Epaper_22-12-18 KHI

KP, Punjab assemblies to be dissolved on Friday: imran

imran said as he lambasted the ruling coalition. the ex-prime minister lamented that the hundreds of thousands of people who left pakistan were skilled workers and their deprivation will hurt the country in the long run.

imran further lamented that his government — which was ousted in april — worked hard to revive the economy that was on the brink of default when the pakistan muslim league-nawaz (pml-n) left the government in 2018.

the pti chief mentioned that the growth witnessed during his party’s tenure was last seen during three previous governments — former army dictators general ayub khan, general Zia-ul-haq, and general pervez musharraf.

Ahead of expected dissolution of assemblies, PM lambasts PTI for creating ‘upheaval’

dissolve provincial parliaments, he said, claiming their objective was to create political instability.

LAHORE Mian abrar

deFyingagainst odds, chairman pakistan tehreek-i-insaf (pti) imran khan on saturday announced that his party chief ministers would dissolve punjab and khyber pakhtunkhwa (kp) the assemblies on december 23 (Friday).

the pti chief’s announcement came during his address to a huge rally of party workers and supporters in liberty market via video link from his residence in lahore’s Zaman park. at the outset of his address, the pti chief said he wanted to inform the people about why he decided to dissolve the assemblies in both the provinces where his party ruled.

“in this country, until free and fair elections don’t take place […] fears will still remain that the country might sink.”

imran said he provided all the details to the courts about his assets just like every commoner in pakistan — unlike the ones who “looted” money of the masses and

siphoned it abroad.

“all their money, business, and children are abroad. they are living a luxurious life in pakistan after looting the nation’s money,” imran said, claiming that he never thought that he could ever live anywhere else except pakistan.

the pti chief said that for the first time in his life, he “fears” that the “corrupt gang” imposed on the country was taking the nation toward destruction. “you can ask any industrialist, labour, and farmer; their finances cannot be managed amid the ongoing economic situation.”

the former prime minister claimed that pakistan witnessed 50-year high inflation after the incumbent government came into power. “they washed away all the hard work we did.” the pti chief mentioned that the economy — including industries, taxes, exports, and agriculture — witnessed a boost during his party’s government, which lasted for nearly four years.

“but this government has not even been able to progress in one sector. given the situation in the country, over 750,000 people have gone abroad,”

“all these growth targets were achieved because we were hand-inhand with america on several fronts. so, who was behind all this regime change operation? why were these corrupt elements brought into power?”

imran said the direct foreign investment, remittances, tax, and exports have all decreased. “Foreign investors do not trust the government. since we do not have dollars for repaying energy debt, foreign debt […]. they do not have a plan except seeking loans from china.”

he said loans were not enough as it is tantamount to treating cancer with disprin tablet. “the only solution to it is through wealth creation. if you create wealth, you can ensure that you don’t have to beg loans for the next time.”

blaming the coalition government for mishandling the country’s economy, khan said: “had they managed the economy well, we would have been fine with them completing the term, but the country is going down. everything is going down in the country. i’m afraid [pakistan] is moving toward default.”

accusing the leadership of pakistan tehreek-i-insaf (pti) of creating upheaval in the country, shehbaz sharif said political stability was crucial to economic prosperity and to rid the nation of soaring inflation.

“it is required for the sake of loyalty to pakistan and allegiance, that there must be economic stability,” the prime minister said.

in a statement issued saturday ahead of former prime minister imran khan’s expected announcement of the dissolution of the punjab and khyber pakhtunkhwa legislative assemblies t force snap elections, sharif declared “a certain person wanted pakistan be pushed into default, but it won’t happen”.

“the people who had laid land mines in the economic foundations of the country, are out to do the same in the political foundations of the country,” the prime minister, in a veiled reference to the opposition party, said.

the people who hurt public confidence in the state were now out to

“political stability and economic charter can only strengthen pakistan’s national solidarity,” he opined.

sharif vowed his government would rid the public of the problems of food inflation and employment like the way they delivered by removing “a liar and corrupt government” with the “power of the constitution”.

by triggering anarchy, the political miscreants sought to force the world to not invest in pakistan, besides hampering the efforts for rehabilitation of the flood-hit people, he claimed.

he said such characters were not concerned about the plight of the flood victims and the efforts to save them from winter, hunger and diseases, as they were only self-centric and interested in their political interests.

the prime minister said for providing employment to the youth, it was necessary to get rid of “the political unemployed”.

ISLAMABAD staff report

g says never thought he could ever live anywhere else but pakistan

g Fears 'corrupt gang' imposed may take the nation Further into destruction

PM says Political staBility, cHarter of econoMy key to national security

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

PRIMEMinister Shehbaz Sharif has said political stability and a “charter of economy” can only strengthen Pakistan’s national security.

In a statement issued on Saturday, he reiterated his government’s resolve to bring economic stability in the country and save it from default. He said political stability was the prerequisite to save the people from price hike.

Govt puts priority to address issues of energy sector: Dar

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

The Prime Minister said political miscreants are trying to create chaos in the country. He said these miscreants were not interested to serve the people who were badly affected by floods but their only motive is to gain political benefits.

Shehbaz Sharif said there was no doubt, economic destruction was done under an agenda and political instability was also its continuation. He said purpose of dissolving provincial assemblies was to create political instability in the country.

Mega relief package for inflation hit people: Meanwhile,

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif decided to announce a mega relief package for the inflation-hit people. The Prime minister directed the authorities concerned to start preparation of a special package for the masses and assigned the task to the ministries concerned.

The Prime minister also instructed the relevant ministries to prepare a plan to give the masses relief in the utility bills of electricity and gas. PM Shehbaz directed the ministers to keep the youth welfare atop their priorities.

The premier has also asked the party

leaders and the cabinet members to promote the government’s narrative through media and social media.

pM inquires after health of ailing artiste firdous JaMal

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif telephoned ailing veteran television artist Firdous Jamal on Saturday and inquired after his health. During the telephonic conversation, the prime minister sought details about health and medical treatment from the artiste.

The premier assured full cooperation in medical treatment of the television and film

star. PM Shehbaz said the whole nation was praying for health of Firdous and all possible efforts would be made for his treatment.

Firdous Jamal thanked the prime minister for his support and assurance of treatment. It should be mentioned here that Firdous was diagnosed with cancer and was undergoing treatment at a private hospital.

Pakistan, Switzerland agree to boost bilateral cooperation

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Pakistan and Switzerland on Saturday agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation in diverse fields especially in the health sector.

Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Saturday said that the government was putting priority to address the issues of energy sector including circular debt in order to bring financial sustainability of the sector and ensure the economic growth of the country. While chairing a meeting on reforms in energy sector, the minister further directed the concerned authorities to make viable solutions for the settlement of all issues of energy sector, said a press release issued by the Ministry of Finance. The meeting discussed introducing various reforms in energy sector and issues of stock and flow of circular debt in the sector. The Finance Minister highlighting the importance of reforms in energy sector, said that reforms were crucial in energy sector for the economic growth of the country. Minister of State for Finance and Revenue Dr. Ayesha Ghous Pasha, Minister of State for Petroleum Musadik Masood Malik, SAPM on Finance Tariq Bajwa, Secretary Finance, Secretary Power and senior officers attended the meeting.

Better facilities to be provided to Hajj pilgrims, organizers: Minister

LAHORE app

Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Mufti Abdul Shakoor has said that better facilities will be provided to the Hajj pilgrims with good arrangements this year. Addressing the Hajj Conference organised by the Hajj Organizers Association of Pakistan (HOAP) and the Ministry of Religious Affairs at a local hotel here on Saturday, he said that he was going to Saudi Arab in January for arrangements. "I would do my best for pilgrims and Hajj organizers", he said. The minister said that corruption would not be ignored at any cost in Hajj arrangements. "Saudi people are very close to us, however, I would talk for more facilities," he added. Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Religious Harmony Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi in his address appealed the federal minister to accept all demands of the organizers. He also congratulated the ministry of Hajj for organizing the conference. Former prime minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani in his address said that political stability in the country would bring good results. He said that political relationships were stable between PPP and PML-N due to the Charter of Democracy signed by Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed and Muhammad Nawaz Sharif. He also urged the minister to consider the demands of the Hajj organizers. Senator Rana Mehmood Ul Hassan, renowned columnist Majeeb Ur Rehman Shami, Religious Scholar Muhammad Hussain Akbar and Hajj directors were also spoke on the occasion.

The understanding was reached during a meeting between Ambassador of Switzerland to Pakistan Georg Steiner and Minister for National Health Services, Regulations and

Coordination Abdul Qadir Patel in Islamabad.

The Minister said that Pakistan faced a tough time due to floods across the country as it affected major parts of Balochistan, Sindh, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Abdul Qadir Patel said massive damage had occurred which caused destruction of infrastructure, animal livestock and precious human lives. In

many areas, fields crops were destroyed, especially women and children were affected the most.

He said that Pakistan never faced such a natural disaster. The primary and basic health units were completely devastated, which immediately need the help of the world to restore the health system.

The Minister said that the government is utilizing all resources to

restore the health system. He thanked the Government of Switzerland for its support to flood victims.

On the occasion, the Swiss ambassador said that his government was fully supporting Pakistan in the rehabilitation process of flood victims. He expressed deep sympathies over the current floods in Pakistan and the loss of lives and property and assured that the Government of Switzerland.

PPP invites political parties to participate in country-wide rallies for Pakistan

KARACHI Staff RepoRt

Federal Minister for Poverty Alleviation and Social Saftey Shazia Atta Marri and Sindh Minister for Information and Mass Transit Sharjeel Inam Memon have said that Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) will hold rallies across the country in solidarity with Pakistan and its Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari for giving a befitting response to his Indian counterpart. She invited all political parties to participate with them, because this is a day to show solidarity with Pakistan. They said it in a joint press conference here on Saturday.

Shazia Atta Marri said that statement of Indian Foreign Minister J. Shankar was an irresponsible against the Pakistan, and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari gave him a strong and bold befitting response.

She said that they want to have good bilateral relations with all South Asian countries and Pakistan People’s Party has always supported better ties with neighboring countries, but the current Indian government is only prompting

hatred among the peoples.

She said that calling Pakistan a center of terrorism is a propaganda of India and we strongly condemned such remarks of Indian Foreign Minister J Shankar. Shazia Marri said that Narindra Modi’s government is associating Muslims with terrorism, we were told that India is a secular country, but the Indian government is suppressing and

The

Indian Foreign Minister made a wrong statement against Pakistan in the

UN and we want to remind Narendra Modi’s government that we are not afraid of their terrorism and threats, our decency should not be taken as our weakness.

Shazia Marri said that Shaheed

Zulfiqar Bhutto had always fought the case of Kashmiris in the United Nations and today his grandson is also fighting for their rights of freedom. The current Modi’s government has increased more problem and difficulties of Kashmir even more complicated. Sindh Minister for Information and Mass Transit Sharjeel Inam Memon said that the PPP chairman and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari responded to his counterpart of India in a bold manner and whole India has been shaken by Bilawal’s response. He said that trains were set on fire at the behest of Narendra Modi in India and all the fabric of terrorism is linked to India and Modi government. While strongly criticizing the Indian Foreign Minister’s statement, he said that Indian Foreign Minister’s malicious propaganda at the United Nations is highly regrettable and condemnable and on which the response of our Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was courageous and bold against false accusation of India.

Balochistan’s interest well protected in Reko Diq agreement: CM

QUETTA Staff RepoRt

Chief Minister Balochistan Mir Abdul Qudous Bizenjo on Saturday said that we should workfor the development of the province and the country instead of the playing politics on non-issues.

Balochistan’s interests have been well protected in Reko Diq project and 25 percent shares of the

province have been secured in the project without any investment, he added.

He expressed these views while addressing the participants of the closing ceremony of the 10th National Workshop of Balochistan.

Provincial Minister of Finance and Food Engineer Zamrik Khan Achakzai was also present in the ceremony. Addressing the ceremony, the chief minister said that the mining sector is the future of

Balochistan and we have signed a historic agreement with Reko Diq in which the world’s largest mining company Barrick Gold is investing in same project, which will initially give to the province Rs 300 billion annually in the form of royalty saying that apart from this, the province will be economically self-sufficient. Balochistan has 25 percent shares in this deal while the project will create 8000 to 12000 jobs, he added.

Govt decides revival of 11 petroleum exploration licenses to enhance oil, gas production

The Federal government has approved revival of 11 revoked licenses ostensibly for enhancing the production activities of oil & gas in the country to meet the burgeoning energy needs of the country.

According to sources, federal government has approved framework for revival of 11 revoked licenses of three Exploration and Production (E&P) companies through out of court settlement and with effect to this decision there will be roughly $ 100 million worth of investment in 11 exploration blocks while after the restoration of these licenses the national exchequer will receive approximately $ 5 million within next three months. There will be available job opportunities for

more than 5000 people with the start of oil and gas exploration activities in the said 11 blocks, said sources.

They added that foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Minister for Trade Syed Naveed Qamar have played the main role for the revival of 11 revoked

petroleum exploration licenses during a recent meeting of the federal cabinet. “The government has restored five licenses of Dewan Petroleum, five licenses of Pakistan Exploration Limited (PEL) and one license of Oil & Gas Investment Company,” said the sources.

Sources said that the Petroleum Division, in a recent cabinet meeting, briefed that the government had granted exclusive petroleum exploration licences for an initial period of five years through a competitive bidding process. However, the licences were revoked mainly because the companies failed to undertake the committed work programmes during the stipulated time period and did not meet financial obligations to fulfil the goals of social welfare, training, rent and production bonus.

According to sources, a framework for the revival of revoked licences through an out-of-court settlement was

earlier submitted to the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet for consideration and approval. And, after getting ECC nod, the Petroleum Division sought fresh approval of the prime minister as minister in charge of the Petroleum Division for submission of a summary to the cabinet while later, the framework was submitted to the cabinet for its consideration and approval.

It is pertinent to mention that Pakistanis are bearing the brunt of skyrocketing prices of petroleum products and power tariff for a long time while revival revoked licenses of 11 exploration blocks will enhance exploration and production activities in the country. And, the increase in the exploration and production is important while it will be helpful for meeting the future energy needs of the country.

ISLAMABAD ahmad ahmadani

violating Indian Muslim and following the ideology of Hindutva.

minister further said that when Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat, he was behind the massacre of Muslims and now, extremists of India are protesting against Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in India.

iMran files DefaMation suit aGainst Geo, ancHorPerson, uMer farooq in uae

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

PAKISTANTehreek-e-Insaf

(PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Saturday said that his lawyers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have filed a defamation case against fraudster Umar Farooq Zahoor, Geo News and its anchorperson Shahzeb Khanzada for airing a programme that alleged PTI chief’s involvement in the sale of Toshakhana gifts.

Imran Khan informed his lawyers

have also file demand notice to the private TV and Mir Shakeel in USA.

The PTI chairman, in a statement on Saturday, stated that his UAE lawyers led by Hassan Shad have now filed criminal defamation (libel and slander) proceedings under UAE law against Geo TV, Shahzeb Khanzada and fraudster Umer Farooq Zahoor.

Similarly, he said that his team of lawyers led by Fasih-Uddin filed demand notice to Geo and Mir Shakeel in USA. Imran Khan stated that disinformation and fake news culture of GEO and it’s handlers would be

dealt with in courts.

Marriyum questions filing of case against Geo in US Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Saturday questioned the filing of a case by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan against Geo News and Mir Shakeelur Rahman in the United States. “Is the case filed in California,” she asked Imran Khan while responding to his tweet, which said his team of lawyers led by Fasih Uddin filed a demand notice to Geo and Mir Shakeel in the US.

