Epaper_24-05-13 LHR

According to a press release from the President s Secretariat he added that the political parties, state institutions and the people of AJK should act responsibly so that hostile elements could not exploit the situation to their benefit The president expressed these views during a meeting with a delegation of members of the AJK Legislative Assembly belonging to Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP), who called on him, at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Sunday The delegation briefed the president about recent happenings and unfortunate developments in AJK

Talking to members of the AJK Legislative Assembly Zardari highlighted that the demands of the people of AJK should be addressed as per law He said that he would take up/discuss the grievances of the people of AJK with PM Shehbaz to find a way out of the current situation The president emphasised that priority should be accorded to

E Meanwhile, President Asif Ali Zardari also urged all the stakeholders to exercise restraint and resolve the issues in AJK through dialogue and mutual consultation

the socio-economic uplift of AJK with special focus on the development of health education tourism and infrastructure He underlined the need to bring the far-flung areas at par with other developed areas of the country The president regretted the current situation and offered condolences over the unfortunate death of the police officer and prayed for swift recovery of all those who were injured in recent clashes

PML-N DECIDES TO ENGAGE WITH JOINT ACTION COMMITTEE

The PML-N AJK also unanimously decided to actively engage with the AJK’s Joint Action Committee for resolving issues through negotiations

The leadership of PML-N AJK held an urgent meeting, with Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan Engineer Amir Muqam in the chair, to thoroughly deliberate on the present situation in AJK

The federal minister stressed the importance of the PML-N and other parties in peace-

No strategic SOEs, says finance minister ahead of major privatization push

reforms Aurangzeb also highlighted ongoing energy reforms particularly the efforts to curb losses and theft Changes are underway in the boards of distribution companies (Discos) to include private sector professionals to ensure better corporate governance, leading toward either privatization or a mix of concessions and privatization, he concluded

towns and villages in what is now

during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war that led to the creation the state of

ful resolving the issue He affirmed commitment to address the concerns of Kashmiris and vowed to contribute positively in any capacity possible The meeting also called upon the AJK government to actively participate in resolving the problem Earlier in the day the central leadership of the Azad Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (AAC) dissociated from violent incidents between protestors and police in AJK Members of the committee reiterated their commitment to conducting a peaceful movement and declared that any propaganda against the state of Pakistan on social media is ‘utterly unacceptable’ “The insidious In-

dian media is fabricating baseless allegations to conceal the atrocities in Occupied Kashmir which are devoid of any connection with reality the committee stated Last week, several of the AAC members were arrested by police in Muzaffarabad

M ar yam Nawaz acc used of copying KP ’s healthc are program

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Adviser Barris-

Maryam Nawaz, has copied yet another initiative of KP government He claimed that Maryam Nawaz, dubbed as a copycat, has replicated a project aimed at public welfare, specifically mentioning the health card program implemented in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa In a statement, Barrister Saif highlighted that the copied initiative involves the establishment of an ambulance service dedicated to transporting pregnant women to hospitals He emphasized that this service has been successfully operational in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for several years, managed by Rescue 1122

According to Barrister Saif, these actions by the Punjab government have consequences, insinuating negative implications for the original initiative s integrity and success Furthermore, he criticized the Punjab government, labeling it as incompetent and fake, attributing a substantial loss of 300 billion rupees to farmers under its governance Barrister Saif accused Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz of inaugurating wheat harvests without addressing farmers grievances or understanding their plight He further alleged that individuals responsible for the wheat crisis hold influential positions in Punjab and Islamabad, accusing them of depriving farmers of their constitutional rights to protest Barrister Saif condemned what he described as the Punjab government s indifference towards farmers struggles, contrasting it with their apparent focus on trivial matters, such as TikTok videos He concluded by urging the Punjab government, particularly Maryam Nawaz, to redirect their attention to the welfare of farmers, rather than engaging in superficial activities

S indh police undergoing training for e -tagging of criminals, says S indh IG

by street crime Memon stressed that law enforcement agencies are intensifying efforts to curb criminal activities with a significant focus on apprehending perpetrators involved in robbery-related violence

