one each in Peshawar and Nowshera districts. the first incident was reported in Daudzai area of Peshawar where unidentified armed men opened fire on a volunteer of the anti-polio campaign and wounded him. He received a bullet to the head and was rushed to Lady Reading Hospital. the volunteer, identified as Hilal, succumbed to his injuries later. A female worker accompanying him escaped and took refuge in a nearby house. the second incident occurred in Nehar korona area of Behram kaally union council where two armed men on motorbike opened fire on an anti-polio team.

However, all team members escaped injuries. the third attack was reported in shuja Qila

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Three more polio workers, including a woman, killed in Peshawar, Charsadda WHO, UNICEF suspend anti-polio campaign across the country

area of Dheri Zardad in the g jurisdiction of the Nisata police station. two motorcyclists opened fire on the anti-polio female team, but all workers remained safe. the fourth incident of firing was reported in charsadda, where motorcyclists fired in the air near a vaccination team to terrorise the workers. Another incident was reported in Battagram area of charsadda when three unidentified motorcyclists opened indiscriminate fire on a lady health worker and her driver, killing them on the spot. they were identified as Zakiya and Mohammad Ayaz.

Zakiya was the supervisor of the anti-polio

campaign in the area.

“Unidentified assailants attacked the polio team and killed anti-polio supervisor and her driver on the spot,” syed Zafar Ali shah, charsadda district coordination officer, told reporters. He said the aim of the attacks on polio teams was to create panic and fear among the people and force the suspension of vaccination drive, however, security would be provided to the anti-polio volunteers and campaign against polio would be restarted. continued on Page 04

related stories | Page 03

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Balochistan political crisis deepens with no-trust motion against speaker Assembly secy says motion does not comply with rules QUETTA sTaff reporT

PPP-PML-Q coalition set to die natural demise before polls

ISLAMABAD Tayyab Hussain

The “unnatural alliance” between the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PMLQ) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) is set to meet its natural demise well ahead of the general elections and an announcement in this regard may be made in the next few months as the leadership of both parties have understood that they can’t carry each others’ “heavy baggage”.

After real estate tycoon Malik Riaz’s failure to bridge the gulf between both

coalition partners, PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Secretary General Mushahid Hussain Sayyed have been involved in hectic consultations to explore possibilities of formation of new alliances with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Fazlur Rehman-led Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, Difa-e-Pakistan Council (DPC) and other right-wing political outfits for upcoming polls, it has been reliably learnt. Well-placed sources in the PPP and PML-Q have confided in Pakistan Today that President Asif Zardari was “unhappy” with Shujaat and

Mushahid’s recent visit to Dadu and Larkana. A source in the PPP said the president was annoyed over the fact that not only did Shujaat visit the cities which were PPP strongholds, but he was furious over remarks by Shujaat in Larkana that Larkana was “home of the PML-Q”. “Everybody knows that the president hates Altaf Unnar. The recent public gatherings were largely attended and arranged by Unnars for PML-Q, ringing alarm bells in the PPP. The ruling party is already facing a tough time due to an unannounced alliance between nationalist Sindhis,

Pir Pagara and Nawaz Sharif,” the PPP leader said. “Finally, President Asif Ali Zardari gave a green signal to the party’s provincial presidents Mian Manzoor Wattoo and Anwar Saifullah Khan to win loyalties of all those PMLQ members of parliament or those heavyweights who could win polls.

Moreover, development funds of Rs 20 million are being doled out to each MPA joining the PPP. The recent joining of PPP by PML-Q KP MPA Nighat Aurakzai is a prime example,” a source in the PPP said. continued on Page 04

Twenty-two members of the Balochistan Assembly submitted a no-trust motion against Speaker Aslam Bhootani on Wednesday.

Balochistan Assembly Deputy Speaker Matiullah presided over the session, during which Health Minister Ainullah Shams presented the motion. The deputy speaker later confirmed that he had received it.

The House will proceed on the motion on December 26.

The plea taken in the motion was that Bhootani was working against his oath, which he took as speaker of the provincial assembly and his attitude towards his job was in violation of the constitution. Bhootani said he would not compromise his principled stand just to save his job.

“I will continue to work for the supremacy of the law. Bringing a noconfidence motion is their right and defending it is mine. I only implemented the decision of the SC in its true letter and sprits and now I am being punished of it,” he added.

Talking to reporters, Chief Minister Aslam Raisani said independent candidates were not backing the move. However, Balochistan Assembly Secretary Zahoor Ahmed said the no-trust motion moved against Speaker Bhootani does not meet rules and regulations of the Assembly. Addressing a crowded news conference at his chamber, he said “The consent of speaker is necessary for moving any motion or resolution, questions and bills in the House.” continued on Page 04

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02 News cartoon

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no resolution of Kashmir without taking Kashmiris on board: Mirwaiz

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Opp questions bullet-proof vehicle for ‘blue-eyed’ Kamran Michael

Malala is runner up as Time declares Obama Person of the Year

LAHORE: Opposition members in the Punjab Assembly on Wednesday protested against the provision of a bullet-proof vehicle to a minority senator by the Punjab government. The opposition members said that most of them were facing life threats but had not been provided security or bullet proof cars while Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz’s Senator Kamran Michael had been given a bullet proof vehicle previously being used by former senior minister Raja Riaz. Opposition members were of the view that since the senator did not possess any key portfolios, the provision of a government vehicle to him was unjust. Clarifying the government’s position, Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah said Senator Michael was given the bullet proof vehicle in view of security threats. He said around the time federal minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti was murdered by unidentified assailants, Michael had also received threats and the government had given him the vehicle. He, however, offered that if any senator or member of the legislature faced the same situation, they could be provided bullet proof cars. For this, he said, they would have to write to higher authorities. However, treasury member Saeed Akbar Khan Niwani contested Sana’s claim, saying that 32 people had been killed in an attack on his house yet no security or special vehicle had been given to him. Dr Samia Amjad of PML-Q alleged that official vehicles were being provided to government’s handpicked ‘favourites’. She told the House that she had obtained a list of recipients of government vehicles. Denying her claim, Sanaullah said an enquiry could be held to substantiate her complaint. To another query, the law minister said the government did not abandon transforming of 8-Club into an IT University, it had only been delayed in view of the delicate law and order situation. As soon as the situation became normal, the university would be established, he said. During the session, PPP’s Ehsanulhaq Naulathia on a point of order wanted to criticise the chief minister for his metro bus project, terming him the mayor of Lahore, but the speaker intervened and warned him not to use derogatory words against an elected leader of the House. app

“Even as she quietly recovers, her story has lit a fire,” says Time magazine while declaring 14-year-old Malala Yousafzai as runner up on its list which declared US President Barack Obama as Person of the Year. The magazine says Queen Elizabeth Hospital, where Malala is getting treatment for the bullet injuries from the Taliban attack in October, has been flooded with gifts and cards from all over the world and donations now totalling $13,700. “Malala also now has numerous powerful supporters, including a group of wellconnected people like Megan Smith, a vice president at Google, and Mark Kelly, an astronaut and the husband of former Congresswoman and shooting survivor Gabby Giffords, who have helped established the Malala Fund, which will offer grants to organizations and individuals working in education.

The plan is for Malala, when she’s better, to sit on the board along with her father and make decisions about who should receive the grants.”

Aitzaz declines offer to represent Altaf ISLAMABAD: Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan has refused to represent Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain in the Supreme Court over the contempt notice issued to the latter. Speaking to media representatives in Islamabad, the renowned lawyer who represented former premier Yousuf Raza Gilani in his contempt case said an MQM leader had asked him to become Hussain’s counsel but he could not take the case because Chief Justice (CJ) Iftikhar Chaudhry was part of the bench. In addition, Ahsan was of the view that the CJ should not cancel his trip to Karachi owing to security issues, adding that if he cancelled his visit, it may give the MQM chief an excuse to not come to Pakistan to appear before the court. “Altaf Hussain could say if the CJ cannot visit Karachi due to lack of security, it is impossible for him to come to Pakistan from the United Kingdom amidst the prevailing law and order situation,” remarked Ahsan. onLine

WASHINGTON speCiaL CorresponDenT

President signs compulsory education bill into law g

Law to ensure free and compulsory education for children from five to 16 years of age KARACHI

P

nni

RESIDENT Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday signed into law The Right to Free and Compulsory Education Bill 2012 to ensure provision of free-of-cost education to children from five to 16 years of age.

Zardari said he hoped the law would go a long way in ensuring free and compulsory education to the children of the country. He said pursuing Benazir Bhutto’s vision of free and compulsory education, the PPP-led government had fulfilled yet another promise made to the people. He said the law would ensure that that no child remained out of school.

The president said under the law‚ private schools would also be required to provide free education to the disadvantaged students to the extent of 10 percent of the class.

He said Article 25-A had been added to the constitution, adding that the responsibility to provide free education rested with both the federal and provincial governments and that the federal government was responsible for legislation under the article 25-A for areas under its control. The president urged the provincial governments to follow the law within their respective jurisdictions.

Zardari said the government gave the

Education Policy of 2009 as part of its policy to promote education in the country, urging the government to ensure that that no child was subjected to any kind of discrimination whatsoever. The president said under the law, the federal government would provide free textbooks and uniforms to children in the areas of its jurisdiction besides ensuring that no child was deprived of admission in school and that schools had qualified teachers. “Free Preschool education, early childhood care and free medical and dental inspection will be provided to all citizens and no child will

now be subjected to physical punishment or mental harassment,” the president said, adding that the government would also create a professional cadre of teachers to promote quality education. He said no fee including admission fee would be charged from the students and the government would provide school buildings, playgrounds, laboratories and other facilities.

The president said as part of the government’s initiative for promotion of education in the country, educational awards would be given to teachers, educational administrators and researchers.

SC orders three IGs to produce ex-chief of OGRA ISLAMABAD app

The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday ordered Punjab Police, Islamabad Police and National Highway & Motorway Police Inspector Generals (IGs) to arrest and produce former chairman of Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) Tauqir Sadiq, before the court on December 26.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Jawad S Khawaja and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain resumed hearing of the OGRA implementation case during the course of which, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) investigating

thursday, 20 December, 2012

officer Waqar Ahmed informed the bench that Punjab and motorway police were not cooperating with the authorities in the arrest of Sadiq. Following this allegation, the bench summoned Punjab Police IG Habibur Rehman and National Highway & Motorway Police IG Zaffar Abbas Luk in court to apprise the bench over these allegations. Rehman appeared before the bench and stated that Punjab police was extending full cooperation and provided assurances that the accused would be arrested soon. He further said that a senior police official from the antiterrorism cell (ATC) was deputed with NAB to ensure cooperation.

The bench, expressing its disap-

proval, observed if a well known person could not be arrested through cooperation of the IG and a senior ATC officer for over three months, then how was it possible to trace other unknown persons wanted in numerous other cases. The bench inquired from Luk, on accusations by the NAB investigating officer, whether former chairman of OGRA was traveling in his jurisdiction and why no action had been taken against the accused if it were true. The IG said he had checked all records and no such vehicle entered or exited the motorway. He assured the court that motorway police would extend complete cooperation in arrest of the accused.

Sadiq hiding in Islamabad, claims Sana LAHORE: Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah on Wednesday claimed that former Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) chief Tauqir Sadiq was “hiding in Islamabad”. Talking to reporters outside the Punjab Assembly, the provincial law minister said Sadiq, an accused in a multi-billionrupee scam in OGRA, had been “provided shelter” at the Punjab Governor’s House and from there he was taken to Islamabad. “Those involved in the scam are providing shelter to the former OGRA chairman,” he said, adding that Sadiq was hiding “in one of the two big houses in Islamabad”.

Sanaullah said the Supreme Court had issued orders for the arrest of the former OGRA chairman but “nobody is following the court’s order”. To a question, Sanaullah said recommendations of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) would be implemented. To another question, the Punjab law minister said the Punjab government was facing resistance from doctors regarding implementation of the Health Care Commission. He said the accused could be produced before courts after completion of judicial inquiry into the PIC drugs case. “We are not being blackmailed by doctors. It is the jobs of courts to award punishments,” he said. onLine

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Dereliction of duty Protection of health workers

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spearhead research The Peshawar air base attack: More questions than answers

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MPs seek polio workers’ security, condemn attacks ISLAMABAD sTaff reporT

Members of National Assembly (NA) on Wednesday demanded the government to ensure protection for polio vaccinators, calling for quick action against elements involved in attacking polio teams in different parts of the country. Speaking on a point of order, Yasmeen Rehman condemned killing of female polio vaccinators and demanded the government to provide security to such social workers.

She said polio vaccinators had been deployed in far flung areas of the country and remained vulnerable to terrorist attacks, asking the government to ensure the perpetrators of these attacks were brought to justice. Sheikh Aftab said like other government employees, polio teams were also insecure which presented a serious situation for the administration whereby stringent measures where required to curb this menace. He enquired from Interior Minister Rehman Malik about steps the government had taken to avoid such incidents in the future. Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani expressed concerns over incidents of killing women workers in line of duty. He said the matter needed to be taken up with provincial governments and insisted an anti-polio drive should not restart unless the teams are provided a proper security cover. However, he said the government was well aware of the situation and assured that all possible measures in this regard would be taken. Imrana Saeed Jameel said the MQM strongly condemned the attacks on innocent people and demanded Rehman Malik to give exemplary punishments to criminals involved in such heinous attacks.

Pervaiz Malik said it was the responsibility of the federal and provincial governments to give fool-proof security to workers of polio teams across the country. Badar Sehar said killing of innocent children and women was a serious issue and provincial governments should be made bound to provide security to all citizens. Hamid Saeed Kazmi said civil society and clerics of the country should be taken into confidence to remove any misunderstandings regarding the polio campaign for there was a misconception that polio vaccine is harmful for fertility.

Story on Page 15

articles on Page 10-11

Taliban NOT behind killing of polio workers: vaccinators g

Doctors and paramedics say attacks a conspiracy to delay elections KARACHI aaMir MaJeeD

H

EALTH workers are looking at the recent attacks on polio workers as a conspiracy hatched by some political forces to delay the upcoming general elections in the country for their political advantage by creating anarchy and refuse to believe that a Taliban mindset is responsible for these assassinations.

The general conception in the country is that those with a Taliban mindset are against polio vaccinations and there is almost a consensus in Pakistan that this recent wave of attacks on polio workers is the work of these extremists who have been targeting sensitive defence installations and law enforcement officials across the country for a while now.

However, health officials do not seem to be buying this rhetoric.

Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) President Dr Samrina Hashmi, talking to Pakistan Today said, “The government held pro-Taliban people responsible for these attacks but polio teams have visited these areas before the recent three-day campaign on several occasions, each time returning safely”. “Why did they not kill health workers before?” she questioned.

“Sure, there was resistance, with many people not willing to get their children vaccinated in these areas, but no one ever hurt health workers,” she stated. She believed that this recent wave of murders could be a political move by some elements to create a sense of anarchy and delay elections.

She reiterated her resolve to continue vaccinations and believed the

situation would normalise once the political scenario stabilised. Vaccinators Welfare Association (VWA) Chairman Junaid Ahmed Shah told Pakistan Today that polio teams faced harassment in Mehmoodabad, Lines Area, Akhtar Colony and Sohrab Goth but it would be inappropriate to link the recent attacks to Pukhtuns living in bordering areas of the metropolis.

“Our vaccination teams have been vis-

iting these areas for years but have never been attacked in the past. So why are health workers being killed today?” he questioned. Shah, like Hashmi and several other paramedical and health workers viewed the recent attacks as part of the boiling political scenario in the country and opined that these attacks would seize after normalcy returned in the political quarters of the country.

US says nothing justifies violence against anti-polio workers WASHINGTON speCiaL CorresponDenT

While condemning the killing of health workers in Pakistan, the United States has said nothing justifies violence against anti-polio workers.

“Any attack on health workers anywhere in the world is unacceptable.

The safety and sanctity of health workers needs to be respected as does the provision of healthcare, and that

should be kept neutral in any kind of a conflict or disagreement,” State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said. “Together with the Government of Pakistan and the larger international community, we condemn these attacks in their strongest terms,” she added. Questioned if the US thinks that in some ways it has created a bit of a mistrust of healthcare workers in Pakistan after a healthcare worker (Dr Shakil Afridi) who was

Political parties unite against polio ISLAMABAD app

The representatives of 15 political parties in a conference on Wednesday pledged to include a polio eradication strategy in their respective manifestos in the forthcoming general elections. The representatives met at the All-Parties Conference (APC) hosted by Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development And Transparency (PILDAT) in collaboration with the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF). Representatives of World Health Organisation (WHO) and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation were also present at the meeting.

All political parties said they were united to eradicate polio from the country and condemned the recent attacks on polio teams in different part of the country. The meeting observed that an elected local government system was vital for the eradication of polio. “Polio cases are declining in the country due to collective efforts of the government and the NGOs. About 190 cases were registered in 2011 and only 56 cases have so far been registered during the current year,” said PILDAT President Ahmed Bilal Mehboob.

doing vaccinations ended up being the person who provided information on Osama bin Ladin, before the al Qaeda chief’s elimination in an American operation last year, the spokesperson replied: “We have supported efforts not only in Pakistan, but around the world to provide accurate information to the public about these kinds of vaccines, et cetera. We have continued to do that in Pakistan. Nothing justifies violence against health workers.”

Polio vaccinators threatened in Lahore LAHORE sTaff reporT

Two unidentified motorcyclists on Wednesday threatened two polio vaccinators against administering anti-polio drops to children in Lahore’s Samanabad area.

Confirming the incident, an official of the Punjab Health Department said two motorcyclists pointed their guns at two male polio vaccinators, threatening them against administering anti-polio drops to the children in the area.

The officials said strict measures had been taken at a meeting held on Wednesday in which health officials, DCO, EDOs, and police officers were present to review the situation. It was decided that police personnel would escort the polio vaccinators in high-risk areas.

Health officials said the anti-polio drive would continue and the safety of vaccinators would also be ensured at every cost.

thursday, 20 December, 2012

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04 FBR to probe leakage of MPs’ tax returns ISLAMABAD onLine

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has announced to hold an enquiry into the unauthorised disclosure to the media of information about tax returns by country’s parliamentarians.

