Epaper_23-09-19 KHI

CJP and t wo sEnior-most JudgEs to ConstitutE bEnCHEs

g AGP, OTHER LAWYERS SEEK TIME TO RESPOND TO QUESTIONS RAISED BY SC BENCH

g CJP DIRECTS ALL PARTIES IN CASE TO SUBMIT REPLIES, ARGUMENTS BY SEPTEMBER 25

sought time to reply to the questions raised by the bench

The chief justice said that he will form a bench after consulting two senior SC judges including Justice Sardar Tariq and Justice Ijazul Ahsan He directed lawyers and all parties in the case to submit their replies and arguments by September 25

CJP Qazi Faez Isa remarked that they approved all petitions regarding the full court He asked his fellow judges to constitute small benches Later the chief justice adjourned the hearing till October 3

Earlier, the Supreme Court decided that the full court proceedings on a set of pleas challenging the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023 would be broadcast live

The decision was taken in a full court meeting headed by CJP Justice Qazi Faez Isa

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LHC to frame contempt charges on top officials in Elahi case

CH I E F Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Qazi Faez Isa on Monday ruled that a three-member committee, including himself and the two most senior judges, will decide bench formations as the apex court began hearing a set of petitions challenging the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023

Later, the CJP adjourned the hearing of the petitions challenging the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023, till October 3

Headed by CJP Qazi Faez Isa, a full court bench heard the petitions challenging the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023 – a legislation introduced by the former coalition government

Dictating his order, the chief justice said: In view of the challenge thrown to the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023 and as the matter is pending adjudication We will be consulting with two senior colleagues with regard to the constitution of benches ” adding that senior puisne judges Justice Sardar Tariq Masood and Justice Ijazul Ahsan agreed with him too

Shortly thereafter the court roster for this week was issued with five benches The rosters were decided by CJP Isa in consultation with the two senior-most puisne judges

First time in the country’s history, the hearing of the petitions challenging the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023 was broadcast live and during the hearing Justice Qazi Faez Isa remarked that he heard

AGP s arguments in the case

He said that the AGP has to leave for Vienna regarding the Indus Waters Treaty The AGP and other lawyers

The full court was constituted by newly-appointed Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa and includes Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi Justice Aminuddin Khan Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar Justice Ayesha A Malik, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Shahid Waheed and Justice Musarrat Hilali Following the decisions the cameras of PTV were installed in the courtroom for the broadcast of the hearing live

ISLAMABAD S TA F F R E P O R T

In an unprecedented display of humility and a break from established traditions the newly-sworn in Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP), Justice Qazi Faez Isa, opted for a modest approach on Monday by shunning VIP protocol and withdrawing state vehicle

The new CJP Isa declined the customary privileges and honours that come with his high office setting the tone of his career

Justice Isa eschewed the customary state vehicle and protocol that typically accompany the office Instead, he arrived at the Supreme Court building today in his personal 1800cc car, breaking from the practices of his predecessors Furthermore he opted for standard security measures consistent with those provided to other esteemed judges of the apex court foregoing the VIP state protocol

Outside his office chamber, CJP Isa chose to be identified simply as Justice Qazi Faez Isa, without

incorporating the title of Chief Justice marking a unique departure from established tradition

Upon his arrival at the Supreme Court building, Chief Justice Isa received a warm reception from a considerable gathering of Supreme Court staff who greeted him and presented him with a bouquet

During a brief address to the assembled staff Justice Isa emphasised the role of the Supreme Court in resolving people s problems and called upon the clerical staff to treat those who seek justice with the same hospitality and care one would offer guests in their homes

“People do not come to the Supreme Court happily, but they come here in an attempt to resolve their problems Keep the doors of justice open and provide assistance to those who come seeking it stated CJP Isa

He also expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the staff and requested their cooperation in ensuring the fair dispensation of justice

“Thank you I require your full cooperation I will discuss this with you in greater detail ” Chief Justice Isa conveyed before proceeding to his chamber

F O b i n s ‘ f a b r i c a t e d ’ r e p o r t o n a l l e g a t i o n s o f a r m s ’ s a l e t o U k r a i n e f o r I M F d e a l

The Foreign Office on Monday rejected a media report regarding the alleged sale of Pakistani weapons to Ukraine to get the International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout package A report published by The Intercept claimed that Islamabad reportedly engaged in ‘secret’ arms sales to the United States as part of a controversial bailout deal with the IMF earlier this year

The publication backed its claims by two sources with knowledge of the arrangement, saying that internal documents from both the Pakistani and American governments confirm the development

“These arms sales were intended to supply the Ukrainian military hence forcing Pakistan to take a side in the Russia-Ukraine conflict it claimed

Responding to media queries regarding the issue, FO Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch rejected the story as baseless and fabricated”

“The IMF Standby Arrangement for Pakistan was successfully negotiated between Pakistan and the IMF to implement difficult but essential economic reforms Giving any other colour to these negotiations is disingenuous, she added Baloch said that Pakistan maintains a policy of strict neutrality in the dispute between Ukraine and Russia and in that context does not provide any arms and

ammunition to them “Pakistan’s defence exports are al-

ways accompanied with strict end user requirements ” she concluded

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday fixed October 2 for framing charges on the investigations and operations DIG in a contempt plea after their replies submitted in connection with the arrest of former chief minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi were rejected for being non-satisfactory

Justice Mirza Viqas Rauf also issued bailable arrest warrants for chief commissioner Islamabad, superintendent Attock jail and non-bailable arrest warrants for inspector general police (IGP) Islamabad after they did not appear before the court despite a clear order to ensure their presence

Justice Rauf was hearing a plea filed by petitioner

Qaisara Elahi, wife of Pervaiz Elahi, seeking initiation of contempt proceedings against the top officials and other relevant officers over allegedly disobeying LHC’s order that had restrained NAB any other authority agency and office from arresting and detaining the former CM under any law relating to preventive detention

But shortly after Elahi s release, the Islamabad police arrested him again when he was being taken to his residence under the supervision of the DIGs and additional registrar LHC

In previous proceedings Justice Rauf following the non-appearance of IGP Islamabad had first issued bailable arrest warrants and now issued non-bailable arrest warrant

As proceedings commenced Monday, Justice Rauf asked where is IG Islamabad to which the law officer told the court that a reply had been received on his behalf but he did not attend owing to other commitments

Expressing his displeasure, Justice Rauf remarked that it seems the court s orders are being taken easy and then directed the law officer to talk to IG Islamabad to know how he will attend the court proceedings

In the second phase of proceedings petitioner Qaisara Elahi s counsel argued that police officials had been directed by the LHC s Justice Muhammad Amjad Rafiq to ensure Elahi safely reached his residence, however, Islamabad police violated the order and those officials who had been tasked to take Elahi safely to his residence did nothing except rendering a role of silent spectators

On the other hand the law officer told the court that Islamabad police detained Elahi under 3MPO Justice Rauf then issued bailable arrest warrants for chief commissioner Islamabad, superintendent Attock jail and non-bailable arrest warrant for Inspector General Police (IGP) Islamabad

plans crackdown against cash transactions in real estate

tate worth more than five million rupees using cash or a bearer cheque, they ll be subject to a penalty equal to 5% of the property’s value This value will be determined either by the Board as specified in subsection

permitted for assets purchased outside of the specified banking channels Secondly, any cash amount used for a purchase that should have been conducted through the prescribed banking channels as mentioned previously will not be considered as a cost when calculating any gains resulting from selling such an asset, as per the stipulations of section 76 Additionally, if someone buys real es-

COURT APPROVES EL AHI’S ONE-DAY TRANSIT REMAND TO PUNJAB ACE

ISLAMABAD s ta f f r e p o r t

AN anti-terrorism court (ATC) handed over Pakistan Tehreek-iInsaf (PTI) President Chaudhry Parvez Elahi to the Punjab Anticorruption Establishment on a one-day transit remand

Elahi was presented in the court of Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain The anticorruption authorities who arrested the former Punjab chief minister shortly after he was released from Adiala jail, had filed an application requesting transit remand Elahi’s counsel lawyer Sardar Abdul Razzaq, in his arguments, stated that his client was accused of recruiting his own staff – an action that isn t criminal according to him Can t the chief minister appoint

CJP Qazi Faez Isa asks judicial staff to ser ve people seeking justice

his own chief secretary? he asked Razzaq argued that a CM has all authority to appoint his staff and that Elahi was discharged from a local court yesterday pertaining to this case

Razzaq further claimed that his client has been subjected to political revenge since January given how he s arrested each time he is discharged from a courtroom

How is appointing a person named Muhammad Khan as chief secretary beyond his authority?” he asked

Upon which the judge requested the date for when this inquiry began Elahi s counsel stated that DG Anti-Corruption is making cases overnight against the PTI stalwart The Lahore High Court directed that Elahi cannot be arrested again, and yet they’re arresting him in new cases

“Yesterday a judge in Lahore also

asked whether there s any other registered case against Elahi and the prosecution said no, he said Judge Zulqarnain further asked the prosecution to list down any other cases registered against Elahi The judge reserved his decision and subsequently handed Elahi to Punjab ACE on a one-day transit remand Elahi on Sunday was arrested after an ATC in Lahore ordered his release while discharging him in a case of irregularities in the Lahore Master Plan 2050 He was held in a terrorism case and transferred to Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi from Lahore Elahi s counsel told media that the PTI leader had been rounded up at least 12 times since June 1 following the May 9 protests, which broke out across the nation after party chairman and deposed premier

LHC moved against ‘illegal detention’ of Sh Rashid, others

Imran Khan s arrest

He was presented in the court on Sunday following his arrest by the Punjab Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) in Rawalpindi a day earlier seeking his physical remand The ACE had taken him into custody shortly after being released from Rawalpindi s Adiala Jail The court earlier reserved its decision on the ACE s request

It later dismissed the request, discharging PTI president in the case

“Prima facie, no incriminating material is available against the accused which can connect him with the commission of the alleged offence Hence the accused person namely Chaudhry Parvez Elahi is hereby discharged in this case, the judgment read

The court instructed the authorities to immediately release Elahi if he was not needed in any other case

ATC remands suspec ts in murder of Jan Muhammad Mahar in police custody

SUKKUR s ta f f r e p o r t

The Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Monday remanded the alleged suspects in murder of Journalist Jan Muhammad Mahar in police custody

According to details the suspects in case relating murder of Jan Muhammad Mahar were produced before an Anti Terrorism Court in Sukkur

from the Deputy Superintendent Police (DSP) City and handed it over to the CTD s DSP Abdul Quddus

The department ordered the authorities to expedite the investigation for the arrest of the culprits and provide foolproof security to the slain journalist’s

RAWALPINDI: An application has been submitted before the Lahore High Court (LHC) Rawalpindi bench against the alleged detention of former federal minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed The petition was filed in the Rawalpindi bench of the high court by Sheikh Rashid s nephew Amir Shafiq The petition alleges that the police arrested the Awami Muslim League chief without a warrant and shifted him to an undisclosed location It has made the federation the Punjab government the Punjab inspector general of police, the regional police officer parties The petition has challenged the arrest of Sheikh Rashid, his nephew Sheikh Shakir and staff members The petitioner claims that despite getting in touch the police did not provide any information about the whereabouts of all those arrested There is no case against those arrested nor are they required for interrogation in any case, he further contended The detained Sheikh Shakir is a businessman, and not related to any political activity, the petition maintains He has been detained illegally The court has been requested to order the police to produce all those arrested before the court the petition states The petitioner s lawyer has requested for the hearing to be held the same day s ta f f r e p o rt

Cypher case: IHC to hear PTI chief’s plea on September 25

ISLAMABAD: Newly-appointed Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Qazi Faez Isa received a warm welcome from the staff upon his arrival at the Supreme Court on Monday Justice Qazi Faez Isa took oath as the 29th CJP in a ceremony held at the President’s House on Sunday In his interaction with the SC registrar and other judicial staff CJP Qazi Faez Isa asked them to serve the masses coming to the court for justice People come to SC for justice the CJP said The Islamabad police were to give a guard of honour to the newly appointed CJP, but he denied it Earlier, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa appointed Ms Jazeela Aslam as the first-ever woman Registrar of the Supreme Court (SC) Justice Qazi Faez Isa on Sunday took oath as the 29th chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) at a ceremony at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, following the retirement of Justice Umar Ata Bandial He was administered the oath of office by President Arif Alvi Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar top military officials caretaker federal ministers senators and foreign ambassadors, attended the ceremony s ta f f r e p o r t

Cour t seeks repor t on jail admin’s refusal to allow PTI chief’s telephonic conversation with sons

ISLAMABAD: A Special Court set up under Official Secrets Act has sought a report from the Superintendent of Attock Jail for not arranging a telephonic conversation of PTI chairman with his sons PTI chief ’s counsel Shiraz Ranjha told the court that his client has not yet been convicted in the cypher case He argued that the ex-prime minister was in Attock Jail on judicial remand The Official Secrets Act or the Punjab Jail Laws were applicable to the criminals while the former prime minister was still guilty in the case he added Advocate Ranjha said that all the accused have the facility of telephonic conversation with their family members They have been enjoying the facility for the last three years It was unfair to restrict the PTI chairman from having the facility, he continued The PTI lawyer requested the court to take contempt of court action against the Attock Jail superintendent and sought adjournment of the case till September 26

Judge Abul Hasnat Zulqarnain wrote the verdict in the open court, PTI lawyer Shiraz Ranjha requested to adjourn the hearing till September 26 The judge said that the judicial remand of the PTI chairman would complete on September 26 He would talk to the jailer himself Later the judge adjourned the hearing for Sept 28 s ta f f r e p o r t