He disclosed that a considerable percentage of suspects responsible for citizen fatalities and injuries during robberies have been apprehended with 67 designated investigation officers tasked with handling robbery cases Moreover Memon addressed the issue of drug peddling highlighting it as another significant concern in the metropolis To counter such challenges stringent security measures are being implemented including the installation of surveillance cameras at entry and exit points across the province Memon affirmed the commitment to enhancing police performance in the province emphasizing ongoing efforts to bolster law enforcement capabilities

NA speaker summons meeting to disc uss budget

The Speaker of the National Assembly Sardar Ayaz

Sadiq has summoned a significant gathering slated for Monday to deliberate on the parliamentary agenda particularly focusing on the upcoming budget session and the allocation of time for discussing the presidential speech’s vote of thanks

The meeting will see the participation of parliamentary leaders along with representatives from various parties including the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI)-backed Sunni Ittehad Council Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) Jamiat Ulemae-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) and Balochistan Awami Party (BAP)

Previous discussions in April had set the stage for the forthcoming deliberations on the motion of thanks slated to commence on May 13 with a tentative schedule indicating a five-day debate The session’s logistics including the allocation of speaking time are expected to be finalized during the upcoming meeting

as Mother s Day since 1914 as a result of continued efforts by Anna Jarvis, daughter of Ann Reeves Jarvis, a peace activist in West Virginia, the United States, for her mother s contributions towards society It deplored that the Kashmiri mothers were bearing the brunt of Indian state terrorism as the Kashmiri women, including mothers, had taken the ultimate hit by losing their near and dear ones to Indian bullets The report said thousands of Kashmiri mothers continue to wait for return of their sons imprisoned or subjected to enforced disappearances in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) Several

THumayun Akhtar Khan Provincial President Rana Nazir Ahmad Khan Sardar Ayaz Khan Niazi, MNA Awon Chaudhry, Eng Gul Asghar Bhagour, Dr Manza Hassan, MP Shoaib Siddiqui and Sara Ahmad were present at the

Gilani Nouman Langriyal Farrukh Mumtaz Manika, Noraiz Shakoor, Ameer Haider Singha, Yawar Kamal, Ch Zaheer Uddin, Chaudhry Abdul Rauf, Haroon Imran Gill Syed Gul Agha Naushir Mann and Malik Zaman Naseeb also participated in the meeting

Four ‘terrorists’ shot dead by accomplices in Lahore: C TD

Israel pushes back into nor thern G aza, ups militar y pressure on Rafah

Calm returns, wheel-jam, shutdown persist in A JK

CONTINUED FR OM PAGE 01

The funeral prayers for Adnan Qureshi the martyred Azad Jammu Kashmir Police sub-inspector who was performing his duty as additional sub-inspector would be held at noon in Mirpur

On Sunday, a peaceful rally of the Awami Action Committee was held in the Barnala tehsil of Bhimber district, demanding the release of their arrested colleagues while daily life was going on as usual in Samahni Barnala and Bhimber

Moreover additional police force has been removed from the entry and exit points of Bhimber district, as business centers have opened up and traffic on the highways is also flowing normally

“Citizens have played an exemplary role in maintaining peace and order in Bhimber,” said the deputy commissioner On Saturday various places in Muzaffarabad saw stone-pelting and shelling while the Bank Road appeared to be a battlefield Many police officers and protesters were injured in Islamgarh and an additional SHO, who was injured the previous day due to the violence of the protesters, died On the appeal of the Joint Public Action Committee a shutter-down and wheel-jam strike prevailed across Azad Kashmir on the second day on Saturday

Traders started their march from Mirpur towards Muzaffarabad When barriers were put up to stop the march in Kotli, the participants made their way by

down trees

Amidst the chaos, Azad Kashmir Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq extended an invitation to the Public Action Committee for open dialogue, expressing the government’s willingness to address concerns regarding the prices of essential commodities and provide more relief on the prices of flour and electricity

He said in a press conference that the government would not make any undemocratic decisions, adding that a sub-inspector was martyred, and 50 officials were injured during the riots Despite this, the authorities showed patience and avoided using force He dispelled any reports to the contrary as rumours spread on social media

Due to the violent protests in the capital of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Saturday, the government has replaced the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Muzaffarabad on Sunday

According to the details DIG Muzaffarabad Region Yasin Qureshi has been transferred and Irfan Masood Kashfi has been appointed as the new DIG