FBR Chairman Ali Arshad Hakeem told the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue on Wednesday that the board would form a fact-finding committee to investigate unauthorised disclosure of information to the press and

further action shall be taken upon receipt of the committee’s report. He said the report would be presented before the Senate Standing Committee on Finance within two weeks.

Hakeem said all particulars contained in tax return documents or the annexed documents on accounts furnished by a taxpayer to FBR were confidential and no public servant could disclose any such particular under sub-section (1) of Section 216 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001. He said anyone who disclosed any particulars in contravention of Section 216 was guilty of an of-

Polls apart continued from Page 01

A source in the PML-Q said Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf had also stopped the release of development funds for the PML-Q MPs and even he was not willing to meet the Chaudhrys despite repeated requests.

The source added that the cold-war had reached its peak between the leadership of both coalition partners as the prime minister even ignored a request by Shujaat, who had asked the PM to take along him the PML-Q secretaryfinance and special assistant to Prime Minister Imtiaz Ranjha in his recent visit to Gilgit-Baltistan. The prime minister rejected the request.

“In utter desperation, Shujaat contacted real estate tycoon Malik Riaz, the main guarantor of the PPP-‘Q’ alliance, who arranged a meeting with the prime minister, as the president declined to meet the Chaudhrys.”

On the day of meeting that took place last week, Shujaat and Pervaiz Elahi went to the residence of Malik Riaz, who took them both to the PM House. During the

meeting, the PM reluctantly agreed to release development funds for the Q league’s MPs, but he told the Chaudhrys flatly to talk to President Zardari for their complaints against Manzoor Wattoo and Anwar Saifullah,” the source added.

The source said that following the results of the recent by-election, the leaders of the PPP and PMLQ had understood the fact that the workers of both political parties had rejected the unnatural alliance.

The source added that the PPP had gathered information that the PML-N had launched an onslaught to win loyalties of all potential Q leaguers and that’s why they were making last ditch efforts to gain momentum in Punjab.

“Yes, consultation process has been launched to form a new alliance between likeminded parties. However, the consultation process is in its initial stage and after thorough deliberations, contacts would be made with the leadership of likeminded parties for seat-adjustments or a formal alliance,” the PML-Q leader said.

He said the Chaudhrys

fence under Section 198, punishable on conviction with fine or and imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months.

“The FBR has requisitioned reports from all field offices regarding unauthorised disclosure of information relating to tax returns filed by parliamentarians and all offices have categorically denied having furnished any such information to the press,” Hakeem said, adding that it was, therefore, being said on authority that the FBR did not disclose any classified information of tax returns of parliamentarians to the press. He said 95 percent

had understood the fact that most of their MNAs and MPAs would soon leave the party and would be contesting from the platform of the PML-N or PTI in Punjab and PPP in Sindh.

However, he said the Chaudhrys wanted to hold huge public gatherings before the polls arrived to catch the attention of likeminded parties.

He said Shujaat was the brains behind the idea and he had all the skills needed to woo even his bitter opponents.

When contacted, PML-Q Secretary Information Senator Kamil Ali Agha said it was premature to pass a verdict on the fate of the PPPPMLQ alliance.

He, however, admitted the fact that there were “genuine and grave concerns” but no final word could be passed until and unless a meeting took place between President Asif Ali Zardari and Chaudhry Shujaat.

Asked if his party’s leadership was annoyed over the role being played by Anwar Saifullah and Manzoor Wattoo in KP and Punjab, as both were making lucrative offers to win loyalties of PMLQ MPs, Agha said there were genuine reservations and the same would be discussed in an overdue meeting with President Zardari.

issues of the National Assembly, provincial assemblies and the Senate pertained to procedural issues and advisory council would be set up to resolve those issues. The FBR chairman added that disclosure of information of tax returns to the press should be taken as an opportunity, as it would help tax authority to improve its enforcement wing. During the meeting, Senator Kamil Ali Agha alleged that officials of the FBR were involved in disclosure of information relating to tax returns of parliamentarians and said a conspiracy was being hatched against parliamentarians.

PML-Q’s Rahila Durrani resigns QuEttA: Balochistan Minister and Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid-e-Azam) MPA, Rahila Hameed Durrani, has resigned from her office in protest against the government’s policies, sources said on Wednesday. Rahila submitted her resignation to PML-Q Balochistan President Jam Muhammad Yousaf, who has forwarded it to the party chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain.

According to PML-Q sources, Rahila Hameed Durrani did not attend any meeting of the provincial assembly after the Supreme Court’s verdict of October 12. onLine

SC summons ED, finance secys in PM’s ‘favour’ case ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday issued notices to the secretaries of the Establishment Division and Finance Department, as well as Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf’s son-in-law Raja Azeemul Haque in connection with his World Bank appointment.

The SC summoned all records of Azeem’s nomination, issued notices to the three parties and adjourned proceedings until the second week of January. sTaff reporT

CCI to take final decision on holding census, NA told g

MPs pressurise Interior Ministry for stern action against terrorists ISLAMABAD sTaff reporT

P

ARLIAMENTARY Secretary for Finance Sajjadul Hassan on Wednesday apprised the National Assembly (NA) that the Council of Common Interests (CCI) would take the final decision on holding a population census in the country. He said the house listing operation, which was a part of the census, had been completed in the year 2010-11 and now the CCI would decided on the timeframe for holding a population census across the country.

Carrying out the census, he said, was a constitutional requirement because the retrieved data provided benchmarks for socio-economic developments plans and administrative activities, provided basis for political representation, equitable distribution of public funds to federating units and quota for all civil positions in the federal government.

LAw AnD ORDER: Several members of the NA on Wednesday expressed con-

cerns on the prevailing law and order situation and demanded Interior Minister Rehman Malik for prompt action to curb the menace of terrorism.

Members from Punjab, Balochistan and KPK called upon the federal as well as concerned provincial governments to take stern action against terrorists as the House adopted a resolution moved by an MQM member from Sindh to condemn the brutal killing of polio workers. Riaz Hussain Pirzada said terrorists were targeting border areas as well as defense installations and questioned as to who was harbouring this menace and providing funds for such operations.

He said killers and mafias were given security while courts released accused terrorists for lack of sufficient evidence while billions of rupees were being drawn from the national exchequer in the name of security. Pirzada said Pakistanis, already bearing the brunt of power outages and gas load shedding, were living miserably on account of incidents of terrorism. Abdul Qadir Baloch said in 11 districts of Balochis-

tan, even the elected representatives could not raise a voice against the terrorists because after doing so there was no guarantee of their security.

BALOcHIStAn DELIMItAtIOn: Baloch also demanded delimitation in Balochistan stating that his constituency alone covered an area of 65,000 sq km while the whole area of KPK was 72,000 sq km. “How can I execute an election campaign in such a vast constituency and reach out to my people to resolve their problems,” he said.

PASSPORt BAckLOg: The NA was also informed that validity period of passports has been enhanced up to ten years, effective from 1st November, 2012. Parliamentary Secretary for Interior Rai Mujtaba Kharal told the House that problem of delay in the issuance of passports to the citizens had been resolved. He said one hundred and fifty thousand passports had been delivered during the last fifteen days and the remaining one hundred thousand would be available by the end of next week, clearing the backlog completely.

Balochistan political crisis deepens with no-trust motion against speaker continued from Page 01

He said that he told the deputy speaker and other members of the assembly that the no-trust motion could be tabled in the House with permission of the speaker who is not present in Quetta. He said that however, the deputy speaker and other members insisted that the file should be sent to deputy speaker and it should be moved in the House with permission of deputy speaker.

“According to rules and regulations, it is necessary that one-fourth members of the assembly shall stand on their seats and show their hands in voting to give the permission for debate on the no-trust motion,” he said, adding that the procedure was not adopted.

He said that the no-trust motion could not be moved if one-fourth strength of members do not stand show their hands in voting. He said that the no-confidence motion was moved in the House with signatures of 22 members and proper procedure as per rules and regulations was not adopted in tabling the motion. He said that Senior Minister and parliamentary leader of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Maulana Abdul Wasey was the mover of the no-trust motion but instead of him, the deputy speaker allowed Provincial Minister for Health AainUllah Shams to present the motion. He said that according to the Article 53 of the Constitution, Sub-Clause 7, the speaker shall remain in his office till completion of all proceedings.

Continued killings cripple polio drive continued from Page 01

However, WHO and UNICEF took no regard of the assurance and suspended all field work in the country until further orders.

The WHO had on Tuesday recommended the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government suspend the ongoing three-day anti-polio campaign in the province after the killing of a female worker. WHO had opined that due to inadequate security and attacks on volunteers, it was difficult to carry out the drive, but the government had rejected the proposal.

The government had preferred painting Tuesday’s killing of polio worker Farzana a result of family dispute and directed continuing with the immunisation drive.

Farzana was 14 years old, the same age as famed teen education activist Malala Yousafzai when she was targeted by the Taliban.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government’s indifference towards Farzana’s assassination – rather criminalisation of her

thursday, 20 December, 2012

death – and its hailing of Malala’s escapade can only be taken with a pinch of salt.

“If the government had realised the situation the day I lost my daughter and had suspended the three-day anti polio campaign, these incident would not have happened,” Saeed Rahman, Farzana’s father, said. Rahman also denied having any family dispute. Minister Information Main Iftikhar Hussain even told the provincial assembly that Farzana’s killing was a result of a family dispute and vowed to carry on with the anti-polio campaign.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is on top of the list of areas with reported polio cases, with as many as 22, followed by FATA at 19.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks so far. KP Chief Minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti announced Rs 300,000 for each person killed in the targeted attacks.

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called the killings “senseless and inexcusable”.

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LESCO officials shock electricity thieves in fresh crackdown LAHORE MoniTorinG DesK

In a fresh crackdown against electricity theft in the city, the Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) officials raided different areas lying in their respective circles and identified many houses involved in stealing electricity.

Per reports, officials of four sub-divisions in the city caught a total of 112 electricity thieves involved in using electricity theft methods including tempering with and reversing electricity metres, direct hooking and shunting in the last month.

On the orders of LESCO Gulberg Division XEN Altaf Chaudhary, Garden Town SDO Sana Muhammad, Liberty Market SDO Malik Bilal, SDO Shujha and other officials carried out an operation and caught 14 electricity thieves in their respective circles.

Officials said that they have charged a detection bill amounting to Rs 500,000 from the offenders.

Similarly, on the orders of Samanabad Division Additional SE Anwar Naseem Qureshi, LESCO officials caught 65 electricity thieves from different areas of Samanabad. Later First Investigation Reports (FIRs) were launched against 18 electricity thieves, while Rs 100,000 in fines were also recovered from them.

Moreover, on the directions of XEN Tahir Mayo, the Kotlakhpat Division officials caught 16 people who were stealing electricity directly from low tension wires. Other LESCO sub-divisions including Bilal Ganj and Kila Muhammadi also witnessed raids from LESCO officials where17 people were caught stealing electricity. The officials recovered Rs 60, 00,000 detention bills from the offenders.

LESCO officials informed that the company was facing huge losses due to electricity thefts.

LAHORE

B

WaLeeD MaLHi

ASANT enthusiasts would have to spend another year without the festivities as City District Government Lahore (CDGL) sources on Wednesday revealed that ban on the kite-flying festival would be upheld, Pakistan Today has learnt.

Official decision on Basant festival is still to be out as a committee head by District Coordination Officer Noor-ul-Amin Mengal deliberates on the fate of the annual festivities. However, sources in the CDGL claimed that the ban on the

kite-flying festival would continue and that this decision had been taken in the “larger interest” of people. Kite-flying is traditionally associated with the spring festival of Basant and marks an important cultural event in province. However, over the last few years it has resulted in loss of life as well as levied a cost on the purse of the city government.

A senior CDGL official on the condition of anonymity said the ban was imposed because the media had highlighted incidents of death caused by people falling from high places or motorcyclists entangled in deadly kite string during the festival.

Talking to Pakistan Today, a resident of Mozang Sehroz Alam said, “We really have no

one to blame except for ourselves for this ban. It is the collective failure of the entire city for such untoward incidents and it is easy to blame the government when they occur.”

He added that perhaps it was a fitting punishment that a festival of joy that had caused so much misery was banned.

The decision to ban Basant was not welcomed by all citizens. Emminent socialite Yousaf Salahuddin was of the view that if proper safety precautions were taken, there was no reason why the festival could not continue. He said that if motorcycles were banned during the event, it could save a lot of lives being lost because of the deadly string. He said that Basant was of immense economic importance to the city as it led to sales of kites and also placed the city on the cultural map of the world. He added that if the government made announcements for the festival in advance, precautionary measures could be taken to avoid loss of life. According to a kite-maker, there were about 25,000 families involved in making kites. They were facing financial hardships because of the ban on Basant.

“People who have been in the kite-making business for years have no other means to earn their livelihood,” he said.

Muhammad Shafi, a kite string maker, said that his family had been in the business for decades and did not know any other work, so they suffered greatly over the last few years. “My mother died because I didn’t have the money for her treatment,” he said.A Lahore-based kite maker also added that the ban on Basant in the city had caused him to take his business elsewhere. “Many kite lovers still enjoy flying kites in other districts regularly. This has kept many kite-making businesses to thrive despite the ban,” he said.

Developing western lifestyles leads to obesity LAHORE sTaff reporT

University of Ulm Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine Professor Dr Martin Wabitsch on Wednesday said that the obesity trends in Western countries have begun to have spill over effects in developing nations as well.

Speaking at a lecture titled Monogenic Forms of Human Obesity, he said that one in three adults in the West were clinically obese and the developing world was fast catching up with this unhealthy trend by adopting a “western” lifestyle. He feared that obesity may become a global pandemic.

“The consequences of this are not only the social and psychological effects of excessive weight, but also the significant morbidity and premature mortality associated with serious medical conditions that obesity predisposes to, including diabetes, hypertension, coronary artery disease and many forms of cancers”, he said.

Martin further said that rapid industrialisation and its economic consequences had led to the creation of an ‘obesogenic’ environment in which people had easy access to high caloric food and almost no compulsion to exercise. He said that scientific studies had revealed that humans can become obese as a result of simple genetic defects.

thursday, 20 December, 2012

LHR 20-12-2012_Layout 1 12/20/2012 11:02 AM Page 6

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Education is top-most priority: Shahbaz

LAHORE sTaff reporT

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LAHORE

P

sTaff reporT

UNJAB Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Wednesday said that empowering the youth through education was vital for development of the nation and the Punjab government was spending huge sums of money for this purpose. Addressing a laptop distribution ceremony, he said that Rs 47 billion had already been spent on welfare projects for the youth of the province, adding that rewarding hard working students with laptops was a good motivation for students. He further said that women empowerment through education was a

top priority of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) and stressed that female employment in all sectors of the economy was critical for development. Addressing the ceremony, he said that the purpose of setting up Punjab Educational Endowment Fund with a budget of Rs 20 billion was to reward talented students of the province. He added that besides laptop, solar lamps were also being distributed among students at a cost of Rs 4 billion.

Shahbaz further said that an internship programme for deserving students was also set up. He said 5,000 students from Gujranwala were already benefiting from this programme. Furthermore, Shahbaz said that over 4,000 schools across the province had been equipped with IT labs.

Think of the rickshaw drivers!

LAHORE sTaff reporT

Rickshaw drivers on Wednesday revealed that many people from their profession had been forced to quit their occupation because of traffic jams across the city.

They said traffic jams at key locations of the city caused by protests, rallies and other political activities had been frustrating for rickshaw drivers due to which they had been forced to switch to other means of earning their livelihood. They also blamed corrupt traffic authorities for their woes.

“Any time of the day, particularly during peak hours, thousands of vehicles are seen moving at a snail’s pace in busy areas, especially on Shadman Chowk, Lawrence Road, Railway Station, Garhi Shahu, Jail Road, Ferozepur Road, Wahdat Road,

Samanabad, Mughal Pura, Fatima Jinnah Road, Mall Road, Hall Road, Nicholson Road, Shah Alam Market and other link roads,” said Ali, a rickshaw driver.

Others said that they were forced to charge their passengers extra money during CNG strikes because they had to switch to expensive petrol as a substitute.

They also said that traffic jams caused by various construction projects on city roads had also been a source of problems for rickshaw drivers. They complained that the authorities had not planned proper alternatives routes during the construction period, which had only added to their troubles. They said that shopkeepers and vendors opening their shops and stalls on footpaths had narrowed roads tremendously, creating more problems for rickshaw drivers and pedestrians alike.

AIDS awareness seminar held

sCoTLanD: Muhammad shamas baig, the player of the year 2011-12 for under-19 football Team of scotland, is receiving trophy from barry, the captain of scotland national football team. He is the first pakistani scotish to have this honor. PR

thursday, 20 December, 2012

India must not target civilians: Rangers deputy DG

LAHORE: Institute of Public Health (IPH) on Wednesday organised a public awareness seminar, poster exhibition competition and a slogan writing competition. The conference was arranged in collaboration with Punjab AIDS Control Programme in connection with World AIDS day. At the seminar, the dean of the institute said that there are 35 million AIDS patients worldwide and the disease could only be controlled by taking preventive measure, destroying used syringes and avoiding unsafe blood fusions. The chief guest at the event said that there were 2,246 AIDS patients in Punjab, out of which 1,160 were undergoing treatment at nine centers set up the Punjab Health Department, UNICEF and Global Fund. sTaff reporT

Pakistan Rangers (PR) on Wednesday voiced their protest over targeting of Pakistani citizens by Indian Border Security Force (BSF) and called for an end to the attacks.

A 13-member Pakistan Rangers delegation led by Pakistan Rangers Deputy Director General Brig Hafiz Jamil reached India to join a peace-building dialogue being held in Attari.

Speaking at the occasion, Jamil said talks were important for resolving border disputes and revival of trust between the two neighboring countries.

He further said that PR had never taken any initiative in launching a cross-border attack. On the contrary, he said, any action taken had been “retaliatory”. He maintained retaliation was PR policy.

“We have made it clear that targeting civilians is an inhuman and immoral act and we will raise our protest at these talks,” he said.

The delegation is expected to hold talks with the Indian delegation on defence related issues, including smuggling and exchange of prisoners.

Solo exhibition at Lahore Art Gallery LAHORE: An exhibition by senior artist Ijaz-ul-Hassan will be inaugurated at Lahore Art Gallery on Friday.