Lahore ranked first among world’s most polluted cities

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Amid restricted visibility in the morning owing to foggy conditions, Lahore ranked first among top ten most polluted cities in the world on the Air Quality Index (AQI), according to a report on Saturday.

Average air quality index reading of Lahore recorded 264, while Karachi remained third from the top of the list. Lahore’s Garhi Shahu locality measured maximum 466 reading, while Gulberg had 379 reading on the index. The AQI around the Canal Road was recorded 419.

It is to be mentioned here that AQI as high as 151-200 is considered unhealthy, while an AQI reading between 201 to 300 is more harmful and AQI rate over 300 mark is

extremely hazardous. According to experts, the air becomes heavier in the winter as

Rejecting remand request, magistrate sends Aamir Liaquat’s wife to jail

KARACHI Staff RepoRt

The Judicial Magistrate District East on Saturday turned the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) request for physical remand of Dania Shah, the third wife of late televangelist Aamir Liaquat, in a case of leaking his video. Shah had been arrested by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Cybercrime Wing earlier this week from the Southern Punjab city of Lodhran for allegedly leaking and making viral a private video of Aamir Liaquat without his consent.

A complaint in this regard had been filed by Aamir Liaquat’s first wife Bushra. On Saturday, the FIA produced Dania Shah in the court of Judicial Magistrate South, seeking her physical remand. The magistrate, however, asked the FIA to explain how they had jurisdiction to hear the case. “The Incident took place near Tariq Road in Karachi, hence the suspect should be presented before the relevant court,” the magistrate said. The FIA prosecutor said that this was a case of cybercrime. The video was seen everywhere, hence there is no issue of jurisdiction, the prosecutor argued.

compared to summer, causing poisonous particles in the atmosphere to move downwards and making the

atmosphere polluted. As a result, a layer of polluted particles, including large amounts of carbon and smoke, covers a city.

The smoke produced by factories and by burning coal, garbage, oil or tyres enters the atmosphere and the impact of it appears at the onset of winter and remains till the season’s end, experts said.

Thus, air pollution reaches to extremely dangerous levels in cold weather, severely compromising air quality.

Healthy atmosphere in such a situation is subject to rainfall, which washes off all hazardous particles.

The AQI calculation is based on five categories of pollution: groundlevel ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide.

Minister says Hajj quota being worked out for chambers

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Mufti Abdul Shakoor said Saturday that work on the Hajj quota for members and workers of the chambers of commerce and industry was well under way. Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Mufti Abdul Shakoor disclosed this in a meeting with businessmen here at Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), where LCCI President Kashif Anwar highlighted various issues being faced by the Hajj and Umrah operators. Lahore Chamber’s Senior Vice President Chaudhry Zafar Mahmood, Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) Chairman Habibur Rehman Gilani and Convener LCCI Standing Committee Abdul Jabbar Anjum also spoke.

The federal minister said that the ministry would soon find a way for Hajj and Umrah quota system for the LCCI members and staff. “Our relations with the business community are very close to our heart,” he said and added that all suggestions and demands, presented by the LCCI, would be forwarded to the platforms concerned. He said that the suggestions related to Ministry of Religious Affairs should be forwarded in writing so that these could be resolved as soon as possible. He said that Islamic economic system was based on welfare of humanity. The business in a right way is also worship and the ranks of righteous businessmen are high in Islam, he added. He promised to take up all Hajj related matters with Saudi authorities in consultation with 65 ministers of Muslim countries. LCCI President Kashif Anwar said that keeping in view the current economic situation, there is an urgent need for amnesty scheme so that the dollars, that people have in Pakistan but not declared, could be circulated in economy. By encouraging people through amnesty scheme, the government could bring a lot of foreign exchange into the country. He requested the federal minister to raise this proposal in the National Assembly.

Kashif Anwar said that there was a dire need to revamp the system of monitoring of private Hajj organisers. Apart from this, while fixing the package of the private Hajj scheme, other expenses including the fare of airlines must be kept in mind so that there was no injustice to any party.

tanveer designates quality education, teachers training as top priority

ISLAMABAD app

US Central Command (CENTCOM) chief General Michael E. Kurilla has said that Pakistan’s counter-terror operations remain critical to maintaining stability and security in the region.

The CENTCOM chief, who has concluded his two-day visit to Pakistan from December 14-16, said that he was looking forward to continuing efforts with Pakistan’s new Army Chief General Asim Munir in combating the shared threats to regional security. “I greatly look forward to working with General Asim Munir. This is a strategic relationship that underpins security and stability across the region,” the CENTCOM chief told APP in an exclusive interview on Saturday.

General Kurilla held meetings with Pakistan’s military leadership to reaffirm security ties between the two nations. He also visited Torkham border crossing to discuss the security situation along the border with Afghanistan. He termed his visit “great” as he met General Asim Munir and Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Sahir Shamshad Mirza. I came away very impressed with the leadership of the

Pakistan armed forces and their professionalism, he said adding, we discussed opportunities to address key mutual defence interests.”

During the engagements in Pakistan, General Kurilla said that he was able to strengthen his previously established relationship with General Asim Munir. “Personal and face-to-face visits to Pakistan are critical to building my understanding of the opportunities and challenges for the Pakistan armed forces and to building on our security cooperation,” he said. “The objective of visit was to further the partnership and relationship that the United States and Pakistan built over the last 75 years.”

The CENTCOM chief expressed commitment to strengthening the Pak-U.S. military-to-military ties and said, “Our relationship has long been viewed as critical to U.S. interests and the region.”

Asked if the U.S. still looks at Pakistan through the prism of Afghanistan, he said, “The CENTCOM views the US-Pakistan relationship through its own bilateral merits and its potential to improve stability across the region, adding that it was broad-based and important for our countries, for the region and the world.

FBR seems reluctant to proceed against tax fraud culprits

ISLAMABAD Shahzad paRacha

The Federal Board of Revenue is showing surprising and inexplicable reluctance in proceeding against the six custom officials who allegedly colluded with the importers and fraudulently examined, assessed and released from the customs collectorate Islamabad more than one hundred consignments of branded and expensive mobile phones causing to the government a revenue loss of about Rs360 million.

According to details, a person named Zohaib Hassan filed before the chief collector of customs Islamabad Imran Khan Mohmand on December 7 a complaint that certain custom examiners and appraisers of Islamabad customs Collectorate had colluded with two importers, namely, Al Hamad Enterprises and Pak China Traders in wrongly examining, under assessing and fraudulently releasing around one hundred consignments of branded

mobile phones causing a revenue loss of Rs360 millions.

The complainant alleged that even after the post clearance audit department of FBR had caught the scam and had asked the Islamabad customs collectorate to fully unearth the revenue losses caused, the authorities in Islamabad customs collectorate had restricted themselves only to the audit of six consignments in which they found that the importers had declared on their import documents filed by them before the customs 9946 mobile phones but the six examining officers and appraising officers fraudulently examined and assessed to duty and taxes only 5989 mobile phones releasing the remaining 3957 mobile phones without duty and taxes, whitewashing their IMEI numbers and helping the fraudulent importers get from PTA the type approvals for these phones without payment of leviable duty and taxes.

The complainant Zohaib Hassan asked the

chief collector to extend the audit of this scam to the last two years in public interest and to file an FIR against the perpetrators of fraud.

Sources said that pressured under the truth and substance in the complaint filed before him, the chief collector Islamabad got the FIR registered but dishonestly and cleverly omitted from FIR the names of the six customs examiners and appraisers who were found to have wrongfully examined and fraudulently cleared 3967 mobile phones without payment of duty and taxes.

When this scribe put a question to the member customs operations Mukarram Jah Ansari as to why the names of custom officials colluding in the scam and instrumental in causing a massive revenue loss had not been included in the FIR, the member customs circumvented the real question and said that only importers had been implicated in the FIR because they had failed to deposit the revenue lost in the six consignments audited by the collectorate.

islaMaBad: Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training on Saturday said that quality of Education, which largely relates to capacity building of our teaching faculty, is one of the top priority areas set by his ministry.

In a Tweet, the minister said that he has tasked NCC, FDE & FCE for devising a comprehensive Teachers Training Program at FDE schools, which will be launched at the New Year 2023. Rana Tanveer said that, "he & his team was heavily focusing on teachers' training challenge".

It is vital to have a trained academic workforce. Our upcoming Teachers Training Programme will cover all aspects of the National Curriculum of Pakistan (NCP) and it will train/equip our teachers with the latest educational and technological interventions, he said. app

Pak-US strategic relationship underpins security, stability across region: CENTCOM chief

KAsHmiris To rEmEmbEr CHAuDHry GHulAm AbbAs on His 54TH DEATH AnnivErsAry ToDAy

MIRPUR (AJK) AgencIeS

ALLis set by the Kashmiris to observe the 54th death anniversary of the pioneer supreme head of Azad Government of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, Quaid-e-Kashmir Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas on Sunday, December 18, with full solemnity and reverence and renewal of pledge to continue the mission till the liberation of the occupied Kashmir from the forced and unlawful occupation of India.

Qur’aan Khawani will be held in various parts of the AJK territory, occupied state and different parts of the country for the departed soul. Special meetings will be held at various places in Azad Kashmir, including Mirpur, Kotli, Muzaffarabad, Bhimber, Bagh, Sudhanoti and Rawalakot under the auspices of the AJK government, besides various social, political and public sector organizations to pay glorious tributes to the late distinguished Kashmiri leader for his remarkable serv-

ices for the Kashmir freedom movement. In spite of its being the weekly holiday, it would be

the gazetted holiday across AJK to mark the death anniversary of the eminent Kashmiri leader of the freedom struggle and the first supreme head of the AJK government.

A major ceremony to observe the day will be held at the Mazar of Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas at Faizabad Rawalpindi under the auspices of the AJK government in collaboration with Muslim Conference.

A large number of people from different parts of AJK and Pakistan will visit the Mazar to offer Fateha for the departed soul besides offering special prayers for the early success of the Kashmir freedom movement and accession of the entire Jammu Kashmir state to Pakistan.

In the scheduled special gathering, speakers will pay glorious tributes to the founder leader of the Kashmir freedom movement coupled with the renewal of the pledge and determination to follow his footprints for the completion of his mission of the liberation of the occupied Kashmir from the forced and illegal Indian tyrannical rule.

US Consul General calls on Governor Punjab

Water-smart farming: Elahi orders solar powered pumps to ensure access

LAHORE StAff RepoRt

A decision was reached to install solar-powered systems for use in irrigation in rainfed villages of interior Punjab, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported on Saturday.

In a meeting presided over by Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, the chief minister, participants, including the chief secretary, reviewed the implementation, and pitfalls on the road to adoption, of the project in place of commonly used diesel-powered pumps.

Over the past few years, solar has been increasingly adopted in developing countries such as India, Mali, Nicaragua and Tanzania, where many rural villages without grid access have leapfrogged to solar.

The chief minister gave accord to install 500 such pumps in 13 districts in the first phase, which he said will ensure the availability of adequate water to at least 2,270 acres of fertile land.

The regime will be expanded to other districts as well, he informed the meeting. An individual or ten farmers collectively could acquire a system, he added. Elahi said solar-powered systems would provide water to small and far-flung towns as well.

CDA launches anti encroachment drive

ISLAMABAD StAff RepoRt

Acting on the instructions of the agency’s chairman, retired Capt. Muhammad Usman Yunus, director general of the enforcement squad at Capital Development Authority (CDA) assigned several tasks to the personnel to remove illegal constructions. Separately, a truckload of equipment was confiscated after removing the encroachments from a local building. The owner had been issued several notices after which the CDA took action under the building by-laws, the agency said.

The anti-encroachment staff launched the operation in the G-10 sector and demolished illegally constructed boundary wall and structures on the government land. Taking action against encroachment on a green belt in Sector G-7/3-4, goods were seized; a drain was narrowed in D-17 Sector; and a notice was served on the supervisor of the society to stop construction. Similarly, notices were also served on several illegal structures being constructed near Sangjani. A piece of government land near the Express Highway was also reclaimed.

US Consul General in Lahore William K. Makaneole called on Governor Punjab Muhammad Baligh-ur-Rehman and discussed progress on California parliament’s resolution to declare Lahore and California as sister states during a meeting at the Governor’s House here on Saturday.

Kathleen Gibilisco, Political and Economic Chief of the US Consulate Lahore was also present during the meeting.

Speaking on the occasion, Punjab Governor Muhammad Baligh-ur-Rehman said Pakistan val-

ues its long-standing relationship with the United States of America.

He said passing of the resolution by the California Parliament to declare the province of Punjab and the American state of California as a sister state is a welcome development. He said that this agreement will help to bring the province of Punjab and the state of California closer, adding that the agreement will create opportunities to learn from each other’s experiences in different fields.

Governor Punjab said that this agreement will increase the trade relations between the province of Punjab and the American state of California. He said that the agree-

ment will strengthen people to people contact between the Punjab and the California. He further said that US cooperation with Pakistan in various fields, especially in the field of education and health, is commendable.

US Consul General William K. Makaneole said that there are vast opportunities for tourism in Pakistan. The diplomat said bilateral cooperation in various fields including education, health and trade will be enhanced further.

Makaneole said that the signing ceremony of the agreement to declare the province of Punjab and US state of California as sister states will be held soon.

Three killed in Hangu after passenger van argument

PESHAWAR Inp

At least three people aboard a passenger van were killed in Hangu city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Saturday when a man shot at travellers after an argument erupted, police said.

According to District Police Officer (DPO) Asif Bahadur, a group of passengers engaged in a heated argument and the situation escalated when one of them took out his gun and opened fire on the others.

As a result, three people, including two women, lost their lives, he added. Several were injured.

Bahadur said law enforcers have cordoned off the area and started looking for the suspect, who fled after the crime. The incident took place near the Shanawari town of Hangu. He said the actual motive behind the incident is yet to be determined.

Initially, reports said that the bus was fired on, however, Bahadur clarified the incident occurred due to fighting between the passengers.

Deputy Medical Superintendent at the DHQ Hospital in Hangu, Wilayat Khan, confirmed the death toll and shared that the injured were under treatment.

Bilawal urges world to delink women’s rights from Afghanistan crises

AnAdolu Agency

The foreign minister urged the international community to delink the situation of women’s rights in Afghanistan from its humanitarian and economic situation while dealing with the Taliban — the war-torn nation’s de facto authority.

“No one believes that by starving the people of Afghanistan we can achieve our aim of women’s empowerment or any other aim.” Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari told Anadolu Agency in New York.

The Taliban’s August 2021, return to power, followed by the disruption of international financial assistance, has left Afghanistan facing an economic, humanitarian, and human rights crisis, with women and girls deprived of many rights, including education.

The US and Western nations suspended financial assistance after the Taliban’s seizure of power. The Biden administration froze $7 billion in Afghan central bank foreign reserves as part of sanctions against the hard-line group.

Many nations have put forward several conditions for recognition of the Taliban, including the protection of the rights of

women, the formation of an “inclusive” government, and Afghanistan not becoming a haven for terrorism.

“If their banking channels are going to be shut, their funds are going to be shut off – you’re not just punishing the government in Afghanistan, you’re punishing the people of Afghanistan,” said Zardari.

Six million people in Afghanistan face food insecurity at an emergency level amid a shortage of sufficient humanitarian assistance due to a lack of funding, according to the UN.

Pakistan has repeatedly demanded engagement with the Taliban and the unfreezing of Afghan assets.

“The world needs to learn lessons from the last time when the war ended and when the world disengaged and washed their hands of Afghanistan and forgot about Afghanistan. It left us in a very difficult situation,” he said.

“All the world’s forces had to go in all over again. So, engagement is important.”

But Zardari also urged the Taliban to live up to the pledges they made to the international community and their people.