The sources said that the notification for the new DIG Muzaffarabad Region appointment has been issued The sources also said that the government has decided to change Muzaffarabad Commissioner Masoodul Rehman too The new commissioner of Muzaffarabad will be Adnan Khurshid

COMMENT

t i n g r e a d y

Even

Th e IMF is due to come to grips with the Pakistan Foreign Ministry over a new package this month, when it sends a team to Islamabad however, it has used its report on the final review of the Stand-By arrangement to indicate what are to be its demands Those are as expected be more raises in the gas and electricity tariffs with a continued emphasis on the elimination of the circular debt in both sectors It is doing so on the assumption that its measures so far have addressed the problem The tariff hikes which have been such an important part of the common man’s burden are to continue The IMF also intends to hold the government to its commitment not to engage in any cross-subsidies of power, gas or fuel, and is also going to push on reforming the power sector, especially the DISCOs

The IMF shed the requisite crocodile tears about the plight of the poor but left the government no wriggle room for making any concessions to the need to lighten the suffering of the people The IMF report took perhaps a somewhat pessimistic note about the risk of default, though it would be an unwise head that denied that the risk persists It might not be as bad as the crisis last year when it seemed that the country was avoiding default on its foreign debt from one repayment to another The receding of that debt has not left the economy in good shape, as its projected growth of two percent (instead of seven or eight needed to provide the youth bulge jobs) and inflation of 17 percent (instead of under five percent needed to keep growth going while avoiding the risk of hyperinflation), a stagflationary picture is painted

The success or failure of an IMF programme must be judged by whether it helps the country get out of the debt trap which would mean no longer having to go to the IMF for further loans and being able to service its debt with an adequacy of foreign exchange earned by exports So far,

Th e oxymoronic title rightly demonstrates the widening gap between the Faustian bargain and delivery capability of Narebdra Modi the PM of India the notorious art master of public manipulation By hook or by crook his reign survived an entire decade and expectedly will ascend to power for the third time

The 18th Lok Sabha elections are in process and will conclude in June, and among all parties participating in the elections are sidelined with carrot-andstick modus operandi The Modi party plays the zero-sum game by utilising the party’s incumbency through the enforcement Directorate by handcuffing prominent party leaders and its proponents The rightwing of RSS Bharatiya Janata Party is dubbed as a pseudo public-centred party, and rightly so, given the means it rose to power for two consecutive terms The manifestos behind the Modi success are anti Muslim, hindu-Muslim rivalry and anti-Muslim statements in his election campaigns In a recent statement in an election campaign Modi dubbed rival Congress as an anti-hindu entity and aims at looting public affluence to redistribute it to infiltrators , referring Muslims

Undoubtedly, Modi s success catalysed change in his home state, Gujarat, magnetised foreign investments, boosted the economy and garnered humongous foreign reserves upon being seated as the supreme executive of India The way he climbed to the acme indicates the extremism the party possesses back in history as well as now The demolition of Babri Mosque in Ayodhya marks the point of proliferation of the BJP s power Bit by bit, the party’s power progressed as it stepped on the road of extremism Though the roots of BJP originate from extremist stance especially against Muslims the leaders within the party the likes of Atal Bihari Vajapayee steered it towards inclusivity and diversity Atal Bihari Vajapayee visited Pakistan in his years in office in the late 1990s and proffered a hand of reconciliation, but these attempts vanished once the Pervez Mushraf-led Kargil war erupted in 1999 Throughout history the BJP preferred the path of hindu-Muslim divide and national disintegration until and unless the campaigns for 2014 elections announced which altered the manifestos from anti to unity to inclusivity and diversity With the “Ab ki baar, Modi sarkar’’ slogan, the reign of Modi commenced pledging to implement the B R Ambedkar-crafted spine constitutional terms borrowed from the French Revolution motto: Liberty equality and Fraternity A decade of Modi s reign brought about a staggering decline in liberty given the censored media, arrest and killings of journalists and implementing carrot-and-stick approach inclined policies towards dissenters With these demonstrations the Modi incumbency negated the first term For the second the supreme executive initialised

hindu-Muslim divide and rule Divide et impera

The party leaders in all over India spread inequality in social, political and economic terms with minimising Muslim participation and keeping hindus above the salt On the coffin of the last term fraternity Modi hammered the last nail by dubbing Muslims infiltrators and accusing Congress of manoeuvring redistribution of public funds to Muslim families once in power historical precedent suggests Modi and his party have always been against the secular and liberal crafting of India’s Constitution If not completely revamping the constitution the current PM wishes to negate secular and liberal elements once the dream of surpassing 400 Lok Sabha seats is completed Though it is nearly impossible and implausible to imagine 400 seats in Lok Sabha since solely once in 76 years Congress