The artist will exhibit his work after a gap of several years at a bungalow on Jail Road till January 13. sTaff reporT

LHR 20-12-2012_Layout 1 12/20/2012 11:02 AM Page 7

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GM SHAH

HERE is a great hullaballoo over the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), also known Metro Bus System (MBS), a project launched by the Punjab government in Lahore. The critics are accusing the provincial government of wasting resources and focusing Lahore at the cost of other parts of the province. They are ‘questioning the rationale’ behind the venture, but it is very much clear that all the noise is politically-motivated and aimed at creating misconceptions. Given the baseless reporting and statements issued about the project, it is necessary to share the reality with people.

Lahore is the second largest city of Pakistan with a population of around 10 million, but like other cities of the country, there is no organised modern transport system to serve the citizens. Ever-increasing population and congested roads necessitated innovative thinking and a project like BRT. That’s why the Punjab government decided to address the problem through investing in a project which ensures mobility besides providing easy access to masses, supporting urban life and making the city liveable.

A question may be asked: Wasn’t there any other options? Why BRT? The answer is the BRT is most efficient and cost-effective.

Among other options, the average per kilometre cost of ‘Metro Rail’ and ‘Mono Rail’ is Rs6 billion and Rs3 billion respectively. But the expenditure on ‘Elevated BRT’ is Rs1.5 billion, while ‘At-Grade BRT’ costs Rs0.5 billion. Hence, the total estimated cost on the 26.71km-long first phase of BRT (from Gajjumatta to Shahdra) is around Rs26 billion. It is important to note that the government has planned to launch two more phases of BRT - Thokar Niaz Beg to Jallo More (Canal Road) and Thokar Niaz Beg to Anarkali (Multan Road) - in next financial year to ensure that the service covers maximum area of metropolis.

On the other hand, the feasibility study

of the Lahore Rapid Mass Transit System (LRMTS), suggested by the previous PMLQ government estimated the cost at US$2.4 billion. Certainly, the current economic situation did not allow to for the much-hyped project; therefore, the PMLN government, which believes in optimum use of available resources, selected the BRT. It is astonishing politicking that former CM Pervaiz Elahi and others are blaming the PMLN of focusing Lahore when they were planning to spend US$2.4 billion on an expensive venture, without considering the alternatives.

One must also remember that one dollar is now equal to Rs97.

Another reason for choosing the BRT is its success in various metropolises around the world. The system is currently functioning in 146 cities in the world with a total length of 3,658 kilometres and moving 24 million passengers daily. The number of passengers benefitting daily from the BRT in Latin America and Asia is 15 million and 6.3 million respectively. Cities like Tehran, Ahmedabad and Istanbul many others have opted for BRT during the last 10 to 15 years on high demand corridors to reduce congestion, travel time as well as pollution mainly because it is relatively cheap, flexible, fast, efficient and easier to implement. It also realises equitable democratic distribution of urban road space amongst people, as a car lane carries a maximum of 3,000 people per hour, while a BRT lane can serve up to 24,000 people like in Istanbul where the bus speed in highest – 40 kilometres per hour.

A brief look at the BRT in various cities from around the globe will help in understanding its efficiency and benefits. In the Columbian capital of Bogotá, a four-lane system serves 1.8 million passengers per day, the number for Chinese city of Ginangzhon is 0.8 million. With a two-lane, the BRT in Istanbul caters 0.6 million passengers and 0.2 million in Ahmedabad.

And just to list more positives, the BRT in Lahore will serve for next 12-15 years, while its physical Infrastructure is largely

compatible to metro and mono systems (LRT). It will also maximize economic benefits because of scale and serve affluent as well as poor people. At the start of operations, it will cater 30,000 to 40,000 passengers per day.

In short, the detractors should keep in mind that the BRT is an affordable initiative, which will go a long way in reducing emissions and traffic volume. It offers safe, reliable and comfortable transport while saving time and fuel. It will also help attracting investment, and more importantly, create a new culture of public transport and land use in a congested city. The PMLN government deserves the credit for being the first in Pakistan in revolutionising the concept of public transport, a first step towards modern town planning and urban development. Given an opportunity, the PMLN will introduce the system in other cities of the province and the country.

But an entity like PPP, claiming to be a progressive political force, has no development plan even to cite an example. It started as a political force with slogans claiming that it was a ‘genuine left’, but it never bothered following any of their socialist models like Moscow, Calcutta, Delhi or any other former East European communist city. And in the post-1986 era, which pulled it towards the capitalist West, it didn’t shun its ‘anti-development credentials’ and ‘refrained’ from copying the models from the democratic secular world's underground transit system of New York and London.

And yet PPP tries to brand PMLN as conservative and rightist political force. If rightist or conservative means initiating and completing developmental projects for public then shame on PPP and its so-called secularism and leftist sloganeering.

To inform the PPP and its allies’ feudal hierarchy, BRT will be the only service of its kind where a VVIP will be a common man and all car drivers will have to stop at every red light signal. A huge change in a society dominated by Zardaris, Wattoos and Chaudhrys!

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08 News

Outrage in India over Delhi bus gang rape NEW DELHI

I

aGenCies

NDIAN riot police have fired water cannon at demonstrators in New Delhi after protests against a gang rape in the capital turned violent.

During the protest screened live on television, police could be seen hosing down demonstrators after a group of them tried to tear down steel barricades outside the official residence of New Delhi's Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit.

The protesters have been demanding swift punishment for the rapists.

Clashes erupted between protesters and police at the demonstration, one of a series being held in the capital and across the country, including Ahmedabad and Patna, following Sunday night's attack on a bus.Police say six men raped the 23-year-old medical student, and beat her and her companion with iron rods before throwing them off the bus.

The woman is in a critical condition in hospital and doctors say she has severe internal injuries.

Delhi police chief Neeraj Kumar said four men had been arrested and a search was under way for the two other men.

One young woman, who described herself as a student at Delhi University, said there had to be a change of attitude among the authorities, who, she said, tried to pin the blame for sex attacks on victims.

Women are told that if they go out late at night, they will be raped," said the student in an address to the crowd.

"As a woman I want to say that we are also human beings and you need to treat us as human beings. You will need to give us equal rights.

"It is a question of our fundamental rights... We want to be able to go out in Delhi at midnight if we want." In a bid to

stem the growing anger, Indian Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde announced in parliament that there would be an immediate crackdown on buses having tinted glass and heavy curtains - measures that should already be in force.

"They shall be impounded immediately if they do not remove them. All buses will be asked to keep their lights on while plying at night in Delhi," he said.

Sonia Gandhi, the leader of the main ruling Congress party, described the attack as a source of shame for the capital after she paid a visit late on Tuesday to the hospital where the victim is being treated. In a letter to Dikshit, Gandhi

said that "such violence and criminality needs not only to be condemned, it calls for a concerted effort to fight it".

Earlier on Wednesday, the Delhi police commissioner called for the death penalty for convicted rapists.

"We will seek the most severe punishment of life imprisonment for the culprits and we will send a proposal to the government for the death sentence for rapists," Kumar told reporters.

Rape currently carries a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison, while the death sentence is restricted to rare cases of murder and "waging war against the country".

IdlIb, SyrIa: rebels at a training session in Maaret Ikhwan . AgencIeS

Court upholds Strauss-Kahn pimping probe PARIS: A French court has decided to maintain aggravated pimping charges against Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Wednesday's ruling in the French city of Douai means a judicial investigation into allegations that Strauss-Kahn and associates arranged sex parties with prostitutes will continue. The case revolves around a suspected luxury prostitution ring in northern France. Strauss-Kahn, once tipped to become president or France, is under fire over sex parties with prostitutes in the so-called Carlton Affair, named after a hotel at the centre of the inquiry. Strauss-Kahn's lawyers said their client attended "libertine" gatherings but did not know some women present were paid. The lawyers said that they would appeal against the ruling, arguing that investigating judges in the case were biased. "Dominque Strauss-Kahn's defence team is certain that he will ultimately be cleared of these absurd accusations of pimping," lawyer Henri Leclerc said in a statement, adding that he planned to take the matter to France's supreme court. They argue that consorting with prostitutes is not illegal and that investigators have no arguments for pursuing him on the grounds that his behaviour could be construed as pimping, which is illegal. aGenCies

Hillary Clinton accepts Benghazi findings wASHIngtOn: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said she accepts the findings of an independent panel that faulted the State Department over the deadly September attack on the US mission in Benghazi, Libya. An inquiry into the attack on the US mission, which saw the US ambassador and three other US citizens killed, found that the State Department security arrangements there were "grossly inadequate".

The months-long probe found there had been "no immediate, specific" intelligence of a threat against the mission, which was overrun on September 11 by dozens of heavily armed fighters who killed the four Americans.

Clinton also ordered widespread changes to bolster US diplomatic security overseas. She said in a letter to US congressional committees on Tuesday that she had instructed the State Department to implement its findings "quickly and completely" and outlined a series of steps aimed at improving the security of US diplomatic outposts. aGenCies

Venezuela's Chavez 'stable' after infection CARACAS aGenCies

Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez has been diagnosed with a respiratory infection after undergoing cancer surgery in Cuba but his condition is stable, the Venezuelan government said.

"The general condition of the commanderpresident is stable after he was diagnosed with a respiratory infection and the medical team treated him immediately," Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said on television, reading a government statement. "It has been controlled," Villegas said. "In the opinion of the doctors, this type of ailment is one of the consequences that appear with the greatest frequency in patients who have undergone complicated surgeries." Villegas said Venezuela's socialist leader, who has ruled the South American OPEC nation for 14 years, had been ordered to take "complete rest" and follow medical instructions strictly.

Experts agree that it is hard to predict what Chavez's likely scenario might be given the available information. "If it's not a pneumonia ... it can be resolved in 48 hours with the proper antibiotics," said Dr. Maria Crista de Blanco, an in-

ternist at the University Hospital of Caracas.

Dr. Carlos Castro, scientific director of the Colombian League Against Cancer in Bogota, said that because Chavez had gone through chemotherapy and had probably been taking steroids, his immune system was weakened and complications of various sorts might be more likely. "That he's stable doesn't mean that he's completely been cured of the infection," Castro told the AP in a phone interview. "I don't think he's out of danger.

Afghan woman with no nose to undergo surgery to rebuild face KABUL aGenCies

Aisha Mohammadzai, or Bibi Aisha, became a symbol of the militants' cruelty and repression of women when she was photographed at a women's shelter two years ago.

She is now undergoing a series of complicated and painful operations to rebuild her nose after being taken to America in late 2010.

Aisha, who says she is 20 or 21, underwent a fourth operation, lasting eight

thursday, 20 December, 2012

hours, earlier this week at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Centre in Bethesda, Maryland.

Surgeons hope the procedure marks the halfway stage in their work and they can complete the reconstruction next year. A limp piece of skin, taken from her forearm, has already taken the place of her nose, but she said she was undeterred by her appearance.

"I don't care. Everybody has some kind of problem," she told CNN. "At the beginning, I was very scared. I was scared to look at my face in the mirror ...

to think what will happen in the future to me. But now I'm not scared anymore."

Doctors will use cartilage from her ribs to rebuilt the structure of her nose and then cover it with skin from her forehead, which has been swollen with painful injections of saline.

Her case came to prominence when Time magazine used a picture of her on its cover, with the suggestion that this was what would happen if the West left Afghanistan. She was married off as a child bride, and fled her husband, a Taliban fighter, after he and his family beat

her and treated her as a slave.

She was captured and returned to her village in the southern province of Uruzgan, where her husband and inlaws mutilated her after a local Taliban mullah judged the case and decided to make an example of her.

Doctors have delayed the surgery until now after they judged she was not emotionally fit for the long, painful procedures when she first arrived in America.

At first she threw violent tantrums and would occasionally hurt herself during what doctors called "faux seizures".

Greece hit by public sector strike ATHENS aGenCies

Greek transport systems have been disrupted and schools and tax offices shut after public sector workers walked off the job in protest at new austerity measures and lay-offs demanded by foreign lenders. The 24-hour strike is the latest in a series of protests since September against a package of wage cuts and tax hikes demanded by Greece's European Union and International Monetory Fund lenders as the price for bailout loans to keep the country afloat. The measures, which include earmarking 27,000 civil servants for eventual dismissal, remain unpopular among Greeks who say society is crumbling under the weight of spending cuts and tax hikes that hurt mostly the middle class. On Wednesday, striking teachers, doctors and municipal workers started gathering in central Athens as part of the walkout called by the ADEDY union, which represents about half a million public sector workers or roughly a quarter of the country's workforce. "We want to tell the government enough is enough!

Enough with layoffs, wage and pension cuts, the collapse of the public sector, enough with these tax hikes," said Adedy unionist Despina Spanou.

Greece's other major union, the private sector union GSEE, said it would hold a three-hour stoppage in solidarity and join the march through the streets of central Athens. The Communistaffiliated PAME group was expected to hold a separate rally. Some domestic flights were grounded and about 100 workers occupied the headquarters of Athens' city train company on Wednesday in protest at planned wage cuts. Train workers also started a 48hour strike against the conservative-led coalition's plans to privatise Greece's national railways.

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No resolution of Kashmir without taking Kashmiris on board: Mirwaiz g

News 09

aPhc leader says people of kashmir looking towards Pakistan for support ISLAMABAD

T

inp

HE Kashmir dispute cannot be resolved without taking the people of Kashmir on board, All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said on Wednesday.

Speaking at the Institute of Strategic Students (ISSI), Mirwaiz said, “It is very important to determine the context of the issue… it should first be determined whether Kashmir is a territorial dispute or a question of the rights of the Kashmiri people?”

He said although the issue was bilateral in nature, the aspirations of the Kashmiri people should also be taken into account. He expressed concern that the government of India was successfully able to confuse grievances of the Kashmiri people with their aspirations. “It has been projecting that resolving issues like health care and poor governance etc will

address the aspirations of the Kashmiri people,” he said.

He said people of Kashmir were looking towards Pakistan for support as Pakistan acknowledged that Kashmiris

had to be a part of negotiations “but the important question arises which party will be allowed to come to the table?

Would it be parties like the PDP and the National Congress, which are backed by

India, or some other party supported by Pakistan?”

Mirwaiz stressed the need for developing a mechanism and a clear policy for the way forward. He welcomed the ongoing talks between India and Pakistan but also highlighted the fact that unless the core issue, that is, the Kashmir issue was resolved, talks on other problems like Siachen and Sir Creek would not bear any fruit.

Mirwaiz said the APHC had been demanding the Indian government revoke laws like the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and reduction of troops in the valley and stressed that Pakistan should put its weight behind the APHC. Prof Abdul Ghani Bhat also spoke on the occasion.

He said a number of changes were taking place round the world which made the prospects of the resolution of the dispute bright. “The Kashmiris want a permanent solution to this problem as it is linked to the peace and security of the entire South Asian region.”

baHaWaLpur: public transport vans parked near a CnG filling station on Wednesday as people across the country continue to suffer from a strike by the CnG association against reduced prices. InP

Punjab industries to get 36 hours of gas supply a week ISLAMABAD: Adviser to the Prime Minister on Petroleum Dr Asim Hussain has annulled the decision to suspend gas supply to Punjab’s industries for a month. Sources said the decision had reverted as the industrialists of Faisalabad threatened to forcefully run their factories and start a protest movement in collaboration with the labourers. According to media reports, industries all over the province would be supplied gas 36 hours per week. A notification had already been issued in this regard. According to the notification, factories in Faisalabad, Sargodha, Bahawalpur, Multan, Gujranwala, and Rawalpindi would be supplied gas from 6pm Thursday to the wee hours of Friday, December 22. Gas will also be provided to other industrial zones, including those in Lahore, Sahiwal and Sheikhupura for a period of 36 hours starting from the eve of December 22. onLine

pakistani Consul General to Monaco namira saleem photographed at the special unesCo conference on Malala yousafzai in paris.

rS 5.5 mIllIon FrauD

PPP MNA’s daughter-in-law gets pre-arrest bail LAHORE uMair aZiZ

Mehnaz Saeed, daughter-in-law of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) MNA Ayatullah Durrani, was granted bail before arrest by the Sessions Court in Rawalpindi on charges of fraud worth Rs 5.5 million, Pakistan Today has learnt.

Humayun Akhtar, a 67-year-old British lawyer of Pakistani origin had accused 27-year-old Mehnaz of defrauding him of Rs 5.5 million.

The accused is wife of Saeed Durrani (son of MNA Dr Ayatullah Durrani). Mehnaz registered an FIR (53/12) at Ramna Police Station, Islamabad, against Akhtar, alleging that he intercepted her car and attacked her.

However, Akhtar said the FIR which had been registered in connivance with her aides was eventually quashed by a judicial magistrate in May. In December, Akhtar returned to Pakistan and registered an FIR against Mehnaz for fraud. As a result, on December 17 she was granted bail before arrest and is required to appear before the Sessions Court on 22nd December. Akhtar further alleges that Mehnaz, on the strength of her personal contacts, got a job in February with the Safe City Islamabad Project as assistant human resources manager for a salary of Rs 50,000 per month with forged degrees showing that she holds a Masters in Business Administration from Punjab University when in fact she is only a matriculate. In November, she was sacked from her position on these grounds, he claims.

Akhtar has submitted an application with the Interior Ministry for investigation into the matter and requested that Mehnaz be charged under Sections 420/468/471 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and Sections 17/22 of the Passport Act. He further claims that she tried to flee Pakistan on 15th December on flight PK 771 to Copenhagen with the intention of claiming asylum there. At the Islamabad Airport she attempted to use an official (blue) passport which she was not entitled to hold, said Akhtar, adding that the Immigration Officer did not allow her to leave for she did not have an NOC. Meanwhile, Mehnaz, talking to Pakistan Today claimed the charges levelled against her were false, stating that she had met Akhtar in London through an acquaintance, seeking legal services for her child’s case.

PM urges parties to shun politics of allegations g

ashraf says political parties should strengthen democracy by tackling ‘real’ issues HARIPUR

pml-n lawmaker joins ppp

app

Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf on Wednesday urged all political parties to strengthen democracy by tackling “real” issues and shunning politics of allegations.

Addressing a large public gathering, he said the era of rigging elections had come to an end. “This time there will be no manipulation and the voters will be able to exercise their free will,” he added.