“We can’t expect the new government in Afghanistan to do in a year with the old government in Afghanistan couldn’t do in 20

years,” he said. “To do so in one year’s time is a little bit difficult. Even here, in the United States, perhaps when a new government comes to power, they don’t manage to fulfil all their promises in the first year.”

KASHMIR DISPUTE: Zardari also encouraged the UN to fulfil commitments under international law to resolve the Kashmir issue, a territorial dispute between India and Pakistan that has dragged on for more than seven decades.

“It is up to the United Nations to fulfil their responsibility and their commitment, restore the faith in multilateralism. And in this institution, that they won’t be bullied by the Indian government,” he said.

Relations between the two nuclear neighbours deteriorated further in 2019, when India revoked an article of its Constitution that gave the Kashmir valley special status. That prompted Islamabad to downgrade its diplomatic mission in New Delhi and asked India to follow suit.

India claims the Kashmir dispute is an internal matter. But Islamabad reiterates that the normalization of ties with New Delhi is linked to a review of the 2019 decision and the ultimate resolution of the dispute.

PAKISTAN-TURKEY RELATIONS: Asked about Prime Minister Shehbaz

Sharif’s proposal when he visited Turkey this November that it should join the ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he called it a significant example of economic cooperation in the region which provides an incredible opportunity.

“Not only do we have special economic zones and opportunities for other countries and industries to invest. But given Pakistan’s location, this would logistically be good for countries like Turkey, Central Asian coun-

tries, to be able to access the warm waters through Pakistan and then onwards and upwards for us to access to Turkey,” said Zardari.

“It is an opportunity. We all are facing difficult economic times — whether it’s Pakistan, whether it’s Turkey, following Covid19, following (the start of the war in) Ukraine — we’re looking for various ways to diversify our economies. So, this is one option,” he added.

LAHORE StAff RepoRt

NEW YORK

GwadaR STudEnTS SEE bRIGHT fuTuRE

THRouGH PakISTan-CHIna CooPERaTIon

ISLAMABAD Xinhua

bAHRAMZahid, a vibrant 21-year-old from the Gwadar district of Balochistan, is inquisitive about the opportunities the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) offers for the people of his province so they can enjoy its perks and make their lives better.

He has been witnessing the development of Gwadar under CPEC for years and is currently visiting Islamabad to meet Chinese officials and visit Chinese companies operating in Pakistan to know more about the future of Gwadar and the cooperation between Pakistan and China in various projects.

“I met many Chinese and I got the impression that they are very serious about CPEC and I am sure that it will be implemented to its full potential one day, so

the main thing for us is that we should participate in it as much as we can to share the development,” he told Xinhua.

As a student at the University of Gwadar, Zahid is being accompanied by 11 other students studying in different disciplines at the campus, and most of them are

visiting the capital city for the first time.

In a conversation with Xinhua, the students said they had many questions about CPEC and the visit is an eyeopening experience for them as they learned many things about Chinese investments and the good work the Chinese companies are doing in Pakistan.

The students said due to a lack of information in Gwadar, they had missed many good opportunities, but now they got a clear picture of the opportunities they can have.

“I have heard about Chinese government scholarships. Now I have a clear idea about the application process,” Shahnaz Shafi Muhammad, a 22-year-old student of business administration, told Xinhua.

The students also watched a documentary about the development of Shenzhen. They showed a resolve that they will work hard for the development of Gwadar.

Mustafa Hyder Sayed, executive director of the Is-

Ministers skip sitting in Imran attack probe

LAHORE Staff report

Three Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) members of the federal cabinet, who were summoned by the joint investigation team (JIT) to probe the assassination bid on former prime minister Imran Khan, skipped the proceedings.

Rana Sanaullah Khan, Marriyum Aurangzeb and Mian Javed Latif, who purportedly accused Khan of committing blasphemy, were summoned by the five-member team at the office of the Lahore police chief Saturday.

A station house officer (SHO) at the city police station in Wazirabad, where the chairman of the op-

Pakistan, China celebrate friendship through folk music concert

ISLAMABAD Xinhua

On the dark Friday night when the air in Islamabad was getting chilly in the light winter drizzle, the hearts of people inside the Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA) were feeling the warmth of friendship between Pakistan and China by watching mesmerising performances of artists from Pakistan and China. The weekend night celebrated the friendship between the two countries, for which the China Cultural Center in Pakistan and China’s Hebei Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism with the collaboration of PNCA jointly produced a China-Pakistan Folk Music Concert to highlight the bilateral ironclad friendship. The Chinese artists sang folk songs and performed in Chinese orchestras whereas the Pakistani artists narrated folklores through dance performances and played melodies of famous folk songs on traditional musical instruments. Acting director General of PNCA, Ayoub Jamali, believes that folk music connects people to their roots, and by listening to the folk music of each other, the people of Pakistan and China developed a spiritual connection with each other’s roots. “In today’s fast life and loud music, the soft folk melodies not only soothe hearts but also give a better understanding of culture and history. Today’s performances gave a glance at the cultural roots of Pakistan and China, and the audience got a better understanding of the history and traditions of both countries,” Jamali told Xinhua. In the 80-minute long online concert, performances of “Battling Against Typhoon” on Guzheng, and musical “Date Harvest” using Suona were highly appreciated by Pakistani audiences whereas musical performances by Pakistani artists such as folk tunes of Rubab and Tabla also received applause.

position Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party was attacked, had issued notices to the ministers on behalf of the team to record their statements.

But the ministers decided against attending the proceedings, according to the party sources.

The 70-year-old former cricket star was wounded in November in a shooting at a rally, part of a rolling march that he has led to press for a general election, since he was ousted in a Parliament vote in April.

He alleges the interior minister, the prime minister and a Pakistan Army general from the spy agency, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), were involved in the assassination attempt. The government and the military have denied the allegations.

Pakistan takes ‘saffron terrorist’ India to cleaners over terrorism accusation

ISLAMABAD Staff report

Rejecting the Indian statement that Pakistan “lacked the credentials” to critique India for electing the “butcher of Gujarat” as its prime minister, the Foreign Office said the people who masterminded the 2002 riots that killed more than 2,000 people, majority of them Muslims, escaped justice and now hold key positions in the far-right government of Narendra Modi.

“With its statement, the Indian government has tried to hide behind subterfuge and canard to conceal the realities of the 2002 Gujarat massacre. It is a shameful story of mass killings, lynching, rape and plunder,” the Foreign Office statement noted. “The fact of the matter is that the masterminds of the Gujarat massacre have escaped justice and now hold key government positions in India,” the Foreign Office Spokesperson said in a press release.”

The latest round of verbal clashes between the nuclear-armed rivals in the United Nations began on Thursday after the Security Council adopted a statement warning of increasing dangers of terrorism, leading to their diplomats heatedly trading accusations and blaming each other for such attacks.

India’s foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, never named Pakistan in his speech to the Security Council. But answering questions afterward from reporters he recalled Hillary Clinton, former US secretary of state, saying during a visit to Pakistan a decade ago “that if you keep snakes in your backyard, you can’t expect them to bite only your neighbours, eventually, they will bite the people who keep them in the backyard.”

“Pakistan is not good at taking good advice,”

Jaishankar said. “The world today sees them as the epicentre of terrorism.”

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, when asked to respond to Jaishankar’s claim at a news conference soon after, said that Pakistan as a nation has been the victim of terrorism, and that he as an individual is a victim of terrorism — his mother, Benazir Bhutto, the first woman elected to lead an Islamic country in 1988, was assassinated by a suicide bomber as she campaigned for president in 2007.

Zardari said fighting against terrorism has been a cause “that is incredibly personal to me.”

He said Jaishankar should remember “that Osama bin Laden is dead, but the butcher of Gujarat lives and he is the prime minister of India.”

Responding to questions from the press, the spokesperson of the Foreign Office, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, said no verbosity could hide the crimes of the “saffron terrorists”, a reference to colour which has over the years come to be identified with Hindu militants, in India.

Hindutva, the political ideology of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) party, had given rise to a climate of hate, divisiveness and impunity, Baloch noted. “The culture of impunity was now deeply embedded in Hindutva-driven polity in India. The acquittal of the mastermind and perpetrators of the heinous attack on the Samjhota Express that killed 40 Pakistanis on Indian soil, demonstrated the massacre of justice under the RSS-BJP dispensation. “Intimidation and demonisation of religious minorities receive official patronage in states across India. Hindutva supremacists have been unleashed to exercise cow vigilantism, ransack places of worship, and attack religious congregations,” she added.

lamabad-based think-tank Pakistan-China Institute, told Xinhua the students are the real stakeholders of the development because they are the future of Gwadar and the future of Pakistan-China friendship.

“The students have a lot of hope and confidence in the future of themselves and Gwadar, and that is very inspiring for me,” Sayed said. He said that his institute coordinated the visit and also shortlisted the students for the visit, adding that in the next phase more students will visit the capital.

Mujahid Hussain, head of the Department of Commerce at the University of Gwadar, who is accompanying the students on the visit, said CPEC is “bringing a lot of positive changes in Gwadar.”

“The prospects of a bright future for Gwadar are clear as the sky. The value of CPEC has increased and many development programs have been initiated,” he noted.

Saad categorically rejects propaganda about sale of Roosevelt Hotel

LAHORE Staff report

Federal Minister for Aviation and Pakistan Railways Khawaja Saad Rafique has categorically rejected the propaganda that the PIA-owned Roosevelt Hotel in the United States is being sold out. Addressing a press conference at the PR headquarters here on Saturday, he alleged that a news channel was telecasting fake news about the Roosevelt Hotel. He said that no such thing was even under consideration. He also rejected that Pakistan's flag had been removed from the hotel and clarified that national flag was hoisted at the hotel only when any head of state of the country stayed over there. Otherwise, he clarified that only two flags were displayed at the hotel including one of the US and the other one of the hotel in routine days. He said that the hotel had been closed during the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government tenure due to some reasons.

ECP kicks off delimitation for Punjab LG polls

ISLAMABAD Staff report

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has started the delimitation of constituencies for local body elections in Punjab. According to the ECP, boundaries of the districts have been frozen, and the transfer of officers involved in the process of delimitation has also stopped across Punjab. The Election Commission issued guidelines to the Punjab government wherein it has been said that no change can be made in the boundaries of the administrative units. The guidelines prohibit the transfer of officers appointed in the Constituency Committee or convener of the Election Commission. Moreover, the work of constituencies of union councils for local government has also been accelerated. The Constituency Committee of the Election Commission will make the constituencies of the union councils. It has also been said that the delimitation of the union councils will be done on the basis of districts, tehsils, patwar circles, revenue states. The commission has thus started the delimitation of constituencies of the union councils.

PM lambasts PTI for creating ‘upheaval’

COntInuED fROM pAgE 01

“There is no doubt that economic havoc was brought under an agenda and the political instability is a continuity of that action,” Sharif noted. The prime minister advised the political opponents to take pity on the condition of the people of Pakistan. To bring the public out of the curse of poverty and unemployment was the real politics, he observed. He further said that during the past four years of the previous government’s tenure, the people had braced for the economic upheaval and exhorted the PTI leaders not to create hurdles in the economic prosperity of the public.

Marriyum

ISLAMABAD app

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Saturday said Imran Khan would never dissolve the provincial assemblies of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which gave protection to him, his wife Bushra Bibi and her friend Farah Gogi against their corruption, loot and plunder. “The coalition government is not afraid of Imran Khan who is a coward, liar and hypocrite person and does not have courage to dissolve the assemblies which he believes

will help him save his skin in foreign funding, Toshakhana and other cases,” she said while addressing a news conference here. She dared Imran Khan to dissolve the assemblies of both the provinces instead of just giving dates just like the 2014 sit-in when he only kept himself limited to giving dates of toppling the then Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) government.

“We have all the options before us and have every right to exercise them as the country does not and cannot afford political instability at this time,” Marriyum said, reiterating that the coalition government would

complete its constitutional term and the general elections would be held in October 2023. She said it was out of question that Imran Khan would dissolve the assemblies which helped him run his kitchen and arrange the public gatherings with pomp.

Imran Khan just had one point agenda which was to get an NRO like concession from the coalition government, she said, adding these tactics would not help him pressurize those who had faced his brutalities during his “fascist” and “autocratic” regime. “He believes that he can blackmail or put pressure on us with such threats, but he

should know that we did not bow to his pressure at that time when he put us in the death cells,” Marriyum remarked.

At the outset of her presser, the minister said Imran Khan again wasted time of media and nation today by repeating his old speech which proved that his mental condition was not good. The faces of the chief ministers of Punjab and KP, who sat beside him, clearly showed that they lacked interest in what he was saying during his address to the PTI workers.

She said Imran Khan seemed confused and frustrated which showed that the loss of

power had badly impacted his mental health. “The National Assembly has been vacated from the propaganda group through the vote of no confidence motion and days are not far when Imran Khan’s governments in provincial assemblies of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will also fall,” she added.

The minister said it had been proven that Imran Khan did not care about the democracy, politics, national interest, foreign policy and economy. He harmed the national interests and foreign policy by creating drama of cipher on realizing his imminent ouster from the power.

The police have the suspected shooter in custody after he was intercepted by a PTI supporter who threw off his aim.

Imran doesn’t need to give dates but should have courage to dissolve Punjab & KP assemblies:

No escape from the Toshakhana

New audio throws new light on Toshakhana gifts’ sale

Another audioclip has emerged, of a conversation between PTI chief Imran Khan’s wife and a Bani Gala administrator which indicate that gifts given to either Imran or his wife first came to Bani Gala before being sent to the Toshakhana. The first audioclip saw Bushra Begum talking to close Imran aide Zulfi Bokhari about the sale of some wristwatches. Mr Khan himself has tried to defend himself by saying it was his watch, to do with as he liked, after he had paid the requisite amount. Is the amount paid to obtain ownership, which includes the right of sale? Or does it merely allow the recipient to retain the gift as a memento of the visit abroad, or the hosting of the guest, and not include the right of resale? Be that as it may, selling gifts cannot enhance relations with the giver of the gift.

The aspect of a coldblooded scam has been raised not just by the diamond-encrusted de Graff watch that he is alleged to have sold, but by the jewellery given to Mr Khan’s wife. The scam works thus: the gift is grossly undervalued and the recipient (who has influenced the evaluation) pays the 50 percent demanded by law, sells the gift at a throwaway price (but much more than the evaluation), and pockets the difference. This cannot be poohpoohed as no corruption. Such sharp practice, by someone who claims to be totally honest, demands a thorough enquiry. That enquiry must be free of the kind of interference alleged by Mr Khan, when he said in an address that as PM he had no control over NAB, and that the COAS let off the corrupt.

That enquiry may envelope Mr Khan, his wife and her friend and alleged accomplice, Ms Farhat ‘Gogi’ Shehzadi, but it should also involve bringing to book all responsible, including Toshakhana and establishment Dicvision officials, and those responsible for such laughable evaluations. Unless those evaluators who connived at the scam are not blacklisted, there can be no reform in the future. That enquiry must be conducted before the next elections, because it seems Mr Khan wishes to campaign on the corruption issue, blaming the previous COASfor his lack of achievement in corruption. The electorate has a right to know if the charges against him are wellgrounded, or if corruptoion is a topic he should avoid.