During the proceedings, the police requested the court to grant a 14-day physical remand for the arrested accused emphasizing the need for further investigation into the case

The court granted the request of the police and handed over the arrested suspects to 14-day remand to the police

Earlier to this, the Sindh Home Department has handed over the responsibility of probe into senior journalist Jan

Mohammad Mahar s murder case to the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) Sukkur

The Sindh Home Department issued a notification to withdraw the responsibility of probe into the journalist Jan Mohammad Mahar s murder case

The police department has so far failed to arrest the murderers of journalist Jan Mohammad Mahar The police have so far arrested three facilitators booked in the murder case and got their physical remand for six days from court

“The accused involved in journalist Mahar s killing have got refuge in the katcha area police sources said The forest area of Alif Kutcho has been the hideout of bandits and a no-go area for police,” sources said

GB authorities announce restoration of 4G internet ser vices after security improvement

ISLAMABAD

G h u l a m a b b a s

The Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) government has announced the restoration of 4G cellular internet services in the region following improved security conditions The decision comes as a relief to the local population especially tech-related businesses and freelancers who have been adversely affected by the suspension and downgrading of internet services

In a letter dated September 18, 2023 addressed to the Secretary of the Ministry of Interior in Islamabad the Gilgit-Baltistan Department of Home and Prisons officially communicated its decision to reinstate 4G/5G cellular internet services in the region This move comes after a period of suspended services due to security concerns

The letter marked as “MOST IMMEDIATE referred to an earlier communication from the department dated September 5, 2023, in which the Ministry of Interior was requested to downgrade the 4G/5G cellular internet services in GB through the Pakistan

Telecommunication Authority (PTA)

The letter states that the security situation in GB has significantly improved thanks to various interventions by the government As a result the decision to restore 4G cellular internet services has been made in the larger public interest, with the aim of alleviating difficulties faced by the general public and those engaged in tech-related businesses in the region

The GB government had suspended 3G and 4G cellular networks in the region as part of its efforts to maintain law and order This move had a profound impact on freelancers offering online services making it challenging for them to meet their project goals

The President of the GB Freelancers Association had previously raised concerns about the suspension and downgrading of internet services on social media However, Chief Minister Haji Gulbar Khan reassured the public that the downgrading was a temporary measure and full internet and cellular services would be restored in the region after Chehlum

In the midst of these developments, two additional individuals both government officials were found guilty of using social media to spread hate material and were subsequently imprisoned in the Astore district of Gilgit-Baltistan This brings the total number of people jailed for involvement in spreading hate speech on social media to 10 including at least five government officials including police personnel and a teacher

The use of social media for creating social unrest by spreading hate material has emerged as a major concern in the Gilgit-Baltistan region With the restoration of 4G/5G cellular internet services the authorities are expected to continue their efforts to monitor and control the misuse of social media platforms to maintain peace and security in the region

The decision to restore internet services has been welcomed by the local population, particularly freelancers and businesses that heavily rely on internet connectivity for their operations It is seen as a positive step toward returning normalcy and economic stability to the Gilgit-Baltistan region

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Monday issued notices to the respondents including the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief s petition seeking post-arrest bail in the cypher case The court s notices came during the hearing of Khan s bail petition challenging the special court s decision in the said case last week The plea was filed by the PTI chairman on Saturday and was fixed for hearing today The special court established under the Official Secrets Act had rejected the post-arrest bail pleas of the PTI chief in the case of the missing cypher IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq issued notices in response to the plea filed by lawyer Salman Safdar on behalf of the PTI chief The PTI chief ’s legal team repeatedly urged for an early hearing of the case following which the IHC chief justice emphasised that there is a proper procedure in place and the case will be decided accordingly The case will be taken up by the IHC on September 25 The PTI chairman was sent to jail on August 5 following his conviction in the Toshakhana case On August 29 the IHC had suspended his sentence However a special court had directed Attock jail authorities to keep him in judicial lockup in connection with the cipher case s ta f f r e p o r t

Only 3.06% pass CSS exam as FPSC announces result

ISLAMABAD: Only 3 06 percent candidates passed the Central Superior Services (CSS) competitive exam as the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) on Monday declared results for written examination of CSS 2023 As per announcement made by the FPSC on social media platform X (twitter) a total 28,024 candidates had applied for the written exam and out of which 13,008 candidates appeared in it It said only 398 candidates had passed the written exam this year The FPSC said that results of rejected candidates shall remain withheld as per Rule 16 (6) of CSS Competitive Examination Rules, 2019 It added that eligible candidates, who had qualified the written examination, would be intimated about the schedule of Medical Examination Psychological Assessment and Viva Voce in due course of time s ta f f r e p o r t

US diplomat underscores strong par tnership bet ween US, people of Sindh

KARACHI s ta f f r e p o r t

United States Deputy Chief of Mission Andrew Schofer s visit to Karachi underscored the strong partnership between the United States and the people of Sindh He explored opportunities to enrich development, trade and commercial ties and showcased the strength of our people-to-people relationships the cornerstone of our bilateral relationship

As co-host of the second Green Shipping roundtable, Schofer underscoring the crucial role of sustainable shipping practices in mitigating the impact of climate change The Green Shipping roundtable stakeholders discussed opportunities to re-

duce carbon emissions in the port shipping and logistics sectors in Pakistan Port authorities industry and other key actors in the ports and shipping value chain discussed how to promote environmentally friendly and sustainable shipping practices

and ways to support the Green Shipping Challenge at COP28

Andrew Schofer stated, “Through events like the one today, we are encouraging bilateral dialogue on climate action and exploring innovative solutions to strengthen Pakistan s climate resilience He praised the attendees commitment and engagement to support a sector-wide transition to more sustainable shipping practices

The visit included a stop at Lincoln Corner Karachi where Schofer met with students entrepreneurs and volunteers applauding their dedication and creativity

He highlighted the significance of youthled innovation in driving progress and fostering strong US-Pakistan relations The Deputy Chief of Mission also un-

derscored the importance of religious tolerance during a meeting with religious minority leaders, reaffirming the United States’ unwavering support for the rights of Pakistani religious minorities

The visit wrapped up with a visit to Port Qasim Productive meetings with Qasim Port Authority Chairman Shah and Cargill and Engro Corporation leadership focused on green shipping, port operations, energy solutions, and other innovative approaches aimed at enhancing Pakistan’s trade competitiveness and increasing ways to connect with Pakistan s largest export market the United States The US-Pakistan Green Alliance framework was highlighted as a shared commitment to sustainability and climate resilience

Neutral exper t to oversee Pak-India hydropower dispute tomorrow

The Neutral Expert is set to oversee legal proceedings involving Pakistan and India’s dispute over the design of the 330-MW Kishenganga and 850-MW Ratle hydropower projects from September 20 to September 21, 2023, in The Hague

As per reports, Pakistan’s delegation, consisting of the Commissioner of Indus Waters officials from the Attorney General s Office and a team of international lawyers will present the country s case

Earlier on February 27-28 2023 the Neutral Expert conducted proceedings to es-

Pakistan has pursued resolution through both the Neutral Expert and the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) India initially hesitated to engage with the PCA but is now participating after the tribunal, on July 7, 2023, dismissed its six jurisdictional objections

ingness to address concerns through the Permanent Commission of Indus Waters (PCIW) in April 2023

Regarding the Kishenganga project, Pakistan has raised three objections, including reducing the pond capacity from 7 5 million cubic meters to one million cubic meters increasing intake by 1-4 meters and elevating spillways by up to nine meters For the Ratle Hydropower plant Pakistan has raised four objections, including maintaining a one-meter freeboard (compared to India’s proposal of two meters), restricting the pond capacity to eight million cubic meters (India proposes 24 million cubic meters) increasing intake by up to 8 8 meters and elevating spillways by up to 20 meters

E U L I K E LY T O E X T E N D PA K I S TA N ’ S G S P P L U S

S TAT U S A M I D G R O W I N G T R A D E R E L AT I O N S

sources, Pakistan remains cautiously optimistic about the outcome as no objections have been raised within the committee so far

TH E European Union (EU) is currently deliberating the extension of Pakistan’s Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) status for an additional four years until 2027 The decision to extend these trade privileges which grant Pakistan preferential access to EU markets, follows the endorsement of recommendations by the European Council and is currently under consideration by the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade (INTA)

At its upcoming meeting scheduled for September 18-19 2023 INTA will discuss the proposed extension of the GSP scheme

The committee s members are also expected to vote on the matter According to informed

Mohmand Dam’s spillway, diversion tunnels being concreted

ISLAMABAD: The concretion of spillway construction work at left and right abutments of the Mohmand Dam besides various components of the diversion system including the diversion tunnels in upcoming low-flow season are vigorously going on According to official sources, the contractor has already been directed to ensure the completion of the diversion system during the upcoming lowflow season for diversion of River Swat

WAPDA was constructing Mohmand Dam Project across River Swat in Mohmand District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa It is the 5th highest concrete-face-rock-fill dam in the world The dam will store water for agriculture, control flood supply water to Peshawar for urban use and generate green clean and economically affordable hydel electricity The project was scheduled for completion in 2026-27

Mohmand Dam having a gross water storage capacity of 1 29 MAF, will irrigate 18,233 acres of new land in Mohmand and Charsadda, besides supplementing irrigation supplies to 160 000 acres of existing land S ta f f R e p o R t

SC law case: CJP and two senior-most judges to constitute benches

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

Four cameras have also been installed in the visitors gallery and one is installed for the lawyers’ rostrum in front of the judges’ docks

At the outset of the hearing the Supreme Court accepted all the pleas seeking the formation of the full court to hear the case CJP Qazi Faez Isa remarked there were three petitions for the constitution of the full court and the best solution to address this important issue

The federal government in its response submitted to the SC, urged the apex court to dismiss all the pleas challenging SC Practice and Procedure Act Pleas against the law passed by Parliament are inadmissible Parliament has the right to legislation under Article 191 of the Constitution of Pakistan, the written reply of the government read and added that no one can bar the Parliament from legislation The petitioner ’s lawyer Khawaja Tariq Rahim in his arguments said the Parliament cannot interfere in SC s matters To this the CJP remarked Whatever you are saying is not mentioned in the act Khawaja sahab! don t go in the past, read the act which you have challenged, CJP Isa asked Justice Athar Minallah remarked Khawaja sahab are you in favour of giving all the powers to a single personality? Whatever happened in the past do you want it to continue? he added

During the hearing, the CJP advised Khawaja Tariq Rahim not to respond to the questions raised by him and his fellow judges abruptly “I’m trying to make your life easy note down the queries and respond in detail ” the top judge remarked and added you can give written responses too Do you want to make CJP unaccountable, CJP Isa asked the petitioner

Furthermore, the CJP chided counsel Rahim for referring to his “personal opinion” during the arguments and asked him to stick to the law

“What is this ‘personal opinion’ please talk about the law CJP Qazi Faez Isa remarked He further asked: Whose right can be taken away by this law? Rs6 5 billion dollars were lost due to the court s decision in the Reko Diq case

While the proposal may appear to be straightforward Pakistan s continuation under the GSP+ arrangement is subject to periodic reviews conducted by the EU, which take place every two years Presently, the findings of the most recent review remain undisclosed adding an element of uncertainty to Pakistan s hopes for an extension Pakistan has vigorously lobbied for the continuation of the GSP scheme and has taken substantial steps to align with the EU’s requirements which include ratifying and effectively implementing 27 core international conventions focusing on human and labor rights environmental protection and good governance

The GSP+ arrangement, which offers generous tariff preferences predominantly comprising zero duties on approximately two-thirds of product categories is designed to promote sustainable development and good governance in beneficiary countries

Trade relations between the EU and Pakistan have experienced growth in recent years In 2022 bilateral trade between the two stood at $14 857 billion with Pakistan s exports totaling $9 865 billion a significant increase from $6 639 billion in the previous year EU imports from Pakistan, on the other hand, amounted to $5 392 billion in 2022, a marginal decrease compared to $5 544 billion in 2021

It is notable that Pakistan’s key exports to the EU include textile articles clothing cotton beverages cereals leather goods and various other products

WB’s role as major development par tner commendable: S ami S aeed

ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t

Caretaker Minister for Planning Development & Special Initiatives Muhammad Sami Saeed has commended the role of World Bank as one of the major development partner of Pakistan

He stated this while talking to the Country Director World Bank, Njay Benhassine who called on him here on Monday Njay Benhassine was accompanied by his team including Gailius J Draugelis (Operations Manager) for Pakistan at WB and Kamran Akbar

(Senior Social Development Specialist) Chief Executive Officer CEO, P3A Board, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, Member (Infrastructure & Regional Connectivity) at Planning Commission Dr Waqas Anwar and Member

(Social Sector & Devolution) Rafiullah Kakar were also present in the meeting Sami Saeed appreciated the WB for its decades-long assistance, which has been playing a vital role in the socioeconomic uplift of Pakistan He also appreciated the WB’s continued support and commitment for the ongoing devel-

opment projects in the country particularly for the flood-affected areas

The Planning Ministry is committed to play its constructive role in facilitating the WB for the implementation of development projects to make Pakistan climate resilient, he remarked while reiterating that government’s efforts for the country’s economic revival It is noted that in last year Pakistan faced an unprecedented devastation due to torrential rains and flooding in most parts of the country, affected 33 million people and eco-

MCB plans to set up exchange company with Rs 1 bn initial capital

nomic losses worth $30 billion as a re-

sult the government prepared the 4RF framework The 4FR document suggested effective coordination and participation arrangement among the federal and provincial governments development partners donors international and national NGOs, and academic and private sectors