W h y B a n g l a d e s h k e e p s o n s h e l t e r i n g

M y a n m a r ’ s a r m y a n d B G P s

and comprehension for human misery

Even if it doesn’t take back the Rohingya refugees

To pay for the expenses and impacts on its economy society, and environment, the nation is compelled to use a sizable percentage of its limited resources

Empress reborn

Mrauk-U, Myebon, Ponnagyun, and Ramree from the military The AA now controls more than 187 junta outposts and bases, including 16 major command centres At least seven senior military commanders were assassinated and six others were kidnapped Following this heavy onslaught by the AA

Bangladesh does not meddle in Myanmar s domestic affairs and views Myanmar as a friend like other nations As there is a state-to-state relationship and the Myanmar military has state authority Bangladesh provides shelter to Myanmar nationals Critics counter that Bangladesh is hardly still regarded as Myanmar s buddy Numerous problems exist: Let us start with the Rohingya situation The director of the UN agency for human rights described the Myanmar military’s ruthless assault on the Rohingya communities as “acts of horrific barbarity ” “possible acts of genocide and a textbook example of ethnic cleansing in 2017 In order to escape their oppressive situation more than a million Rohingyas fled to Bangladesh Stepping into the 7th year, Myanmar hasn t taken back even a single Rohingya Bangladesh seems solely carrying the burden of this huge refugee alone The country is spending $1 22 billion every year for the Rohingya from her own limited resources Bangladesh s Cox s Bazar is now hosting the largest refugee camp in the world, with one of the largest humanitarian operations in terms of scale and dimensions

Additionally, the nation has never received a sizable amount of funding for Rohingya refugees Instead the amount of support has decreased with time While donors only contributed 60 percent of the required cash in 2020 down from approximately 72 percent to 75 percent two years earlier, Bangladesh received roughly 51 4 percent in 2023 and around 49 percent in 2022

Bangladesh providing a unique example of humanity took care of everyone By accepting up to a million Rohingya refugees a lower-middle-class country showed the deepest empathy

Second, as most of the Rohingya are sheltered at Cox’s Bazar, which provides a strategic route for smuggling Bangladesh has to deal with the threat that the bordering Rohingyas camps can be turned into a breeding place for criminalities along with a growing concern over the recruitment of refugees by the extremist networks which could fuel militancy not only in Bangladesh but also across the whole Indo-Pacific region Third Bangladesh is dealing with the threats to the foreign labour market remittances and relations Many unregistered Myanmar nationals went to other countries with the host country s fake passports or identity cards and were involved in different crimes that tarnish the image of the host countries In the middle of all of this Bangladesh continues to support people seeking safety from Myanmar providing a unique example of human kindness and compassion But what does Myanmar do, in contrast? An inhumane, unacceptable, and unfriendly example of behaviour is seen when the Myanmar navy fires rounds at Bangladeshi fishermen; artillery and bullets land on Bangladeshi soil killing and injuring individuals

Myanmar needs to exercise caution when interacting with Bangladesh and acknowledge the price of friendship Myanmar should repatriate all Rohingya to their homeland in the same manner that its authorities worked with Bangladesh to facilitate the repatriation of 173 Bangladeshi nationals from Myanmar and more than 600 members of the BGP and Myanmar army from Bangladesh

The writer is a freelance columnist

Tackling pover t y

nu MohaMMad

The politics of implausible deniabilit y

IN Pakistan the issue of distinguishing between right and wrong has become increasingly enigmatic, complex, and difficult to navigate This problem pervades all levels of society, from the lower-middle class to the elite Adding to this complexity is the prevalence of what is known as implausible deniability also referred to as pantomime secrecy in political circles This practice is often observed within Pakistan s political system, where state actors may carry out actions that are not publicly acknowledged but are intentionally made known to the public creating a translucent veil of secrecy and uncertainty