Ashraf said politics of allegations was not farreaching as it defied the basic rules of justice and service to the people. The prime minister said everyone had a right to pursue their own mandate and the people had a right to vote for the leader of their choice, according to their free will.

Ashraf announced that PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari would address a gathering in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh at the death anniversary of Benazir Bhutto that is on December 27.

He recalled that Bilawal had rightly said democracy was the best revenge, when he had spoken for the first time soon after the PPP leader was assassinated, adding that his words had proved to be true.

The prime minister said it was for the first time in the country’s history that a civilian government was about to complete its five-year term.

Ashraf paid rich tributes to all allied parties that stood along with the PPP, “despite very challenging times”, adding that now “every Tom, Dick and Harry was out in the streets, with

HARIPuR: Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz parliamentarian Mushtaq Khan on Wednesday announced that he would be joining the Pakistan People’s Party. Khan, belonging to NA-19 of Haripur, announced his decision at a public gathering which was addressed by Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf. Wearing a tricolour cap matching the red, green and black of the PPP flag, Khan lauded the policies of the PPP government, saying the party’s vision had convinced him to join the team of able politicians. app little to offer”.

Regretting politics of allegations, he said the people were sick and tired of such things and “want to see some kind of solid work done”.

Interspersing his speech in his native Pothohwari, the prime minister said the PPP had restored the 1973 constitution in to real form, adding that the opponents should at least have the courage to speak the truth out loud and acknowledge that President Asif Ali Zardari had handed over all his powers to the prime minister.

Ashraf mentioned the several constitutional amendments, and the NFC Award, saying some other measures taken by the government that would have a far-reaching impact on the country.

He said the PPP would continue to serve the poor and downtrodden of the country.

The prime minister lashed out at those who had continued to conspire against the party from day one, adding that they had failed to achieve anything as they had nothing substantial to back their claims. He was critical of those “who are busy in drawing room politics”.

He said it was essential for a politician to understand why the people of Pakistan love a certain leader, a political vision and a particular party.

Ashraf recalled that in the early days there was no such concept of popular politics as the people in general were denied the right to choose according to their will.

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10 Comment Pakistan in global focus Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor Lahore – Ph: 042-36375963-5 Fax: 042-32535230 Karachi – Ph: 021-35381208-9 Fax: 021-35381208 Islamabad – Ph: 051-2287414-6 Fax: 051-2287417 Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

Dereliction of duty protection of health workers

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hat the attacks on polio vaccination workers continued on a second consecutive day also is indicative of the most callous dereliction of duty by the Sindh and KP administrations. The TTP’s antipathy towards the anti-polio campaign has been wellknown. Initially, the militants had no excuse to oppose the campaign other than the canard that through it the West was conspiring to spread sterility in the Muslim countries.

Washington is to be blamed for the disastrous decision to use a child immunisation programme as cover for Dr Afridi, who was employed to spy on the house of Osama bin Laden.

This made it easier for the militants to persuade the gullible among the tribesmen that the polio staff was in fact meant to spy for the US. But Karachi is no lawless Waziristan, nor are Peshawar, Charsadda and Nowshera for that matter. The Karachi administration was in fact already forewarned after a UN doctor was attacked in July while administering the vaccine near Sohrab Goth. If the medical staff had been provided appropriate security, the incidents may not have taken place.

The attacks will have a negative impact on the anti-polio campaign which has already been stopped in Karachi. Many field workers may not be willing to put their lives in jeopardy for a paltry fee of Rs 1,500 for a three-day polio campaign.

After WHO launched its polio eradication initiative in Pakistan in 1994, the incidence of the crippling disease went down within ten years to 28 cases. With the subsequent opposition by Mullah Fazlullah and others of his ilk, it was again on the rise with the figure reaching 198 in 2011, a 22 percent increase over 2010. Almost one million Pakistani children were left out of the polio vaccination drive in October this year as unrest and flooding limited access and some parents viewed the campaign as a Western conspiracy.

Pakistan is presently in the company of Afghanistan and Nigeria, the only other countries which are still polioendemic. Like them Pakistan would be seen to be possessing a potential to spread the crippling disease to neighbouring countries like India and Iran that have been cleared of it.

The Pakistan government is being widely seen as having failed to fulfill its responsibility. In a joint reminder, the WHO and UNICEF have called on “the leaders of the affected communities and everyone concerned to do their utmost to protect health workers and create a secure environment so that we can meet the health needs of the children of Pakistan.” The UN chief Ban Ki-moon has condemned the killings and was to meet Pakistan’s UN ambassador Masood Khan on Tuesday over the issue. It is unfortunate that there was no spontaneous condemnation of the attacks by the opposition and the religious parties.

The problems we have to work on

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he approaching deadline for the withdrawal of the United States/NATO troops from Afghanistan has focused global attention on Pakistan.

Its changed disposition towards Afghanistan, a flexible and accommodating one, has been noticed with interest in the capitals that maintain interest in Afghanistan. Some view this change as tactical rather than strategic shift in Pakistan’s traditional approach of seeking a somewhat pro-Pakistan and docile government in Kabul and the so-called strategic depth notion. Others worry if Pakistan could continue to be so forthcoming over a longer time because the Afghan leaders in Kabul view Pakistan as colonial and shrewd. Some leaders among them, including President Hamid Karzai, are likely to return to anti-Pakistan rhetoric if and when internal political compulsions demand which may have a negative implications for Pakistan’s support to Afghan reconciliation.

Pakistan is also important to the international community in its own right.

It is a strategically located country that links three important regions: South Asia, Central Asia and West Asia (the Middle East). Its population is around 180 million and it possesses nuclear weapons. Pakistan is viewed as having the potential to overcome its governance and economic problems. The United

By Dr Hasan Askari Rizvi States and the European Union countries are expected to continue extending cooperation for that purpose.

Pakistan is viewed at the international level both as a victim of terrorism and a source of transnational terrorism.

Therefore, the international community is likely to face greater problems in this part of the world if Pakistan becomes more ungovernable and unmanageable.

However, in the ultimate analysis what matters most is not merely external diplomatic and financial support but how far Pakistan’s leaders and people are willing to adopt effective measures to overcome the current problems.

Last week, a number of academicians from Pakistan and other countries and Pakistan watchers from the US and the Europeans countries met

in Paris to share their views on the present day developments in Pakistan and Afghanistan and their possible directions. It was a friendly and informal consultative exercise that focused on serious issues of Pakistan’s domestic politics, nuclear policy, Afghanistan, extremism and terrorism, the IndiaPakistan-Afghanistan triangle, economic development and related issues.

The participants in the consultations acknowledged that there have been important structural changes in Pakistan’s democracy that include, among others, the 18th constitutional amendment, enhancement of the position and role of the provinces, and a conscious effort by the political parties to moderate their political confrontation so that the democratic order evolved out of the 2008 elections is not disrupted. However, there were issues about the quality of democracy in Pakistan, especially the persistence of religious extremism, socio-cultural intolerance, sectarian and ethnic killings and terrorism that endangered democracy and political stability.

The participants in the discussion expected the two major political parties, the PPP and the PML-N, to continue dominating the political scene after the elections. Any one of them was expected to establish a coalition government.

Imran Khan was viewed as a credible political force but it was unlikely to displace the two major political parties. No matter who rules Pakistan, the challenging tasks would be the same as faced by the present government, namely, corruption, good governance, the economy and increased balance of payment pressures, law and order and violence and terrorism of all kinds.

The safety of Pakistan’s nuclear programme was viewed as adequate vis-àvis Islamic militancy, although the issue of an “insider’s job” was briefly raised.

The focus was on the recently articulated view by some western observers that Pakistan’s nuclear programme had moved beyond the minimum deterrence framework and it could develop into a multifaceted nuclear weapons and delivery system independent of any linkage with India.

Much hope was pinned on the recent efforts to initiate a dialogue between some Taliban leaders and the Kabul government and Pakistan’s supportive role. The stability of Afghanistan being the main concern for the post2014 period, the participants hoped for some positive outcome of the renewed effort for internal reconciliation in Afghanistan. There was a shared appreciation of Pakistan’s role in facilitating reconciliation as well as its continued hosting of Afghan refugees. They noted that all refugees may not return to

Afghanistan.

The mood of concern and caution dominated the discussion of religious extremism and the activities of militant groups in the tribal areas and mainland Pakistan. The growing number of militant formations, due to their splintering in the Punjab and their linkages with the Taliban based in the tribal areas, was viewed as a disturbing development. Though terrorist attacks have declined since 2009-2010, religious extremism and militancy continue to haunt Pakistan, especially because a pro-militancy mindset pervades the society and it has seeped into the official civilian and military circles. There was a talk of immediate and long term methods to control and eliminate militancy and terrorism and the military establishment’s approach towards militancy.

The US and the EU states are expected to continue providing economic and technological assistance and cooperation, including the EU trade concessions. The main areas of economic assistance are governance and public administration, tax collection, service delivery to people, education, strengthening of democracy and the justice system, local government and local development, infrastructure including road construction, agriculture, power generation, administrative and economic reforms and humanitarian assistance.

The greater part of foreign assistance is being disbursed through federal or provincial governments and less through non-governmental organisations. A comment in the discussion suggested that the devolution of power to the provinces under the 18th constitutional amendment has made the task of the donors somewhat complex because they now have to talk to provinces, in addition to the federal government, for development projects and plans. The provinces, especially Balochistan and Sindh, do not yet fully understand the dynamics of dealing with foreign donors in terms of foreign economic diplomacy and project outlining and monitoring.

The Paris non-official and informal review was an informed and interactive consultative process that manifested positive European and United States’ interest in Pakistan. The widely shared concern related to poor governance, corruption, internal conflicts, violence and terrorism and the poor quality of democracy, especially the rights of the religious minorities and other disadvantaged sections of the populace. The key to success in addressing these challenges lies with the civilian and military leadership and the society as a whole.

Claus. Some would condemn all of this as overly commercial and lament the transformation of this once religious celebration into an increasingly secular event.

But, the critics be damned, there is something quite wonderful about the Christmas we made for our children. You can see its wonder in their expectant eyes.

Then, in one horrific act, we are reminded of the fragility of our joy, and transformative power of evil to shatter the world we have created. And so it is for the people of Newtown, Connecticut, and for the rest of us — who, though far from that wounded town, can only try to understand the horror of parents whose children have been taken so abruptly from them, and the trauma of their neighbours and friends who are living now in the aftermath of such senseless suffering. All that we can do is remember them, praying that they find the strength to endure.

We also can and should act to remove the curse of gun violence from our country. And we can and must examine the

roots of the sickness that continues with disturbing frequency to take such a terrible toll. We have seen too many senseless deaths — five mass killings taking 60 lives in the last five months alone. This madness must end.

But when all is said and done, there is Newtown, its lost children and its grieving families. With one act, on one day, that community has unwillingly entered our national lexicon. Once described by a resident as "a quiet, little town", it will from this day on be remembered by the rest of us in the same breath as Columbine and Virginia Tech and Aurora.

The lights will, for a time, go out in Newtown. And in the Christmases to come there will always be an emptiness and a sense of loss. We can pass legislation, and we must, but it will always be too late for the lost children and grieving families of that wounded community — and this, we should never forget.

The writer is an independent political and defence analyst.

christmas in newtown from this day on

Washington Watch

By Dr James J Zogby

F

rom this day on, Christmas in Newtown, Connecticut, will always mean something very different. It is difficult to imagine the raw pain and the horror being felt in that community, now ravaged by unspeakable violence.

But imagine it we must, because Newtown is all of us, and we have something to learn from their tragedy.

For families in Newtown, gone for-

thursday, 20 December, 2012

ever is the innocence of the season. And changed forever is the expectant joy of its children and families as they await the blessings of the day that commemorates the birth of Jesus. Instead of celebrations, this day will now become one of remembrance and profound sorrow. In time, the rawness of the hurt will fade, as it always does, but the sadness and sense of loss will always be there.

If anything, this horror of Newtown should remind us that this season of joy has always been mixed with pain and fear. As the Bible tells the story, Mary and Joseph coming to Bethlehem found no place to rest and so Mary, a frightened young expectant mother, had to give birth in a cave, which doubled as a stable.

And lest we forget, the act of birth itself can be painful. The Qur'an tells how Mary in the throes of labour cried out in pain to God wishing that she had died before this, whereupon the angel appeared reminding her that God never gives us a test that he does not give us the strength to endure.

Shortly after the birth of Jesus, the Bible story continues telling us that Herod, then ruler in Palestine, became concerned upon hearing of the birth of one who would become king. He sent his troops to slaughter all the children in that region, hoping to rid himself of this threat. One can only imagine their fear, as Mary and Joseph took flight to Egypt with their newborn seeking safety in a strange new land.

The bible story prepares us for more sorrow; the fear felt by Mary and Joseph at the loss of their child in the crowded Temple in Jerusalem and then the pain that Mary was forced to endure as she watched her only son taken captive, tortured, and then cruelly put to death.

Over the centuries, we have cleansed the Christmas story of its pain and fear and made it a more antiseptic season of joy. There is, to be sure, a beauty and simplicity in the Christmas we have made. It became a time of giving and receiving; a time of beauty, with lights and decorated trees, and visions of Santa

The writer is President of the ArabAmerican Institute.

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Comment 11

The Peshawar air base attack More questions than answers Spearhead Research According to the reports on the terrorist attack on the Peshawar Air Base, the attackers had planned to ram an explosive laden vehicle to create a gap in the wall and then penetrate with two armed groups to destroy the aircraft and facilities on the base. This was the plan but unfortunately for them and fortunately for Pakistan the first vehicle blew up without creating a gap and the terrorists in that vehicle were blown up. Security forces reacted rapidly to kill three of the follow-up people and arrested two in an injured condition. In a subsequent operation that led to a shootout in a nearby house, the second group of terrorists was also eliminated. The attack was a failure and the defence was successful.

Quite rightly, the emphasis is on the fact that the attack was repulsed but equally significant is the fact that the attack was attempted and that it came as a complete surprise. Uzbek-origin terrorists are said to have been the perpetrators. This should not surprise anyone because Uzbeks have been involved in most of the earlier attacks on such facilities. Uzbeks are guns for hire and have sponsors who keep them around for use on a required basis. Some have married and are settled in Pakistan and have acquired identity documents. Some are in the North Waziristan area and carry out these missions to keep themselves relevant to those who have given them sanctuary. It goes without saying that Uzbeks are not the only ones in the Waziristan area and certainly not the only ones ready to attack within Pakistan. Uzbeks, because of their experience and training, have the expertise to plan and implement such attacks and their linkages with those across the western border and further north are well known.

As always, after such events, various theories are doing the rounds. One is that this was US inspired to force Pakistan to launch an operation into North Waziristan — a long standing US-Afghan government demand.

Yet another is that it was to turn public opinion against North Waziristan — an offshoot of the first theory. Then is the idea that this was an Al-Qaeda-TTP (Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan) operation aimed at subverting the reconciliation process now slowly taking off. And finally there is the view that this was an externally sponsored attack and a retaliatory step for the assassination attempt on the Afghan intelligence chief (NDS) who is backed by both the US and India. Karzai had already said that in his view (and no doubt the view of the NDS and others) the assassination attempt was planned in Pakistan. Since then, there has been agreement on a joint investigation but it is unlikely that Pakistan will be believed by those with preconceived ideas and fixated mindsets.

Spearhead Analyses are the result of a collaborative effort and not attributable to a single individual.

war-trodden women’s sufferings One agrees to the concern that we have forgotten about the women of Kashmir and the problems they have faced as a result of Indian repression. Unfortunately, in the war-trodden region, women are now experiencing extra hardships due to the stress and after-effects of war and infertility as well as stress due to cultural pressure. A recent study conducted by the Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Science, based in Srinagar, finds that of 112 young and adolescent women who suffered from polycystic ovarian syndrome. The state of Jammu and Kashmir must provide these women necessary psychological and medical support, such as counselling and fertility treatments.

Polycystic ovarian syndrome is a condition that can cause infertility along with a host of other reproductive symptoms – roughly 65 to 70 percent of the Kashmiri women suffered from psychiatric illnesses such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Perhaps, it says, the major source of psychological trauma is caused by a woman’s own family. Whether it is pressure from in-laws or a husband for not being able to bear a child or from the girl’s own parents due to their fear of the stigma surrounding childlessness, the aspect of family-induced stress is truly shameful.

As if medical stressors are not enough, we spin unnecessary cultural stressors on our women. In a vicious cycle, this stress only contributes to the women’s overall health. These issues are very real and certainly have physiological effects – they are not merely ‘in one’s head’ as some ignorant people in our country might believe. Perhaps what is needed is a broader dialogue on mental health as Kashmiri men, women and children continue to face daily trauma in the face of several hundred thousand Indian soldiers deployed in the Valley.

Besides, shouldn’t this warrant us to draw attention to the sufferings of women and children of the areas where the US drones frequently wreak havoc? Killings and injuries to hundreds aside, isn’t it causing psychological disorders and other issues related to mental health among the women in areas where military deployment has prolonged only because the war against terror has not been taken as a politico-security issue, or replaced with effective civil administration and policing? Our backup plans are lacking on both government and nation’s level, the provision of necessary health, aid and counseling to families of our shuhada or to the injured, the prosecution system and even the legislation process.

MARYA MUFTY Lahore

ease of communication I, being a direct beneficiary, want to pay tribute to one of the telecom operators in the country for providing the general public with never-heard before international direct dialling rates. Ufone's unbelievable rate of one paisa per second to UK, Canada and USA has taken mobile telephony to new heights. I do not hesitate to admit that the computer takes a few minutes before it gets connected but my son, who is studying in the UK, is only just fingertips away after the telecom industry emancipated me of

my budgetary constraints.

Thank you, Ufone.

SHAZIA MALIK Islamabad

Please clarify Wasim Akram, the legendary cricketer of Pakistan, seemed to have lost his sense of direction when he made a silly comment about the up and coming tour to India by Pakistan team that players should not be made ‘prisoners’ by PCB. This term prisoner is not understood. If PCB, after all, did ask Pakistani players to behave on and off the ground, how do they become prisoners? They are going to India to play cricket and not meet Rani Mukherjee as our previous players used to do. The PCB has apparently advised their players to confine to cricket and rest in a proper hotel thereafter.

I do not see how these instructions become a prison as stated by Wasim Akram. Wasim Akram should take care of his words and statements.