Yousaf Nizami Editor

M. A. Niazi Joint Editor

Thereis little doubt that Pakistan is in a catch-22 situation. From political instability to the economic meltdown and social disintegration, there is hardly any issue Pakistan is alien to. Of course, much more like the causes of all issues, there is clear evidence that the root cause of all issues is the mindset of the people. Being made on religious lines coupled with unending divisions within Islam, the state seems anachronistic at best. It looks as if Pakistan tries to live in the Stone Age. Add to this the military establishment and political impotence, there stands a perfect recipe for disaster. In hindsight, we can say that the dismemberment of Pakistan owes much to the multifaceted injustices done to the majority. It seems today our elites are poised to repeat history with utter indifference to consequences.

honest discussion about the wrong inception and its consequences doesn’t go too far or even doesn’t get any attention. No historian disputes the claim that Pakistan came about in a hurry and all sorts of interpretations festooned it. People took Pakistan the way they wanted that is, the secular showed the portrait and lifestyle of the founder while conservative Muslims took refuge in the ideological moorings of Pakistan— it all boils down to nothing concrete, nothing definitive and nothing clear.

history is taught more like propaganda.

Acceptance vs. Self-acceptance: Ways Forward Acceptance

is a conscious evaluation of self and accepting it with all deficiencies, strengths, and capabilities based on facts and reality. Under it, there is no such compulsion or compromise in case of self-acceptance and therefore it sounds well in spiritual meanings and further study.

every field.

This journey of social acceptance begins from early childhood when a child tries to mix with other children and also makes some changes in his attitudes and habits simply to fit in, or be adjusted. In the process they copy others’ hairstyle, clothes designs, as well as other social habits, to lead a normal life. The same is also followed by adults and even aged people when they face any social humiliation or insult in public. Apart from these normal cases, social acceptance plays a vital role in treating the mentally ill or disabled people who need support of people and groups in society, and society, in general, must take care of diseased persons of every age to make the social environment supportive and healthy; it however, sometimes requires some conditions that need to be fulfilled.

‘A

cceptance’ is a popular term of human psychology in which a person accepts or gives his assent to a real situation and thus recognizes all processrs and conditions attached herewith without wishing for any change, alteration or protest.

In a further explanation it can also be explained as an agreement when something is offered by a company or party and another receives it becomes a sign of positive welcome, belonging, favour and endorsement. In the sense, this act of acceptance is automatically converted into a contract and imposed several bindings on behalf of the proposer in the form and manner it is proposed.

Apart from psychological parameters, the spiritual side defines acceptance as the ‘surrender to the now’ which simply means that we have accepted all things without changing any fact about the prevailing situation and there is no story attached herewith and in either way it is an acceptance of the fact whatsoever the emotions are- sad, afraid, happy or overthinking.

In contrast to this self-acceptance is an individual’s satisfaction or happiness with oneself. In the sense it is directly related to one’s awareness of strength as well as weaknesses, based on realistic approach, talent and capabilities. This quality of man is beneficial for mental health as it involves self-understanding, followed by self-acceptance. In this context it is also supposed to be good for clinical psychology and positive psychology because it allows a person to change by stopping, criticizing, and solving his ot her defects. In other words, while acceptance means allowing all things, thoughts, feelings and urges to come and go without struggling with them, self-acceptance is a realization of one’s deficiencies, awareness, strength as well as weaknesses and thus, better for physical and mental health of an individual.

In any case, when we compare acceptance and self-acceptance the former is an acceptance of the offer as presented by a company or entity without considering any pros and cons while self-acceptance

Pakistan at a Crossroads

Those who invaded our homeland are touted as our heroes despite their genocidal acts. At times, we take refuge in the arms of Turks; sometimes, we embrace Persians and even the barbaric Afghan Pashtuns who devastated much of this place, and they become our heroes. If one takes a look at the names of our roads, public places and even missiles, they teem with foreigners who ruined the Subcontinent. Surprisingly, what makes us believe this is Islam?

Politics is another religion Pakistanis love to hate. Much more like Islam, there are a great number of sects in politics based on the allegiance and loyalty of a leader whose policies can’t be wrong. Indeed, the opposition always finds fault with the incumbent whether or not they are viable. On the one hand, it seems most Pakistanis know about politics, on the other, while voting they turn out to be as ignorant as Stone Age people.

The fact is that even today, so-called educated individuals think dynastic politics isn’t a problem. In other words, the best Pakistan can produce or has produced is Bilawal Bhutto Zardari or Maryam Nawaz. It is a pure disaster and shows that blind following of respective leadership rules the roost. No one doubts that if Bilawal or Maryam or hamza is competent enough, they should be given chances, but they should go through the process. When Bilawal was asked about dynastic politics, his answer was simply embarrassing, that this life chose him. The same can be said of Imran Khan’s son or any other. No one forces him to come to politics. It was his own choice at best.

In the same vein, economics is treated

This is why the ancient Greeks preferred self-acceptance rather than acceptance and the study of ‘Self’ went long way in advance of several contemporary theories, therapy, and developmental approach especially, while working on mental health, theory of personality, self-developmental works and lifespan theories. even in today’s daily life the concept of selfacceptance is more recognised than acceptance because the former has 1.a positive self-attitude, 2. It acknowledges all aspects including good as well as bad, 3. It contains a clear identity and has no confusion, and 4. It believes in reality and facts inside and outside.

While under acceptance people generally accept the given outcome without making any comment and no matter arises about the previous events but only approval is important and, in most cases, there is no scope for resistance.

however, the concept of acceptance is commonly used in the sphere of religion where acceptance of faith or religious rules/dicta is compulsory, and in the treatment of alcoholism. This formula is beneficial in treating a disturbed people when they are upset by s person, place, thing, or situation. In the context, the concept of self-acceptance is better because it does not allow us to be unhappy; or have feelings of isolation, loneliness and others that negate our health and immune system at large, and thus being a boon for physical and mental health of humanity.

related to the concept of acceptance is the aspect of social acceptance which is defined as the fact that most people, in order to fit in with others, look and act like them and in other words it may also refer to the ability to accept or to tolerate differences or diversity in other people or groups of people. In today’s world it is a common term where people of all age groups, children, teenagers and adults along with people with mental disabilities, because social acceptance works as a precondition for leading a normal life in society whereby people of all ages get a lot through interactions with other people who live together. Under it, a vast network of welcoming and tolerating diversified things are created to make life easy in

In addition to the words- acceptance and selfacceptance, there is the issue of belief which affects our life in close scrutiny while accepted by individuals, especially, in religious context, equally applied to Islam and Christianity. For Islam, more suitable words are ‘surrender’ and ‘voluntary submission’ while for Christianity acceptance is based on accepting Jesus of Nazareth as the Christ and God’s will. While detailing the acceptance it may be of two kinds- expressed and implied. In expressed acceptance people normally accept all conditions attached with the offer in an overt way and explicitly give consent in favour without making any change in the offer, but in implied acceptance people express their intent to consent in an indirect way demonstrating or indicating an act of consent. however, in comparison, the concept of selfacceptance is better and helpful for common man in a society as it 1. Increases the sense of freedom, 2. Decreases the fear of failure, 3. Increases the volume of independence, 4. Means less desire for approval of others, 5. Becomes more kind when mistakes occur, 6. Leads a life focused on self, 7. Takes more risks without caring for consequences.

It is thought to be necessary for good mental health. In the sphere of psychological benefits, selfacceptance includes mood regulation, decreases depression, and increases positive emotions to fight the individual’s incapacities internally and externally.

The writer is Professor of Political Science and Dean of Social Sciences along with Dean, Student’s Welfare (DSW), at B.N. Mandal University, Madhepura (Bihar), India. His 21 books published in addition to 900 articles in national and international journals and daily newspapers from 25 foreign countries.

stance, why would Zardari bring land reform given that he has a quarter of interior Sindh?

with pure confusion. The courts have given statement after statement regarding the interest-free system in spite of its impracticality. elite capture has put millions on the back burner and less than five percent of people get the benefit of the country at the cost of 95 percent. Successive regimes haven’t been able to effect meaningful and sustainable changes for the obvious reason— they are also part of the five-percent elite. For in-

Today, living a decent life has become a herculean task. No economic indicator depicts an optimistic picture. As a result, competent individuals are leaving this country in droves. even government employees find it hard to put decent food on the table and they are doing their best to make it to any other country.

If one takes a look at the speed at which the population is rising, there is a dead end waiting for us. Teeming with an ocean of problems coupled with unabated population growth, things are murky. Almost 25 million

The fact is that we don’t need a PhD in politics to understand and do something about the current state of the country. The experiment has already been done by the West over centuries. A thousand years ago, the West was going through the same crises, which we are facing today. They took some radical decisions to put their houses in order. Any elementary book on the subject in question can make things clear. Secularism, strong institutions, meritocracy and inclusive growth based on science and technology are some of the mainstays behind the prosperity of the West. We have the formula, and we only have to apply it

children are out of school, and those who are in school find it hard to read and write, let alone solve mathematical problems.

Today, Pakistan is rightly called an old sick man of Asia. Politicians don’t find ways to come together on outstanding issues such as poverty, inflation and political polarization. The army doesn’t want to stay within its own constitutional boundaries; the judiciary is more interested in anything but dispensing justice; the masses are fooled by clever politicians on issues which have zero significance for them.

The fact is that we don’t need a PhD in politics to understand and do something about the current state of the country. The experiment has already been done by the West over centuries. A thousand years ago, the West was going through the same crises, which we are facing today. They took some radical decisions to put their houses in order. Any elementary book on the subject in question can make things clear. Secularism, strong institutions, meritocracy and inclusive growth based on science and technology are some of the mainstays behind the prosperity of the West. We have the formula, and we only have to apply it.

The writer is a freelance columnist

nazim uDDin

It is thought to be necessary for good mental health. In the sphere of psychological benefits, selfacceptance includes mood regulation, decreases depression, and increases positive emotions to fight the individual’s incapaciies internally and externally.

Dr rajkumar Singh

Dedicated to the legacy of late Hameed Nizami Arif Nizami (Late) Founding Editor

Umar Aziz Executive Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad Joint Editor

The unsung fellow travellers

On the cruel highway to the capital

CAPITALSare called “Pai-takht” in Persaian, meaning the seat of power; from which emanates the authority to make changes towards good or bad.

As power generates its abuse; it is despised, but wished for. In everyday politics; which might have turned sophisticated with the passage of time; due to development of an industrial society and an intruding state structure; the mechanics of power remain primitive. A dialogue from the Shayam Benegal movie on 1857 Junoon encapsulates the reality; where a Muslim warrior is promised the hand in marriage of an english girl; provided the warrior enters Delhi as an occupier. Control of the capital ensures victory; political or military, even in the modern world.

Coming back to the real life scenarios; in Pakistani politics; the storming of the capital; through parliamentary democracy; through street power and lastly through palace coups, has been the norm all political parties follow in one way or another. Most recently, the guessing game over the dissolution of two assemblies; Punjab and KPK is also geared towards the same objective. In their pursuits for political power; which sometimes bear favourable results and sometimes might fall short of the intended target, there is always a crop of comrades and activists who are ignored, not awarded or are simply bestowed the title of the ‘unsung heroes’ of the struggle, no matter how crucial their sacrifice.

Given the fact that the politics in Pakistan has never taken the revolutionary road; it has always trod a path set by the established order, or in plain words the military leadership of the day. With that aspect decided, it has never been a right thing for the activists to risk their life, honour and property beyond a self-drawn red line. Most of the political activism; whether it has been student politics, political workmanship or media personnel sympathetic to a particular political ideology or creed, has tried to stay clear of that.

The Junejo government, too decent by Pakistani standards, the post-1988 political governments resumed that crossing of the red lines pertaining to the sphere of human rights abuses. The 1990 ouster of the first post-Zia PPP government opened the floodgates of human rights abuse. The caretaker Jam Sadiq Ali Sindh government, whose hold was formalized in the subsequent 1990 elections, had the reputation of no hold barred repression of PPP cadre. The Shah Bandar point blank range killing of alleged Al -ulfiqar militants was the start of that campaign. That was followed by the brutal repression of female activists of the Peoples Students Federation in the Saddar CIA centre. In fall 1991, and an alleged molesting of a close friend of the then PPP leader Late Benazir Bhutto in Karachi DhA during the same period. These were the instances when human rights abuses were pushed to its limits.

When the PPP opted for a long march against the PML(N) government in November 1992 with tacit support from parts of the established order, the police in the largest province, Punjab, unleashed abuse on student activists and senior leaders alike. One PSF activist was so brutally beaten that he almost lost his ability to

These were the instances which were recorded by the human rights organizations; notably the human rights Commission of Pakistan. The following period, when the Musharraf coup in 1999 gave way to a renewed political process in the aftermath of the 2002 elections was relatively free of big incidents. At that time the law enforcing agenies were more engrossed in the anti-terror/ Al Qaeda/Taliban business than to lay their hand on any political activist.

The only untoward incident; that of the current Interior minister and then PML(N) activist, was subject to indecent behavioru by Intelligence sleuths.

The period between 2008 to 2018 was relatively free of any human rights abuses against political activists. however, journalists were subject to torture and even killing; the extra judicial murder; with broken ‘rib cage’ of Syed Saleem Shahzad in May 2011, whose linkages with the War On Terror were the reason; the very reason journalist bodies looked the other way; for obvious reasons.

to state intimidation. however, the sanctity of life and honour has been always maintained in one way or another.

The events after April 2022, included pointed torture episodes of political victimization, hounding of journalists to the point of actually killing one; pressurizing media houses to economically strangulate journalists who were not in line with the established order. In one instance, one journalist had to lose his life in mysterious circumstances in a foreign land; a treatment usually reserved for what the established order marks as persons with anti-state credentials; the likes of slain brother of BB, Mir Shah Nawaz Bhutto, who was killed in France, July 1985 and many Baloch separatists in Western destinations.

For Pakistan, solutions might not be rooted in he vs him. A broader discourse is needed to reach the benchmarks. In the absence of which, the road to change will never be that road, rather a road to Pai-takht, the altar for power grab; which feeds on blood and sweat, unappreciated. It is high time that the basic assumptions of politics change with the intervention of a mature middle strata leadership; able to link with cause, then a personality. Until then, much blood and honour will be lost in vain.

The period after 2018 has been marked by greater regimentation of civil society. The automatic impact of that state of affairs has been the greatest number of journalists going off the air, if not actually killed in mysterious circumstances. That same period also gave birth to the corps of fifth-generation warriors; journalists with limited capabilities like remote controlled drones seconding for fullfledged combat aircraft in the pursuit of completing a task.

The breakup of April 2022 between the established order and its pushed political trend, the PTI, created a situation similar to the breakup of 1981 in Iran after the ouster of moderate President Bani Sadr by the clerical establishment or that of fundamentalist Ikhwan (not to be confused with egyptian IM or the Ibn Saud tribe. It opened the gate to a better-armed opponent to do what it wanted to. Pakistan has been previously subjected to political victimization where the worker, student or journalists were subjected

As things stand, the so-called agitation launched by Imran Khan is near dead for all practical purposes. The party somersaults with each step from the establishment, its unwillingness to act radical and find support from within the system, all backfired effectively in the favour of the established order. however, what is unresolved for many are the lost jobs, lost honour and the irreparable loss of the dear ones.

In the backdrop of these incidents; where competent professionals, opinion makers and common men made sacrifices in the hope of real change, the actual on-ground reality turned out to be ‘politics as usual’; it is a painful reality to live with.

In a society where individual life and honour are subjected to peril; where the whole system;s good or bad behaviour hangs on the whims of a single person understanding or otherwise of the ground reality; movements for change need to be rooted in intellectual foundations and not based on individuals. Societies based in intellectual discourse have been able to find the right leadership in due course of time and led the way to overturning the ‘old regime’.

For Pakistan, solutions might not be rooted in he vs him. A broader discourse is needed to reach the benchmarks. In the absence of which, the road to change will never be that road, rather a road to Pai-takht, the altar for power grab; which feeds on blood and sweat, unappreciated. It is high time that the basic assumptions of politics change with the intervention of a mature middle strata leadership; able to link with cause, then a personality. Until then, much blood and honour will be lost in vain.