While this practice may have some benefits for institutions, such as adding communicative value, injecting uncertainty into domestic or foreign relations, creating fear among the public domestically, or steering election results it may also have unintended consequences It often leads to a paranoid style of politics in Pakistan where people are increasingly suspicious and mistrustful of their leaders, institutions, and the political system as a whole This can have a profound impact on the stability of the country and the public’s faith in the institutions to make decisions in their best interest

Institutions often utilise unofficial narratives to communicate and disseminate knowledge without officially acknowledging it These narratives are aided by implausible deniability and are often employed to cater to domestic audiences It is not uncommon for certain institutions to resort to leaks and

planted stories as a means of conveying confidential information without having to face the potential consequences of an official acknowledgement These tactics are often employed as a way to circumvent official channels of communication and to discreetly transfer sensitive information to the intended recipients Recent events in the political and judicial spheres have brought to light the existence of a classified fear programme that is under the control of unnamed officials In some cases, institutions go to extreme lengths to ensure that their messages are communicated effectively This may include implanting individuals who can serve as messengers and help spread the institution s message These individuals are often carefully selected and trained to convey the message in a way that is both effective and persuasive The ultimate goal of this approach is to ensure that the institution’s message is heard and understood by as many people as possible with the hope of achieving the desired outcome or objective however, if these actions were to be openly acknowledged, it could potentially lead to condemnation, escalation, and retaliation by both the domestic and international community Therefore ambiguity and implausible deniability are employed to create space for myths to emerge and allow fear to take hold This approach enables institutions to construct powerful narratives that can shape and influence public opinion By creating space for myths to emerge institutions can manipulate public perception and control

the narrative This tactic is also employed to spread fear and anxiety among the general public which can have detrimental consequences for society and the political system as a whole In the present-day world, civil society has transformed into a globalized entity where investigative journalists human rights lawyers and whistleblowers can easily communicate and collaborate with each other This has been made possible due to the advent of advanced technological tools that have made information sharing and dissemination a lot easier than ever before As a result there has been a noticeable increase in the challenges against state secrecy and implausible deniability which has made it more difficult for institutions to conceal their actions from the public however, despite claims of the end of secrecy’, institutions across Pakistan are fighting back against journalists and whistleblowers making it even more difficult for them to uncover the truth These efforts by institutions have resulted in the creation of stringent laws and regulations, which aim to curb the freedom of the press and restrict the access to sensitive information These changes in the media environment have important implications for understanding the actions of institutions as it is not simply a matter of reducing secrecy but rather a spectrum of visibility and acknowledgement It is essential to recognise the challenges posed by the changing media landscape and work towards creating a more transparent and accountable system that upholds the principles of freedom of speech and the right to information The concept of implausible deniabil-

The new moral panic: Social media

Research on individuals also doesn’t suppor t the belief that social media is driving mental health concerns I recently published a meta-analysis of randomized experiments examining whether reducing social media time improves mental health It does not

to this that teen suicides (but not

The popular decimation of India’s democracy

suicides) declined in 2022, and this suggests we re on the wrong path If social media were causing an increase in teen suicides or other mental health problems we’d expect to see this pattern across countries that have high technology adoption But we don t Across europe as well as Australia, New Zealand and Canada, there is no pattern that indicates an increase in suicides among teens during the social media age Across all european countries, youth suicides are actually slightly down during the social media age This is true also for anglophone countries where there is little evidence for a trend over the past 20 years

smartphone and social media use are not associated with any pattern changes in youth mental health So something is happening with mental health in the U S but it s something specific to the U S and it s not limited to (or even primarily in) teens We need to refocus our attention

have risen more precipitously during the same period noted for teenage girls By focusing on teen girls and ignoring older adults we ve missed that the problem is multigenerational and not something specific to teens such as smartphone or social media use Furthermore, research evidence has found that multi-year

Research on individuals also doesn’t support the belief that social media is driving mental health concerns I recently published a meta-analysis of randomized experiments examining whether reducing social media time improves mental health It does not Put simply: It is not possible to make a causal claim that time spent on social media impacts mental health Some people might say “Aha correlation doesn’t equal causation!” But it’s actually hard to find evidence for a correlation either In a recent meta-analysis of correlational studies looking at screens including social media and smartphones, no correlation with mental health could be found As often happens with moral panics, the public have been presented with a case for effects that actually ignores considerable research evidence that we should slow down and consider other possibilities What other possibilities might explain youth suicides in the U S ? Actually, quite a few things even controlling for ecological fallacies (a tendency for two things to correlate by chance) variables ranging from fatherlessness rates to income inequality are far stronger predictors of teen suicide than smartphone use Of course, these data are correlational and need to be subjected to rigorous analyses But alternative hypotheses are myriad This, of course, is the main risk of moral panics An obsessive focus on technology can cause us to miss real causes of bad outcomes In the meantime little progress will be made on mental health because society is focused on the