AMJAD H MIRZA Lahore

the cowardly attacks During the Karachi unrest case hearing, there were frequent foul cries of no-go areas in the city.

Such a repetitive argument forced the Superior Court judges to make up their mind on delimitation of constituencies across the city. The court termed this action to break the monopoly of certain political parties (read MQM). The court also proposed to depute armed soldiers to oversee the re-confirmation of electoral lists. However, events of Dec 18 tell some other story. Yes, there are no-go areas on Karachi -not for political workers but for health workers. Four lady health workers were gunned down in cold blood in Pashtun majority localities in Karachi.

Their fault: these unfortunate ladies were part of the team administrating polio drops to children in Karachi rural areas. Karachi had not seen this kind of madness until IDPs (internally displaced people) from FATA Swat started arriving in throngs from 2005 onwards. Most of them got accommodated in shanty towns in Karachi's rural areas, re-creating the environment from where they came from. Along with IDPs, came the tribal culture and beliefs that polio drops are being administrated at the behest of the West to sterilise Muslim boys.

The citizens of Karachi shall reject this blot on their city’s name. They shall demand deputing of soldiers during polio campaign in the so-called tribal areas in Karachi which have become no-go areas for police. Pakistan is one of the only three countries (others are Afghanistan and Nigeria) where polio cases are on the rise while elsewhere in the world this contagious crippling disease is on retreat.

Should we request suo motu action by the superior courts to force the government to take some real action to make the polio campaign safe for volunteers who are risking their lives for the sake of their nation's future generations? Till now we are recognised as exporters of terrorism, but if we let these religious elements to get on with this anti-polio campaign, we will be the handicapped exporters.

Choice is in our hands.

MASOOD KHAN Jubail, Saudi Arabia

Editor’s mail Send your letters to: Letters to Editor, Pakistan Today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan.

Fax: +92-42-36298302.

E-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk.

Letters should be addressed to Pakistan Today exclusively.

why Pakistani students prefer going abroad?

Going overseas is, and has been, a human tradition since time immemorial.

Man has always sought greener pastures across the oceans and over the valleys and mountains. The impetus is the human need for more than he has, the instinct which keeps man in a constant state of unfulfillment.

The same is the case with the Pakistani youth of today. The impetus, however, is no longer a curiosity for foreign lands or the striving for knowledge. It is the most primitive instinct of all, survival. Today’s Pakistan presents a desolate landscape fraught with desperation and danger at every step. Employment, once provided by the government, no longer exists for most. Spiraling inflation has brought the populace to its knees.

Every youth has been exposed to a scenario in which parents struggle to make ends meet. Lack of entertainment provides youth with unending hours of idleness.

This idle time is filled with TV and the internet. Beautiful foreign lands, in which everyone leads a life of fun and luxury, and where every youth is living in a flat and has a great job, are what our youth now believe in waiting for them once they leave Pakistan.

But first they must get a degree or qualification which is of value outside Pakistan. So the youth of Pakistan have now decided that if they are to work hard and study for a qualification, they will only do it abroad. No use of doing so in this country. Thus, they leave their country in thousands every month.

Of course, a few actually do so because studying abroad means learning; learning of the latest developments in their particular field, on-the-job training and knowledge that can actually be applied to the real world. All that is missing in most local institutes of education, it has to be admitted.

So, the so-called brain drain will flow on unabated, until we realise that one day it will have to be stopped if Pakistan is to have a future.

HASSAN AYUB Lahore

thursday, 20 December, 2012

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12 Life all about striking right balance:

Salman Khan reveals why Sonakshi Sinha gained weight

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ONAksHI sinha’s weight gain after her debut film, Dabangg, earned her a lot of flak.

But now, as we start seeing a considerably slimmer sonakshi, co-star salman reveals that the added weight was for her character in Dabangg 2. the sequel, directed by Arbaaz khan, will see sonakshi play chulbul Pandey’s (salman khan’s character) pregnant wife. “sonakshi could not have the body of a model in the sequel, as she plays a housewife who is three to four months pregnant,” explains salman khan. the actor, however, feels sorry that sonakshi’s weight gain led to her being criticised. And though she has done a few other films, salman says that he hasn’t found her affected by stardom at all. “We started working for the sequel just a year after Dabangg released. so there wasn’t too much of a time gap for me to notice any changes in her. But right from the time she entered the industry, we knew that she is very talented,” says salman. neWs DesK

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HE is in a comfortable space - balancing her life as a wife, mother, celebrity and businesswoman. Shilpa Shetty, who is returning to showbiz as a judge of dance reality show Nach Baliye 5, says so far, she is handling her roles well.

Shilpa gave birth to her first child - son Viaan Raj Kundra - in May this year. Is it not tough to leave the little one behind for her shoots? “It’s very hard. But life has to move on. I guess life’s like that... it’s all about striking the right balance,” Shilpa said here during the launch of dance reality show Nach Baliye 5.

“I shoot for one day in a week for Nach Baliye, and that is also when he comes to the sets. All other meetings and appointments and jobs are adjusted according to his timings. He is nearly seven months now, so I am enjoying it (motherhood),” Shilpa added. The 37-year-old, who had put on post-pregnancy weight, seems to be almost in perfect shape now. Dressed in chic, black shimmer palazzo pants and a trendy cream-coloured top, she used a front bow around her stomach as the perfect camouflage for any extra pounds. Nevertheless, she looked quite charming. Shilpa is looking forward to judge Nach Baliye 5, which features 11 celebrity couples. She is especially impressed by TV actress Smita Bansal, who delivered a girl in August this year. “What are you asking me? Ask Smita Bansal! She is a perfect example... she is a different level of striking a balance. It’s been just a bit over three months that she has delivered, and here she is,” said Shilpa, who is enjoying her comeback in front of the camera. On the judges’ panel of Nach Baliye 5, she will be joined by director Sajid Khan and choreographer Terence Lewis. neWs DesK

Soon Ranbir might cross my record: Kareena Kapoor NEWS DESK

Martin Scorsese to create doc about Bill Clinton

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ILMMAKER Martin Scorsese is making a documentary on Bill Clinton for U.S. network HBO. HBO announced Monday that Scorsese is producing and directing the film, with Clinton’s co-operation. The network did not announce an anticipated air date for the show on the 42nd U.S. president, who was in office from 1993 to 2001. Earlier this year HBO aired a documentary on Clinton’s immediate predecessor, George H.W. Bush. Scorsese has earlier made the documentaries Public Speaking and George Harrison: Living in the Material World for HBO. Scorsese said in a statement that Clinton “continues to shape the political dialogue” worldwide. neWs DesK

Megan Fox at Jay leno's 'Tonight Show With Jay Leno'

Sania Mirza, Shoaib Malik to dance in Indian TV’s reality show

Clint Eastwood’s marriage in trouble

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OLLyWOOD actor-director clint Eastwood’s marriage is reportedly in trouble as the couple have been living separately for a while. the 82-year-old screen legend and his wife Dina, 47, are secretly living apart, fuelling speculation they have split. Dina recently spent a week co-anchoring the news on the NBc affiliate in Monterey, california, the showbiz spy reported.

“Dina really missed anchoring the news and plans on doing it a lot more, especially now that she and clint seem to be going in different directions. I think she wants to make a life of her own again, apart from clint,” a source said. sources say clint Eastwood and Dina clashed over her managing the south African boy band Overtone and her E! network reality tV series Mrs Eastwood & company. “Everyone involved with Dina’s show was well aware that she and clint were not always together. neWs DesK

thursday, 20 December, 2012

NEWS DESK The Indian tennis star Sania Mirza and her Pakistani cricketer husband Shoaib Malik are set to shake legs in the fifth season of Indian TV’s dance reality show Nach Baliye, which will go on air in Star Plus channel by the end of this month. “I have agreed to be a part of an upcoming dance reality show, where I will be paired along with my husband,” Sania was quoted as having said by India’s newspaper, Mail Today. Sources said Sania will appear as a guest in the initial few episodes and will dance on hit Bollywood Hindi songs. Sania told the newspaper that she has two left feet when it comes to dancing. “I am really looking forward to being on the show and rehearsing for professional dances”. “But I will not be competing in the show,” she added. Sources said the TV channel is yet to close the deal with Sania. They said several popular Indian TV actors have been approached by the channel to participate in the dance reality series. Sources said 37-year-old Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, filmmaker Sajid Khan and choreographer Terence Lewis will be judges of the show. They said the fifth season of the talent hunt programme will go on air from December 29. The fifth season will be held after a gap of four years.

Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor, who has won as many as six Filmfare awards, feels her cousin Ranbir is giving her tough competition and may soon break her record — but she adds that it would be a big moment for her. “Since I was a child, I always thought I will win a Filmfare and give an acceptance speech, where I will thank my mother, father and family. My Filmfare trophies will follow me till my grave.

Hopefully, not only six but many more,” said Kareena. “But I have a very tough competition in my own family now. You never know, soon Ranbir might cross my record and that of my grandfather. But that would surely be a very joyous moment for our family,” added the 32-year-old. While Kareena has six Filmfare trophies in her kitty, Ranbir has four and their grandfather, the legendary actor Raj Kapoor had won 11 Filmfare awards. The newly-wed was speaking here at the 58th Idea Filmfare Awards 2012 press conference Tuesday. The awardgiving ceremony is scheduled for Jan 20 next year at the Yash Raj Films (YRF) studios in Mumbai. The fact that she belongs to the Kapoor family does put pressure on her. “The pressures are obviously there because there are so many names associated with it. But we are all taking it forward in our own way. Earlier it was me and Karisma, but I am so glad that finally there is a man in the family (Ranbir),” said Kareena. This year the actress had four releases — Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu, Agent Vinod, Heroine, and Talaash. Besides that she has done item number Fevicol se in Salman Khan’s film Dabang.

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13 KRiSTEn STEwaRT’S chEaTing

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Rihanna and chRiS BRown

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VER since Grammys weekend 2009, Chris Brown has been inextricably associated with the vicious beating of his thengirlfriend Rihanna—but that hasn’t stopped both Brown and Rihanna from trolling the universe all through 2012. They started off the year by setting the rumor mill abuzz almost three yearsafter the night Rihanna was beaten by supposedly spending four hours alone together in Brown’s dressing room before the Grammy Awards. Little more than a week later, Rihanna dropped a remix to her song “Birthday Cake” featuring Brown and a lot of sexually explicit exchanges. The rest of the year was filled with speculation about their rekindling romance, asphotos of the two partying together cropped up and Rihanna gave an emotional interview to Oprah Winfrey in which she called Brown the “love of my life,” despite Brown’s relationship at the time with aspiring model Karreuche Tran. The Karreuche problem appeared to go away in October, however, when Brown announced thathe was ending his relationship because he didn’t “want to see her hurt over my friendship with Rihanna.” A day later, this video happened.

Titled “The Real Chris Brown,” it showed an apparently drunk Brown musing on his relationships with Rihanna and Tran. “Is there such thing as loving two people? I don’t know if that’s possible but for me, I feel like it is,” Brown drawls from the back of a taxicab. November slapped us with photo after Instagram photo of the pair backstage, lounging around, or, in one case, snuggling. And we can’t neglect to mention Rihanna’s single “Nobody’s Business,” a duet with Brown from her newest album—called Unapologetic because, get it?

Rihanna is unapologetic about every god-awful decision she’s made this year.

John TRavolTa gay RumoRS

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ND we never listened to “Greased Lightning” the same way again. John Travolta was slapped with a lawsuit in May alleging sexual assault and battery against an anonymous masseur, who claimed that the actor made a pass at him after hiring him for a massage. In what initially sounded like an awkward SNL skit, the suit alleged that Travolta took off his clothes, began rubbing the masseur’s leg, and touched his scrotum and the shaft of his penis. Travolta allegedly apologized after making the alleged advances, but continued to pressure the masseur to have sex with him and an actress who was also in the building, according to the suit. A second anonymous masseur came forward a day later, and a third suit was filed within a week. The third came from a Royal Caribbean cruise worker who alsoalleged that Travolta had taken off his robe and solicited him for sex. The first two suits were later dropped, but that wasn’t the end of the actor’s legal woes. He was sued again in June, this time for libel by a man who wrote a book about his alleged gay encounters with the actor. Robert Randolph alleged that Travolta was spreading false statements about his mental health in order to discredit him and discourage people from buying the book. The case was later dismissed by a judge.

amanda BynES’S caR TRouBlES

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T was a Twihard’s nightmare come to life. Twilight couple Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson broke up in July after photos emerged of Stewart canoodling with her married, 41-year-old Snow White and the Huntsman director, Rupert Sanders. Fans immediately called the legitimacy of the photos into question—but those theories were debunked when Stewart herself issued a heartbroken public apology to Pattinson: “I’m deeply sorry for the hurt and embarrassment I’ve caused to those close to me and everyone this has affected. This momentary indiscretion has jeopardized the most important thing in my life, the person I love and respect the most, Rob. I love him, I love him, I’m so sorry,” Stewart said in a statement. Sanders also issued an apology, saying: “I am utterly distraught about the pain I have caused my family. My beautiful wife and heavenly children are all I have in this world. I love them with all my heart. I am praying that we can get through this together.” Though Liberty Ross, Sanders’s wife, has since been seen out and about without her wedding ring, Stewart and Pattinson were reconciled by mid-September.

nicKi minaJ vS maRiah caREy

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HRISTMAS came early for American Idol fans when footage emerged of what will apparently be the best reality show feud of 2013. In a video obtained by TMZ in October, newly minted American Idol co-judges Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey are seen in a profanity-laden screaming match (with poor Keith Urban stuck in the middle). In what apparently began as a disagreement over a contestant’s performance, Minaj can be heard shouting, “Off with your head, off with your head!”

Carey wonders aloud, “Why, why do I have a 3-year-old sitting around me?” After the video cut off, the fight apparently got more serious, with Minaj allegedly threatening Carey’s life, saying, “If I had a gun, I’d shoot her.” The next month, Minaj aimed her fury at a former American Idol judge, Steven Tyler. After Tyler learned of the feud between Carey and Minaj, he told MTV News that the environment they were producing was not conducive to nurturing talent. Tyler went on to speculate what Minaj might have done with a young Bob Dylan: “These kids, they just got out of a car from the Midwest somewhere and they’re in New York City, they’re scared to death. If it was Bob Dylan, Nicki Minaj would have had him sent to the cornfield! Whereas if it was Bob Dylan with us, we would have brought the best of him out, as we did with Phillip Phillips.” Minaj responded with a lengthy Twitter rant, in which she called Tyler a racist and told him to go “fuck [him]self.”

FREd willaRd’S ‘lEwd acT’

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R E D Willard’s unlucky night came in July, when the comedian was allegedly caught at the Tiki Theater, a seedy Hollywood porn theater, committing a “lewd act.” Poor Willard was caught and arrested only 23 minutes into the movie—but, at least according to him, he didn’t miss out on much. “Wait til you hear my version; much more PG. & my review, lousy film, but theater would make at terrific racquetball court,” the actor tweeted in thedays after his arrest. Too bad his employers at PBS, where Willard had recently been hired as the host of a new competitive antiquing show, Market Warriors, didn’t share his sense of humor. They fired him after learning about his alleged public self-fondling.

HE world trembled in fear every time Amanda Bynes drove a car in 2012.

The “retired” actress started things off with a bang, getting charged with a DUI in June—and turning toPresident Obama for help. “I don’t drink,” she wrote in a tweet addressed to @BarackObama. “Please fire the cop who arrested me. I also don’t hit and run.

The end.” Bynes had been seen attempting a three-point U-turn while texting at a Los Angeles intersection, which resulted in her reportedly backing over a curb, holding up traffic, and sideswiping another vehicle. Bynes wasarrested again in August for allegedly pulling another hit-and-run (she was also rear-ended that same month) and was photographed driving while allegedly smoking marijuana. Finally, after racking up six tickets (and not paying a single fine), the former Nickelodeon star got her license revoked and her car impounded. And the world felt safe at night once more.

H E divorce that launched a thousand conspiracy theories came in July, when Katie Holmes filed for divorce from her husband of five years, Tom Cruise. Was it because of Scientology? Who would get custody of Suri? Would Scientology leaders resort to dubious methods to keep Holmes from spilling secrets? Was Holmes part of a “wife auditions” process through which Sea Org heads supposedly chose a mate for their marquee devotee?

Mostof these questions remain unanswered, but the two actors reached a divorce settlement within two weeks, with Holmes retaining primary custody of 6-year-old Suri.

Elmo SEx Scandal

ThE Royal nudE PhoToS

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ESAME Street voice actor Kevin Clash faced public scrutiny in November after four young men came forward and accused Clash of having sex with them while they were still minors. The first accusation prompted Clash to publicly admit that he is gay, three years after he divorced his college sweetheart. “I am a gay man. I have never been ashamed of this or tried to hide it, but felt it was a personal and private matter,” the puppeteer said in a statement. Clash also did not deny having sexual relations with the first accuser, though he maintained it took place after the young man was an adult. Ultimately, Clash resigned from his position as Elmo puppeteer at Sesame Street, a position he held for more than 28 years, and more accusers have since come forward.

Tom cRuiSE, KaTiE holmES SPliT

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E L E B R I T Y nude photo scandals are a dime a dozen, but it’s not every day that members of Britain’s royal family are seen sans undies. Prince Harry started off the summer of royal nudity in late August, when photos emerged of the young royal at a Las Vegas party, playing (and apparently losing) a game of strip billiards. Less than a month later, grainy photos of Kate Middleton lounging poolside sans her bikini top appeared in the French magazine Closer. A matching set of bottomless photos, featuring Prince William rubbing sunscreen onto his wife’s lower back, followed two weeks later, in the Italian mag Chi.

thursday, 20 December, 2012

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Infotainment 14

Revealed: why Rudolph's nose is so 'red’

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N international team of astroboffins have discovered that the nearest single Sun-like star has one planet orbiting in the sweet spot for potential alien life. Tau Ceti, which is just 12 light years away and can be seen with the naked eye in the night sky, has five planets in orbit around it, with one lying in the habitable zone.

The potentially life-supporting world has a mass around five times the size of Earth, making it the smallest planet found in the habitable zone of any Sun-like star. The other four planets are between twice and six times the mass of Earth.