Majority of the projects for the floodaffected areas are being executed by the Provinces which have been already approved by the Central Development Working Party and ECNEC Executive Committee of the National Economic Council

On the occasion, the Country Director WB appreciated the facilitation and proactive role of the Planning Ministry which established a green channel for the quick approval of PC-1s of the various projects He expressed confidence in the development policy of the interim government and assured to continue their support in the future particularly for the implementation of climate resilient infrastructure human resource development education and vocational training employment water agriculture and energy development sector

PMD forec ast more rain-wind, thundershowers in nex t few days

ISLAMABAD

S ta f f R e p o R t

Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Monday said that more rain-wind/thundershowers with occasional gaps are expected in various parts of the country in the coming days that would turn the weather pleasant by reducing temperatures

The PMD predicted few heavy or isolated very heavy falls in Thatta Badin Sajawal Umerkot Tharparkar and Mirpurkhas The synoptic situation has revealed that a low pressure area (LPA) was located over Southeast of Rajasthan (India) and likely to move south westwards during next 48 hours Under the influence of this system rain/wind-thundershowers with moderate to isolated heavy falls is expected in Lower Sindh including Tharparkar Umerkot Mirpurkhas

Sanghar Khairpur Badin Sajawal Thatta Jamshoro Larkana Dadu, Karachi, Hyderabad, Naushahro Feroze, Shaheed Benazirabad, Mitayari, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allah Yar while at isolated places in Sukkur, Ghotki, Qambar Shahdadkot Barkhan Sibbi Zhob Kalat Khuzdar Lasbella and Awaran from September 18 (evening/night) to September 20

Rain/wind-thunderstorm Kashmir Gilgit Baltistan Islamabad North and Eastern Punjab including Pothohar region Murree Galliyat Sargodha Gujranwala Hafizabad Mandi Bahauddin Narowal Sialkot Lahore Kasur Sheikhupura, Faisalabad, Okara, Sahiwal, Bahawalnagar and Bahawalpur, Upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa including Dir, Swat, Chitral, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Kohistan, Mardan, Nowshera Swabi Peshawar and Kohat from September 18 (evening/night) to September 21 with occasional gaps

About the possible impacts few heavy to isolated very heavy falls may inundate low lying areas in Thatta Badin Sajawal, Umerkot, Tharparkar and Mirpurkhas from September 18 (night) to September 20 The PMD has advised the farmers to manage their crop activities accordingly and tourists and travelers to remain cautious to avoid any untoward situation during the period Wind-thunderstorm may damage loose structures like electric poles solar panels etc

The general public has been advised to stay at safe places during wind-storm/lightning/heavy rains The PMD has alerted the concerned authorities to take necessary precautionary measures during the forecast period

Maiden live telecast as full court hears petitions against SC Prac tice and Procedure Ac t

ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t

A full court bench headed by Chief Justice

Qazi Faez Isa is hearing the review petitions clubbed together against the Supreme Court Practice and Procedure Act, 2023 –a legislation introduced by the former coalition government

This is the

also comprised Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Muneeb Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi Justice Aminuddin Khan Justice Mazahir Ali Akbar Naqvi Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar Justice Ayesha Malik Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Shahid Waheed and Justice Musarrat Hilali The federal government requested the apex court to reject petitions against the Supreme Court Practice and Procedure Act The federal government taking a stand requested that the petitions against the Act of the Parliament were inadmissible, so theses should be dismissed The federal government submitted its written response in the case through the attorney general in which

the federal government requested to reject petitions against the Act

According to government reply, Parliament was empowered to legislate under Article 191 of the Constitution and Article 191 did not prevent Parliament from making laws It was stated in the reply that the independence of the judiciary was not affected by the said Act and no power had been withdrawn from the Supreme Court under the Act It further said that petitions against the Parliament Act were inadmissible even on merit As the hearing started Khawaja Tariq Rahim started presenting arguments Justice Ayesha Malik remarked that the right to appeal had been given in Section 5 of the Act in question “If we decide the case on the full court

and declare the law correct, how the appeal would be made against it, she asked The Chief Justice remarked that 57,000 cases of the people were awaiting justice Justice Mandokhel remarked that Khawaja Rahim should read Article 191 Kh Rahim said the power to regulate the court belongs to the Supreme Court under the Federal Legislative List Schedule The Chief Justice said that the Supreme Court had its own authority to regulate its powers “Are you saying that 1989 rules are in conflict with the Constitution The CJP asked to the counsel Rahim said the rules of 1980 were framed by the full court and those rules were correct The chief justice remarked that he should not talk about the future and limit his arguments to the present The CJP said if the legislation was enacted in the future he could challenge it again Justice Muneeb Akhtar questioned that allowing the thee-member committee to have the power of clause 3 of Article 184, was a judicial power or an administrative one

PR OFIT N e w S D e S k

After United Bank Limited (UBL) and Meezan Bank, MCB Bank Limited (PSX: MCB) has also decided to set up an exchange company with an initial paid-up capital of Rs 1 billion as disclosed to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday According to the stock filing, this exchange company will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of MCB, contingent upon approval from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and compliance with regulatory requirements The announcement denotes that MCB has now become the fifth major commercial bank to also operate an exchange company after UBL Meezan Bank Habib Bank Limited (HBL) and the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) This momentous development follows the recent concerted crackdown against black market operatives and the subsequent announcement by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to introduce structural reforms in the Exchange Companies sector The point of the recent crackdown has been to rein in the open market and strengthen governance, internal controls, and compliance culture in the sector As part of these reforms leading banks actively engaged in foreign exchange business would establish wholly owned Exchange Companies to cater to the legitimate foreign exchange needs of the general public Additionally, the minimum capital requirement for Exchange Companies has been increased from Rs 200 million to Rs 500 million free of losses

I S L A M A B A D : R e c e n t l y c o n s t r u c t e d S o u t h C h i n a E x h i b i t i o n a n d Tr a d i n g C e n t e r a l s o c a l l e d H u a f a E x h i b i t i o n C e n t e r G w a d a r i s a l l s e t t o b e f u n c t i o n a l I t g e a r s u p t h e h o l d i n g o f “ 3 r d e d i t i o n o f G w a d a r I n v e s t m e n t a n d E x p o F o r u m o n t h e s u b j e c t o f B l u e E c o n o m y a n d P e t r o c h e m i c a l I n d u s t r y s o o n G w a d a r P r o r e p o r t e d o n M o n d a y Tw o m o n t h s b a c k t h e n P r i m e M i n i s t e r S h a h a b z S h a r i f h a d i n a u g u r a t e d t h e C e n t e r l o c a t e d i n G w a d a r P o r t f a c i n g G w a d a r B u s i n e s s C e n t e r P r e p a r a t i o n s i n t h i s r e g a r d a r e o n t h e g o a n d i t i s h i g h l y l i k e l y t h a t f u n c t i o n w i l l m a r k o ff i c i a l o p e r a t i o n a l i s m o f H u a f a E x h i b i t i o n C e n t e r G w a d a r I n t h i s c o n n e c t i o n , C h i n a O v e r s e a s P o r t s H o l d i n g C o m p a n y, o p e r a t o r o f G w a d a r P o r t , i s u n d e r p r o c e s s o f s i g n i n g a M e m o r a n d u m o f U n d e r s t a n d i n g w i t h Ec o m m e r c e G a t e w a y P a k i s t a n ( p v t ) L t d t o c o - o rg a n i z e a n d m a n a g e t h e e v e n t T h e a g e n d a w i l l b e t o p r o m o t e b l u e e c o n o m y a n d p e t r o c h e m i c a l i n d u s t r y i n G w a d a r F r e e Z o n e a n d t h e r e g i o n T h e f i r s t a n d s e c o n d e d i t i o n s o f G w a d a r E x p o w e r e h e l d i n 2 0 1 8 a n d 2 0 2 0 r e s p e c t i v e l y A f t e r w a r d s , t h e p r o c e s s w a s i n t e r r u p t e d b y t h e o u t b r e a k o f C O V I D - 1 9 T h i s w o u l d b e t h e f i r s t o f i t s k i n d m e g a - e v e n t i n G w a d a r i n p o s t - C O V I D e r a S ta f f R e p o R t

I I U I h o l d s 9 1 s t m e e t i n g o f B o G

ISLAMABAD: The 91st meeting of the Board of Governors (BoG) of International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) was held here on Monday, at Allama Iqbal Auditorium, Faisal Masjid campus of the university The meeting was chaired by Prof Dr Samina Malik, Rector IIUI / Chairperson Board of Governors of the University It was also attended by Vice Chairman of BoG and President IIUI H E Dr Hathal Homoud Alotaibi and the honorable board members The board took important decisions in the meeting including the appointment of Dr Abdul Raheman as Vice President Academics It also approved the adoption of time pay scale of government for the employees of BPS 01 to 16 In the meeting approval of the recommendations of the selection boards held from June 2022 to March 2023 in various disciplines was also given The BoG chair and the members approved the financial year 2023-24 budget as well as recommendations of the academic council on certain academic matters were also approved In the 91st meeting implementation reports of the 89th and 90th meeting of the the BoG were also endorsed p R e S S R e l e a S e

A step in the right direc tion

Afirst, yesterday, with the proceedings of the supreme Court being broadcast on live television Barring a smattering of disagreement with the decision to broadcast the proceedings it was met with a positive response even by the harsh critics of the new chief justice

An interesting viewing And it was as if a person watching cricket for the very first time has lucked into watching an India, Pakistan or Australia, England match because it was a full court; a full court discussing a constitutional issue; a full court discussing a constitutional issue that happened to be on institutional limits All the bells and the whistles

This paper is staunchly pro-democracy not just as far as the procedural motions of democracy are concerned (which are being violated right now) but also the spirit of democracy And, as per that spirit, this paper will support any step that brings transparency of any sort

Caveats, there are many some of the previous lordships have been known to play to the galleries at the expense of their better legal judgment Would this literally encourage much more of the same? This is the biggest concern, but not the only one, of course The others like the secrecy of the proceedings in some sensitive appeal cases, can be mitigated case-to-case

The transparency will lay bare some of the supposed brilliance of some of the big ticket lawyers in the country specially in smaller benches The law unfortunately, is becoming more and more a whoyou-know vocation, and it is hoped that the transparency is going to try to ward that off a bit A bit of a jolt to both the judges and the lawyers

We also need to start thinking about how to replicate this lower down the line The proceedings of seven high courts across India are livestreamed across India We d better get to it, and work our way further down The courts are a mess and this is a step that could potentially keep both judge and lawyer in check

Dedicated to the legac y of late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami (Late)

Founding Editor

Yousaf Nizami Editor

M A Niazi Joint Editor Umar Aziz Executive Editor

As the curtains drew back on the G20 summit India seized the global stage with an undeniable air of confidence

The spotlight was firmly trained on the south Asian nation, as it unveiled a series of ambitious economic corridors designed to reshape trade routes and boost economic ties with the western hemisphere The newly launched India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor and the India-Europe Economic Corridor via West Asia have not only attracted substantial interest due to their vast scale but also for their potential to enrich global interconnectedness and prosperity World leaders including U s President Joe Biden extended their appreciation for these initiatives acknowledging them as revolutionary investments capable of propelling worldwide economic progress

Interestingly, the nomenclature and ambit o f t h e s e n e w l y e s t a b l i s h e d e c o n o m i c c o r r idors bears a striking resemblance to another n o t a b l e i n i t i a t i v e i n t h e r e g i o n – t h e C h i n a -

Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) a flags h i p p r o j e c t w i t h i n t h e f r a m e w o r k o f t h e Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Keen e y e d o b s e r v e r s h a v e n o t i c e d t h i s s i m i l a r i t y, which adds an intriguing layer to the evolving dynamics in the region

The Western world’s increasing attraction to India can be ascribed in part to the immense market opportunities it boasts and the strategic imperative of countering China s influence

Whether India can fulfil these dual roles remains a matter of debate However, what is clear is that India has garnered international approval as a brand in today’s interconnected world India’s soft power is resonating on a broader scale which translates into increased goodwill that it is trying to leverage for

U b i q u i t o u s i n t e r n e t a c c e s s , a n d a c o n s t a n t s u p p ly o f b o r e d u s e rs w i t h n o t h i n g b e t t e r t o d o m a k e fo r g r e a t bu s i n e s s p o t e n t i a l , w h i c h w a s ex p l o i t e d t o t h e f u l l e s t , a n d a ro u n d t h e g l o b e , by c o r p o r a t i o n s a n d e n t r e p r e n e u rs a l i k e h a S a N a F Ta B S a E E d

TW o unfortunate things have coincided in the modern world one: strangers (media personalities and admen) never had this much power over the thought of the masses as they have now And two: the masses were probably never nearly this dumb Perhaps the first owes a lot to the second The result is a whole generation that believes that beauty soap makes the skin glow that shampoos are essential for healthy hair, that want of a gym membership is the last hurdle standing in the way of fitness, that trickle down economy is a boon for the poor to list only some of the numerous variants of nonsense believed on a large scale There is no denying its many positives but the internet has certainly played its part in making matters worse in this regard Ubiquitous internet access, and a constant supp l y o f b o r e d u s e r s w i t h n o t h i n g b e t t e r t o d o m a k e f o r g r e a t b u s i n e s s p o t e n t i a l , w h i c h w a s e x p l o i t e d t o t h e f u l l e s t a n d a r o u n d t h e g l o b e b y c o r p o r at i o n s a n d e n t r e p r e n e u r s a l i k e T h e p a r t y w a s s o o n j o i n e d b y i n f l u e n c e r s m o t i v a t o r s v - l o g g e r s a n al y s t s a n d s c h o l a r s o f e v e r y i l k ; a l l h e l l - b e n t o n h e l p i n g , i n f o r m i n g a n d e d u c a t i n g t h e m a s s e s To d a y, t h e s e p r a c t i t i o n e r s p r o b a b l y n u m b e r i n h u n d r e d s o f t h o u s a n d s w o r l d w i d e