The writer is a freelance columnist

Editor’s mail

We need a different kind of assemblies

POLITICALpolarisation is a hot topic being discussed, debated and circulated on multiple platforms in Pakistan these days. It is discernible on many fronts and has been impacting society in various ways.

With the result of intense radicalisation, socio-economic decline and burgeoning population, Pakistan has witnessed a mass diversity in political opinions. Nearly all levels of human life in society have been divided along political lines. even family members are alienated by the expanse of political parties across all frontiers.

Families, communities and groups of people from different backgrounds have set about taking their own partisan political viewpoint while ignoring the fact that parties have given rise to such a divergence of political opinions that national interest is far from visible. No one seems to have any interest in democratic consolidation and to think in terms of strengthening the national interest.

In a country having a democratic setup, voters are true decisionmakers and help elect their representatives in assemblies for their representation and public service delivery. By sharp contrast, Pakistan is split into a wide variety of parties forging the base of elite social class.

But the division within the elite class on the basis of political leanings has further compounded the problems of society. The obvious consequence is civil strife, public agitation, violence and national disunity.

Moreover, polarised news consumption causes diversification and leads to negative attitudes, thoughts and mass resentment. The public does not need to believe what is circulated on the media; rather, it needs to think rationally for the sake of the national interest. The negative role of the national mainstream media has fanned the flames of polarisation and political instability in the country.

Sadly, we are not competent enough to formulate long-term economic policies that may pay off in the long run. The untimely failure of policies acts as a driver of opposite reactions. Thus, polarisation is an unavoidable consequence, derailing the path of political development.

More importantly, religion is a tool that has been repeatedly used for various purposes. For instance, during the 1980s, the country’s foreign policy was aimed at serving the Western capitalist bloc, led by the United States (US), by partnering with it in the fight against the Soviet bloc in Afghanistan. The consequences of that decision to be a frontline partner in global bloc politics still haunt Pakistan in a variety of ways. It engendered numerous cracks and spawned divisions amongst people back then and continues to do that today.

When political polarisation becomes ossified, there are chances that democracy can be in jeopardy and political instability comes about naturally. With this, the erosion of public trust in institutions and prevalence of misinformation in society transpire.

In addition, political polarisation gives an impetus to camp mentality — ‘us versus them’ — which poses a threat to national cohesion and presents an altogether fractured image of the entire polity. We can then see policy inconsistency, biased appointment policies in the public sector and criminalisation of politics as the ripple effect of such an environment of political polarisation.

If Pakistan is to succeed in eliminating the scourge of political polarisation, the best way to respond to this challenge is to create ‘citizen assemblies’ to encourage meaningful contacts, to promote perceptive and perspective thinking, to subordinate the polluted sense of identity to bridge petty differences, to further the cause of proportional representation, to vote on the basis of policies and not for infividuals, and, lastly, to conduct direct referendums on specific issues.

ABDUL QADEER SEELRO LARKANA

State varsities may meet fate of SOEs

Thehigher education Commission (heC) chairman, while recently interacting with journalists, urged the federal and provincial governments not to establish further public-sector higher education institutions till the country comes out of the current financial crisis.

Instead, he wants focus on the quality of already established government institutions. earlier this year, the federal education minister imposed a ban on the opening of new universities on the recommendation of the Standing Committee on education and Training of the National Assembly. These statements indicate a chronic policy problem the country has been facing since its inception. The current realisation goes way beyond quality or the current financial crisis. It is an issue of the sustainability of public higher education system in Pakistan.

The news of the unsustainability of state-owned enterprises (SOes) in Pakistan is nothing new. According to Ministry of Finance, out of 202 SOes, 197 suffered losses in 2018. Overall, the government has been sustaining a net loss since 2015 on account of the SOes. I fear the disease may spread beyond commercial enterprises into the realm of higher education.

The bureaucratic red-tapism and temporary political gains that led to the current situation of the SOes are now making their way to the higher education sector, too. Our blatant failure to timely redress and acknowledge the issues led us to the mess that we are in today.

Similarly, the higher education sector is rolling towards an unsustainable future and timely amends in its course is the only way to its survival. Otherwise, it will just become another white elephant with its costs exceeding its contribution to society and economy. It was vital to develop higher education infrastructure across the country given the fact that at the time of its inception, Pakistan had only a single university, the University of the Punjab in Lahore, and merely 40 colleges.

Since the establishment of the heC on Sept 11, 2002, the higher education sector has been making strides in almost every avenue; from faculty development to the establishment of new institutions. But there is always an optimal limit to a problem expanding beyond which will result in a decline leading towards an unsustainable situation. There are currently over 200 public and private universities in Pakistan, and among these around 150 are publicsector universities. Out of these 150 universities, many hold multiple campuses across the country, and more than 50 per cent of the universities were established after 2002.

Currently, Pakistan is facing an economic crisis, but despite the current financial limitations, an exponential increase in the number of higher educational institutions itself imposed an additional financial burden on the state treasury.

DR MUHAMMAD HAROON RASHEED SARGODHA

cohabit and procreate. Likewise a senior leader who decades later rose to be Governor of the same province; was exposed to ‘roller’; a form of torture by the police; where the victim’s body is pressed with heavy rollers. Not to ignore the record fumes of tear gas the deceased leader of PPP, Benazir Bhutto, had to inhale in the Islamabad police blockade.

naqi akbar

world vIew

Jews are Leaving israeL in disiLLusion

A NEW MOVEMENT TO LEAVE ISRAEL AFTER THE RECENT ELECTIONS IS PART OF A LONG TRADITION OF DISILLUSIONED JEWISH COLONISTS DEPARTING THE LAND

pany or has a sought-after profession in the US such as doctors and pilots, immigrate to the US."

Kahana is not the first Jewish businessman to own a huge farm in New Jersey with plans to turn it into a Jewish settler colony.

In the midst of massive Jewish migration from 1882 to 1914, which brought about two million Russian Jewish immigrants to the US to escape increasing poverty and the rise of antisemitism, the German-French Jewish financier and philanthropist Baron Maurice de hirsch was the forerunner of such efforts.

De hirsch founded the Jewish Colonisation Association (JCA) which was incorporated in London in 1891.

ica) is referred to as "yeridah", a pejorative term meaning “descent” (from heaven?).

Some Zionists claim the terms have biblical origins, although the Zionist rendering has little to do with their original meaning.

It is instructive in this regard that Kahana, pace the Zionist movement, describes Israeli Jewish emigration to the US as "aliyah". he explains that “I made aliyah to the US in 1991…I raised my standard of living and I’ve raised the level of my own and my children’s education.”

was still a feature of the Jewish colonists’ experience in the country. But between 1948 and the mid-1950s, 10 percent of the new colonists had also left the country.

THE SETTLER-COLONIAL PROJECT FAILS: Concerned about the failure of its settler-colonial project to keep the Jewish colonists in the country, the Israeli government introduced severe restrictions on their emigration from 1948 until 1961 by requiring an exit visa, which was often denied.

though a good number went to Brazil), and British colonists in Kenya, had done.

Middle eAsT eye Joseph Massad

TheIsraeli newspaper Maariv reported this week on a new movement whose goal is to facilitate the emigration of Israeli Jews to the United States following the recent Israeli elections, which, in their view, alters the Zionist state’s relationship to religion.

The group, which calls itself “Leaving the country - together”, plans to move 10,000 Israeli Jews in the first stage of its plan. Leaders of the group include Israeli anti-Netanyahu activist Yaniv Gorelik and Israeli-American businessman Mordechai Kahana.

Kahana, who has historically been active in bringing Jewish colonists to Israel, told the newspaper: “After years of smuggling Jews from war zones in Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria, and Ukraine to Israel, I decided to help Israelis make Aliyah to the US… it is time to offer the Zionist movement an alternative in case things in Israel keep getting worse.”

Kahana added: “I saw people in WhatsApp groups talking about the immigration of Israelis to Romania or Greece, but I personally think that it will be a lot easier for them to immigrate to the US.

"I have a huge farm in New Jersey, and I offered Israelis to join in order to turn my farm into a kibbutz… with such a government in Israel, the American government should let every Israeli who owns a com-

Its aim was to fund Jewish agricultural colonies for Russian Jews inside Russia and around the world, but especially in the Americas. The JCA’s first agricultural colony in the US was Woodbine Colony, founded in 1891 in southern New Jersey.

In 1890, hirsch founded the Jewish Agricultural Society, which helped move Jewish colonists from the east Coast of the US inland. It lasted until 1972. In 1892, he founded the Woodbine Agricultural School to educate and fund Jewish colonists in farming methods. The Woodbine Colony prospered in the 1920s and 1930s and after 1948 received hundreds of holocaust survivors as new colonists. Aside from the JCA’s agricultural colony in New Jersey, the Jewish Territorial Organisation, an offshoot of the Zionist Organisation, which was established in 1901, helped to fund the “Galveston Plan” for Jewish colonisation of the western US through Galveston, Texas in 1907.

The plan succeeded in sending 10,000 Jewish immigrants to the US Southwest by 1914. Today, Kahana seems interested in similar schemes.

In Israel, a country steeped in Zionist religious and colonial ideology, Jewish emigration to Palestine as colonists is historically referred to as "aliyah", a positive term meaning “ascent” (to heaven?). however, Jewish colonists’ spurning this colonisation effort by emigrating to europe or its white settler colonies (mainly the US, Canada, and Australia, but also South Amer-

The departure of Jewish colonists from Palestine is hardly a new phenomenon and is in fact as old as the Zionist Jewish colonisation of the country, which started in the 1880s. At the time, Jewish colonists from Ukraine, members of the Kharkov- and Odessa-based Bilu movement, left Palestine, after being disillusioned with the results of their colonial efforts, to the US and back to Russia.

Indeed, between the 1880s and World War I, a majority of the Jewish colonists who had arrived in Palestine in the interim left the country. As much as 10 percent, about 60,000, would leave between the 1920s and 1948, in addition to the 30,000 who left prior to the British conquest.

According to Israeli researcher Meir Margalit, thousands more colonists wanted to emigrate but did not have the means to leave. Thousands more appealed to the United Nations after World War II “to be included on the lists of refugees entitled to return to their homeland in europe – similar to the displaced persons scattered throughout europe”.

The Palestine-based Organisation of Returning German Immigrants demanded that the UN help them go back to Austria and Czechoslovakia.

In 1947, Jewish colonists submitted 485 requests for an Austrian passport, while the Polish consul in Tel Aviv reported that 14,500 Polish Jewish colonists requested visas to return to their homeland, although Zionist leaders would conspire with the Poles to create endless delays in processing requests to dissuade would-be emigrants.

After Israel was established, emigration

Despite such restrictions, by the tenth anniversary of the founding of Israel in 1958, 100,000 colonists had left. By 1967, more than 180,000 Israelis, most of them Jews, emigrated. Obstacles continued to be placed in their way by the Israeli government in the 1960s and beyond.

Still, by 1980, as many as half a million Israelis were already emigrants in the US alone. By the end of 2003, the Israeli government estimated that more than 750,000 Israelis were living outside the country permanently, the majority in the US and Canada.

In more recent years, it is estimated that of the 600,000-750,000 Israelis living in the US, 230,000 were Israel-born Jews (meaning children of Jewish immigrant-colonists). Between 1948 and 2015, the Israeli government claims, 720,000 Israelis emigrated and never returned. The Palestinian population has already been a majority in the land between the river and the sea for a number of years, outstripping the number of Jewish colonists who live in the country. In the meantime, more than one million Israeli Jews have obtained dual nationalities in the last two decades, with the second nationality being invariably european or American, in preparation to leave the settler colony if and when it goes under.

That the disillusioned Jewish colonists want to opt-out of their settler colony and move to another, where white privilege is also secured, is hardly anomalous.

White colonists across the settler-colonial world have opted to either go back to the european mother countries, as French colonists in North Africa, Portuguese colonists in Angola and Mozambique (al-

Can Biden afford to give up on the Iran nuclear deal?

Ben Caspit has the exclusive this week that Israel’s intelligence leadership sees lasting change as a result of the protests, but, so far, none of the telltale signs that the government is about to fall.

Others moved to Australia, Canada, and the United States (white Rhodesians moved after 1980 mostly to apartheid South Africa), as South African whites had done. Already in 2016, it was estimated that up to about 30 percent of French Jews who emigrated to Israel ended up returning home to France, despite intense efforts by Israel and Zionist groups to attract them and keep them in the settler colony.

The significance of the new movement "Leaving the country – together" is that it is the immediate outcome of the most recent accession to power of a new Israeli government.

That so many Israeli Jews and their liberal supporters abroad are appalled by the nature of the forthcoming Netanyahu government is mostly motivated by concern over the fate of the allegedly "secular-democratic" Jewish colonial society being transformed into a religious and racist state, and not necessarily on account of its anti-Palestinian racism and commitments to deepen Jewish colonisation.

The latter, however, remains a concern in so far as it could lead to the undoing of "the Jewish state" altogether. For the Palestinians, Israel has been, since its founding, a religious and racist state, and most importantly, a settler-colonial one. Unlike Israeli Jewish liberals and their international supporters, for the Palestinians, the new Israeli government is likely to differ from its predecessors only in its open rhetoric about Jewish supremacy and Jewish colonisation, but not in its actual racist and colonial policies against the Palestinian people.

Nonetheless, most Palestinians certainly hope that the “Leaving the country—together” group is a good harbinger for the final decolonisation of their country in the near future.

Joseph Massad is professor of modern Arab politics and intellectual history at Columbia University, New York. He is the author of many books and academic and journalistic articles.

Long wait for extradition

TheIran nuclear deal has the feel these days of the halloween movie series. Just as you can never count on Michael Myers being truly dead, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) seems to have an endless stream of lives and sequels.

Less than two weeks ago Rob Malley, the Biden administration’s Iran envoy, said that because Tehran is “not interested” in the JCPOA, the US is “focused on other things,” such as “trying to deter and disrupt the provision of weapons to Russia and trying to support the fundamental aspirations of the Iranian people.” But what if Iran is interested again?

On Dec. 9, following a call with Josep Borrell, the eU high Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and UN-mandated coordinator of the JCPOA negotiations, Iran Foreign Minister hossein Amir-Abdollahian tweeted that “we are on the way to the final stage of a good, strong & durable agreement.”

Three days later Borrell, briefing the eU Foreign Affairs Council, said, “We do not have a better option than the JCPOA to ensure that Iran does not develop nuclear weapons.” he added, “This remains in our own interest.”

Borrell said the eU should separate the human rights-Russia-drones and JCPOA files, calling for continued engagement with Iran “as much as possible” on the nuclear file, despite the current stalemate.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry responded to the eU on the JCPOA by saying that “Iran’s aim is to sign a lasting agreement” and “is prepared to conclude the talks in line with the draft of the Vienna negotiations, which were the result of months of hard and intensive discussions.”

Iran soon after agreed to the visit of an International Atomic energy Agency (IAeA) delegation on Dec. 18 to attempt to resolve a longstanding dispute regarding potential Iranian violations of the nuclear safeguards agreement (read the latest IAeA report here).

Regional contacts and officials are also telling us that Iran is indeed signaling renewed interest in closing the nuclear deal. There may be skepticism of Iran’s intentions, but the stakes are too high not to take to note of what appears to be a possible shift in Tehran’s position.

IRAN MAY WANT TO CHANGE

THE CONVERSATION: As protests continue in Iran, the Islamic Republic finds it easier to single out enemies abroad, rather than its own reactionary policies, as cause of the unrest. Criticism and sanctions by the US and the eU are seen as part of a campaign, which includes especially Israel and Saudi Arabia, to destabilize the Islamic Republic.

Tehran can’t be seen as giving in at home or abroad in its policies while under siege.