IN D I A S ongoing parliamentary election in which nearly a billion people may cast their votes over a six-week period, should represent an extraordinary exercise of democracy The bleak reality, however, is that the election appears poised to consolidate a decade-long process of democratic decay which has included the decimation of liberal institutions and practices and weakening of political competition After all, the leader who has presided over this process – Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – remains wildly popular

Apart from the dedicated and disciplined ground-level work by masses of volunteers for Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the fountainhead of the BJP, this popularity reflects factors sometimes similar to, but also quite different from, those fueling support for right-wing demagogues elsewhere As I noted in my 2022 book A World of Insecurity: Democratic Disenchantment in Rich and Poor Countries, such forces tend to find support primarily among less-educated, rural, and older populations Yet Modi has the backing of educated urban aspirational youth

Whereas former US President Donald Trump hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Turkish President Recep Tayyip erdoğan have struggled to carry major cities in elections, Modi had secured thumping victories in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore A key reason for this is that political liberalism – including abiding faith in democratic institutions checks and balances on government power, and free expression – never really took hold in India, outside of a small Westernized elite A 2023 Pew Research Center survey showed that 67% of Indians have a positive view of rule by a strong leader who can make decisions without interference from courts or parliaments – the highest rate of any of the surveyed countries Populist demagogues always emphasize the participatory aspects of democracy; but in India the procedural aspects are particularly weak enabling vicious forms of majoritarianism and state-abetted persecution of dissenters and particularly of religious minorities Illiberalism thrives among India s radical left as well, for whom liberal institutions reek of “bourgeois” democracy, and among traditionalists including

Gandhians as even Mahatma Gandhi for all his tolerance and empathy subscribed to the patriarchal and hierarchical values of traditional Indian society The hindusupremacist ideology of the RSS – which has been influential among the upper castes and classes particularly in northern India – certainly does not lend itself to liberalism Poorer Indians who have traditionally favored center-left national or regional parties, have been attracted to the BJP by the party’s strategy of hindu consolidation which includes bringing historical leaders (and even deities) of marginal groups under the broad tent of religious nationalism Social-welfare benefits – often framed as gifts from Modi (prominently bearing his photograph) –have helped, as has the BJP’s cooptation of sub-caste leaders with promises of official privileges

Two key narratives further bolster support for the BJP though neither withstands scrutiny The first is that Modi s government alone can slay the demon of corruption But there is little evidence that his administration has made progress on this front On the contrary according to Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index India ranked 93rd for corruption in 2023 (out of 180 countries) having fallen eight places since Modi took power in 2014 A recent survey in India by Lokniti also shows that 55% of respondents think that corruption has increased over the last five years Petty corruption remains rampant in India Demands for bribes by police officers inspectors or contractors do not seem to have declined in recent years Moreover, the disastrous demonetization that Modi oversaw in 2016 – which was particularly harmful for small businesses and the poor – unearthed hardly any of the “black money it was supposed to flush out There is also little reason to believe that grand corruption has declined Stories about officials collecting hefty commissions” from contractors on large public projects abound, and government agencies’ increasingly aggressive pursuit of corrupt opposition politicians reeks of disingenuousness In fact getting corruption charges dropped or shelved can be as easy as joining the ruling party, even for opposition leaders who have long faced BJP accusations of corruption These defections contribute to a decline in reported

Kajal Manshad

U N S E C U R I T Y C O U N C I L D E M A N D

United Nations and other international human rights organizations including Asia Watch and Amnesty International to put pressure on India to release all Kashmiri political detainees languishing in jails of India and the occupied territory

According to Kashmir Media Service, APHC spokesman Advocate Abdul Rashid Minhas in a statement issued in Srinagar expressed serious concern over the continued illegal detention of thousands of people including APHC leaders Ulema journalists youth activists and human rights defenders