The good thing about influencing, motivating, informing and educating is that you do not need a product or a service All you require is some insight i n t o h u m a n p s y c h o l o g y e n o u g h i n t e l l i g e n c e t o identify a certain audience and to know how to tell it what it wants to hear, and the stamina to keep at it every day

Today you have v-logs on politics, foreign affairs sports cooking history fortune telling – you name it With few exceptions it is a no-holdsbarred all-out war for views No trick is considered too low to be beneath the dignity of the presenter Initially there used to be some concern about the accuracy of information given and predictions made But the v-loggers soon found out to their delight that it does not matter at all, for their audience does not mind one way or the other All it craves is new content every day It does not care how often their predictions may have failed in the past or how many times they were less than truthful in their reports It could all be a fabrication, or make no sense whatsoever, but as long as the content conforms to their desires they can be trusted to tune in daily one can see this in the development of the thumbnails In the early days of v-logs the content creators made it a point to put a question mark on something that they knew was not true Now they have grown much more reckless, for more and more of them are dispensing with the question mark Thumbnails, which till relatively recently used to have at least something to do with the content, are increasingly devoid of any connection whatever with what is in the video In way too many cases they are nothing more than click baits now As for the v-logs themselves barring rare exceptions the more popular the v-logger, the more oblivious he is to any concern for consistency or even to a semblance of responsibility for his last vlog Would a public that had any genuine avocations (leave alone meaningful vocations) patronize such an unscrupulous lot? our maulvis are famous for being late to any party; but boy, do they make up for it later! like the loudspeaker and the television in the past, they have taken a fancy to internet that is in spectacular contrast to their earlier objections to photographs

To d ay yo u h av e v - l o g s o n p o l i t i c s , fo r e i g n a f f a i rs , s p o r t s , c o o k i n g , h i s t o r y, fo r t u n e t e l l i n g – yo u n a m e i t W i t h f ew ex c e p t i o n s , i t i s a n o - h o l d s - b a r r e d , a l l - o u t w a r fo r v i ew s N o t r i ck i s c o n s i d e r e d t o o l ow t o b e b e n e a t h t h e d i g n i t y o f t h e p r e s e n t e r I n i t i a l ly t h e r e u s e d t o b e s o m e c o n c e r n a b o u t t h e a c c u r a c y o f i n fo r m a t i o n g i v e n a n d p r e d i c t i o n s m a d e

G20 glit z and domestic grit

favourable commercial and strategic agreements case in point the newly launched Middle Eastern and West African economic corridors

The country left no stone unturned in its efforts to guarantee the success of the G20 event

The government spared no expenses in promoting the summit domestically, with billboards featuring PM Modi lining the streets of New Delhi The city itself seemed to have undergone substantial preparations for the occasion

Nevertheless it is crucial to recognize that while the government has made extensive efforts to project a flawless image, the real face of New Delhi has been concealed behind shrouds The teeming slums of the city, occupied by the more abundant though less fortunate residents had either been demolished or cordoned off by newly constructed barriers in anticipation of the summit These actions underscore the striking juxtaposition between the glittering facade of the G20 and the socioeconomic hardships faced by a significant portion of India’s populace Though local news channels covered the summit and its distinguished attendees extensively it remains imperative to recognize that the success of such international events should not be gauged exclusively by their grandeur

The true measure of accomplishment lies in addressing the fundamental issues affecting the lives of all citizens regardless of their proximity to the limelight

It s impossible to ignore the stark contrast between India s display of economic strength and global aspirations at the G20, and the troubling human rights problems simmering within its boundaries

The continued subjugation of Kashmiri people since the abrogation of Article

370 atrocities against religious minorities suppression of civil society lack of free press/ media and the crumbling infrastructure of the capital are all concerns which the Indian leadership concealed nicely under real and metaphorical shrouds Worries encompassing the rights of minorities especially the Muslim community have echoed within and beyond the nation’s boundaries portraying a grim tableau of the status of

religious inclusivity and societal cohesion

Furthermore, the disconcerting crackdown on voices of dissent, civil society groups, and independent journalism has cast a solemn shadow over India’s democratic credentials The detention of activists and journalists during the G20 summit stands as a vivid reminder of the hurdles facing both journalistic liberty and human rights within the country A thriving democracy thrives on the unrestricted exchange of ideas and perspectives, yet India’s recent actions seem to contravene these fundamental tenets

As India seems poised to take a more prominent role at the global stage it is imperative to assess its readiness or indeed suitability for that role given the profound nature of domestic issues confronting the state The international community also bears a responsibility in this regard Global leaders must not shy away from addressing issues like Kashmir and minority rights during diplomatic engagements with India President Biden for example chose to remain silent on the on-going atrocities against religious minorities in India throughout his visit and only addressed these concerns once he had left India and arrived in Vietnam Multilateral forums, like the G20, offer a unique opportunity to discuss and advocate for meaningful change in areas that demand immediate attention

It is crucial to remember that genuine global leadership extends beyond economic might and geopolitical strategies It involves a steadfast dedication to upholding democratic principles, safeguarding human rights, and championing social equity both on the world stage and within the confines of a nation’s territory India s lofty global aspirations and its pursuit of becoming a prominent global player stand in stark contrast to the pressing domestic challenges that undermine its democratic principles and inclusive ethos As the world watches, it falls upon us, collectively, to ensure that India is held accountable for its actions unmasking the reality concealed beneath the veneer of glitz and glamour The global commitment to democratic values human rights and social equity must transcend borders and guide the efforts towards a better future for all

Nidaa Shahid is a Senior Researcher at Centre for Aerospace and Security Studies Lahore

and images The result is that where their audience was limited on account of size of the mosque or the madrassa, their reach is now potentially worldwide on their v-logs, they are merrily engaged in conv e r t i n g t h e a l r e a d y - c o n v e r t e d , t e l l i n g t h e m h o w blessed they are to be guided and how grossly misguided are those who do not agree with them There is no end to the list of things men want to hear over and over again These Islamic v-loggers started with the usual controverses that are certain to attract viewers from certain quarters of society, but it was not long before some of them realized that a major demographic remained neglected and which could so profitably be tapped into That demographic was that of married women like psychologists and relationship experts before them they started reminding married women about their rights (as if any of them had ever forgotten them): How their ungrateful husbands were typically less than appreciative of their efforts How the latter were supposed to every now and then buy them jewellery etc Predictably this has done wonders for their viewership Many ladies have grown quite fond of consuming such content to the utter satisfaction (not to mention the income) of the vloggers No wonder they rarely think of bringing up the ladies’ duties one such influencer (a star of sorts on the social media) at an unusually inspired moment went so far as to say that husbands should share their phone and social media passwords with their wives if they truly love them He presented his own example: how his wife was free to inspect his phone any time she liked one wonders whether these women realize how dangerous it could be if their husbands started following not only the verbal teachings but the practical examples set by these motivators For most of them have two if not more wives I have a feeling they would be none too pleased if their husbands started regularly buying them a jewellery item or two (as per the teachings) but got it in their heads to also emulate the teacher by opting for polygyny

The author is a connoisseur of music literature and food (but not drinks) He can be reached at www facebook com/hasanaftabsaeed

E d i t o r ’ s m a i l

S e n d y o u r l e t t e r s t o : L e t t e r s t o E d i t o r Pakistan Today 4 - S h a a re y F a t i m a J i n n a h L a h o re P a k i s t a n E - m a i l : l e t t e r s @ p a k i s t a n t o d a y c o m p k L e t t e r s s h o u l d b e a d d re s s e d t o Pakistan Today e x c l u s i v e l y

Sewerage issues

K A R A C H I has struggled with urban flooding for decades because of an outdated and inefficient sewerage system The municipal authorities and provincial government have shifted blame onto one another for the poor infrastructure and sewerage system of the city, but neither of them has done anything to repair it Now that the city is experiencing another monsoon spell, many areas are already inundated with water after receiving just a little rainfall The water has become a safety hazard for the people as they face the risk of getting electrocuted or drowning in uncovered manholes It is also impeding the flow of traffic at major routes across the city including Powerhouse Chowrangi and Nagaan Chowrangi The prediction of heavy rainfall in the upcoming days signals that there is more misery in store for Karachiites The water will remain accumulated on the roads for weeks resulting in diseases and foul odours The municipal administration needs to act immediately to replace existing sewerage lines with a sustainable and sturdy sewerage system In the meantime it must form a plan to drain rainwater from commercial and residential areas to reduce problems for the citizens

Gender disparit y in Pakistan

A l M o s T half of Pakistan’s population 48 8% to be precise constitutes women still gender disparity is hampering women from making their due contribution to the progress and prosperity of the nation The situation is even worse in rural areas where women are playing an active role in agriculture sector in particular but are facing a lot of discrimination due to the sardari system According to a UN research, a country can significantly boost its economy if it abolishes gender disparities and provides equal rights to all The first and foremost is for girls to be given equal opportunities to attain education as boys They must be given the right to choose whether they want to be working women or act as homemakers Educated women have the potential to be equally helpful at both fronts: at home educated women can raise their children well who can then go on to serve society in a manner required; and if they step out to work, they can make a direct contribution to the development of the country There is thus the need for those in power and authority to acknowledge women’s role and potential in all walks of life, and take steps to provide them equal opportunities If we wish to see Pakistan among the most prosperous countries of the world we need to ensure gender equality In the words of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah No nation can rise to the height of glory unless your women are side by side with you SHAH HASSAN

KE bills

I want to draw attention to my growing concern regarding the recent decision by Karachi Electric (KE) to increase extra charges on consumers’ bills It has come to my attention along with that of many fellow residents that there has been a noticeable increase in these supplementary bills over the past few months This move has raised significant questions and discontent among the residents of Karachi While I understand that utility companies may face various challenges and expenses, the sudden imposition of additional charges has taken many consumers by surprise Many of us are already struggling to manage our budgets amidst rising prices and these unexpected bills are causing significant financial strain This lack of proper justification for these extra bills has left citizens feeling frustrated and disillusioned It is essential for KE to be transparent about the reasons behind these increases and to provide a clear breakdown of how these charges will benefit consumers

The Western worldÊs increasing attraction to India can be ascribed, in par t, to the immense market oppor tunities it boasts and the strategic imperative of countering ChinaÊs influence

Nidaa Shahid

A n o t h e r f a l s e f l a g o p e r a t i o n

similar reports of Indian forces operation came from Anantnag on september 12 2023 whereas per their narrative one lieutenant colonel one major and one DsP were killed The evidence on ground is contrary to what is claimed by Indian Media s war-mongering hysteria

Video messages of inhabitants living close to line of Control (loC) revealed a complete calm and denied any happenings of the sort reported by Indian Media on september 16, 2023, BJP’s biased Zee TV aired a Modi’s address of March 4 2019 as live to add color to this political rhetoric for gaining a favourable poll opinion for BJP The images of the region are clearly reflective of usual activity where local shepherds are seen with their hoards such activity is out of question in an area where Indian forces are engaged in so-called “fierced encounter”

The false flag operation is a theatrical drama staged by India to achieve multiple objectives including diverting global attention from human rights violations in in the Indian Illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIoJK) by blaming Pakistan for terrorism there

AF T E R the World War 11, nuclear weapons were never used and were only employed as a strategic threat

During the heightened days of the Cold War many crises arose in suez Canal Korea Cuba and Vietnam when the Us and the former soviet Union were willing to use atomic weapons but they stopped due to the fear of nuclear war which could eliminate both the superpowers Hence, they preferred to resolve their differences through diplomacy by following the doctrine of nuclear deterrence, popularly known as balance of terror

Political strategists agree that deterrence is a psychological concept which aims to affect an opponent s perceptions In nuclear deterrence weapons are less usable as their threat is enough in deterring an enemy who intends to use its armed might In this context, a renowned scholar, Hotzendorf remarks that nuclear force best serves the interests of a state when it deters an attack

But situation of the sub-continent is quite different where without bothering for the eruption of atomic war between India and Pakistan; New Delhi has been ignoring the tenets of nuclear deterrence

In fact, BJP won the general elections of 2014 and 2019 on the basis of anti-Muslim and anti-Pakistan slogans Therefore, since Narendar Modi, the fanatic leader of the biased ruling party BJP, became Indian prime minister; he has been implementing ideology of Hindutva (Hindu Nationalism) by persecuting the Muslims and creating war-hysteria among the Hindus against Pakistan

In this regard Modi-led BJP government can go to any extent to win the general elections to be held in 2024

After facing a defeat in states of Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Chattisgarh, Jharkand, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Karnatka BJP entities are trying to capitalise on antiPakistan sentiments of general populace to gain landslide victory in the forthcoming elections Blaming Pakistan of harbouring terrorists and supporting extremist elements in India are part of the previous scheme to win elections as it is once again on public display

According to Indian media reports, on september 16, this year, multiple officers and soldiers of the Indian forces were killed in a fake encounter with terrorists in the Uri sector resulting in a dozen casualties

Prior to Indian elections, the Modi regime has started a campaign to demonize its own citizens and military officers It shows that once again, India wants to recreate the Pulwama drama to obtain political goals Global media reports and audio-video evidence also confirm that Indian forces are spreading terrorism along the loC to achieve political ambitions using false encounters and fake news to fuel a war frenzy, which is Modi s old tactic Indian media also suggest that the Modi government is trying to disrupt the ceasefire agreement on the loC