For Iran’s clerical rulers, the die may be cast, and the government will remain in a perpetual state of tension and conflict with wide segments of its population, especially women and youth. Thus, it might be time to try to change the conversation back to the nuclear deal. The economic payoff for Iran,

through unfrozen assets and lifting of energy and financial sanctions, would be substantial, as we explain here.

There also may be a sense among some of Iran’s more pragmatic leaders that they blew it in August, a month before protests broke out following the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini for a hijab violation. A deal was close last summer, but talks broke down after Iran introduced the safeguards issue and asked for even more guarantees in case the US again withdraws from the deal, as former US President Donald Trump did in 2018.

NETANYAHU AND THE IRAN DEAL: The return of Benjamin Netanyahu, a committed opponent of the nuclear deal, as Israel’s prime minister, may also be an incentive for Tehran to return to negotiations. Netanyahu told the Saudi media outlet Al-Arabiya this week that he will do whatever he can to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, even without Washington’s consent.

Iran’s leaders would not admit it, but they probably consider a deepening of Israeli-Saudi security coordination against Iran a disaster, especially given the present situation.

Both Iran and Israel interestingly flashed some realism this year with the signing of US-brokered Israel-Lebanon maritime boundary agreement in October. As we wrote here, that agreement is essentially an Iranian deal, if two steps removed, via the Lebanese government and hezbollah. Netanyahu, in the Al-Arabiya interview, reiterated his commitment to abide by the deal, despite his criticism of it during the election campaign.

Regime change is a high bar. Fragile autocratic states under extended siege rarely end with a democratic turnaround. There are numerous cases, none directly comparable, except as an analytical caution: Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, egypt, etc.

CAN BIDEN EMBRACE REALISM ON IRAN?

US President Joe Biden made a return to the Iran nuclear deal a top administration priority. he has said repeatedly that he will not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon on his watch, and that diplomacy is the best approach to meet that goal.

The incentive for a deal should be as strong as ever. Nuclear diplomacy has never been about rewarding the Iranian government nor investing in its changing for the better. It was and is about keeping Iran from getting the bomb, and the consequences of what would follow if it did, including the possibility of a regional nuclear arms race. The IAeA, and the international community, is alarmed that Iran has increased the level of its uranium enrichments to 60%, which is one technical step away from 90%, weapons-grade enrichment level.

The Biden administration has been careful to say that it has not given up on the JCPOA, just that it has "other priorities." The deal on the table in August, which technically still stands, is the US/eU-approved draft. A return to the talks, of course, starts with Iran. But if Iran gets interested again, the US should as well, reinstating the JCPOA among the "other priorities."

TheUK high Court has denied permission to fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi to appeal to Britain’s Supreme Court against his extradition to India. The development comes a month after an appeal by Nirav, filed on the grounds of mental health, was rejected by the high Court, which ruled that his ‘risk of suicide is not such that it would be unjust or oppressive to extradite him to India to face charges’. however, the twin setbacks to Nirav, accused of fraud and money laundering in the Rs 13,500-crore Punjab National Bank loan scam case, do not imply that he will be back in India anytime soon. he still has the option of approaching the european Court of human Rights; Nirav can argue that he will not receive a fair trial and will be detained in violation of the european Convention on human Rights, to which the UK is a signatory.

Fugitive economic offenders such as Nirav, liquor baron Vijay Mallya and arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari have been eluding Indian law enforcement agencies for the past several years, having found a safe haven in the UK by investing millions of pounds in that country to acquire British residency. They have been playing the ‘victim’ card to ward off extradition, arguing that they fear illtreatment or a threat to their life in Indian prisons. Seeing through this stratagem, the UK high Court had said in October that since India was a ‘friendly foreign power’, the UK should honour its extradition treaty obligations and avoid picking holes in the Indian Government’s assurances that Nirav would be provided with adequate medical assistance in jail while on trial.

There is a dire need to rework the 30-year-old India-UK extradition treaty so as to ensure faster processing of cases and plugging of loopholes that are being exploited by high-profile culprits. The Fugitive economic Offenders Act, which was enacted by the Indian Government in 2018 after the likes of Nirav and Mallya had fled the country, won’t serve its purpose unless the British authorities try in earnest to make the UK an unwelcome destination for fraudster billionaires.

Al-MoniTor

FOR THE PALESTINIANS, THE NEW ISRAELI GOVERNMENT IS LIKELY TO DIFFER FROM ITS PREDECESSORS ONLY IN ITS OPEN RHETORIC ABOUT JEWISH SUPREMACY

Tribune

India, UK need to make treaty airtight, expedite cases

corporate corner

Pak eNvoy iNvites Uae bUsiNessMeN to taP HUGe PoteNtiaL iN toUrisM

ISLAMABAD StAff rePort

OGDCL, TehzibulAkhlaq Trust collaborate to promote education

PAKISTANAmbassador to the UAE Faisal Niaz Tirmizi has urged the UAE investors and business community to explore investment opportunities in the country. The Ambassador, who assumed charge of his responsibilities last month, visited Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ADCCI) and Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) as part of its introductory meetings with the local businessmen and investors.

Tirmizi called on Mohamed Helal Al Mheiri, director-general of Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry and appreciated the policies adopted by ADCCI for economic development of the UAE and facilitation of the businesses in Abu Dhabi. He emphasized on enhancement of collaboration of ADCCI with the Chambers of Commerce in Pakistan and frequent B2B visits, Khaleej times reported.

the country.

Both sides agreed to initiate one project in Pakistan and the UAE each to further strengthen B2B linkages between the two countries. Earlier, the Ambassador also met chairman of SCCI Abdullah Sultan Al Owais and discussed ways to upgrade trade and investment cooperation between the UAE and Pakistan.

Tirmizi highlighted friendly economic policies, investment opportunities and ease of doing business in Pakistan and invited the chairman and members of the chamber to visit Pakistan and explore immense economic opportunities especially in hospitality and tourism sectors of the country. He also invited the chamber to participate in the International Trade Show in Pakistan, which is scheduled to take place in February 2023. The Ambassador also lauded Sharjah’s leading position in the fields of business and sustainable development, thanking the chamber for its efforts to serve the business community and reinforce collaboration with the Pakistani business community.

IsLAmAbAd: Aiming to revolutionize the education system of Pakistan, the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with TehzibulAkhlaq Trust for sponsoring education with the concept of transforming societies. The seven-year program mainly focuses on providing free education to 25 students in the Baluchistan province's OGDCL operational areas. These students will complete their studies up to grade-12 education at one of the schools run by the TehzibulAkhlaqTrust in Lahore. While commenting on the collaboration, OGDCL Spokesman said, “The project aims to enable financially needy students of operational and concessional areas of OGDCL to continue their education.OGDCL is playing an important role in promoting education in different parts of the country. We believe that training and education are essential for national development.” The project will provide a chance for deserving students of Baluchistan to get quality education and exposure to create a bright future for themselves and will play a role as transforming agents among their communities. Pr

NePRA2nd annual CSR Award ceremony held at NePRA Tower

To celebrate the achievements of NEPRA’s licensees in the area of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), NEPRA today organized the 2ndCSR Award Ceremony at NEPRA Tower, Islamabad. The ceremony was chaired by Chairman NEPRA, Mr. Tauseef H. Farooqi and was attended by a large number of NEPRA Professionals, Social Welfare Organizations, and licensees including, K-Electric, Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC), Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) , HUBCO, NASDA Green and ENGRO etc. Mr. Farooqi in his opening remarks presented his vision about NEPRA’s drive of “Power with Prosperity (PwP)” in addition to its four other drives “Power with Safety”, “Power with Security”, “Power with Unity”, and “Power with Equality”. Furthermore, he shared the latest impact of CSR in year 2022 with total spending of PKR 33.2 billion, total job creation for 51, 586 people and PKR 685 million in flood relief, as reported by the licensees. He also elaborated that NEPRA through its PwP drive is making tremendous headways by encouraging its licensees to help and contribute towards the development of the marginalized sections of the society living under abject poverty through framing and implementation of remarkable social policies and development programs. The event also included presentations by some of the leading social welfare organizations in the country & worldwide. Pr

The Ambassador also briefed Mohamed Helal Al Mheiri about Pakistan’s investment regime and facilitative investment policies. He invited the director general and members of the Abu Dhabi Chamber to visit Pakistan to explore investment opportunities in

The Ambassador and Al Owais also discussed how to further develop priority economic sectors and open up new horizons for partnerships between the Sharjah and Pakistan business communities.

Al Owais welcomed the visiting delegation and wished the new Pakistani ambassador success in his

Climate change becomes major factor affecting agri sector: chairman PARC

ISLAMABAD

Pr

Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) and Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI) Pakistan jointly launched the Plant Wise Plus Program at the National Agricultural Research Center to help improve food security in Pakistan through more sustainable methods of food production. The launch ceremony was attended by senior officials of provincial agricultural departments, extension and research wings besides national and provincial agricultural institutes. Vice chancellors, deans and senior management and private sector representatives were also present on the occasion. Dr. Daniel Elgar, CEO. CABI also participated in the event virtually.

The chief guest of the event, Chairman Pakistan

Agricultural Research Council, Dr. Ghulam Muhammad Ali, in his opening remarks said that the dynamic challenges faced by agriculture need to be tackled through concrete measures.

He highlighted that Pakistan is facing many challenges to meet growing demands of food and fiber owing rapid population growth. Climate change is turned to be the leading factor affecting our agriculture sector. A great lesson for us is the recent floods which destroyed our most productive lands and crops. For this, Pakistan Agricultural Research Council is playing its role with its part-

ners to implement government policy and need-based research for agricultural development. Chairman PARC appreciated CABI for successfully conducting Plant Health Clinic. Dr. Ali said that PARC and CABI have been working for a long time to implement various projects and programs in the country. Chairman PARC urged the scientists to work on innovative projects. Finally, Chairman PARC thanked CABI Senior Regional Director Babar Ihsan Bajwa, his team and all provincial stakeholders for launching the PlantwisePlus program which aims to reduce crop lossesto farmers.

10 fresh Covid-19 cases reported: NIH

ISLAMABAD APP

Health officials on Saturday said that 10 new Coronavirus cases were reported during the last 24 hours. As per data shared by the National Institute of Health (NIH), the case positivity ratio is 0.20 percent while 27 patients were in critical condition. No death was reported from the Coronavirus in the last 24 hours while 5,115 Covid-19 tests were conducted.

Meanwhile, Minister for National Health Services Abdul Qadir Patel appreciated the efforts of all stakeholders, healthcare staff, vac-

cination teams, and administration working across Pakistan despite multiple challenges.

He advised all provinces and regions to administer booster doses to further improve protection against Covid-19 transmission. He said that in view of the global pandemic situation, the Central Health Establishment (CHE) will be strengthened to enhance its functionality.

The minister emphasized the importance of precautions, including social distancing and mask-wearing, especially in crowded places. He also highlighted the need to strictly follow the guidelines for the management of markets.

duties and endeavors to strengthen the two countries’ collaboration. He stressed that the UAE-Pakistani bilateral relations are getting stronger and deeper thanks to the keenness of the two nations’ leaderships to foster their relations and cooperation on all levels.

He stated that such meetings would certainly encourage both sides to develop action plans and explore prospects for strengthening economic relations between Sharjah and Pakistan.

Mohammed Ahmed Amin Al Awadi, directorgeneral of SCCI; Fatima Khalifa Al Muqrab, head of International Cooperation Department, SCCI; as well as Pakistani diplomats and businesspeople from both sides, also attended the meeting.

Hazara division stronghold of PML-N: Muqam

ABBOTTABAD APP

Adviser to the Prime Minister for Political, Public Affairs, National Heritage and Culture, Engr Amir Muqam here Saturday said that Hazara division was the stronghold of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) and his party would sweep next general election from here. Addressing the party workers convention here, Engr Amir Muqam said that PML-N was the strongest and most popular political party of Hazara division with strong roots in masses where former prime minister Nawaz Sharif had completed record development projects for benefits of people. He referred to Hazara Motorway completed by Nawaz Sharif government that provided quality communication facilities to people of Haripur, Abbottabad, Mansehra and other districts of Hazara division. Hazara Motorway was a gift of Nawaz Sharif for people of Hazara that promoted trade and tourism in KP in general and Hazara division in particular. Engr Amir Muqam said that incompetent rulers of the province during their nine years long rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and four years in centre has completely failed to deliver and address the area's problems. He said Tosha Khana and PTI foreign funding cases have exposed the corrupt practices and lies based politics of Imran Khan.

Work on water supply network in G-9, F-9 begins

pr

In order to improve water management the laying of water supply network in New Blue Area G-9, F-9 has been started after the completion of all codal formalities. As many Buildings have been constructed and many are under construction the demand of water supply has increased. The CDA Water Management has taken it on priority on the direction of chairman CDA and work of laying of Pipes lines has been started. The work will be completed in one month. Further more , It will also be connected with Main network of Khanpur, Simly sources and newly installed 3 Nos Tubewell for new Blue Area. The DDG water supply visited and directed to ensure quality of work at site and early completion.

Conservation, energy efficiency top priority of govt: Baloch

IsLAmAbAd:

(ICCI)

its

President and renowned

Mughal (Late) at the occasion of his 8th

Ahsan

of Commerce & Industry, Executive Committee

dent, Islamabad

Abdul Rauf

Muhammad Ejaz Abbasi, Baser Daud, All Pakistan Anjuman-e-Tajiran President Ajmal Baloch, Khalid Chaudhry, Nisar Mirza, and a large number of business community participated in the Quran Khawani. Khursheed Ahmed Qadri offered Dua for the Esaal-e-Sawab of Munawar Mughal (Late). Munawar Mughal (Late) had died on 20th December 2014 due to cardiac arrest. He was one of the founding members of ICCI. He served twice as President ICCI and was also elected as Vice President, FPCCI. During his life, he rendered great services for the business community and was a very popular business leader of traders. Pr

Zubair

Federal Minister for Science and Technology Mr. Agha Hassan Baloch said that energy conservation and efficiency is the need of the hour during these testing times for the national economy. The potential of energy conservation and efficiency has not been fully realized while approaching the challenges of Energy-Water-Food security in Balochistan where agriculture sector is under tremendous pressure due to high energy costs and natural calamities. He said this while chairing a seminar here on ‘Promoting Conservation and Efficiency in Energy-Water Nexus of Balochistanorganized by the National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority.

The Federal Minister appreciated the institutionalization of energy efficiency and conservation in the country and directed that NEECA and relevant federal departments shall work hand in hand with the

provincial departments of Balochistan to conduct solarization of tube-wells across the province.

He also appreciated the Food and Agriculture Organization of United Nations for launching a five-year programme worth 40 million Euro in Balochistan on revival of water resources of Balochistan.

He also directed that development programmes shall be designed and launched for the agriculture and water sector of Balochistan and a donors’ conference

shall be launched in Balochistan to finance these development programmes especially tube-well solarization and development of water reservoirs. Further, he informed that NEECA under his guidance is working with provincial departments to establishBalochistan Energy Efficiency and Conservation Angency (BEECA) in the province.

Managing Director NEECA, Dr. Sardar Mohazzam said that the surge in energy prices, exchange rate volatility, increasing demand for energy, and depleting resources necessitates actions at both federal and provincial level to opt for higher energy efficiency and conservation (EE&C) measures.

Balochistan faces a severe challenge of resource constraints especially with regards to energy and water sectors. He informed that improvement in energy efficiency and conservation is one of the easiest and least cost-effective pathways to improve the sustainability of these sectors where 10 to 15% saving can be achieved.

ICCI holds Quran Khawani for its former President Munawar Mughal

The Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry

held Quran Khawani for

former

business leader Munawar

anniversary.