"This discovery is in keeping with our emerging view that virtually every star has planets, and

that the galaxy must have many such potentially habitable Earth-sized planets. They are everywhere, even right next door!" said Steve Vogt of the University of California Santa Cruz.

"We are now beginning to understand that Nature seems to overwhelmingly prefer systems that have a multiple planets with orbits of less than one hundred days. This is quite unlike our own solar system where there is nothing with an orbit inside that of Mercury. So our solar system is, in some sense, a bit of a freak and not the most typical kind of system that Nature cooks up."

Tau Ceti's worlds were spotted by astronomers from the UK, Chile, the US and Australia when they sifted through more than 6,000

observations from three different instruments using improved "noise-modelling" techniques to spot the wobble in the star caused by the gravitational tug of planets. "Tau Ceti is one of our nearest cosmic neighbours and so bright that we may be able to study the atmospheres of these planets in the not too distant future," said James Jenkins of Universidad de Chile, who is a Visiting Fellow at the University of Hertfordshire.

"Planetary systems found around nearby stars close to our Sun indicate that these systems are common in our Milky Way galaxy."

So far, noise modelling and other techniques have mostly found high mass planets, since smaller worlds are harder to detect. neWs DesK

Waiter shot for refusing to eat leftovers

Teacher of the year loses job for streaking

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ARK Bringhurst was Teacher of the Year in Vineland, N.J., in 2011-12, but he has no chance of turning the honor into a winning streak. Not after being fired for streaking in an apartment complex.

Bringhurst was arrested for running naked through the parking lot of a Camden County apartment complex in March and was recently fired for what the Vineland School District considered to be conduct "unbecoming of a tenured teacher," WTXF-TV reported. Witnesses called police because they were concerned for the safety of the children in the area. It also apparently wasn't the first time that Bringhurst had ran flippy floppy through the complex, one witness told police, according to NBC Philadelphia. Officers tracked Bringhurst down to an adult bookstore where denied being at the complex. But he then admitted running naked through the parking lot, the Daily Journal reported. Bringhurst told officers he ran through the lot after someone he met online dared him. However, he also admitted streaking through the apartment complex a year ago, also on a dare, according to the New Jersey StarLedger. Bringhurst eventually pleaded guilty to acting in an improper manner, NBCNewYork.com reported. After the charges against Bringhurst were filed, his employer, the Vineland School District, notified him that tenure charges would be brought before the local board of education. He was fired on Dec. 5, according to the Press of Atlantic City. neWs DesK

ESEARCHERS in the Netherlands and Norway have discovered that reindeer noses have 25 per cent more blood vessels than human noses. The tongue-in-cheek investigation, published by the British Medical Journal in its Christmas edition used a hand-held microscope to examine the nasal lining of five healthy humans, two reindeer and a sixth person with a non-cancerous nasal growth. It is the first time a scientific explanation has been offered for the glow that allows the world's most famous antlered herbivore to guide Santa's sleigh through the night before Christmas. The tiny blood vessels provide plentiful oxygen-carrying cells and help control the body's temperature, showed their findings, which were backed by an infrared image of a reindeer after exercise. "Rudolph's nose is red because it is richly supplied with red blood cells, comprises a highly dense microcirculation, and is anatomically and physiologically adapted for reindeer to carry out their flying duties for Santa Claus," the paper observes. Rudolph's round-the-world feat has been closely scrutinised by physicists. neWs DesK

Instagram: we won’t sell your photos In a message on the Instagram website titled 'Thank you, and we're listening', Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom told users: "It is not our intention to sell your photos."

Instagram's new terms and conditions sparked fury among some users when they were published yesterday. The changes appeared to give the Facebookowned photo-sharing site 'perpetual' rights to all images uploaded, and allow Instagram to use them for commercial purposes without identification.

If Twitter postings are to be believed, many users immediately closed their Instagram accounts and some businesses, such as National Geographic, said they were suspending new posts to the service.

Among those protesting was Noah Kalina, the photographer who took the pictures at Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's wedding.

Telling users that "legal documents are easy to misinterpret", Systrom said that the new terms and conditions were intended to give Instagram the option to "experiment with innovative advertising".

He said that Instagram would rewrite the terms to clarify how pictures might be used. "The language we proposed also raised question about whether

your photos can be part of an advertisement," Systrom wrote. "We do not have plans for anything like this and because of that we’re going to remove the language that raised the question."

Systrom added that Instagram was not claiming ownership of users' photos and said that privacy settings would not be changed. This is not the only controversy Instagram has been drawn into this month. It recently removed the feature allowing Instagram pictures to be displayed on Twitter, escalating tensions between the rival networks.

More recently it has been claimed that Systrom "verbally agreed" a $525m deal to sell Instagram to Twitter, just weeks before announcing that the service had in fact been bought by Facebook.

Testifying before regulators in August as part of official scrutiny of the Facebook deal, Systrom said there had been no formal offers for Instagram, other than the one from Facebook.

Facebook's offer for Instagram was originally valued at $1bn but that figure dropped to $735m as the social network's share price slid. Last month Facebook announced changes to its terms and conditions that would see more data shared between Instagram and Facebook. neWs DesK

man in New Delhi was angry when his waiter refused to eat his leftovers so he allegedly opened fire on the restaurant. The incident happened early Sunday morning when the suspect, who is only being identified as "Rajesh," went to a restaurant called Jain Dhaba with two friends. The trio was allegedly intoxicated and at one point, Rajesh and his friends asked the waiter, whose name was "Monu," to eat some of their paratha, a form of Indian flatbread, according to the Times Of India. When Monu refused to eat the leftovers, an argument ensued and Rajesh allegedly took out a gun and fired it at the waiter, who ran for cover, according to DaijiWorld.com. The waiter managed to call the police who arrested Rajesh shortly thereafter and charged him with attempted murder, according to Emirates247.com. The suspect's two friends fled the crime scene, but officials have recovered a car, two live cartridges and a .32 bore pistol, according to NDTV.com. neWs DesK

'Alien' skulls found in Mexico

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N archaeological dig in Mexico has uncovered strange elongated skulls from more than a millenia ago. The skulls have been seized on

by UFO enthusiasts as evidence of 'aliens' - with one poster on David Icke's site asking, 'Does this look human to you?' The burial site contained 25 individuals, 13 with elongated skulls - reminiscent of the monster from Ridley Scott's Alien. Five of the skulls also showed signs of dental mutilation. The remains were found 1,000 feet from the village of Onavas, south of Sonora in Mexico. The 'cranial deformation' in the skulls is actually intentional carried out by binding the heads of babies to produce the bizarre effect. For pre-Hispanic cultures in the area, longer skulls were a sign of social status. 'Cranial deformation in Mesoamerican cultures was used to differentiate one social group from another and for ritual purposes,' said Cristina Garcia Moreno, the head of the research project. neWs DesK

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Fast bowlers must support Ajmal: Misbah

Wasim hails Bangladesh’s decision to tour Pakistan MUMBAI

LAHORE

aGenCies

sTaff reporT

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AKISTAN one day captain, Misbah ul Haq has urged the Pakistan pace battery to extend proper support to master spinner Saeed Ajmal to fetch desired results against India in India during the three oneday match series later this month.

“Total reliance on Ajmal cannot lead to our desired goals and our all bowlers, irrespective of their type, should put in their best to play their due role in elevating team’s performance against India,” he told reporters here on Wednesday after a training session of the team at Gadaffi stadium. Misbah called upon the bowlers to excel in their respective art of bowling for leading Pak team to success during the one-day games.

He expressed his satisfaction over team’s preparations for the Indian tour and said the practice matches are helping the senior players in a big way to gain touch and from. “It is a positive sign that big guns like Younis Khan and Shahid Afridi are getting back to form and through this training at home we will be fully prepared to give India a tough time in the one-day games. He rejected a questioner that India after their loss to England at home will be an easy opponent to beat. “We should not forget the important aspect of a come back by the Indian side no matter they have lost to England because it (India) is a team which has in-depth batting and quality bowlers in their ranks and in the given circumstances there is no need to undermine their strength,” he asserted. Misbah was

beaming with confidence when asked his team’s prospects in the one day games. “We have victory in our mind set and we will be demonstrating a collective team effort to rise to the occasion,” he said.

Pak one day captain supported the idea of batting consultant of the team, the former captain, Inzamam ul Haq, to display aggressive cricket in the series. “When ever Pak-India team plays aggressive cricket is witnessed and our bowlers as well as the batsmen will be under heavy load of responsibility to show case their talent in aggressive style of cricket to defy Indian side,” he said.

To a question, he said the final

Pakistan’s tour of west indies to be split LAHORE sTaff reporT

Pakistan's tour of the West Indies in July 2013 is likely to be split into two parts in order to accommodate the PCB's plan of hosting India in August for a series that is yet to be confirmed. Pakistan were due to play two Tests, five ODIs and two Twenty20s in the Caribbean in June and July but now they will only play either Tests or limited-overs matches to create a window for India, reported Cricinfo. According to the FTP, West Indies are scheduled to host Pakistan from the last week in June to the last week in July but they also have a tri-series against India and Sri Lanka during that time. To avoid the clash with Pakistan, the WICB had asked the PCB if their Caribbean tour could be rescheduled to August. That, however, would interfere with the PCB's hopes of hosting India, so Pakistan's West Indies tour had to be split. It is understood that after the upcoming limited-over series in India starting on December 25, the PCB is hoping to invite India to play another series in Pakistan. "The limited-over series isn't [just] what we wanted," a PCB official said.

"We wanted long-term bonding with India on reciprocal basis, and to extend our relationship we will invite India to play a series next year in August. We will find a way to at least keep the window open." Cricket ties between Pakistan and India were put on ice following the 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai and the upcoming series will be the first in four years. Pakistan had also sought a postponement of its scheduled tour of Zimbabwe later this month so that they can tour India.

Pakistan were scheduled to tour Zimbabwe before their South Africa visit in 2013, but Zimbabwe Cricket agreed to put it off.

thursday, 20 December, 2012

line for the matches will be named after reviewing pitch and playing conditions and if any player who performs to a higher level in the T20 matches can be also be considered for one day games.

He did not agree to a question that Pak team will be under pressure while playing India in the Indian backyard. “Why to be feel under pressure ,but one thing is obvious it is very important series between the two countries because when ever both teams plays emotions are involved and what is important for us is to remain focus in our batting, bowling and fielding to outshine Indian opposition,” he added.

Legendary paceman Wasim Akram on Tuesday hailed Bangladesh's decision to tour Pakistan next month, saying it was an important step on the road to reviving international cricket in the country. Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Monday said it has agreed in principle to tour Pakistan to restore international cricket, which has been suspended since militant attacks on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore in March 2009.

BCB spokesman Jalal Yunus said in Dhaka that Pakistan had proposed a one-day international and a Twenty20 game to be played in Lahore on January 12 and 13. "It's a welcome decision and I hope that the tour takes place as agreed because Pakistan badly needs international cricket and one series will convince other countries to tour," Wasim told reporters.

Bangladesh had accepted an invitation to tour Pakistan in April for a short limited-over series but the Dhaka High Court blocked the tour on security grounds. Officials have said they see no judicial bar this time. "Pakistan badly needs international cricket and I fear that if this suspension continues for another two (or) three years then it will affect the standard of Pakistan cricket," said Wasim, Pakistan's all-time top Test wicket-taker.

"I think the overall security situation in Pakistan is improving and if we put in place the best arrangements for the Bangladesh series then other teams will also follow suit," he said. But the Pakistan Cricket Board has been cautious over the prospects of Bangladesh touring, with president Zaka Ashraf telling local media negotiations were under way, but if a series took place, it would be in January. India’s inability to pick 20 wickets in a Test match was ex-

posed as the visiting England side won a series in India after 28 years. In an exclusive chat with espnstar.com from Karachi on Wednesday, former Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram believes that the future of Indian bowling is rickety.

"To be very honest, the future of Indian bowling looks bleak. Zaheer Khan looked average in the three Tests and then got dropped. Ishant Sharma was okay in patches but after five years at the international level you have to be more consistent. I am afraid he is going the Mohammad Sami way – a wasted talent.

Umesh Yadav seems to be injury prone and the selectors don't pick Varun Aaron," said Akram.

Apart from Pragyan Ojha (20 wickets) and Ravichandran Ashwin (12), no Indian bowler bagged more than 5 wickets in the series. Akram feels it's time to ring in bowling changes for the future of Indian cricket. "It's time that India look for new faces or tell the present bunch to shape up or ship out. I will suggest a certain Shami Ahmed to get a look in. The Bengal pacer is just 22 years old but has tremendous potential. Having worked with him for Kolkata Knight Riders from 2011 season, I believe bowlers like him are the forward for Team India," the KKR consultant said. A medium-pacer from Bengal, Shami made his first-class debut in 2010 against Assam, picking up three wickets. In a Ranji Trophy match against Hyderabad this season, on a green top at Eden Gardens, he took 4/36 and 6/71, and scored 15 not out from 6 balls in the second innings to help his side win the match by 4 wickets, along with Wriddhiman Saha.

The MS Dhoni-led team has come under intense criticism from all quarters and even coach Duncan Fletcher is under scanner. Akram believes England's support staff was better equipped than its Indian counterpart.

South Africa complete long road to the top MELBOURNE aGenCies

South Africa celebrated their long-heralded arrival at the summit of test cricket in 2012 while West Indies enjoyed their first world title since the team's 1970s heyday with a maiden Twenty20 Trophy.

The giddy heights proved too much for England whose year-long reign as the number one test nation ended at Lord's with a 2-0 series thumping by Graeme Smith's South Africa in August. The Proteas appear determined to build a dynasty as they backed up their coronation with a 1-0 series win in Australia to finish an exhausting year unbeaten in 10 tests, with nine of them coming on tour.

Smith, who became the most-capped captain of all time during 2012, could rely on world-class performers throughout his side. The fearsome fast bowling trio of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander were supplemented by the evergreen all-round talents of Jacques Kallis while Hashim Amla can lay claim to being the most consistent batsman in world cricket. West Indies have had little to celebrate since their allconquering days ended in the early 1990s, but victory over hosts Sri Lanka in the World Twenty20 final gave the Caribbean side their biggest prize since the one-day championship in 1979.

Marlon Samuels blasted a 56-ball 78 after flamboyant Chris Gayle failed with the bat in the 36-run win. But Gayle made amends with his rendition of the horse-riding dance made famous by South Korean pop sensation Psy in his hit "Gangnam Style". Sri Lanka's master batsman Kumar Sangakkara was named ICC cricketer of the year in September after scoring 1,444 runs in 14 tests and Australia captain Michael Clarke became the first to score four double-centuries in a calendar year.

Clarke started the year with an unbeaten 329 against India in Sydney, added

210 against the same team in Adelaide and torched South Africa with double tons in consecutive home tests. The captain's heroics were not enough to defeat the Proteas whose 309-run win in the third and final test in Perth spoiled Ricky Ponting's last international match. The hard-bitten 38-year-old signed off his career with only eight runs in his final innings to finish with 13,378 runs in tests, the second-highest tally after Sachin Tendulkar.

While Ponting strode off into the sunset after naming his final test, the 39-yearold Tendulkar hung on, his declining output of runs flattered briefly by his 100th international century in a one-day match against Bangladesh in March.

With the retirements of Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman, the untouchable Tendulkar remained the last of a golden generation of Indian batsmen and, for growing numbers of frustrated fans, an impediment to the team's regeneration.

England's 2-1 test series win in India in December, their first there since 1985 and India's first home series defeat in eight years, underlined the point.

Alistair Cook thrived as England cap-

tain with the bat and in the field after replacing the retired Andrew Strauss before the series. Match-fixing continued to haunt the game in 2012. Former Pakistan and Essex leg-spinnner Danish Kaneria was banned for life by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) after being found guilty of corruption.

His Essex team mate Mervyn Westfield was jailed for four months and banned from cricket for five years after pleading guilty to the ECB charge of accepting money to underperform.

India's cricket board banned one uncapped player for life for corruption and handed out lesser punishments to four others in June. A TV sting by a broadcaster from the same country led to six umpires from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka being provisionally suspended by the International Cricket Council after appearing to agree to spot-fix matches.

There was better news for fans in Pakistan when the country welcomed back international cricket for the first time in more than two years, with two T20 exhibition matches in October. The Pakistan All Star XI played an Interna-

tional XI in Karachi under a security blanket of more than 5,000 police and paramilitary personnel, the first international match since militants attacked the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore in March 2009, killing six policeman and a van driver. England continued their love-hate relationship with adopted son Kevin Pietersen, the South Africa-born batsman dumped from the test team after admitting to sending provocative text messages about his then-captain Strauss to members of the South Africa test side.

Following a public apology and a renewed commitment to playing for England in all three forms of the game, the 32-yearold blasted 186 against India in Mumbai in his second test back after returning to the national fold. One sadness for South Africa was the exit of Mark Boucher, the wicketkeeper forced to quit international cricket after a bail struck his left eye during a tour match against Somerset.

India welcomed back Yuvraj Singh after a long battle with a rare form of lung cancer while retired leg-spinner Shane Warne, once the world's most deadly bowler, teased Australia with talk of a comeback before the back-to-back Ashes series in 2013. Australia's David Warner helped rewrite the record books by scoring the fastest century by a test opener in his 69-ball ton against India in Perth.

Bangladesh's Abul Hasan became the first number 10 to score a ton on debut in more than 100 years with his 113 in the second home test against West Indies in November. Opening batsman Richard Levi thundered the fastest international T20 century with a 45-ball century for South Africa against New Zealand in Hamilton, smashing a record 13 sixes on his way to an unbeaten 117. But South Africa leg-spinner Imran Tahir held a much less enviable record - he was belted for 260 runs by Australia's batsmen in Adelaide, the most runs conceded in test cricket without taking a wicket.

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australia go into ‘quarantine’ before boxing Day test HOBART aGenCies

Australia have put their squad into "quarantine" before next week's second test against Sri Lanka to make absolutely certain there are no additions to their already lengthy casualty list, according to coach Mickey Arthur. Captain Michael Clarke and pace bowler Ben Hilfenhaus were injured in the first of the three matches against the tourists, which Australia won by 137 runs in a dramatic climax at the Bellerive Oval on Tuesday. Clarke and Arthur are confident the captain will recover from his hamstring injury for the Melbourne test, which begins on Dec. 26, but Tasmanian Hilfenhaus's side strain means he will miss out. Mitchell Johnson, who should replace Hilfenhaus in the starting line-up, and Usman Khawaja, brought in as backup for Clarke, were withdrawn from matches in the domestic Twenty20 league when they were called up to the test squad. "That's always going to be a conundrum for us, who do we play?