While in the face of growing chaos in Rajouri and Anantnag New Delhi is resorting to baseless allegations against Pakistan to deflect media and public scrutiny of its problems In these terms a few days ago the killing of five Indian soldiers in the occupied Jammu and Kashmir s Rajouri sector was a Modi s failed attempt to play politics with his own soldiers’ blood

However, the sole purpose of this entire drama is to create a pretext to break the ceasefire and escalate hostilities against Pakistan to cover up its internal failures distract the public and set the stage for victory in next elections

It is mentionable that BJP has a history of launching false-flag operations to malign Islamabad in an effort to woo the voters for BJP

In this connection, very tension escalated rapidly between New Delhi and Islamabad in the aftermath of the false flag Pulwama terror attack in the IIoJK when on February 27 2019 in response to the Indian so-called pre-emptive air strike near the town of Balakot close to the border with Pakistan s sector of Kashmir, which resulted into no causalities, Pakistan Air Force shot down two Indian Air Force fighter jets and launched aerial strikes at six targets in the IIoJK

Pakistan also captured Indian pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman who was released as a gesture of peace and handed over to the Indian authorities It resulted into diplomatic victory of Islamabad over New Delhi

Notably, revelations by satya Pal Malik, ex-governor of IIoJK in an interview with Karan Thapar in The Wire abundantly made it clear that Modi allowed Pulwama incident of February 2019 to happen where more

ready strong prior to 9/11,” said louise

than 40 personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were killed in a suicide attack

Ex-Governor elaborated that Modi has no concern with whatever happened in Pulwama and he did not allow him to raise some pertinent questions the way attack happened suggesting that he was privy to impending attack Hence Modi’s involvement is vivid on August 5 2019 Modi-led government abrogated articles 35A and 370 of the Constitution which gave a special status to the IIoJK New Delhi bifurcated Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories Jammu and Kashmir and ladakh to be ruled by the federal government on the same day, strict military lockdown was imposed in the IIoJK which continues unabated New Delhi also issued an infamous map which displayed these divisions Besides Pakistan China also rejected the Indian malicious acts as unlawful and void saying that India s decision to include some of China s territory into its administrative jurisdiction challenged Beijing’s sovereignty similarly, drastic tensions arose between New Delhi and Beijing on May 5 2021 when India occupied various areas adjacent to the line of Actual Control (lAC) In response Chinese forces moved into the regions along the eastern ladakh border and vacated the disputed territories

Meanwhile, New Delhi and Beijing completed their withdrawal from the Pangong Tso lake area on February 20, 2021 in accordance with an agreement, signed by their commanders While other parts of the border remain unsettled However lAC is a nuclear flashpoint between the two countries

Nevertheless the deployment of more than 900 000 military troops in the IIoJK, who have martyred tens of thousands of the Kashmiris, including women and children through brutal tactics-fake encounters, while closure of mosques, shortage of foods, medicines for the patients have further increased the plight of the Kashmiris

It is noteworthy that a Us intelligence report entitled The Global Trends released on April 7 2020 warned that nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan might engage in a large-scale war unwittingly Miscalculation

by both governments could prompt a breakdown in the deterrence that has restricted conflict

In a latest statement, UN secretary-General Antonio Guterres who urged the resolution of Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN resolutions, warned that “any military confrontation between two nuclear powers-Pakistan and India would be a disaster for both countries and the whole world

It is worth-mentioning that Indian Defence Rajnath singh on August 16 2014 had threatened Pakistan with nuclear war, while BJP leader Dr subramaniam swami had also stated in the same year that India needed only two years to defeat Pakistan militarily, and the only solution of Kashmir was war as “there is no peaceful democratic solution”

As regard war-mongering diplomacy Indian Defence Minister Rajnath singh s recent threat to cross the loC, Indian cross-border terrorism in Pakistan and backing the militant outfits to destabilize this country show that Indian unfinished agenda of partition still continues

In the recent past, Pakistan’s civil and military leaders have repeatedly indicated that India is planning another false flag operation against Pakistan in order to divert attention from its internal issues and from failure of its external policy with the real aim of wining general elections 2024 They have frequently stated that Pakistan s armed forces are ready to respond any Indian aggression with full might ”

Nonetheless in this backdrop clouds of nuclear war are hovering over south Asia where Modi’s risky strategy of conducting another false flag operation inside Pakistani side of Kashmir by ignoring the doctrine of nuclear deterrence could result into a full-scale conventional war with Pakistan, which may culminate into atomic war, enveloping the entire region and probably the whole world

Sajjad Shaukat writes on international affairs and is author of the book: US vs Islamic Militants Invisible Balance of Power: Dangerous Shift in International Relations and can be reached at sajjad logic@yahoo com

MEDIA REVIEW NETWORK da r r E N ly N

Mo R E than two decades after the sept 11 2001 terrorist attacks discrimination and hatred of Muslims in the Us still exist to the ire of America s largest Muslim civil rights advocacy group After 22 years, unfortunately, Islamophobia has taken root and become part of the structure of racism that exists in parts of our country ” said Hussam Ayloush chief executive officer of the California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CA) Ayloush told Anadolu that nearly one million of the estimated five million Muslims living in the Us reside in the state of California and pointed out that harassment and prejudice against the Muslim community remain prevalent decades after 9/11

More than 50% of Muslim students in California face some form of verbal and physical bullying at public schools just for being Muslim,” said Ayloush “In addition, there are still government watchlists for nearly 1 6 million people almost all of whom are Muslim who have their names on the travel watchlist or they have Muslim-sounding names The types of abuses that came out of 9/11 that the government took part in became a part of how Islamophobia evolved,” he continued “Muslims being harassed at airports having the FBI conduct searches as well as plant informants at mosques and giving federal agencies like the FBI and CIA the green light to track Muslims from other countries such as syria, libya and sudan Hate crimes against Muslims skyrocketed immediately after the 9/11 attacks, rising 1 617% from 2000 to 2001 according to statistics from the FBI That severe spike marked some of the highest numbers of hate crimes against the Muslim community in Us history The Us government under the George W Bush administration needed an enemy that would allow the new conservatives to launch their campaign and 9/11 created a perfect pretext to make Muslims the enemy Ayloush explained saying that every stereotype of the Muslim community was used to harass mistreat and detain anyone fitting that mold How we ate, how we dressed, how we spoke became suspicious,” he said about the discrimination Muslims faced after 9/11 “If they rented a truck to move their furniture the FBI would be called on them If a Muslim traveled too many times out of the country or they withdrew a lot of cash for their business, they were perceived as doing something wrong and the FBI would be called to investigate “9/11 created momentum to build and shift the bigotry and xenophobia in America to justify discrimination against Muslims It allowed them to say I don t hate all Muslims just the ones who do x, y or z, only to justify their hate, said Ayloush Islamophobia was al-

Cainkar a professor of sociology at Marquette University in Milwaukee Wisconsin who specializes in Arab and Muslim American studies The immediate backlash against all perceived Muslims proved that to be the case, Cainkar told Anadolu

“That relies on the perception that all are the same such perceptions are never applied to whites or Christians of course the framing that 9/11 was a Muslim thing something inherent in being Muslim just made it worse

With many Muslims being labeled terrorists and being referenced to al-Qaeda leader osama bin laden, Cainkar said the Muslim community in America seemed to fade into the shadows immediately following the 9/11 attacks At first they somewhat went into hiding meaning they conducted their lives very quietly, said Cainkar Then, they built organizations to fight for their rights, built solidarity with other groups and eventually became strong components of Us civil society ”

That Muslim empowerment and equality movement in the United states has taken more than two decades of struggle and persistence to evolve to where it is now But even after 22 years, the same factors from 9/11 and pre-9/11 continue to stoke fears in some Americans “The same stereotypes may be used: violent terrorist oppressive to women said Cainkar Their use for political gain rises at election times and war times

The bottom line is that Islamophobia exists in the present, even though 9/11 has faded into the past “studies have shown that it increases not only in connection to realworld events but at times of Us elections

Thus I expect that if Muslims again become a target of campaign rhetoric this year, (we) will see an increase, Cainkar continued, making reference to former President Donald Trump, who is currently campaigning for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination so far I know Trump says he is going to expand the ban but he did not use the word Muslim in the quote I saw But people know what it means she was referring to the Trump administration s restrictions which barred nearly all travelers from five mainly Muslim countries syria Iran Yemen libya somalia from entering the United states Chad North Korea and Venezuela were later added Ayloush concurred with that notion, saying the correlation of 9/11 to Islamophobia transformed into a much deeper form of discrimination during Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and after he was voted into office When Trump came into the picture he reignited and popularized being racist in America with his base espousing the belief that I m not the only one who thinks that way and condoning racism towards Mexicans, Blacks, Asians, Jews and Muslims “Believe it or not we saw another wave of Islamophobia that was more vicious and more intense than

what we saw after 9/11,” Ayloush continued “Trump launched a campaign that entailed fear of Muslims and fear of Islam and revived Muslims as a threat That s when we began seeing new acts of Islamophobia including school bullying, discrimination against Muslims and targeting of mosques with vandalism and hate speech which became much greater in scope than we saw after 9/11 ” Ayloush said that type of extreme Islamophobia is prominent today Unfortunately the numbers have gone up again We re witnessing a resurgence of Islamophobia But to be fair, more people are reporting these cases of discrimination than they were immediately after 9/11 ” he said “Islamophobia still exists but we re dealing with it on a much larger level through policy issues Professor Cainkar believes that antiMuslim views are stimulated by Us foreign policies and wars, regardless of who is president “These stereotypes are played on to promote popular support for them They are also stimulated to buttress the Us government s backing or not condemning the actions of an ally (such as Israel or France) perceived to be engaged in anti-Arab and/or anti-Muslim actions, said Cainkar “Therefore, as long as the Us engages in violence in parts of the Muslim majority world or supports allies who do those stereotypes will remain 9/11 did not cause them so distance from 9/11 alone will not remove them Cainkar explained that important steps have been taken over the past 20-plus years to create a better understanding of the Us Muslim community “Muslims have built organizations and done a great job building solidarities ” she said Those are across religious groups BIPoC (Black Indigenous and People of Color) organizations, and civic groups so I would say Muslims have been in the forefront of producing this change ” But change will not come easy, according to Ayloush “Racism still exists but we have to make sure we can contain Islamophobia and racism in general he said Make sure it is illegal to discriminate based on race and make sure people are punished and penalized for doing so Make sure the public majority is not silent and is willing to speak up when necessary and stand up to those who engage in Islamophobia and racism

Ayloush believes that sentiment transcends well beyond the 22 years since 9/11 brought Islamophobia to the forefront of American society “I don’t think we’re going to have an illusion that we can ever make Islamophobia or racism disappear ” he said If anyone thinks that they will be disappointed We cannot allow for the targeted victims to defend themselves because an attack on one is an attack on all, he continued If we watch a group being targeted and we do not act or speak up, then we are part of the problem because we are allowing that racist behavior to be normalized

TH R E E international summits in a row illustrate the changing patterns of world power and the forces driving them Demands for more equality from a more confident and independent group of middle powers loom large so does the growing competition between the United states and China and their associated allies for influence over the outcomes

The BRICs summit in Johannesburg, the Asean summit in Jakarta and the G20 meeting in New Delhi had many prominent leaders and political and economic agenda items in common – including support for multilateralism calls for joint action on climate change on debt and implementation of the sustainable development goals Regional disputes loomed large, most notably Russia s invasion of Ukraine, but also Myanmar, maritime security in the south China sea African military coups and tensions on the India-China border

A striking feature of the diplomacy over the Ukraine war running through the summits is relativisation of the issue as seen by leaders from the Global south Representatives from Brazil, Indonesia, south Africa, India, Turkey and saudi Arabia refuse to follow calls by Us and European leaders to condemn Russia Instead they emphasise the war s global effects how they can be mitigated and how peace negotiations can be encouraged These leaders are impatient with overweening Western concerns about the war, and detect double standards, given previous Us unilateralism in Iraq and elsewhere Western media preoccupations with these diplomatic manoeuvres – and with Us-China competition through the summits – obscure the deeper reality that stronger and better resourced states in the Global south are rightly demanding change in world power structures

Instead of binary choices they are seeking out and creating multi-aligned ones in politics and trade Much of their autonomy from Western-dominated institutions and norms arises from growing trade with China by Brazil, Gulf states, India and southeast Asians This is counteracted by an intense Us effort to establish new links with states in the Global south – a dramatic example being the economic and security agreements reached this week by Joe Biden with Vietnam Biden did not attend the Asean summit while Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin skipped the G20 one Xi s attendance at Brics signalled his growing support for that grouping as a new source of international influence Its decision to enlarge membership with Argentina Egypt Ethiopia Iran saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates gives it greater heft so does the presence of more than 30 other states in Johannesburg as observers, telling a story of dissatisfaction with existing distributions of institutional power laid down

after the second World War

That includes the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund as well as the United Nations security Council Compared to western members of the richer oECD grouping many large states in the Global south remain deeply constrained by debt burdens and higher interest rates as payments continue to flow north They are impatient with western domination of these institutions and the threat of sanctions against them, and determined to change the balance of representation

Despite the geopolitical mandate claimed by the Commission in 2019 and how it has dealt with Covid Ukraine and growing demands for enlargement the EU has been drawn back to the Us and transatlantic orbits by the war

More will be heard in coming days about this at the UN General Assembly meetings It seems rational to expect such pressures to break the logjams surrounding debates on UN reform other straws in the wind of change include Indonesia s bid to join the oECD and the G20′s invitation to the African Union to join

DOCTRINE OF ASEAN CENTRALITY:

At the conclusion of the Asean summit the Indonesian president Joko Widodo warned that regional grouping will be destroyed by growing superpower competition if it does not respond more effectively He wants to reassert the doctrine of Asean centrality in southeast and wider Asian affairs; but strategic competition threatens to disrupt it Indonesia’s chairmanship of Asean has failed to make decisive progress on resolving the conflict between the military regime in Myanmar and the opposition to it Asean s doctrines of non-interference in domestic politics and consensual decision-making inhibit its responses to these pressures

The European Union also struggles to assert itself globally in this period of change Despite the geopolitical mandate claimed by the commission in 2019 and how it has dealt with Covid, Ukraine and growing demands for enlargement, the EU has been drawn back to the Us and transatlantic orbits by the war Relations with other regional blocs such as African Union and Asean are being improved gradually rather than transformatively

A new commission next year will have the task (like Asean and the African Union) of moderating Us-China competition and maintaining strategic autonomy from the Us To do that it will need to pay much more attention to the geopolitical changes at play in this summer s intensive summitry

The changes open up opportunities for imaginative Irish diplomacy by turning Ireland s former subaltern position to advantage to argue for a greater Global south role in world governance EU member-states with an anti-imperial and anti-colonial background like ours can contribute constructively to such EU efforts as those dominant legacies are overcome

Sajjad ShaukaT

Muslims still facing hate, discrimination 22 years after Sept . 11 attacks

G l o b a l S o u t h i s d e m a n d i n g c h a n g e s t o w o r l d p o w e r s t r u c t u r e s

China , US ContinUe high-level engagement momentUm to help reSolve iSSUeS

on high-level engagement between the US and China is being maintained as senior Chinese and US officials held multiple rounds of meetings in Malta over the weekend serving as candid substantive and constructive strategic communication on stabilising and improving bilateral relations

Some experts believed that the latest interaction opens possibilities for future interactions between the heads of state of the two countries after Washington made some tactical adjustments in engaging with China by showing some positive gesture and enhancing communication Wang Yi, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, met with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Saturday and Sunday agreeing to maintain highlevel exchanges and hold consultations on Asia-Pacific affairs maritime affairs as well as foreign policy

The latest rounds of talks between Wang and Sullivan were held after a number of senior US diplomats and officials concluded their trip to China These include a trip by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in June US Special Climate Envoy John Kerry s trip to Beijing and a four-day trip by US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in July as well as US

Secretary Gina Raimondo s visit in late August

Some experts said that the Wang-Sullivan talks served to summarise the results of the high-level engagement between the two countries in recent months raising questions about which direction the two countries are heading in According to senior officials from the Chinese Foreign Ministry who participated in the meeting the two sides held multiple discussions on US-China relations the Taiwan question the AsiaPacific situation and the Ukraine crisis for over 12 hours The question that took up the most time was Taiwan Although some US media hinted that the latest talks between the senior US and Chinese officials aim to “make sure” the leaders meet at the upcoming APEC sum-

Ukraine drones strike Crimea, moscow, oil depot , russia says

MOSCOW A G E N C I E S R u s s i a s a i d i t h a d t h w a r t e d a c o o r d i n a t e d U k r a i n i a n a t t a c k o n C r i m e a e a r l y, w h i l e d r o n e s a l s o t a rg e t e d M o s c o w, d i s r u p t i n g a i r t r a ff i c i n t h e c a p i t a l , a n d c a u s e d a f i r e a t a n o i l d e p o t i n t h e s o u t h w e s t o f t h e c o u n t r y

Ukraine in recent days has launched a series of strikes on Russian military targets in occupied Crimea including the Russian Navy Black Sea Fleet s facilities seeking to undermine Moscow s war efforts in the critical region

Attacks deep inside Russia, far from the front lines, have also increased, with Moscow’s mayor saying at least two drones were shot down in the region of the capital early on Sunday

In an opinion piece late on Saturday Oleksiy Danilov the secretary of Ukraine s Security Council urged Kyiv s allies to speed up the delivery of weapons, saying this was the only way to end the war “For example, the complete or partial elimination of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, which is a doable task, should significantly accelerate the process of Russia’s search for a way out of the ongoing war Danilov wrote on the Ukrainska Pravda news site Russian air defence systems destroyed at least six drones targeting Crimea from different directions, Russia s defence ministry said on Sunday

The report on the Telegram messaging app did not say whether any damage or casualties had been caused on the Crimea peninsula which Moscow annexed from Kyiv in a widely condemned move in 2014 eight years before Russia s full-fledged invasion

In the Moscow region, a drone was destroyed over the Istra district and another over the Ramensky district, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram, adding there were no casualties or damage from drone debris

mit in November, Chinese experts said this could be a major topic of discussion but the two sides are still in the process of communication without making any final decision Some experts believed that the US has not created many positive conditions or an atmosphere for the possible meeting of the two top leaders While the fundamental aspect of the US policy toward China remains unchanged there have been some tactical adjustments in recent months for example enhancing communication and dialogue easing tensions showing gestures to improve relations, but there have been few tangible results from the highlevel visits of the US officials to China, “on which the US has much more to do,” experts noted The talks between Wang and Sulli-

van were frank substantive and constructive Both parties agreed to continue implementing the important consensus reached at the Bali summit in Indonesia in 2022 between the leaders of the two countries maintaining high-level interactions and stabilising and improving US-China relations an official from the foreign ministry opined

The official indicated that both sides agreed that China and the US would soon hold consultations on Asia-Pacific affairs, maritime affairs, and foreign policy They also explored dialogue in the field of artificial intelligence and further supporting and facilitating personnel exchanges between the two countries

The wording of the readouts from both sides shows their restrained attitude

From June to August, the two sides have concluded a series of high-level communications on which they need to summarize and talk about what s next Lü Xiang research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said The two sides also discussed the need to re-establish military-to-military dialogue between the US and China, a senior Biden official was quoted as saying in a CNN report following the weekend meeting

Also Gen Mark Milley chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told CBS News Sunday Morning on Sunday that the Chinese balloon – whose repeated hyping as a so-called spy balloon severely damaged mutual trust – was not spying

Oil prices continue to rally on tight supply

PR OFIT R E U T E R S

Global oil benchmark Brent crude hovered above $94 a barrel on Monday with investors focused on the prospect of a widening supply deficit in the fourth quarter after Saudi Arabia and Russia extended supply cuts Brent crude futures rose 52 cents to $94 45 a barrel by 1039 GMT while U S West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 66 cents at $91 43 Brent and WTI have climbed for three consecutive weeks to touch their highest since November and are on track for their biggest quarterly increases since Russia s invasion of Ukraine in the first quarter of 2022

China as those economies grapple with a severe slowdown which demonstrates just how tight the supply side of the equation has become, said Marios Hadjikyriacos at broker XM

China, considered the engine of oil demand growth remains possibly the biggest risk because of its sluggish post-pandemic economic recovery

erdogan asks musk to build tesla factor y in turkey

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan asked Tesla

(TSLA O) CEO Elon Musk to build a Tesla factory in Turkey, the country’s communications directorate said on Monday

It cited Musk as saying that many Turkish suppliers are already working with Tesla and that Turkey was among the most important candidates for its next factory Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment Erdogan and Musk were speaking during a meeting at Turkish House a skyscraper near the United Nations in New York Turkey s state-owned Anadolu news agency reported Erdogan is in the US to attend the 78th session of the UN General Assembly Erdogan also said during the meeting that Turkey was open to cooperation on artificial intelligence and Starlink the satellite internet venture of Musk’s SpaceX the communications directorate said

It cited Musk as saying SpaceX wished to work with Turkish authorities to obtain the necessary licence to offer Starlink satellite services in Turkey

gerly awaited economic data out of China

There is growing consensus that peak interest rates are not far away as inflationary pressure, in general, has been successfully mitigated, PVM’s Varga said “Investors however remain puzzled over when central banks will start cutting them he said The high-for-longer mantra would ultimately have a negative impact on economic growth and would affect oil demand ” Saudi Arabia and Russia this month extended supply cuts to the end of the year but whether those cuts will extend into next year is uncertain

It also said Erdogan invited Musk to attend Turkish aerospace and technology festival Teknofest in Izmir at the end of September and cited Musk as saying he would gladly attend Musk is also set to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in California on Monday Musk posted on social media platform X that their talks would focus on artificial intelligence technology Tesla in August expressed an interest in building a factory in India that would produce a low-cost electric vehicle Tesla currently has six factories and is building a seventh in Mexico in northern Nuevo Leon state part of the automaker s push to expand its global footprint Musk said in May that Tesla would probably pick a location for a new factory by the end of this year Tesla shares are up 123% so far this year and the automaker on Saturday said it had produced its 5 millionth car

What s striking is that this relentless oil price rally has taken place even amid concerns about lower demand from Europe and

However, a series of stimulus measures and a summer travel boom helped industrial output and consumer spending to rebound last month and Chinese refineries ramped up output driven by strong export margins Lack of protracted progress nonetheless, will be viewed as a major setback on the demand side,” said Tamas Varga of oil broker PVM Eyes will also be on central banks this week including an interest rate decision from the U S Federal Reserve and ea-

The question is, will the Saudis continue to maintain the deficit given the risk that higher prices must surely at some point stimulate US shale (oil output) ” Investec analyst Callum Macpherson said

China-ASEAN digital cross-border e - commerce projec ts launched at Silk Road Forum

A batch of new cross-border e-commerce projects between China and ASEAN were announced over the weekend at the 2023 China-ASEAN Silk Road E-commerce Forum being held in Nanning, South China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region

As a sub-event under the 20th ChinaASEAN Expo and China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit the forum aimed to promote cross-border e-commerce opportunities and the new industrial ecosystem between China and ASEAN members More than 300 government representatives experts and scholars industry insiders and key ecommerce platform companies from China and ASEAN member countries participated in the forum New services and projects are being unveiled at the forum The highlights include the launch of a digital channel crossborder e-commerce service center to provide a one-stop solution for the increasing cross-border e-commerce service needs of Chinese and ASEAN enterprises

Also unveiled was the China-

ASEAN digital economy industrial park

e-commerce exchange center meant to accelerate the training of digital e-commerce talent and promote cooperation

The new programs will help meet the growing demand for cross-border e-commerce between China and ASEAN driven by the building of the version 3 0 of the China-ASEAN free trade agreement and the implementation of the Re-

gional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and they will take cooperation to a new stage, Wang Peng, an associate research fellow at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday

The overall trend in recent years has been the continuous growth of cross-border e-commerce with an increasing variety of types Wang said

In the past it may have been more focused on China importing agricultural and sideline products from Southeast Asia, while exporting a large number of light industrial products But now there s also a significant amount of services and digital trade ” Wang said Cooperation between Guangxi and ASEAN in e-commerce has been accelerating In 2022 total cross-border ecommerce trade in Guangxi stood at 17 96 billion yuan ($2 46 billion), with year-on-year growth of 89 8 percent Imports and exports with ASEAN members accounted for over 90 percent of the total

In recent years Guangxi bordering Vietnam has vigorously developed crossborder e-commerce with 12 cities in the autonomous region being approved as national comprehensive pilot zones for cross-border e-commerce Eight cities are included in the pilot program for crossborder e-commerce retail imports

Additionally Guangxi has set up 20 cross-border e-commerce overseas warehouses in countries such as Thailand and Vietnam, as part of the continuous efforts to accelerate the construction of a crossborder e-commerce logistics system and hub center targeting the ASEAN region

US detainees to fly out of Iran in swap deal af ter $6 billion unfrozen

In addition to running Tesla Musk also bought X formerly known as Twitter for $44 billion in 2022 While describing himself as a free speech absolutist Musk has complied with some demands by the Turkish government to censor content in the country In other cases, the social media company has objected to orders by the Turkish courts DOHA A

Five US detainees were being taken to a Qatari aircraft to fly out of Iran on Monday in a swap for five Iranians detained in the US thanks to a Doha-brokered deal between the arch foes that also unfroze $6 billion of Tehran s funds

The Qatari plane was on standby after the US and Iran were told according to a source briefed on the matter, that the funds had been transferred to accounts in Qatar

“US detainees are being transported to the Qatari jet ” the source said The funds’ release triggered an exchange sequence agreed after months of talks between the United States and Iran who are at odds over Tehran s nuclear ambitions and other issues

The five Americans with dual national-

ity are due to fly to Doha and then on to the US Two relatives are also expected to be on the flight “They are in good health,” an Iranian official briefed on the process said about the detainees

In return five Iranians detained in the US will be released The Iranian Foreign ministry spokesperson said two Iranians would return to Iran while two would stay in the US at their request One detainee would join his family in a third country, he added Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson

Nasser Kanaani said the funds blocked in South Korea after US sanctions on Iran were hardened in 2018 would be available to Tehran on Monday Under the deal, Qatar will ensure it is spent on humanitarian goods

There was no immediate public US comment The deal will remove a major irritant between the US which brands Tehran a state

sponsor of terrorism, and Iran, which calls Washington the Great Satan

But they remain deeply divided on other issues ranging from Iran’s nuclear programme and its influence around the region to US sanctions and America s military presence in the Gulf Qatar, a tiny but hugely wealthy Gulf Arab energy producer, has sought to raise its global profile, hosting the soccer World Cup last year and carving out a role in international diplomacy The Sunni nation hosts a big US military base but has also forged close ties with Shia Iran Doha hosted at least eight rounds of talks with Iranian and US negotiators sitting in separate hotels, speaking via shuttle diplomacy, a source previously told Reuters QATAR’S MONITORING ROLE: Under the agreement Doha agreed to monitor how

Iran spends the unfrozen funds to ensure the cash is spent on humanitarian goods, such as food and medicine, and not any items under US sanctions The transfer of Iran’s funds has drawn criticism from US Republicans who say President Joe Biden a Democrat is in effect paying a ransom for US citizens