Zafar Bakhtawari Presi-

Chamber

Members, former Presidents

Alam,

Ahmed Malik, Zafar Bakhtawari,

QueTTA StAff rePort

LAHORE: Pir Jameelur Rehman Shah, Shamus Uddin Bokhari, Pir Noor Elahi, Qari Khursheed Ali Shah Alvi, Shahid Gardezi, Qari Rashid Ali Alvi, Inamul Haq Alvi, Mufti Ramzan Sialvi and others Ulema sitting on stage during first urs celebration of Allama Muhammad Nisarul Haq Alvi, Qadri, Niazi. StAff Photo

IndIa’s sC dIsMIsses BIlkIs Bano’s

revIew plea ChallengIng guJaraT’s

JurIsdICTIon on reMIssIon of ConvICTs

INDIANSupreme Court on Saturday dismissed a petition filed by Bilkis Bano seeking to review the May 2022 judgement which held that Gujarat had the appropriate jurisdiction to decide on the premature release of 11 men convicted of gangraping her and murdering her family members during the 2002 Gujarat riots, Bar and Bench reported.

The order was passed by a bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and Vikram Nath.

Eleven men had gangraped Bano in a village near Ahmedabad on March 3, 2002, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat. She was 19 and pregnant at the time. Fourteen members of her family were also killed in the violence, including her threeyear-old daughter whose head was smashed on the ground by the perpetrators.

The men were freed on August 15 from a Godhra jail after the Gujarat government approved their application under its remission policy. On the same day, the convicts were greeted with sweets by their relatives after their re-

lease. A member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh had felicitated them as well, causing outrage.

In November, Bano filed a review petition against the Supreme Court’s judgement in May allowing the Gujarat government to decide on the remission of the life-term sentences of the convicts.

Bano in her plea had said the Supreme Court’s view that Gujarat had the “appropriate government” to decide on releasing

January 6 Committee eyes referring criminal charges for Trump

WASHINGTON agencies

The US House panel investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol is considering recommending the Justice Department pursue an unprecedented criminal charge of insurrection and two other counts against the former US President Donald Trump.

Besides insurrection, an uprising aiming to overthrow the government, the panel is also considering recommending prosecutors pursue charges for obstructing an official proceeding and conspiracy to defraud the United States, according to the Associated Press. The committee’s deliberations were continuing late Friday, and no decisions were formalized on which specific charges the committee would refer to the Justice Department. The panel is to meet publicly Monday afternoon when any recommendation will be made public.

The decision to issue referrals is not unexpected.

Republican Liz Cheney, the vice chair of the committee, has for months been hinting at sending the Justice Department criminal referrals based on the extensive evidence the nine-member panel has gathered since it was formed in July 2021.

The committee’s chairman, Bennie Thompson, detailed possible referrals last week as falling into a series of categories that include criminal and ethics violations, legal misconduct and campaign finance violations. It would then fall to federal prosecutors to decide whether to pursue any referrals for prosecution.

While it doesn’t carry any legal weight, recommendations by the committee would add to the political pressure on the Justice Department as it investigates Trump’s actions.

the convicts is contrary to provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

Bano was citing Section 432(7)(b) of the code that deals with the power to suspend or remit sentences. It says that the government of the state within which the offender is sentenced has to consider remission as well. The convicts were sentenced by a court in Maharashtra.

Bano argued that given the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure,

the Maharashtra government should have heard the remission application.

On Saturday, the court gave its verdict on a petition filed by one of the convicts, Radheshyam Bhagwandas Shah. He had asked the Gujarat government to consider his application for premature release under the July 9, 1992 policy, which existed at the time of his conviction.

In the order, the Supreme Court said that there appears no error in the May 2022 judgement, which may call for its review. It also added that precedents cited in the review petition was of no assistance to the court, reported Live Law.

“In our opinion, no case for review is made out,” the court said in its order. “The review petition is accordingly dismissed.”

Bano’s lawyer, Advocate Shobha Gupta, clarified in a video message that the release of 11 convicts in the case was not the subject matter of the review petition. “The same is the subject matter of the writ petition, which is still pending in the Supreme Court,” Gupta said. agencies

Prominent Iranian Sunni cleric urges release of protest detainees

A prominent dissident Sunni Muslim cleric urged Iranian authorities on Friday to free thousands of detained protesters and stop executions as the threemonth-old unrest churned on with street marches in a restive southeastern province.

Amnesty International said 26 people faced possible execution after the Islamic Republic hanged two people arrested over the protests that erupted after the death in police custody of young Kurdish Iranian woman Mahsa Amini on Sept. 16.

The unrest, in which demonstrators from all walks of life have called for the fall of Iran’s ruling theocracy, poses one of the biggest challenges to the Shi’ite Muslim-ruled Islamic Republic since its 1979 revolution.

“At least 26 people are at great risk of execution in connection with nationwide protests after Iranian authorities arbitrarily executed two individuals following grossly unfair sham trials in a bid to instil fear among the public and end protests,” Amnesty Interna-

tional said in a statement.

“Of the 26, at least 11 are sentenced to death and 15 are charged with capital offences and awaiting or undergoing trials,” it said.

Molavi Abdolhamid, an outspoken Sunni cleric, criticised the death sentences, according to his website. “We compassionately recommend that you release the recent prisoners who were detained during these protests and not treat them harshly. Most of them are young and very young. Free the young men and women,” Molavi Abdolhamid said.

“Don’t charge them with (capital offences), and if they are,

they should not be sentenced to death and put to death,” the cleric said in a Friday prayers sermon.

After the sermon, demonstrators took to the streets of Zahedan, capital of impoverished SistanBaluchistan province in the southeast. “This nation wants freedom, it wants a prosperous country!” they chanted, in videos posted on social media. Reuters could not immediately verify the footage.

In continued unrest in other parts of Iran, unidentified attackers damaged a mosque in western Lorestan province early on Friday by throwing petrol bombs, state media reported.

Musk restores recently suspended Twitter accounts of journalists

SAN FRANCISCO agencies

Elon Musk reinstated the Twitter accounts of several journalists that were suspended for a day over a controversy on publishing public data about the billionaire’s plane.

The reinstatements came after the unprecedented suspensions evoked stinging criticism from government officials, advocacy groups and journalism organizations from several parts of the globe on Friday, with some saying the microblogging platform was jeopardizing press freedom.

A Twitter poll that Musk conducted later also showed that a majority of the respondents wanted the accounts restored immediately.

“The people have spoken. Accounts who doxxed my location will have their suspension lifted now,” Musk said in a tweet on Saturday.

Screen shot of Elon Musk's Twitter account.

Screen shot of Elon Musk’s Twitter account.

Officials from France, Germany, Britain and the European Union earlier condemned the suspensions. The episode, which one well known security researcher labeled the “Thursday Night Massacre,” is being regarded by critics as fresh evidence of Musk, who considers himself a “free speech absolutist,” eliminating speech and users he personally dislikes.

Shares in Tesla (TSLA.O), an electric car maker led by Musk, slumped 4.7 percent on Friday and posted their worst weekly loss since March 2020.

ElonJEt: The suspensions stemmed from a disagreement over a Twitter account called ElonJet, which tracked Musk’s private plane using publicly available information.

On Wednesday, Twitter suspended the account and others that tracked private jets, despite Musk’s previous tweet saying he would not suspend ElonJet in the name of free speech.

Shortly after, Twitter changed its privacy policy to prohibit the sharing of “live location information.”

Then on Thursday evening, several journalists, including from the New York Times, CNN and the Washington Post, were suspended from Twitter with no notice.

The Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing, an association of business journalists, said in a statement on Friday that Twitter’s actions “violate the spirit of the First Amendment and the principle that social media platforms will allow the unfiltered distribution of information that is already in the public square.” Musk accused the journalists of posting his real-time location, which is “basically assassination coordinates” for his family.

The billionaire appeared briefly in a Twitter Spaces audio chat hosted by journalists, which quickly turned into a contentious discussion about whether the suspended reporters had actually exposed Musk’s realtime location in violation of the policy.

“If you dox, you get suspended. End of story,” Musk said repeatedly in response to questions.

China’s ‘most powerful’ carrier group enters West Pacific for drills

The aircraft carrier Liaoning of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy, featuring a record number of Type 055 10,000 ton-class large destroyers as its escorts, reportedly sailed across the Miyako Strait and entered the West Pacific for routine exercises on Friday, the same day that Japan broke away from its defense-only postwar principle and announced plans to equip itself with first attack-capable missiles, allowing itself to hit China.

As the most powerful Liaoning aircraft carrier group yet, the PLA flotilla is expected to host a number of realistic combat-oriented exercises beyond the first island chain, enhancing its capabilities in safeguarding national sovereignty, territorial integrity and development interests, military experts said.

Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force spotted a PLA Navy flotilla consisting of the aircraft carrier Liaoning, the Type 055 large destroyers Anshan and Wuxi, the Type 052D destroyer Chengdu, the Type 054A frigate Zaozhuang and the Type 901 comprehensive replenishment ship Hulunhu sailing from the East China Sea through the Miyako Strait into the West Pacific from Thursday to Fri-

day, Japan’s Ministry of Defense Joint Staff said in a press release on Friday.

Before this, from Monday to Thursday, Japan also reported that the Type 055 large destroyer Lhasa, the Type 052D destroyer Kaifeng and the Type 903A replenishment ship Taihu have sailed from the East China Sea through the Osumi Strait into the West Pacific, and that a PLA Navy electronic reconnaissance vessel with hull number 796 and the Sovremenny-class destroyer Taizhou has sailed from the East China Sea through the Miyako Strait into the West Pacific.

It is not known if all of the above-mentioned vessels are actually parts of the carrier group, but the record-breaking number of 10,000 ton-class Type 055 large destroyers could mean that this is the most powerful configuration of the Liaoning carrier group yet, observers said. Previously, there had only been one Type 055 featured in the group, and this time it is up to three.

The Liaoning aircraft carrier group is apparently on a routine training exercise, in which vessels within the group will practice coordinated moves and joint operations, and carrier-based fighter jets will practice take-

offs and landings, Song Zhongping, a Chinese military expert and TV commentator, told the Global Times on Friday.

Song said that Type 055 large destroyers are the best escorts of Chinese aircraft carriers, and it is also possible that the Liaoning carrier group also has nuclear-powered submarines in it.

Drills like this have already become normal and regular, Song said.

In May this year, the Liaoning aircraft carrier group held a far sea exercise in the West Pacific, to the east of the island of Taiwan and south of Japan. With over 300 aircraft sorties in some 20 days, the mission marked the longest and most sortie-intensive exercise by the Chinese carrier in the region.

Friday, the day when the Liaoning carrier group sailed through the Miyako Strait, also happens to be the day when Japan adopted a national security strategy declaring plans to possess preemptive strike capability and cruise missiles within years to give itself a more offensive footing against “threats” from China, AP reported on the day, calling the move a major break from its strictly self-de-

fense-only postwar principle.

Facing Japan’s continued attempts to revise its defense strategies and expand its armed forces, the PLA needs to enhance its combat readiness to deal with possible emergencies, Song said.

“Our exercises are not aimed at any third

party, but if a third party poses threats to China, then it must feel the exercises are targeting it,” Song said.

The PLA will resolutely safeguard China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and stop other countries from interfering in the Taiwan question, Song said.

agencies

TEHRAN agencies

Pak vs Eng: Pakistan’s sPinnErs crEatE tEst history

KARACHI staff report

FoRthe first time in Pakistan’s cricket history, the team Saturday used spinners in the first two overs of a match during the third Test match against England in the Karachi National Stadium.

In the third game of the three-match Test series, spinners Abrar Ahmed and Nauman Ali bowled the first two overs.

Earlier in the day, England spinners Jack Leach and Rehan Ahmed shared six wickets between them Saturday as Pakistan were dismissed for 304 on the opening day of the third and final Test in Karachi.

Leach grabbed 4-140 while teenager Ahmed finished with 2-89 after Pakistan won the toss and batted on a slow turner at the National Bank Cricket Arena.

Pakistan to host t20 Blind cricket World cup next year

ISLAMABAD agencies

Pakistan will host the 4th edition of the T20 World Cup Cricket of the Blind from November 18 to December 3, 2024, Pakistan Blind Cricket Council (PBCC) announced on Saturday.

The decision to award hosting rights to Pakistan was taken in the 24th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of World Blind Cricket Ltd (WBCL), held in Bangalore, India on Friday. “Due to the nonissuance of visas on political grounds, Chairman PBCC Syed Sultan Shah, who is also the president of WBCL, presided over the meeting via video link, a PBCC press release said.

The WBCL unanimously passed a resolution to regret the Indian government’s insensitivity to refuse Pakistan blind cricket team visas for the Blind Cricket T20 World, held in India from December 5 to 17. “The WBCL is of the view that Pakistan is currently top ranked T20 blind cricket team and the Indian government’s insensitivity has deprived it to exercise equal rights to take part and win the title. Visa denial on political grounds has caused an irreparable loss to WBC in particular and global blind cricket in general because Pakistan was a serious contender to win the title.

“The WBC urges the states that sports should be kept above regional politics, particularly the special persons’ mega sports events should be treated fairly and all teams must be given equal chances to compete in the event. Most states have ratified United Nations Charter for Persons with Disabilities, which induces states to provide equal sports playing opportunities to persons with disabilities, hence this charter should be implemented in letter and spirit.”

The elections of the Executive Committee of WBCL were also held during the AGM. Nine out of 10 full member countries’ representatives participated in the meeting. Sultan Shah was elected unopposed WBCL President for a term of two years i.e. 2022-24. He has become the WBCL President for the fourth time in a row.

The other office-bearers of the newly elected body include, First Vice President Bhawani Persad (West Indies), Second Vice President Rajnesh Henry (India), Secretary General Raymond Moxly (Australia), Director Technical Maher Yousaf Haroon (Pakistan), Director Finance Pawan Ghimire (Nepal), and Director Global Development David John (India).

For

In

0 after winning the first match by 74 runs in Rawalpindi and the second by 26 in Multan.

The tourists made two changes from the last Test, bringing in wicketkeeper Ben Foakes and Rehan Ahmed in place of James Anderson and Will Jacks.

Rehan, at 18 years and 126 days, becomes the youngest player to debut for England, beating Brian Close´s record of 18 years and 149 days set in 1949.

Senior Pakistan batter Azhar Ali, who on Friday announced the Karachi Test would be his last, is one of four changes in the home side.

argentina and football: Five keys to a national passion

BUENOS AIRES afp

duck

Pakistan. At stumps, the visitors were 7-1 and trailed by 297 runs.

England, on their first Test tour to Pakistan since 2005, lead the series 2-

Shan Masood, Mohammad Wasim Junior and Nauman Ali also come in, while Imam-ul-Haq (injured), Mohammad Nawaz, Zahid Mahmood and Mohammad Ali were left out. Wasim, 21, is playing his first Test.

France battle to stop spread of virus on eve of World Cup final

DOHA staff report

Didier Deschamps said Saturday that France were taking “as many precautions as possible” to stop the spread of a virus that is threatening preparations for their World Cup final showdown with Argentina.

Central defensive pair Raphael Varane and Ibrahima Konate missed training on Friday due to illness, along with winger Kingsley Coman. Midfielder Adrien Rabiot and defender Dayot Upamecano did not play in Wednesday’s semi-final win over Morocco.

“We are trying to take as many precautions as possible, to adapt as necessary and get on with it,” France coach Deschamps said at a press conference in Doha on the eve of Sunday’s match. “obviously it would be better if this wasn’t happening but we are handling it as well as possible with our medical staff.”

Deschamps and his captain Hugo Lloris both insisted they could not offer any health updates, with the

team set to train again later in the day.

“I am fine. As for the players, I left quite early this morning so they were all sleeping,” added Deschamps, who spoke to reporters at 11:30 am local time.