Who don't we play?" Arthur told reporters.

"We feel the test match on Boxing Day is massively important, we want to quarantine the 13 players. We're sitting with enough injuries as it is. "We just think it's in the best interests of those 13 players to get ready for Boxing Day." Hilfenhaus joins young quick bowlers Pat Cummins, James Pattinson and John Hazlewood in the treatment room, resulting in Tasmanian paceman Jackson Bird getting his first call-up to the Australia squad. "All I can say is we've had a list of bowlers leading into our summer, and we're well down the list at the moment," Arthur said when Hilfenhaus was first injured. Bird is the highest wicket-taker in Sheffield Shield cricket this season but Arthur indicated he was likely to be the fast bowler to miss out, with Michell Starc and Peter Siddle certain starters after taking five-wicket hauls in the opener. "We've got a week to freshen up, which is important," he said. "And then to have the quality of Mitchell Johnson back. He was perhaps unfortunate to miss out here, it was touch and go whether he played or not. "And then we get an opportunity to have a look at a new face, and that's always exciting. It brings a freshness and really looking forward to catching up with Jackson and seeing what he can offer.

"I haven't seen enough of him play ... but if he's bowling consistently at 140 (kph) then he's got huge potential."

More good news for Arthur was that his top order looked solid in Hobart with Phil Hughes returning after a year in the wilderness to hit a solid 86 in the first innings. Clarke, the most prolific runmaker in the world this year, has been the mainstay of Australia's team but Arthur said that if he was not fit, Khawaja had earned his right to a recall. "I don't think we would have picked him if we didn't think he was showing that continued improvement that we wanted from him," he said.

Sports 16 Punjab govts legal advice surprises POA president LAHORE sTaff reporT

t

HE Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) hosted a reception and luncheon in honour of the newly crowned World Snooker Champion, Mohammad Asif here on Monday. The Pakistani cueist had won the prestigious global title in Sofia, Bulgaria on December 2 to become only the second Pakistani to achieve the distinction. Mohammad Yousuf was the first to the world snooker summit, winning the very same title in 1994.

The reception was attended by a large number of leaders and officials from the extended Olympic family that spread across provincial associations, national federations, former and present sportsmen while it also had considerable representation from print and electronic media.

The prominent among those were: Secretary General of the Punjab Olympic Association Mr. Idris Haider Khawaja, Presidents and Secretaries of Volleyball, Baseball, Boxing, Ju-Jitsu, Wrestling, Karate, Taekwondo Federations and Snooker and Billiards Association President. Speaking at the occasion, POA President Lt Gen (Retd) Arif Hasan, HI(M) was profuse in praising Asif’s world-conquering endeavour. “This is no mean achievement and reflects positively on the inherent talent of our youth and their indomitable spirit to conquer not just the adversary but the odds stacked against them”, said Gen. Arif. The POA President also handed a cheque of Rs.200,000 to Asif “as a token of appreciation from a grateful sporting fra-

Lahore: Lt Gen arif hasan gives an award to mohammad asif for winning the world Snooker championship. khalid mahmood, secretary Poa is also seen in the picture. STAff PhoTo ternity that not only rejoices at Asif’s landmark achievement but also takes inspiration from his triumph.”

The Snooker and Billiards Association’s contribution in finding resources to send two of its cueists to the World Championship without any assistance whatsoever from the Pakistan Sports Board was also acknowledged. A cheque of Rs.100,000 was presented to the secretary of the Association. “Coming from the sporting city, the city of Faisalabad, Asif must have gone through some difficult times. Yet he ploughed on like a true sportsmen, his fortitude guiding him towards ultimate glory. “This is something that we all must

learn from. As in three day’s time we launch our National Games 2012, Asif is a sort of beacon for all of us. But most especially for the Punjab Olympic Association, the hosts of the Games, he should be the mascot,” said Gen. Arif.

With the denial of first the funds to host the Games and then locking the Pb.OA out of the premier venues under the Punjab administration’s control, the entire media was curious and fired questions about the fate of the National Games 2012, about the various controversies etc. The POA president replied the questions fired at him at a furious pace with calm and poise.

“We are being denied the best stadia in

Sri Lanka look to herath’s spin to save Australia series HOBART aGenCies

Sri Lanka will be hoping for help from wickets more suitable for spin bowling in the second two tests against Australia after losing the opener by 137 runs on a Hobart track described as a "minefield" by coach Graham Ford. Spin has always been a key weapon in Sri Lanka's bowling armoury since they achieved test status in 1981, not least when wrist-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was taking his 800 test wickets from 1992 to 2010.

Since Muralitharan's retirement, Rangana Herath has emerged as the team's main spin threat and the 34-yearold left arm orthodox bowler has had a stellar year. Even in defeat in Hobart,

Herath took a five-wicket haul, which gave him 60 wickets for the year and ensured he would win his personal battle with England's Graeme Swann for the title of the most prolific wicket-taker of 2012. "In Melbourne and Sydney, from what I've heard, it looks like it's some help for the spinners so that's a good start," he said after taking 5-95 in Australia's second innings.

"Taking five wickets from here, that's a good achievement. This is my first game playing in a test match in Australia so I'm really happy with the way I bowled." Coach Ford also thought conditions in the last two tests would suit the tourists better. "History suggests that the MCG and Sydney would help us a little bit more," he said on Tuesday. "Although

this is a new surface here, spinners haven't done so well whereas at the other venues, spinners have had match-winning performances. "We'd like to think we are better equipped at those two grounds." Ford was forced to concede that his pace bowling unit lacked the firepower to "blow batsmen away" after the Australians had plundered runs off them before declaring at 450-5 in their first innings. The South African was encouraged, however, by the improved performance by all his bowlers in the second Australian innings, where the hosts were bowled out for 278. He was also confident that the big names in his batting line-up - Mahela Jayawardene, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Kumar Sangakkara - were starting to find their feet.

England win in India bigger than Ashes: Vaughan LONDON aGenCies

Former England captain Michael Vaughan says the current side's Test series win in India is bigger than the 2010-2011 Ashes series victory in Australia. England won in India for the first time since 1985 after they came back from 1-0 down to claim a 2-1 series victory. "To beat an Indian side on home soil is huge," Vaughan told BBC Radio 5 live. "To beat that side in Australia was great. England have wanted to do that for many years but this is a bigger cricketing achievement."

He added: "[Captain] Alastair Cook is very modest but he has led England to probably their biggest achievement in many, many years." Vaughan highlighted opening batsman Cook's form and captaincy as the key to England winning against an Indian side he believes has lost its appetite for Test cricket. "The achievement is huge and I hope they get all the credit," said Vaughan, who feared a 4-0 whitewash after the tourists lost the opening match. "England arrived in India not in great form. Then in Ahmedabad they are

bowled out for 191 in the first innings of the first Test and you think 'how do you turn it around?' - it was because of Alastair Cook.

"I always say at the end of a series if you could have won without the captain then he is not a massive player within the team. "This series there is no way England would have won without Alastair Cook, he has had that big a role. You can already see in the four games he has captained that his stamp is on the team. It is going to be a very

professional unit in the next few years."

Vaughan also praised the exploits of 30year-old Jimmy Anderson, who has taken 288 Test wickets, as he compared the pace bowler to former Australian great Glenn McGrath, the world's most successful fast bowler with 563 Test victims.

"It's the first time I have actually watched and really felt that [Indian batsman] Sachin Tendulkar feared a bowler," said Vaughan. "You could see it in Sachin's eyes. Every time Jimmy had the ball, he didn't have a clue. He didn't know whether it was coming in, going out, does he go forward or back? Should he try to attack him?

"Jimmy has got that look in his eye now that Glenn McGrath used to have. He looks at the batsman to kind of say that you are not very good. He just takes the confidence away from the batsman.

"McGrath used to do it to all the England batsman. It is just this horrible kind of arrogant glare. I don't think they know they are doing it but Jimmy has it, that control and swagger when he gets the ball in his hand that just makes the opposition fear.

"England have just got to look after him because if they can for the next two or three

years he is going to break all the bowling records and he will fully deserve to do that."

There have been calls for India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni to be replaced after a first Test series defeat at home since losing to Australia in 2004. "This Indian side for so long have not been playing great in Test cricket," said Vaughan. "It has been since the [Twenty20] Indian Premier League has come about. They have lost their buzz and energy for Test cricket, you can clearly see that. "I was watching the Indians, particularly in the field, and I saw the sure sign of a team that looked like it didn't want to be out there when it got tough."

cOOk’S tESt BAttIng REcORD MATCHES: INNINGS: NOT OUTS: RUNS: HIGHEST SCORE: AVERAGE: HUNDREDS: FIFTIES:

87 154 10 7,117 294 49.42 23 29

the country by the Punjab administration and the sophisticated equipment like mats and other gadgets to measure timings etc. by the Pakistan Sports Board. Ironically this equipment was gifted to them in 2004 and afterwards by the POA subsidiary, the Pakistan Sports Trust. But the Games shall be held even if we have to organize our events in a katcha field. “First we were bullied into postponing the Games for the Youth Festival, then came the International Youth Festival. Now I read in the newspaper that the issue of POA’s legitimacy is being raised. All the provinces are coming, Sindh has even chartered a plane to ferry its athletes to Lahore and back. The affiliated departmental teams have all confirmed participation.

“When legitimacy is not an issue with so many entities, how could Punjab raise this bogey?

“The legitimacy of a body is decided from within, by its constituents. They are reaffirming it for the umpteenth time in the last 10 months with their participation in the National Games – which were by the way initiated by the Quaid-e-Azam.

“The Punjab administration has no right to deny sportsmen from all over the country the public facilities at virtually the last minute for these were paid for by the taxpayers.

“As for the financing, the Punjab administration may have found multi-billion rupees to finance a festival. They do not have a puny Rs.50 Million for the National Games. Fine, we shall do it on our own, even if we have to cut corners.

“The POA is contributing as well from its own coffers”, he concluded.

Pietersen ‘will get new england contract’

LONDON aGenCies

Kevin Pietersen will be offered a new England contract, says head coach Andy Flower. Pietersen currently has a fourmonth deal with the England and Wales Cricket Board after he was not initially picked for the tour of India.

Batsman Pietersen was dropped in August for sending 'provocative texts' to South Africa players. "The contract won't be a problem," said Flower.

"Kevin has been excellent in every way."

Pietersen agreed a four-month deal at the end of September, in order to take part in the tour of India, which ended on Monday with an historic first Test series victory since 1984-85.

"We did move on from it as soon as we had our meetings and everyone made a commitment to do so," Flower said of the negotiations which brought Pietersen back into the fold. "We don't all always get on with people all of the time - any of us in any walk of life - and everyone has made an effort to make it work. "It's been really good fun and he should be very proud of the way he's operated out here, both as an individual and as a player." Pietersen's hundred in the second Test in Mumbai was the man-of-the-match performance in a comeback victory which set England on the way to their 2-1 series success. "For him to score as quickly as he did there and put such pressure on the opposition bowlers really helped us turn the series around," said Flower.

thursday, 20 December, 2012

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17 Sports Di Stefano backs mourinho for ucL MADRID aGenCies

Real Madrid have stuttered to their domestic campaign this season and are trailing league leaders Barcelona by 13 points after their disappoitning 2-2 draw against Espanyol last weekend, putting pressure under Mourinho's future at the club.

However, Di Stefano believes that Mourinho is still the right man to take charge of Los Blancos and backed the Portuguese to deliver a Champions League win to the club.

"We have an excellent team and a great manager who is going to put the guys on the right track to win our 10th Champions League," Di Stefano was quoted as saying by Marca.

"There are those who have a talent for connecting with people. Real Madrid have that talent in connecting with the Champions League, which is what we need most now.

"We have to accept that failure is a necessary part of success. That's why we have to learn detailed lessons from our Liga defeats.

"Everything is relative and you have to learn that sometimes you win and other times you lose."

Mourinho has previously won the Champions League twice - the first time with Porto in 2004 and then with Inter Milan in 2010.

Lampard warns of Leeds rivalry LEEDS aGenCies

F

RANK Lampard has given Chelsea's young guns a history lesson in the club's rivalry with Leeds in a bid to prevent them surrendering a fifth trophy before Christmas. The Blues returned to London on Monday to begin preparing for Wednesday night's Capital One Cup quarter-final at Elland Road following yet another major disappointment this season, Sunday's Club World Cup final defeat against Corinthians.

And Leeds would love nothing more than to pile on the misery for Rafael Benitez's men. Lampard is the only fit member of the current Chelsea squad with prior experience of what is one of the most acrimonious fixtures in English football. And he has wasted no time filling them in on what to expect. Spain winger Juan Mata, who moved to Stamford Bridge at the start of last season, said: "Lampard told me about the rivalry.

He told me the Seventies was when it started.

"They are always difficult games, competitive between supporters. We just want to play and, if it is possible, to win." Chelsea's must somehow lift themselves physically and mentally from their arduous trip to Japan for what is bound to be another war of attrition. Lampard warned they faced being dumped out of another competition if they failed to show power and passion at Elland Road. The midfielder said: "There's a rivalry, we're aware of it and we have to play on the pitch with passion and do the physical side of

things up there, because they're going to be right at it.

"We can't expect to go up there and tap it around and get a result. We have to do both sides." Having let four pieces of silverware slip through their fingers already this season, Chelsea's young guns are in danger of becoming a generation of also-rans. Lampard, who returned to captain the side on Sunday following what has been an injury-hit 2012, is a proven winner. And he bristled at suggestions more recent recruits did not possess the same mentality.

Lampard, who declared himself fit enough to start again at Elland Road, said: "You can't go and win every tournament every year. "We've never done that. No-one does it. "We've changed the personnel a bit this year and there's been a bedding-in process and we've changed the manager, so there's been quite a few circumstances this year. "We just have to try to improve and play better, simple as that." The Capital One Cup provides Chelsea with an excellent chance to redeem themselves, with Bradford, Aston Villa and Swansea the only other teams left standing if Benitez's men beat Leeds. Lampard said: "Win this and we're in the semi-final and with the possibility of a decent draw but we've got to win the games." That includes in the Barclays Premier League, with Chelsea's Japanese adventure seeing them slip 13 points behind leaders Manchester United. Lampard said: "We got a result against Sunderland before we came out to Japan and its very important that we do our stuff, not just with Leeds but the Premier League games over Christmas and keep ourselves right up there."

Yaseen akhter event final today

London next host of 2017 Paralympic world c’ships

LAHORE sTaff reporT

LONDON

The final of 27th Mohammad Yaseen Akhter Memorial Event will be played between Model Town club and Servis Club on Dec 20 at LCCA ground. The match will start at 12:30 PM while prize distribution cermony will be held at 4:00 PM. Servis club has reached the final 9th time while Model Town club has reached 7th time. Model Town club has won the event 3 time while Servis Club has won the event 2 times

aGenCies

P&t Gym outplay tauseef club LAHORE sTaff reporT

P&T Gykhnana, has become H group Champion of LCCA Super Cricket League when they outplay Tauseef Club by 133 runs played Iteefaq Hospital ground on Tuesday. Fine batting by Baber Manzoor, Tayab tahir(P&T Gym) and 2nd Hatric by Awais Manzoor (Tauseef Club) were the main feature of the match. Earlier Awais Manzoor has also awarded Hatric against East Zone Whites in LCCA League. sCores: P&t Gym 264/7 in 40 overs. baber manzoor 87, tayab tahir 73, m asim 25, haseeb ur rehman 21, ali manzoor 16, waqas ahmed 14. awais manzoor 3/26(including hatric), Sheraz baig 2/59, waqas khan 1/42, Sher baz khan 1/48. tauseef club 131 all out in 35.5 overs. Shehzad muhayudin 28, iSrar baig 20, ibrar baig 19, sher baz khan 18, waqas khan 10, awais manzoor 10. rohail aLi 2/29, ali manzoor 2/16, haseeb ur rehman 2/9, wajid 1/28, babaer manzoor 1/8.

m Siddique memorial final on 20th LAHORE sTaff reporT

The final of 9th M Siddique Memorial cricket event will be played between Shining club and Wahdat Eaglets on Dec 20 at LCCA ground. The match will start at 9:30 AM while prize distribution cermony will be held at 4:00 PM. Shining club and Wahdat Eaglets have reached in final 2 times.

thursday, 20 December, 2012

Lahore: Pakistan's t20 captain bowls during the practice match at the Gaddafi Stadium ahead of the team's tour to india. MURTAzA ALI

Lahore: the Punjab female cycling team practices at the velodrome in preparation of the 32nd national Games. STAff PhoTo

London has won the right to host the 2017 Paralympic Athletics World Championships. The Championships will be held at the Olympic Stadium just one month before the World Athletics Championships. It is the first time a city has hosted the two championships in the same year. "London's Paralympic Games were the first ever to sell out, and these Championships provide a perfect chance to build on that enthusiasm," Mayor Boris Johnson said. "By bringing the IPC Athletics World Championships to our wonderful Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park just a month before the World Athletics Championships, the capital is poised to recreate the magic of 2012." This summer's Paralympic Games was hailed as the "best Games" in history by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) president Sir Philip Craven. A total 1,134 athletes took part in track and field events in London, setting 102 world and 139 Paralympic records. Every session of the athletics competition at the Paralympics drew sold-out crowds of 80,000. What is the Gold Event Series? The series is a National Lottery-funded campaign that aims to bring more than 70 of the world's top sporting events to the UK

Tears and smiles by the billion at London Games LONDON aGenCies

Britain spent nearly nine billion pounds ($14.42 billion) to create a magical and ambitious wonderland of venues for the 2012 Olympic Games, where fans were thrilled across a capital whose grime and grandeur alike got a makeover of global glamour.