The White House has defended the deal

The US dual citizens to be released include Siamak Namazi, 51, and Emad Sharqi, 59, both businessmen, and Morad Tahbaz, 67 an environmentalist who also holds British nationality They were released from prison and put under house arrest last month

A fourth US citizen was also released into house arrest, while a fifth was already under house arrest Their identities have not been disclosed Iranian officials have named the five Iranians to be released by the US as Mehrdad

Moin-Ansari, Kambiz Attar-Kashani, Reza Sarhangpour-Kafrani, Amin Hassanzadeh and Kaveh Afrasiabi

Two Iranian officials previously said that Afrasiabi would remain in the United States but had not mentioned others

Ties between Washington and Tehran have been boiling since Donald Trump a Republican, pulled the US out of a nuclear deal between Iran and global powers when he was president in 2018 Reaching another nuclear deal has gained little traction since, as Biden prepares for the 2024 US election

As a first step in the deal Washington waived sanctions to allow the transfer of $6 billion in Iranian funds from South Korea to Qatar

The funds were blocked in South Korea, normally one of Iran s largest oil customers, when Washington imposed sweeping financial sanctions on Tehran and the cash could not be transferred

Commerce

CORPORATE CORNER

AKU welcomes inaugural class of fac ulty of Ar ts and S ciences

K A R A C H I: The Aga Khan University launched its Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) today, diversifying its academic offerings and giving students access to a uniquely multifaceted education AKU’s first new faculty in Pakistan in 30 years FAS ushers in a new chapter for the University expanding its programmes beyond the health sciences and teacher education into an array of new fields FAS students will have the option of majoring in either Asian and Middle Eastern Studies; Social Development Studies; Philosophy, Politics and Economics; or Human and Environmental Biology Whatever profession they wish to pursue FAS graduates will be prepared to compete and collaborate with the world s best The launch of the FAS undergraduate programme represents a profound transformation in the University s academic portfolio It solidifies the institution s position as a leading provider of diverse undergraduate and graduate programmes PR

Introducing Zong 4G's Innovative IR Bundle: Your Ideal Companion for UK Travel!

ISLAMABAD: Zong 4G, Pakistan s leading telecommunications provider, brings forth its latest innovation: the International Roaming (IR) Bundle tailored specifically for travelers heading to the United Kingdom Designed to offer a seamless and costeffective solution for staying connected while exploring the United Kingdom s sights this offer sets a new standard in travel convenience UK prepaid international roaming offers feature a range of plans, including voice, SMS, and data packages, with varying resource quantities based on customer usage (ranging from 30 to 90 minutes 30 to 90 SMS and 1GB to 5GB data) diverse validity periods (from 15 to 45 days) and prices (starting from Rs 1800 plus tax and going up to Rs 8800 plus tax), catering to travelers specific communication and data needs PR

PESCO CRACKDOWN: RS270M IN PENALTIES FOR ILLEGAL POWER CONNECTIONS

PESHAWAR A Z I Z B U N E R I

TH E Electric Supply Company (PESCO) has initiated a crackdown against illegal electricity connections, resulting in a hefty penalties of over 270 million rupees in just seven days

The PESCO said that coordinated raids against electricity theft have been conducted in various regions including Peshawar, Mardan, Swabi, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Dera Ismail Khan, Swat, Bannu, and the Khyber Circle “These operations have not only led to the disconnection of more than 900 illegal connections but also

collection of a hefty penalty amount, the PESCO officials said CEO PESCO, Muhammad Tahir, has issued strict directives to all officers to intensify efforts against electricity theft Those found involved in electricity theft have been apprehended on the spot and more than 706 individuals have been formally charged in FIRs, with 130 FIRs already registered CEO PESCO stressed that electricity thieves are “enemies of the public” and the losses incurred due to theft burden the general consumers He further revealed that the local administration is providing security assistance to PESCO to enable effective actions against those resisting compliance

Jazz Invests PKR 13.8 Billion in H1 2023, Expanding 4G Ser vices Amid Economic

content It has also set a record for the highest-ever cricket views on mobile screens in Pakistan during the recent Asia Cup P R

73 elec tricity thieves c aught in IESCO region

ISLAMABAD P R

The campaign against power thieves is going on successfully across IESCO region in which IESCO Ope r a t i o n , M & T a n d S u r v e i l l a n c e t e a m s a r e a c t i v e l y participating According to the details more than 73 electricity thieves were caught during checking on 18 September 2023 including 59 domestic 11 commercial 1 agricultural and 2 industrial connections More than 6 497 million fines have been imposed on t h e c o n c e r n e d c o n s u m e r s b y c h a rg i n

lodged in the concerned police stations for registration of FIR Chief Executive IESCO Dr Muhammad Amjad Khan has said that all our detection teams are getting full cooperation from the police during operations against electricity thieves and IESCO officers and staff are performing well IESCO consumers are requested to report if they see anyone stealing electricity anywhere to IESCO on concerned SDO numb e r s m e n t i o n e d o n t h e

Helpline No 118 or CCMC Complaint Cell No 0519252933-34

Pakistan's Trillion-Dollar Economic Revival: IMARAT 's Vision 2047 S howc ased Globally

Imarat Group Chairman Shafiq Akbar said that overseas Pakistanis spend more than 70 percent of their remittances on buying real estate in Pakistan, amounting to more than $12 billion He was speaking at Cityscape Global s public-private forum held in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia

PTCL achieves seamless go -live of SAP S/4HANA for enhanced efficienc y, growth

Roche Diagnostics Pakistan celebrated a remarkable 25-year journey of healthcare innovation and partnership during the Silver Jubilee Dinner at the Movenpick Hotel in Karachi For a quarter-century Roche Diagnostics Pakistan has been a leader in healthcare innovation seamlessly blending technology and medical expertise The event united esteemed partners, stakeholders, healthcare professionals, business communities, hospitals, laboratories corporations and government officials from different sectors to showcase their contributions and celebrate 25 years of innovation PR

I M C B a g s E nv i r o n m e n t a l

K A R A C H I: Indus Motor Company (IMC) received the Environment Excellence Award at the 20th Annual Environment Excellence Awards Bakheet

Ateeq Al-Remeithi Consul General of the UAE in Karachi presented the award to IMC s Muhammad Arshad at a ceremony here The awards were hosted by the National Forum of Environment & Health (NFEH) IMC won the award for the 13th consecutive year for its continued commitment to environmental sustainability and positive community impact Ali Asghar Jamali IMC’s Chief Executive said “We are proud of our 20-year association with the NFEH and it is truly gratifying to be recognized and appreciated by it for our efforts towards environmental conservation, which has become a pressing need, now more than ever “We are consistent in our efforts in managing our carbon footprint and as Toyota, we are committed to steering the country towards carbon neutrality and have invested US$100 Million to manufacture the first hybrid electric vehicle with the highest ever localized content which will make an entry into the market next year PR

After the group s successful expansion into the GCC with an office in the UAE IMARAT Group Pakistan s leading real estate group witnessed its CEO, Shafiq Akbar, presenting a strong high investment potential case at the bustling Cityscape Riyadh His presentation was a lot more than merely a corporate vision He not only identified critical problems surrounding Pakistan s economy

Muhammad Z iad Ph.D thesis

his blueprint dubbed 'Vision

backs

YourNest Pakistan hosts grand launch event

K A R A C H I : Pakistan’s leading ICT services provider PTCL Group (PTCL & Ufone 4G) have successfully implemented SAP RISE with SAP S/4HANA, marking an innovative digital transformation within the telecom sector This strategic move is poised to modernize PTCL Group’s corporate operations, fostering efficiency, effectiveness and a culture of digitization The official go-live ceremony took place at PTCL HQ in Islamabad graced by the presence of senior management from PTCL & Ufone 4G as well as distinguished figures from SAP, IBM, and Amazon Web Services (AWS) The ceremony also included appreciation certificates for team members involved in this transformation PTCL & Ufone 4G pioneers in Pakistan’s telecom sector became the first to leverage a blend of top-notch SAP ERP solutions facilitated by the SAP S/4HANA Private Cloud This collaboration is a monumental transformation that will optimize resource allocation, real-time data insights, streamlining business processes, and bridging organizational information silos This is so far the largest customer go-live on SAP Rise with SAP S/4HANA in Pakistan with IBM as their implementation partner and AWS as their hosting partner While appreciating teams successfully implementing the transformation process, Jafar Khalid, Group Chief Technology Officer, PTCL & Ufone 4G, said, "We are immensely proud to have guided PTCL Group on its operational journey leading the way in this initiative within the region PR

Pakistan’s Male Champions of Change Adopt a Bold Plan on Power and Gender Equality

PESHAWAR: A Doctorate of Philosophy (Ph D) in Environmental Science scholar Muhammad Ziad defended his thesis with the title ‘Recycling of Municipal and Plastic Waste in Peshawar ’ on Monday Vice Chancellor Kohat University of Science and Technology Professor Muhammad Sardar Khan supervised Muhammad Ziad during his Ph D research while Dr Muhammad Zahir Shah and Dr Dilawar Farhan Shams were external examiners during the defense During the public defense chairman Environmental Sciences Dr Muhammad Nafess along with faculty members and students were present on the occasion PR

KARACHI: YourNest Pakistan hosted the YourNest Pakistan Launch Event on in Karachi The event, attended by distinguished guests, marked a significant milestone for YourNest Pakistan as it introduced Australia’s leading property development companies and announced their visionary plans for Pakistan The event was hosted by Mr Shaan Zaidi Founder and Group Executive Director, YourNest Group Notable among the attendees were Mr M A Qureshi, Federal Minister of Education, Mr Abdullah Hussain Haroon, the former Ambassador of Pakistan to the United Nations and Ms Sultana Siddiqui a renowned businesswoman and media personality PR

Male Champions of Change Pakistan Members adopted an action plan to uncover the power dynamics in their own organizations and networks, and disrupt the status quo, during their quarterly meeting, hosted by PepsiCo Pakistan Basing their plan on the Champions of Change resource “Power to create inclusive gender equality in the workplace” members will explore how power is attained and attributed make visible the systems of power that exist in their organizations and act to disrupt power dynamics that can impact progress towards achieving inclusive gender equality PepsiCo Pakistan highlighted the company’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives such as the Sheroes program which established Pakistan s first all-female distribution center in Sialkot breaking stereotypes in sales and distribution roles previously considered exclusively for men PR

Cooperation between Central Asian countries and UN on regional sec urity issues

ISLAMABAD

C E N T R A L Asia in recent years has entered a new stage in the development of cooperation with foreign policy partners and international organisations, among which the United Nations occupies an important place

The President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, addressing the world community at the 75th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2020 noted the importance of strengthening cooperation in ensuring the security of Central Asia Active interaction with the United Nations and its specialised agencies has enabled the countries of Central Asia significantly to strengthen their potential in matters of security and sustainable development and to draw the attention of the world community to the problems existing in the region in these spheres

The UN Development Program (UNDP), the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA) the United Nations Population Fund

(UNFPA) the United Nations Children’s Fund

(UNICEF) WHO UNESCO ILO FAO the International Organization for Migration (IOM) etc are active in Central Asia today

The states of the region have made significant progress in finding solutions to many pressing problems of regional development and security during the period of cooperation between the Central Asian countries and the UN Among them are the establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free zone in Central Asia active participation in international settlement efforts in Afghanistan, adoption and implementation of the Joint Action Plan of the Central Asian countries for the implementation of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy establishment of the Central Asian Regional Information and Coordination Center for Combating Illicit Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and their Precursors (CARICC), creation of the UN Special Commission on the Aral Sea, and adoption of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

The initiative of Tashkent to establish a

nuclear-weapon-free zone in Central Asia (CANWFZ) launched from the tribune of the UN General Assembly in 1993 was an important contribution to strengthening the global non-proliferation regime and regional security The Treaty on CANWFZ, signed in September 2006 in Semipalatinsk, entered into force in 2009 The signing by the “five” nuclear-weapon states of the most important international document – the Protocol on Security Assurances to the Treaty on the Central Asian Nuclear Weapons Treaty – was a historic event Thus, Central Asia became the only nuclear-weapon-free zone in the northern hemisphere Cooperation with the UN has now reached a whole new level as a result of the process of intensifying regional cooperation in the political trade economic cultural and humanitarian spheres launched in 2017 Among the main challenges that the Central Asian countries and the UN are jointly overcoming are the problems of stabilizing the situation in Afghanistan countering the threats of terrorism and extremism radical-

ization drug trafficking and organized crime solving urgent problems in the areas of environmental and water security etc

The adoption in June 2018 by the UNGA of the historically important resolution

Strengthening regional international cooperation to ensure peace, stability and sustainable development in the Central Asian region” initiated by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan was a vivid confirmation of the broad international support for regional cooperation on security and development of Central Asia

The promotion of the peace settlement process in Afghanistan remains an important aspect of cooperation between the states of the region and the United Nations Uzbekistan and the countries of the region pay special attention to efforts to engage Afghanistan in regional trade and economic ties designed to promote peace and stability in the country

The intensification of Central Asian countries’ participation in international efforts to settle and stabilize Afghanistan was facilitated

by the holding of the High-Level International Conference on Afghanistan Peace Process Security Cooperation and Regional Cooperation in March 2018 at the initiative of the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev UN Secretary-General A Guterres addressed the conference participants with a welcoming remark The Tashkent Declaration adopted at the conference was circulated as an official document of the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly and Security Council

The International Conference Afghanistan: Security and Economic Development” held in July 2022 in Tashkent with the active support of the United Nations made it possible once again to draw international attention

WHY IS NEPRA RETHINKING COAL PRICES?

g MECHANISM FOR ADJUSTING FCC COULD FINALLY SEE A CHANGE

to be a concerted effort to refine their accumulated experience Siddiqui adds Now that we ve covered how the story s been told in the headlines let s see what s up The 2016 coal pricing mechanism The Fuel Price Adjustment Mechanism is a formula that calculates the monthly Fuel Cost Component (FCC) of the electricity tariff This calculation is based on the actual prices quantities and qualities of coal imported from various regions, including South Africa, Australia, and Indonesia This mechanism is a revision to the Upfront

AFTER YEAR 2016

other factors such as marine freight insurance and additional costs These are adjusted based on actual costs supported by authentic documentary evidence It provides Independent Power Producers (IPPs) with the flexibility to procure coal from any combination of the aforementioned loading regions

The fuel cost component will be adjusted based on actual weightage

Looking at tendering NEPRA allowed IPPs to procure local coal and Afghan coal from third parties when global coal prices spiked in 2022 However, as prices receded, various companies continued to rely on the spot market tenders to meet their demand needs Why does NEPRA want to change this?