“We are trying to handle the situation as well as possible and remain calm and focused. I’ll get some more information later today and think about that tonight and maybe tomorrow. And of course we’re

looking forward to being ready for this important game.”

Players, staff and other sources close to the squad have spoken of a range of symptoms affecting the team in recent days, including fever, stomach pain and headaches. Measures have been taken at the team’s hotel, including isolating certain players, but Covid-19 testing is no longer imposed by world governing body FIFA.

Zakir’s ton fails to make a difference as India sniff win

CHITTAGONG agencies

India broke through tough resistance from Bangladesh including a Zakir Hasan century to be within four wickets of victory at stumps on day four of the first Test on Saturday. Set a mountainous target of 513 runs in Chittagong, Bangladesh reached 272-6 at the close, still needing 241 runs, with skipper Shakib Al Hasan on 40 and Mehidy Hasan on nine.

Earlier, opener Zakir scored 100 off 224 balls and put on a 124-run opening stand together with Najmul Hossain, the pair having hung on in the final session of

day three and to lunch on day four.

But in the second session, Umesh Yadav got the breakthrough and ended their stand when Najmul edged the ball into the slips.

Virat Kohli initially dropped it at first slip but wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant dived to his left to grab the deflection and Najmul departed for 67.

Axar Patel, who was the pick of India’s bowlers on the fourth day with 3-50, soon grabbed India’s second wicket bowling Yasir Ali for five.

Kuldeep Yadav removed danger man Liton Das for 19 before Zakir swept Axar for a four to bring up his debut Test hundred.

Argentina’s passion for football has been showcased by the passion of chanting Argentine supporters inside stadiums at the Qatar World Cup and the almost hysterical celebrations back at home.

Ahead of Sunday’s World Cup final in Doha against France, here are five keys to understanding Argentina’s almost unique relationship with the sport: When football became futbol Argentina’s AFA football association, created in 1893, proudly proclaims that it “is the oldest in South America and eighth oldest in the world.”

Football arrived in the country with British immigrants, many of whom came to work on the railroads and who were dubbed “the crazy English” when they started kicking around a ball during their breaks.

A Scottish teacher, Alexander Watson Hutton, is considered the “father” of Argentine football having introduced the sport into physical education classes at the schools where he taught.

He was also AFA’s first president.

British railway workers soon started founding football clubs and some of the most historic still compete today in the Argentine top flight, such as Rosario’s Newell’s old Boys and Banfield in Buenos Aires.

With the influx of Italian and Spanish immigrants, Argentina developed its own “criollo” style of play based less on the British values of physical discipline and more on elegance, ability and inspiration — a footballing school that would later produce Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi.

many legends, only one god (so far) Fans quickly idolized the first stars of this “different” style. In the 1930s, Vicente Zito, Natalio Perinetti and Francisco Varallo graced Argentine pitches, as did the Italo-Argentine Luis Monti, who played in the 1930 World Cup for Argentina, which they lost to Uruguay — before winning it four years later in Itay’s colours. Since then, the likes of Angel Labruna, Jose Manuel Moreno, Tucho Mendez, Ubaldo Fillol, Daniel Passarella, Mario Kempes, Gabriel Batistuta and Roman Riquelme have enthralled fans and won trophies: the Albiceleste lifted the World Cup in 1978 and 1986 and the Copa America a joint record 15 times. So far, there is one legend standing out above all others: Diego Maradona, also known as “D10S”, a play on the Spanish word for God (Dios) and his No.10 jersey.

If Messi were to emulate Maradona by winning the World Cup, he would match his predecessor’s status.

“Fans have taken Messi to their hearts, like Diego,” historian Felipe Pigna told AFP.

“He showed leadership qualities such as during his fantastic motivational speech in the changing rooms before winning the Copa America in Brazil in 2021.

“As well as being the best player in the world, he’s a great person, a very likeable guy.” the best and Worst of fans

Argentine fans are known as much for their ecstatic passion as for the dark cloud of hooliganism.

“Hinchas” are a noisy and joyous addition to the stadium atmosphere with an array of football songs, including their World Cup anthem “Muchachos” which pays tribute to Maradona and Messi, without forgetting the country’s obsession with the Falkland Islands. Many songs are positive, while others take aim at Brazil or the English.

But as well as inheriting the British penchant for terrace chants, Argentine club football has also adopted the worst hooliganism from the English game.

Qatar offers World Cup visitors an introduction to Islam

turquoise tiles. “Qatar has been a life-changing adventure because it gives you a perspective on different cultures.”

Fatima Garcia donned a headscarf and a black abaya — a long, loose-fitting robe — over her clothes as she walked into a mosque in Doha to learn about Islam.

In Qatar to enjoy the World Cup with friends, the Salvadoran visitor took a day off from soccer to go sightseeing at the Katara mosque, where preachers have been introducing Islam in multiple languages to curious fans from around the world.

“Qatar is my first exposure to Islam,” Garcia said inside the house of prayer, also known as the blue mosque for its beautiful

Hundreds of thousands of visitors have come to Qatar during the World Cup. For many, it’s their first visit to a Muslim country. Those who don’t venture far beyond the stadiums and Doha’s glitzy hotels will have only limited exposure to the country’s religion, such as hearing the call to prayer at a distance or witnessing Muslims prostrate at prayer rooms in stadiums, airports and hotels.

But for those who are curious to find out more about Islam, Qatari authorities and religious officials are eager to help.

Local mosques are offering multilingual

tours to visitors and the Islamic Cultural Center in Doha offers a virtual reality tour of the holy city of Mecca. Booths at tourist sites hand out free copies of the Quran and brochures about Islam are available in hotel lobbies. Billboards have been set up across Doha featuring US olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammed and other Muslim personalities as part of a campaign encouraging people to explore Islam.

“Why during the World Cup? Everyone is coming here from across the world to Qatar, a Muslim country, and it’s an opportunity to educate people about the faith,” said Abu Huraira, a volunteer for the campaign by the Explore Islam Foundation and the Islam and Muslims Initiative.

DOHA agencies

Pakistan, skipper Babar Azam top scored with 78 and Agha Salman made 56.

reply, England lost Zak Crawley in the very first over of the innings for a

with Abrar Ahmed striking for

Govt tauNts IMraN oN GIvING aNother date for asseMbLIes’ dIssoLutIoN

ISLAMABAD StAff rePOrt

MINUTESafter PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Saturday announced the date for dissolving the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah questioned why there was a need to wait till next week.

Responding to the development during an interview on a private TV talk show, Sanaullah said: “I can’t understand what are they waiting to do till next Friday. If they have decided then they should dissolve the assemblies today.”

He alleged that the PTI and the PMLQ “will try to find an excuse that some no-confidence motion appears or a direction from the governor arrives” so Punjab Chief Minister Parvez Elahi could “have an excuse” to continue his tenure.

He questioned the logic behind this “drama” of waiting till next week if the two parties had actually decided to dissolve the assemblies. “Sign the summaries and send them,” the interior minister challenged.

Questioned on whether the PML-N would submit a no-confidence motion in the Punjab Assembly to block the dissolution, Sanaullah admitted that a section of the PML-N’s parliamentary party held that opinion.

“However, there is also an opinion that they (PTI and PML-Q) shouldn’t be stopped. They should resign and exit the government and then [we] should move forward in accordance with the law and the Constitution, keeping in mind the situation that develops.”

The interior minister added that the party leadership and supremo Nawaz Sharif would make the final decision on the government’s response in the next day or two.

He expressed scepticism that the two parties would follow through on their announcement. “You will see how this matter will pan out in a week’s time. I still fear that they end up doing nothing while making up some excuse,” he added.

The interior minister later followed up this thought in a tweet, saying that “PTI will back off from its today’s announcement of dissolving assemblies within a week taking into account the history of the party’s U-turns.”

When questioned on the hope of any negotiations between the government and the opposition, Sanaullah said he was not in favour of such a development, adding that he wanted the two parties to exit their governments.

Imran wIll now under-

stand hIs real standIng: KaIra

Meanwhile, Adviser to Prime Minister on Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan Qamar Zaman Kaira questioned what stopped the PTI from taking the dissolution step a month ago.

“What was stopping them today? They should have stood up today and announced [the dissolution] and went and submitted the summaries in the assemblies.”

He said the other camp was perhaps “hoping of a middle path” to appear from somewhere to provide some “facesaving”. Kaira expressed confusion that why the PTI would take a step a week later which it was not prepared to do so today.

“Khan sahab will now understand, when he won’t have his governments, how politics is done in Pakistan,” the minister said, adding that the PTI chief would come to understand his real “standing”.

Courage required to dissolve assemblies: Marriyum

On the other hand, Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said “courage” was required to dissolve assemblies and not “dates.”

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad after Imran’s announcement, she accused the former prime minister of “creating a ruckus” regarding the dissolution of assemblies so that “he can protect the theft he conducted during his tenure”.

“They are creating this ruckus so that other issues against him in the form of foreign funding, cipher and Toshakhana can be suppressed,” she said.

Aurangzeb asked Imran why he didn’t dissolve the assemblies “when Gen (R) [Qamar Javed] Bajwa was not letting him work and hold the corrupt accountable”.

“You have protected your theft through the power of these assemblies,” she said. “The corruption in KP will also come to light when the assemblies are dissolved.”

“You should have dissolved the assemblies today,” the information minister said. “What are you waiting for? Why wait till Friday?”

She maintained that Imran “can never dissolve the assemblies because they provide a cover for his corruption”. Fawad explaIns waIt tIll next weeK

Meanwhile, PTI Vice President Fawad Chaudhry expanded on the rationale behind the wait till next week.

He said there was a six-day break till the step was taken because the PTI still had to process the matter of resigning from the National Assembly.

Path-marking for wingsuiting in Pakistan begins

LAHORE ShAhAb Omer

In a bid to promote extreme athletes activities, for the first time in history, the work of recording the wingsuit path in the style of Google Maps has started in Pakistan.

Speaking to Pakistan Today, Ahmed Nasir, owner of Adventure Travel — a tourism company — informed that Pakistan has landscapes that are very suitable for skydiving, paragliding and wing suits and his company has been promoting extreme sports for a long time.

Nasir informed that his company was promoting extreme sports with the collaboration of his two partners, one of whom is American and British.

“Our partners are professional in skydiving, paragliding and wingsuits. Currently there are five peaks in Pakistan at an altitude of 8000 feet and our partners are willing to skydive on these peaks with wingsuits and then open the parachute. This became a record that no one has ever made before in Pakistan,” he said.

Nasir informed that this project has been initiated with the support of military of Pakistan and in this regard, meetings with the military officials are also

going on.

“Our second step will be for our partners to collaborate with us to form an association that will include international extreme sports athletes,” he added.

However, Nasir further informed that Hunza, Chitral and Skardu are being focused for these activities, espe-

cially Skardu due to K-2.

“A lot of work has been done in this regard. With the help of modern equipment, a lot of data collection has been done and a lot of elevations have been marked. We have a lot of amazing areas and this map will be out this year. Any wingsuit athlete needs entry and exit

points so these points are being marked in the map,” he continued.

Nasir believed that the military liked the idea but wanted all the paperwork to be completed.

When Nasir was asked how many expenses have been incurred for this project so far, he replied that no final word can be given in this regard yet.

“Of course, we are bearing these expenses ourselves, but later this project will be sponsored. For example, when we need a chopper for marking different areas, the rent for this maximum two hours is not less than $10,000. However, with the help of a chopper, the work is done within an hour.”

“Usually these choppers are used in rescue operations and when foreign tourists come here, they book these choppers before climbing the hilltops so that in case of any problem the chopper can rescue them. However, no one has yet used a chopper for wingsuits or skydiving. If such expenses are sponsored, these activities can be continued in a good way and foreign tourists will also visit Pakistan for these activities, which will also benefit the economy of Pakistan,” he concluded.

Elahi vows to stand by decision of Imran Khan

made his political opponents “zero” and said that the people spreading rumours — about a rift between the allies — “have failed once again”.

Elahi said he met Khan, where the dissolution of the assembly was discussed. “Imran Khan will announce the decision by sitting together with the chief ministers of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”

Khan into confidence regarding the whole situation.

He told the PTI chief that the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)-led government can victimise the PTI and PML-Q leadership if the assemblies are dissolved.

PML-N mulls no-confidence motion against Punjab CM

LAHORE StAff rePOrt

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has decided to table a no-confidence motion against Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi and Punjab Assembly Speaker Sibtain Khan.

The development comes as the PML-N is deliberating various options to prevent PTI Chairman Imran Khan from dissolution of the Punjab and Khyber

Pakhtunkhwa assemblies as a pressure tactic for fresh elections. It reported that 106 provincial lawmakers of the PML-N gathered at the residence of Rana Mashhood, where they signed the no-confidence motion. They said the resolution would be submitted in the Punjab Assembly secretariat after getting approval from the party leadership. It is expected that the motion will be submitted.

Earlier this month, Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman said he could ask the chief minister to seek a vote of confidence. Imran Khan is expected to announce a date for the dissolution of assemblies on Saturday at a public really at Liberty Chowk.

Petroleum products’ prices reduced significantly

“I will support all of Imran Khan’s decisions. I owed the Punjab Assembly to Imran Khan and I have returned my debt to him,” the chief minister said in a tweet hours before Imran’s scheduled announcement of the dissolution date.

Imran is expected to announce the date of dissolution during the party’s public gathering at Lahore’s iconic Liberty Chowk later tonight, but there were reports of issues between the PTI and Pakistan Muslim LeagueQuaid (PML-Q) on the date of dissolution.

CM Elahi also stressed that Imran has

The chief minister is expected to meet the PTI chief again at 7pm.

In a tweet, Moonis also said that he met Imran and stands “firmly with him”.

The government has said that it will ensure holding elections on whichever constituency the PTI and its ally resign and also conduct polls for the assemblies that might be dissolved.

As per the sources, PML-Q leader Moonis met the former prime minister last night as well. Both leaders discussed the political situation during the meeting.

The sources said that Moonis also took

“You are authorised to make a final decision [on the dissolution of the assembly],” Moonis conveyed Parvez’s message to the PTI chairman, according to well-placed sources.

The PML-Q leader reassured the former premier that the assembly would be dissolved whenever the latter asked. CM Elahi, however, suggested that it was not an appropriate time for the decision.

The PML-Q leader apprised Khan that the majority of his party’s lawmaker wants the continuation of development work in their concerned areas.

The chief minister also — a day earlier — held a crucial meeting in Rawalpindi ahead of Khan’s crucial announcement.

The chief minister travelled to

Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Saturday said that government has provided maximum relief on petroleum products to facilitate the masses in the country.

In a tweet, the minister said that during the month from September 30 to December 15, 2022, the petrol price in the country was reduced by Rs 22.63 as it went down from Rs 247.43 to Rs 214.80 per litre.

Meanwhile, the prices of diesel and light diesel oil were also reduced by Rs19.63 and Rs28.28 per litre respectively during the period under review.

He said that the price of diesel reduced from Rs247.43 to Rs 227.80 per litre and price of light diesel oil brought down from Rs197.26 to Rs169 per litre to provide maximum relief to general public in the county.

Finance Minister said that the price of kerosene oil was also reduced by Rs30.19 per litre as it went down from Rs202.02 in September 30, 2022 to Rs171.84 in December 15, 2022.

LAHORE StAff rePOrt

Chief Minister Punjab Chaudhry Parvez Elahi Saturday vowed to back “all decisions” of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan as the allies are all set to move towards dissolving the assemblies of the provinces where they rule — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab.

Rawalpindi on Friday evening where he held an important meeting. After returning to La-

hore at night, he consulted with party leaders on the current political situation.

ISLAMABAD APP