The Games proved a timely shot in the arm, spiritually if not financially, for a bruised nation struggling with economic recession. The government, citing figures that were all but unmeasurable, said they would even deliver monetary benefits, to the tune of some $20 billion, though others were sceptical. As for sport, the cash delivered a gold rush of medals for the somewhat startled hosts - placing them third, their best result since 1920, if well behind the table-topping United States and China, which returned to the number two spot after dominating its home Games in Beijing four years earlier. More importantly, though, the July and August Games gave Britain - and Britishness - a reputational boost, at home and abroad, at a time when few who are younger than the 86-year-old

Queen Elizabeth can recall its days of imperial glory. Instead, 2012 showcased a new, modern London as a tolerant, welcoming and multicultural city. Britain delivered, or, as the otherwise rather beleaguered Prime Minister David Cameron put it after the Games: "We showed the world what we're made of; we reminded ourselves of what we could do."

Many overseas agreed.

Recalling prophecies of doom, about terror and traffic and Londoners' deep reserves of cynicism and, well, reserve, Italy's Corriere della Sera declared: "Thank you, London - A lesson to the pessimists ... When it comes to parties, festivals and ceremonies, no-one can match the British." "The neoBritish...are emotional," marvelled the Italians, traditional champions in the

heart-on-sleeve stakes. "They feel the tension beforehand; they weep on the podium and watching the television; they put down their beer and hug their neighbour." What the investment left behind was an unforgettable sporting tapestry of tears, drama and raw emotion played out against backdrops from Buckingham Palace to a grand new stadium where factory hulks once blighted the blitzscarred East End. These were the Games that Olympic chief Jacques Rogge called "happy and glorious", echoing Britain's national anthem "God Save the Queen" as Elizabeth celebrated 60 years on the throne. They opened with seven young, unknown athletes lighting the cauldron and had as their motto "Inspire a Generation". As he closed the Games, Rogge said: "The human legacy

will reach every region of the world. Many young people will be inspired to take up a sport or to pursue their dreams."

The 2012 Olympics proved the perfect stage for the world's fastest man Usain Bolt, who became the first man to defend the 100 and 200 metres double on the running track. As he accelerated to the 200 title, Bolt put his finger to his lips - silencing the doubters. With his Jamaican team mates, he went on to a "double treble", breaking the world record to retain the 4x100 metres relay title. "I came here to become a legend and I am now," Bolt told Reuters before an early-hours turn as a nightclub DJ. "I've got nothing left to prove. I've shown the world I'm the best." In the pool the supremacy issue was resolved emphatically when Michael Phelps swam to a status as the most decorated Olympian with 22 medals, 18 of them gold. His victory set off a debate about whether that meant he was the world's greatest. Phelps, too, had nothing left to prove and promptly quit the sport. "It's kind of weird, it's very strange, the first day of not having to swim and never having it again," the American told Reuters. "I'm not sure right now how I feel. It's really confusing."

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Sports 18 watch it Live ESPN Sports Center 07:30PM

STAR SPORTS First T20: England V India 07:00PM

Sanchez-vicario quits as fed cup captain MADRID aGenCies

Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario has resigned as Spain's Fed Cup captain as the rift between the country's federation and its female players deepens. A group of players recently came together and ended their relationship with the president of the Spanish Tennis Federation, José Luis Escañuela, claiming he had had gone back on promises regarding the future of the women's game in the country. Now Sanchez-Vicario, who has been in the job less than a year, appears to have sided with the players rather than her employer. The former world number one told the Spanish media on Tuesday: "Although I have not been part of any meeting between players or contract talks, I cannot ignore most of the players and stay on the sidelines." SanchezVicario still had a year left on the contract she signed 12 months ago.

Under her leadership, Spain lost both matches they played. A defeat to Russia followed by a loss to Slovakia meant Spain were relegated to the second division of the competition, World Group II. Now a new Fed Cup captain must be found ahead of February's home tie with Ukraine, something that may not prove easy with the nation's leading players set to be unavailable for selection.

Draper's Lta Montgomerie enters hall of fame salary unthinkable: tennis chair british tennis AUGUSTA aGenCies

LONDON

aGenCies

The chair of the All-Party Tennis Group has described the £640,000 salary of Lawn Tennis Association chief executive Roger Draper as "unthinkable". Details of Draper's salary were published for the first time last week. On Monday, Sport England cut the LTA's funding, criticising its plans for increasing participation. "It's unthinkable that someone earning four times more than the Prime Minister has not got ideas for the shake-up of the sport," Baroness Billingham said. "You don't give bonuses for failure, surely, and a priority has to be placed on grassroots sport. "The LTA is one of the wealthiest sporting organisations in the country and it's my honest and genuine opinion that they are useless." The LTA published details of Draper's salary for the first time last week.

He received a basic wage of £394,000, a bonus of £201,000 and a pension contribution of £45,000. This was a £42,000 increase on his package of £598,000 in 2011.

Prime Minister David Cameron earns £142,000 a year. The details of Draper's salary were published days before Sport England announced its decision to withhold three years' funding from the LTA for grassroots tennis. The number of people playing tennis once a week has fallen from 487,500 in 2008 to 445,100 in 2012, and Sport England decided to give the LTA just one year's funding of £7.1m.

Colin Montgomerie and Ken Schofield will be honoured for their contribution to the game next year when they are inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum. Montgomerie - elected through the International Ballot and Schofield - selected through the Lifetime Achievement Category - will be honoured along with fellow 2013 inductees Fred Couples, Willie Park Jnr and Ken Venturi at the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on May 6, 2013 at the World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Florida.

George O'Grady, The European Tour Chief Executive, and Jack Peter, the Hall of Fame Chief Operating Officer, made the official announcement at a special Media Conference attended by both Montgomerie and Schofield prior to The Race to Dubai European Tour Golfer of the Year Luncheon in London. O'Grady said: "This is a very special day for golf and for The European Tour. Colin and Ken are unique individuals and their contribution to not only The European Tour, on and off the fairways, but also The Ryder Cup makes them both very worthy candidates for the World Golf Hall of Fame. "Colin's achievement in winning the Harry Vardon Trophy eight times, including seven in a row, took considerable talent, skill, imagination, endurance, physical strength and mental resilience.

"Any aspiring and ambitious golfer on The European Tour today craves the opportunity to win The Race to Dubai, which has succeeded the Order of Merit, just once - to do it eight times is univer-

sally viewed as a superhuman feat.

"Colin became European Number One for the eighth time in 2005 which, coincidentally, was the year I succeeded Ken. Unquestionably, Ken's contribution to The European Tour is incalculable.

"His vision, passion and reservoir of knowledge established the foundations that we enjoy today and, like Colin, he has enthusiastically supported and taken enormous joy from Europe's recent triumphs in The Ryder Cup." Jack Peter added: "Colin Montgomerie and Ken Schofield will be excellent additions to the World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum. The Class of 2013 is a wonderful snapshot of the rich, international history of the game. We look forward to celebrating all of the achievements

of this distinguished group at the 2013 Induction Ceremony." Montgomerie dominated The European Tour in the 1990s, finishing Number One seven times in succession from 1993 and then capturing another Harry Vardon Trophy in 2005. The Scot turned professional in 1987, following his second Walker Cup appearance, and won 31 European Tour titles - a record by a British player - including three successive PGA Championships at Wentworth Club and, in total, 40 tournaments worldwide. In eight successive Ryder Cup appearances from 1991, Montgomerie created a remarkable record of being unbeaten in the singles with six wins and two halves in addition to winning nine and a half points from 14 foursomes and seven points from 14 fourballs.

He then went on to captain the European Team which regained The Ryder Cup at The Celtic Manor Resort, Newport, South Wales, in 2010. Montgomerie, who received the MBE in 1998 and then the OBE in the 2005 New Year's Honours List, will be eligible to compete on the European Senior Tour when he celebrates his 50th birthday on June 23 next year.

Montgomerie said: "It is a wonderful surprise to hear that I will be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame next year. I know I am very fortunate to have enjoyed such a successful career playing the game I love and it makes me feel very proud that my achievements have been recognised in this way. "While my eight Order of Merit wins were very special, as everyone knows my Ryder Cup experiences have provided the very best moments in my career and receiving this great honour is the icing on the cake.

funding put on hold LONDON aGenCies

Tennis has had millions of pounds of funding put on hold unless the sport's governing body can improve its plan to boost participation. Swimming has also had three years of funding withheld until it can prove its new blueprint to increase numbers is working. The 'get-tough' policy to penalise underperforming bodies was revealed by Sport England as it announced the 2013-17 funding levels for all sports. The Lawn Tennis Association may be basking in the reflected glory of Andy Murray's unprecedented year of success but its four-year plan for increasing the numbers of people playing the sport was declared "simply not strong enough" and £10.3million of its £17.4million total allocation has been put on hold. Other sports such as cycling, netball, triathlon and wheelchair basketball have all enjoyed funding rises of more than 30 per cent.

All of the Paralympic sports have seen their funding increase. For tennis, the overall funding will go down from £24.5million to £17.4million and the LTA will have to produce a convincing new plan on how it will spend the 2014-17 money, otherwise it will be distributed in other ways, such as directly to clubs or via trusts and foundations.

McIlroy the European golfer of 2012 LON AGNELES aGenCies

World number one Rory McIlroy was named the European Tour golfer of the year on Tuesday.

McIlroy succeeds Luke Donald as winner of the coveted award, having also replicated the Englishman's previously unprecedented achievement of winning both the Race to Dubai and US PGA Tour money list in the same season.

The 23-year-old from North-

ern Ireland captured his second major title in August, winning the US PGA Championship at Kiawah Island by a record eight shots, matching the winning margin of his maiden major triumph in the 2011 US Open.

McIlroy also won three times in America before playing a vital role in Europe's stunning Ryder Cup victory at Medinah, while he ended the year in style with five closing birdies to win the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. "Everyone who knows me

knows how special the 2012 season was," McIlroy said. "A couple of wins, including a major, and consistent performances in big events all helped me win The Race to Dubai for the first time.

"To win that was a massive highlight of an amazing season and I hope it will be the first of many. Now, to have been named as The European Tour Golfer of the Year puts the icing on the cake. "It is a very special honour indeed and you only need to look down the list of players who

have preceded me as the winner of this award to see precisely why; quite simply, it is a Who's Who of golf and I'm delighted to now be a part of that in the history books.

"We play golf because we relish the opportunity to win major championships and world-class tournaments around the globe.

But when we do that, to be recognised for these achievements is a great thrill and I thank all the members of the panel who voted for me."

thursday, 20 December, 2012

LHR 20-12-2012_Layout 1 12/20/2012 11:04 AM Page 20

19 ISI, former DGs enjoy immunity in 26/11 case NEW YORK aGenCies

T

HE US government has informed a New York court that the InterServices Intelligence (ISI) and its former chiefs “enjoy immunity” in the case related to 26/11 filed by relatives of victims of the Mumbai terror attacks and asked Pakistan to dismantle Lashkar-e-Tayyaba and support India’s efforts to counter terrorist threat.

“In the view of the United States, the ISI is entitled to immunity because it is part of a foreign state within the meaning of the FSIA (Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act),” Stuart Delery, the principal deputy assistant attorney general, told a federal court in New York on December 17 in a submission on a case filed by relatives and family members of the American victims of the Mumbai terrorist attacks.

“Furthermore, the Department of State has determined that former director generals Ahmed Shuja Pasha and Nadeem Taj are immune because plaintiffs’ allegations relate to acts that these defendants allegedly took in their official capacities as directors of an entity that is undeniably a fundamental part of the government of Pakistan,” Delery said in his 12-page affidavit.

“Because foreign sovereign immunity and

foreign official immunity provide an adequate basis upon which to dispose of this case with respect to the ISI and former DG Pasha and Taj, the United States takes no position on the political question doctrine issues that are also presented in this case,” the affidavit says in its footnote in response to the court case filed by American survivors of the Mumbai terrorist attack. In fact as many as four identical court cases were filed including one by Linda Ragsdale, on August 12. A resident of Tennessee, Ragsdale was shot in her back by one of the LeT terrorist at the Oberoi Trident hotel in Mumbai. She, however, survived that attack.

“In making this immunity determination, the United States emphasises that it expresses no view on the merits of plaintiffs’ claims. The United States strongly condemns the terrorist attacks in Mumbai and continues to believe that the Islamic Republic of Pakistan must take steps to dismantle Lashkar-e-Tayyaba and to support India’s efforts to counter this terrorist threat,” the affidavit said.

The US government argued that in its view, FSIA required that the ISI of Pakistan be accorded immunity from this civil suit because the ISI was a fundamental part of the government of Pakistan itself and no exception to immunity applied.

“Moreover, the Department of State has determined that the former director

treated as a ‘foreign state’ for purposes of the FSIA and there is no applicable exception to immunity.” “There can be no serious question regarding the ISI’s status as a ‘foreign state’ within the meaning of the FSIA. As the government of Pakistan states, the ISI is part of its government, organised under the Ministry of Defence,” it said.

“Although plaintiffs contend that the ISI is not governed or authorised by Pakistani law and is not under the control of the Pakistani government, the United States executive and legislative branches have consistently treated the ISI as part of the government of Pakistan,” the US attorney said.

“The executive branch holds official

generals of the ISI, Ahmed Shuja Pasha and Nadeem Taj, enjoy immunity, a determination that is not subject to judicial review. In making this determination, the United States emphasizes that it expresses no view on the merits of plaintiffs’ claims,” the affidavit said. Lawyers of the ISI and its directors had argued that they enjoyed immunity in the case. It was on April 23 this year that the court had asked the US government to clarify its position. December 17 was the last date for that.

“Under the FSIA, the ISI is immune from suit for the simple reason that it is a fundamental part of the Pakistani government. Under the FSIA, the ISI must be

meetings with representatives of the ISI, issues them diplomatic visas consistent with their status as Pakistani government employees and in all respects recognises the ISI as part of the government of Pakistan. Congress likewise has specifically recognised that the ISI is part of the Pakistani government,” he argued.

“The United States is not aware of any case in which a court has concluded that a component of a foreign state lacks immunity because the foreign state allegedly does not control its actions. Plaintiffs’ theory is particularly unusual in the context of an intelligence agency, which, like a foreign ministry or defence ministry, serves a quintessentially sovereign purpose,” the attorney said. The same date the State Department wrote a letter to the Department of Justice notifying of its determination that both Pasha and Taj enjoyed immunity in the 26/11 case in a New York court.

“Upon consideration of this matter, and after a full review of the pleadings, the department of state has determined that defendants Pasha and Taj are immune from suit in this case. The residual immunity of a former official is based upon that official’s conduct and extends only to acts that individual took in an official capacity,” Harold Hongju Koh, legal adviser of the state department said in a letter dated December 17 to Delery.

Powerful answerable to none: PAC committee chairman says immunity should be equal for all g AgP says Sc audit conducted annually without any problem g

ISLAMABAD sTaff reporT

pesHaWar: a critically wounded polio vaccination worker receives medical treatment at a hospital following an attack by gunmen on Wednesday. The man passed away after a few hours. onLIne

Punishing president tantamount to punishing state: Lhc cJ LAHORE onLine

Lahore High Court (LHC) Chief Justice Omar Ata Bandial on Wednesday observed that punishing the president was tantamount to punishing the state.

He passed the remarks while presiding over a larger LHC bench hearing a contempt of court petition against President Asif Ali Zardari in the dual office case. The attorney general (AG) of Pakistan was also present in the court.

At the onset of hearing, the

counsel for the petitioner argued that the office of president was formal and actual powers rested with parliament only.

The CJ remarked the president enjoyed immunity in criminal cases.

“Awarding punishment to the president in criminal cases amounts to awarding punishment to the state,” he added.

Justice Mansoor Shah said the “third force” caused harm to the constitution at several occasions.

Giving his arguments, the AG said the constitution did not impose

any bar on political activities of the president.

“Zardari is an elected president of the country and petitioners have misguided judges, just like in the case of Kalabagh Dam,” he added.

The chief justice reprimanded the AG for his remarks, saying he should not criticise the court in a personal capacity.

“If there is any objection on Kalabagh Dam, the verdict should be challenged in the courts,” he said. “Be careful while speaking in the court in future,” the CJ added.

Published by Arif Nizami at Qandeel Printing Press, 4 Queens Road, Lahore.

Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee Nadeem Afzal Gondal on Wednesday expressed displeasure with the audit of Supreme Court accounts, saying audit of weak institutions was conducted, while powerful ones were exempted from accountability.

The PAC meeting was held on Wednesday at the Parliament House under the chairmanship of Gondal, who asked Auditor General of Pakistan Akhtar Buland Rana how could he give a clean chit to the Supreme Court. Rana said the audit of Supreme Court accounts was conducted each year and no difficulty was faced during the process.

The auditor general of Pakistan said the Supreme Court also held annual Departmental accounts committee sittings.

He said no influence was accepted from anyone during the audit and nobody was given concessions in this regard.

He said the audit department maintained a special office in the Supreme Court.

When the members questioned if there was any such audit setup anywhere else, Rana said the audit did not have an office in any other ministry and the Election Commission of Pakistan had now made a formal request for establishing an office in ECP. The PAC then sought details of the meetings of Supreme Court’s DAC and paras related to the SC that had been settled by audit officials. Gondal said if immunity was to be granted, it should be granted for all departments, ministries and institutions, otherwise no immunity should be awarded to anyone, adding that was the prime desire of PAC to strengthen the audit department

Editor: Arif Nizami

through executive order.

Earlier during the PAC sitting, members reviewed in detail the policy regarding allotment of plots to judges and generals.

Members expressed their serious concern towards officials of Sindh Ministry for Housing, which despite multiple directions had failed to provide the details of plots allotted to the federal government employees.

Yasmin Rehman said the particular details were summoned by the body five months ago, however, officials concerned were not taking it seriously and were not providing details.

Ayaz Sadiq said nothing would happen in the coming years if the body failed to acquire details from officials concerned.

Upon this, the committee specifically directed the Sindh chief secretary to appear before the body in person.

Government officials from Balochistan informed the body that officials in the province had been allotted 19 plots, of which four had been allotted to judges.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa officials told PAC that the government did not have any policy to allot plot to the federal and provincial government employees and there existed no quota for the chief minister or the governor.

The PAC directed the government to end the special discretely privilege policy initiated by former prime minister Shaukat Aziz during Pervez Musharraf’s tenure, under which the elite class of the country was benefiting out of merit.

The PAC chairman also directed uploading the database related to the Ministry for Housing and Works online, after declaring the affidavits submitted by officials seeking allotment for plots suspicious.

thursday, 20 December, 2012