He said that illegal detentions and other repressive tactics by the occupation authorities could not stop the Kashmiri people from continuing their struggle for securing their right to self-determination It maintained that subjecting people to torture, wan-

ton arrests life-time imprisonments and killings of innocent Kashmiris by the Indian forces personnel is an illustration of the ongoing serious situation persisting in occupied Jammu and Kashmir Modi regime s anti-Muslim mindset and its colonial measures imposed one after another in Kashmir also indicate clearly what is in store for the Kashmiri people in the coming days it added

The spokesman expressed deep concern over the plight of Kashmiri detainees including APHC Chairman Masarat Aalam Butt Muhammad Yasin Malik Shabbir Ahmad Shah, Aasiya Andrabi, Naheeda Nasreen, Fehmeeda Sofi, Nayeem Ahmad Khan, Mohammad Ayaz Akbar, Peer Saifullah, Merajuddin Kalwal, Farooq Ahmad Dar Shahidul Islam Mushtaq-ul-Islam Molvi Bashir Ahmed Irfani Bilal Siddiqi Ameer Hamza Dr Hameed Fayaz Abdul Ahad Parra Zaffar Akbar Butt Umar Adil Dar Dr Muhammad Shafi Shariati Ghulam Qadir Butt, Noor Muhammad Fayaz, Muhammad Yousuf Falahi, Dr Muhammad Qasim Fakhtoo, Syed Shahid Yousuf, Syed Shakeel Yousuf, Muhammad Rafiq Ganai,

Ahmed Butt Zahoor Ahmed Butt Maulana Sarjan Barkati human rights defenders Khurrum Parvez and journalists Aasif Sultan, Irfan Majeed and Sajad Gul

the Srinagar

PCB chairman urges Pak squad to embrace modern

T20I techniques to fight till last ball

S TA F F R E P O R T

As the Green Shirts gear up for the upcoming T20I World Cup Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi emphasized the importance of adopting modern T20I strategies and exhibiting unwavering determination until the final delivery During a two-hour meeting in

fielding to deny opponents any opportunities He stressed that success in the T20 format hinges on embracing

an aggressive and contemporary approach to the game Naqvi highlighted the nation s fervent passion for cricket and the high expectations placed on the national players urging them to unite and deliver on the hopes of the Pakistani people He emphasized that cohesive teamwork is indispensable for achieving victory on the field Reflecting on Pakistan s recent defeat against Ireland in the ongoing T20I series, Naqvi acknowledged the disappointment but emphasized the need to focus on the upcoming World Cup as the ultimate test of the team s capabilities Ireland s historic victory over Pakistan on May 10 marked a significant moment for the hosts, clinching their maiden T20I win against the Green Shirts in the series opener at the Clontarf Cricket Club Dublin

Hayat

CORPORATE CORNER

GOVT CONSIDERS DUT Y INCREASE ON KEY IMPORTS TO PROTECT RESERVES, FARMERS

IEEEP symposium urges sustainable policies for promotion of local products

On 13th May 2024, From 08:00 AM to 13:00 PM, Islamabad Circle Lohi Bhir Athal Shahpur Treat T&T Bhara Kho-I & II I-11/2 Azad Shaheed Kand Rajgaan Lahtara Road Wahidabad COMST Chhata Bakhtawar Feeders, Rawalpindi City Circle, C Block, Affendi Colony, A Block, Kayani Road, Madnia Colony, Dhok Hasu, Pir Wadhai, Quaidabad, Muslimabad, Gulzar Shaheed, I-14/3, Affendi Colony Gulzar Quaid Khanna Road BBH P&T Wini Jhangi Azharabad EME Complex Feeders Rawalpindi Cantt Circle SPD-II RIC Gracie Line Feeder Attock Circle Pind Pran Valley Gulshan Sehat, Sangjani, Shahullah Dutta, Paswal, Sarai Kharboza, Amanpur Feeder, Jhelum Circle, Abbaspora, F-7 Kachhari, Kantrela, Galiana, Suhawa Kachhari, Main Bazaar Suhawa Feeders, Chakwal Circle Sagarpur Abdullahpur CWO Dhok Pathan Bisharat Feeders GSO Circle from 07:00 am to 05:00 pm Unha Town I & II feeders and

Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Sunday emphasised the necessity of dialogue among political parties asserting if political parties wouldn t talk to each other the problems would not be resolved