US official says only ‘credible polls’ can end Pakistan’s crisis

market dealers in varying capacities after tendering took off

The NEPRA hearing is to evaluate whether the tendering process is an efficient one, or not given the current circumstances What will the new system look like after the hearing?

ing a universal formula for consumer pass-on has perpetually been a daunting task for regulators This hearing appears

The FCC formula varies for each region, contingent on the index used to determine the Freight on Board (FoB) price of coal This price represents the cost of coal at the port of origin prior to transportation Indices are selected based on their transparency, liquidity, and relevance to the coal quality and market For instance, South African coal utilises the Argus/McCloskey’s Coal Price Index (API 4) whilst Indonesian coal employs the Indonesian Coal Index (ICI 3) The FCC formula also incorporates

Audio leaks case: IHC terms gov t response ‘unsatisfactor y’, seeks detailed rejoinder

The Ministry of Defence on Monday informed the Islamabad High Court (IHC) that it had no role in recording the calls of citizens nor was it involved in any such activity in a plea pertaining to audio leaks

The court however termed the replies from the Ministry of Interior and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) unsatisfactory , seeking a detailed response The development came during the hearing of a plea filed by former chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar ’s son Najam Ali Saqib against a special committee of the National Assembly tasked with probing his purported audio leaks

Justice Babar Sattar who is heading the bench remarked that the replies suggest that no one can record any conversations, and no one has the facility to record telephone conversations

“The federal government must provide answers to the court’s queries or sensitive institutions will be directly summoned he added

Expressing his displeasure Justice Sattar said that the written response from the government does not answer the queries posed by the court

The government must answer, otherwise, we will make the intelligence agencies a part of the case,” he added

Advocate Latif Khosa, on behalf of the petitioners, stated that Mrs Bushra Imran is being summoned by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on a daily basis for voice matching requesting the court to stop the authorities the harassment of her client Justice Sattar pointed out, I cannot stop an investigative agency from investigating When there is a violation of the law, you can challenge it You are asking for an order to make FIA work according to the law This order will be meaningless because FIA has to work according to the law If you say so I can write in the order that FIA should work according to the law

The court extended suspension of the summon served by the standing committee to the son of former CJP Saqib Nisar and adjourned further hearing of the case

The committee was formed to investigate the alleged audio leak of former chief justice Saqib Nisar s son Najam Saqib

In the audio leaks Najam could allegedly be heard telling a politician, Abuzar Chadar, that his father, Nisar, had worked really hard to get Chadar a ticket for the PTI

In another audio Najam allegedly tells one Mian Aziz how much money he expected in return for the party ticket

It expedites fuel cost adjustment filings for the various generation companies for each month of electricity they produce “Coal is being procured from various sources now so the benchmark has to be flexible to incorporate that ” explains Fahad Rauf Head of Research at Ismail Iqbal Securities

Furthermore the current pricing mechanism also assumes that all coal procured from suppliers is bought at standard rates The NEPRA meeting has highlighted how it will address premiums and discounts given to IPPs from suppliers The current system fails to take into cognisance whether companies can have relationships with spot

The system will remain tethered to a weighted formula as the sourcing oscillates in specifications and quantities for each power plant A shift towards a non-weighted formula could be envisioned if a local coal market is established, one that sells a standard blend to all Independent Power Producers (IPPs) However this appears to be a distant reality The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) is unlikely to sanction any return to such an aggregator or middleman, irrespective of the potential price efficiency it could introduce into the system One might question why we persist with such a labyrinthine system rather than adopting a model where all IPPs can independently import coal and generate electricity, akin to the approach in India NEPRA s rationale is rooted in stability; they aim to minimise surprises in terms of monthly costs and ensure that the price of electricity does not deviate drastically from the mean Now whether this system works is another question entirely

JI stages sit-in outside KP Governor House against elec tricity, petrol price hike

ISLAMABAD S TA F F R E P O R T Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) on Monday staged a sit-in outside the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Governor House in Peshawar against the increase in electricity and petroleum prices, as well as rising inflation

The JI workers have also placed containers near a museum located near the Governor House for the party s three-day sit-in JI s Amir Sirajul Haq has also arrived in Peshawar for the sit-in

Our protest movement is peaceful and not aimed at causing chaos; instead it intends to compel the government to roll back the unjust increase in prices of helectricity and petrol a JI spokesperson said

He also said that JI will also approach the Supreme Court against the excessive increases in electricity and petrol prices

It is noteworthy that JI has also announced protests in Lahore on September 21 in Quetta on September 24 and in Karachi on October 6, all in front of governor houses, to continue their anti-inflation campaign

A day earlier Siraj disclosed the JI’s plans for the second phase of their protest movement which will target expensive electricity and the excessive hike in fuel prices

Addressing the Ulema Convention, he placed blame on both

the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) and PTI governments for the escalating prices

He particularly criticised JUIF chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman the president of PDM for not addressing the issue of inflation despite his alliance being in power

The JI leader highlighted how inflation had stripped people of their basic necessities, including shelter, clothing, and food He asserted that the PTI PDM PPP and caretaker government were aligned in serving the interests of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

He stressed that his party was essential for sustainable development in Pakistan, as the incompetence of other political parties had become evident He urged citizens not to remain silent emphasising

ISLAMABAD S TA F F R E P O R T Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Core Committee appealed to the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Qazi Faez Isa to take suo motu notice of the enforced disappearances PTI s loyalists and other missing persons in the country and ensure their immediate recovery

PTI Core committee held detained discussion on the case of enforced disappearances of PTI workers, officials, ticket holders and their families in its meeting on Monday

During the meeting the participations pleaded that article 10-A of the Constitution gives every citizen the fundamental right to a fair trial because there is absolutely no space for enforced disappearance of citizens or extra-judicial measures against citizens in a state, where the constitution and law are supreme

PTI core committee said that at present, the constitution and laws are completely suspended in Pakistan and the law of the jungle is in force in the country adding that enforced disappearances and extra-judicial tactics are being used by the state machinery to crush the PTI

They said that enforced disappearance or illegal

that silence would equate to surrendering their rights

Siraj expressed gratitude to the people for the successful nationwide shutter-down strike on September 2 and questioned the soaring prices of essential commodities attributing them to the influence of the IMF on successive governments

He asserted that regardless of which government came to power, they were all agents of the IMF, and the country needed a change in direction

He proposed that Pakistan could generate more than 3 3 million megawatts of electricity through solar systems and harness cheaper options like hydroelectricity in K-P wind and atomic power to provide electricity to the people at an affordable rate

The United States will continue to support credible elections in Pakistan that are free of violence and allow people to decide who rules them says Elizabeth Horst the US Deputy Secretary of State Responsible for Pakistan Addressing a seminar at One UN Plaza

Ms Horst also urged Pakistan to continue to implement the reforms suggested by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as that s the only way to stabilise its ailing economy

Ms Horst, Ambassador Robin Raphel, a former State Department official, and other scholars made these remarks while addressing a day-long seminar on Exploring the Pillars of Democracy: US-Pakistan Relations

Ms Horst who represented the US administration at the discussion, explained that the departure of US forces from Afghanistan allowed the United States to look at the relationship with Pakistan as what it was, “a bilateral relationship” This relationship she added covered key aspects like economic security and the political situation US remains a supporter of Pakistan s democracy but it does not support any particular person or party she said while addressing the political side of this relationship

We support the people of Pakistan having the right to choose their next government,” she said “Ambassador (Donald) Blome has delivered this message to all institutions and all parties and I have delivered the same message

Mr Blome the US ambassador in Islamabad recently held a series of meetings with Pakistani officials, political leaders and with members of the Election Commission of Pakistan

“It’s critical that the people get to decide and that political parties are responsive to the people ” Ms Horst said adding: We will be continuing to support Pakistan s democracy which includes credible elections according to the country s laws and the Constitution

The elections, she said, should be free of violence, have open competition, and a free media should be allowed to cover the electoral process

The US officials however pointed out that democracy also goes beyond elections and that s why America s friendship with Pakistan includes having really strong conversations about freedom of religion, abuses of the blasphemy law, and minorities right to worship without fear “And that’s an important part of the democratic process,” she added

The United States she said would continue to deliver those messages to Pakistan while remaining optimist about what the US and Pakistan can do together Ambassador Raphel who is considered Pakistan s strongest supporter in Washington by the Pakistani American community, said she blames all sides for the current political crisis in the country The vote of no confidence did not work out as planned The PTI became too cocky and boisterous in its rhetoric and street power and everyone provoked everyone she said The result was violent rioting and the destruction of property and then an unprecedented crackdown on democratic norms of freedom of assembly and freedom of speech and rule of law

Reiterating her point that all sides shared blame for the current state of affairs she said: “The only way for Pakistan to get out of the deep hole that it now finds itself in is to hold elections and let the people know they will have a voice in choosing who will represent them

Talking about the current economic situation in Pakistan, Ms Horst acknowledged that the economy was a big concern for all those interested in Pakistan, although the US “still see(s) a lot of potential” in the country She noted that Pakistan has had a long relationship with the IMF while the current standby agreement with the Fund provided Pakistan a little breathing room

It s critical that Pakistan stayed the course she said adding that reforms have always been a part of any arrangement Pakistan has had with the IMF “Energy sector reforms, investing in energy infrastructure and widening the tax space all of those things are very common-sense issues that the IMF has prescribed for Pakistan she said And the United tates stands behind those She noted that Pakistan can win over the confidence of US and other investors only by implementing those reforms Pakistan, she said, had extraordinary human talent that can not only revive the national economy but can also contribute to the global economy but without the right business climate that intellect cannot be tapped

detention of PTI workers and leaders has become a routine business as the courts completely failed in recovering PTI forcibly disappeared workers and leaders and stopping the extra-judicial actions of the state machinery against PTI s loyalists

The participants stated that after Zahoor Mashwani and Sadaqat Abbasi, now Usman Dar has been disappeared and no one know about his whereabouts despite lapse of several days

They went on to say that PTI South Punjab President Senator Aun Abbas Buppi was only brought before the public after he made the announcement of quitting the PTI The PTI Core committee recalled that Imran Riaz, the famous journalist of the country, is still missing despite several court hearings, adding that the court and the administration have failed to recover him T h e y a p p e a l e d t o t h e C h i e f J u s t i c e o f P a k i s t a n t o i m m e d i a t e l y t a k e i m m e d i a t e n o t i c e o f t h i s w o r s t s i t u a t i o n f o r s u p r e m a c y o f t h e f u n d a m e n t a l h u m a n a n d c o n s t i t u t i o n a l r i g h t s a n d t h e r u l e o f l a w i n t h e c o u n t r y

The participants of the meeting urged CJP to take suo motu notice of the issue of enforced disappearance of PTI workers and citizens together and the Supreme Court itself should look into the matter

g TWO DETAINED A S DISPUTE ERUPTS OVER FATE OF RECOVERED FUNDS

y

s m a l l i r o n g a t e w a s u n c o v e r e d i n t h e p a r k i n g a r e a o f a d o u b l e b a s e m e n t within the plaza Inside this covert chamber lay 13 imposing iron lockers each harb o r i n g s u b s t a n t i a l s u m s o f f o r e i g n a n d

currency While the exact value re-

amplified

by the apprehension of two individuals during the operation However tensions escalated when a disagreement flared up between the FIA team and the plaza owner, Sheikh Iftikhar Adil Sheikh Adil staunchly advocated for the funds to remain on-site, contending that their presence was legitimate while the FIA team insisted on their confiscation for secure handling In a bid to mediate the dispute the FIA summoned police assistance A preliminary report detailing the operation has been submitted to higher authorities for thorough examination

The US and Pakistan she said were already holding a set of economic defence and security dialogues that are really setting us again to write a new chapter Avishan Bodjnoud, Chief of the United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA-DPO) urged the global community to “recommit to a vision of a future that ensures no one is left behind and that fundamental principles of democracy were followed everywhere

The programme was announced by the Muslim American Leadership Alliance, an NGO member of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, for “finding a solution to the problems and challenges Pakistan faces today ” and to suggest “how to stabilize the Pakistani economy ” as one of the organisers Imran Igra said in his speech

Five points Dawood Ghaznavi a guest speaker from Pakistan, suggested five points for bringing stability to the country: political stability by following the Constitution, reestablishing a US-Pakistan security pact for fighting cross-border terrorism, building a stronger middle class for strengthening democracy the rule of law and stronger people-to-people relations between Pakistan and the United States

‘Enforced disappearances ’: PTI appeals to C JP to take suo motu notice