Addressing a seminar in Lahore on Sunday Bilawal Bilawal also referenced a message of reconciliation sent by President Asif Ali Zardari to a politician who accord-

Miftah wrote that the impetus for forming his

party was the

governance” “We are

and it is

of

the

we

at

ineffective governance that has

our people, he mentioned He deemed Pakistan s current political leaders “out-of-touch and short-sighted” with regard to Pakistan’s future “I am sorry to say they lack both the courage and the competence to change the course of this country, Miftah said The former finance minister stated that Pakistan needed to be run by individuals with a track record of integrity competence and results emphasising that younger people would make up the core of the party s leadership and public appeal We want to present to our people a new vision of Pakistan, a nation focused on its people especially the young he wrote

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar will arrive here on Monday on an official visit to China and hold the fifth round of the China-Pakistan Foreign Ministers Strategic Dialogue DPM Dar reaching Beijing on fourday a visit from May 13 to 16 on the invitation of Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi

This visit is the first official visit to China by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar after he took office It is also an important part of the institutionalized interactions between the Chinese and Pakistani foreign ministries

While commenting on the current relations with Pakistan and China s expectation for the visit, a Chinese foreign ministry’s spokesperson said that China would like to work with Pakistan

to take this visit as an opportunity to deliver on the important common understandings between the leaders, carry forward the traditional friendship, step up strategic communication and coordination deepen practical cooperation in various areas upgrade the ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor, deepen the China-Pakistan all-weather strategic cooperative partnership and accelerate the building of an even closer

China-Pakistan community with a shared future in the new era China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic cooperative partners and ironclad friends

In recent years, the two countries have maintained close high-level exchanges and interactions at all levels jointly responded to the evolving international and regional landscape deepened mutually beneficial cooperation, and further strengthened the friendship between the two countries Right after this year s elections in Pakistan were concluded President Xi Jinping Premier Li Qiang and Chairman Zhao Leji sent congratulatory messages to Pakistani leaders to extend our sincere congratulations and best wishes

On the sidelines of the Strategic Dialogue, the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister is expected to meet Chinese leaders senior Ministers and leading corporate executives

The Deputy Prime Minister s visit is part of regular high-level exchanges between Pakistan and China

JI won’t become part of any opposition alliance: Hafiz Naeem

ISLAMABAD

S ta f f R e p o R t

Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan on Sunday cat-

egorically stated that it will not become part of any political alliance but can cooperate with anyone for a certain purpose “Jamaat can cooperate with anyone for a certain purpose but it would not become part of any political alliance

Jamat-e-Islami Pakistan Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman declared while replying a media person’s as to whether the JI would be part of the opposition alliance headed by Mahmood Khan Achakzai Addressing a media conference, the JI Emir said the media workers were facing a host of issues such as economic crisis and press freedom

During my visit to Balochistan I observed that the law enforcers were violating the laws Some elements want to suppress the voices rising for the su-

premacy of law People are missing unconstitutionally and locals are being humiliated at check posts, said the JI chief, adding when people feel deprived, the global powers exploit the situation

He alleged that the coalition government of PML-N, PPP and MQM, a product of Form-47, had been forcibly imposed on people, adding that tampered figures were being presented to claim improvement in the economy He requested the Chief Justice of Pakistan to establish a judicial commission tasked with compiling the results of the general elections based on Form-45

A day earlier the opposition alliance – Tehreek-e- Tahaffuz-e-Aaine-Pakistan – held a meeting under the chair of Mahmood Khan Achakzai to launch a country-wide movement

The meeting was attended by PTI leaders Omar Ayub Khan and Asad

Qaiser Sunni Ittehad Council chairman Sahibzada Hamid Raza

Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), acting president, Sajid Khan Tareen, Majlis-e-Wahdatul Muslimeen (MWM) leader Syed Nasir Shirazi and others

Declaring that there was no democracy left in the country, the newly formed anti-government alliance launched a new nationwide campaign vowing that its struggle would continue till the return of democracy and restoration of the Constitution in the country

“At this moment, there is no democracy in the country and the Constitution is continuously being fiddled with, read a statement of the opposition alliance During Saturday s meeting, the opposition gathering evaluated the current political landscape and ratified significant decisions on a nationwide movement