Page 94 - Pakistan

Pak PM to formally tender advice to Prez Alvi to dissolve National Assembly

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was poised on Wednesday to formally recommend the dissolution of the National Assembly to President Arif Alvi to pave the way for the next general elections in the country. The five-year tenure of the 342-member lower house of Parliament was scheduled to expire on August 12. On the completion of the incumbent government's term, I would send a summary to the President of Pakistan for dissolution of the National Assembly by Wednesday and then an interim government will take over," Shehbaz said on Tuesday addressing a ceremony. President Alvi can either issue a notification forthwith to dissolve the assembly or can delay it for 48 hours and after that, it will stand dissolved. It is for the second time President Alvi is dissolving the assembly. First, in April of the previous year, then-Prime Minister Imran Khan advised its dissolution, which he followed but the move was subsequently overturned by the Supreme Court. A final meeting of the federa

No names finalised for caretaker premier: Outgoing Pak PM Shehbaz Sharif

The premier added that consultations with the government's allies and his own party members on the matter were a "continuous process" that would be completed within a day or two

Imran Khan appeals his conviction in graft case, seeks release from jail

Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan on Tuesday challenged his conviction in a corruption case by a trial court, saying the verdict by a "biased" judge "was a slap in the face due process and fair trial and a gross travesty of justice. Khan, 70, was arrested on Saturday shortly after an Islamabad trial court found him guilty of corrupt practices in the Toshakhana corruption case and sentenced him to three years in jail. Khan has appealed his conviction and the three-year prison sentence in a graft case by filing a plea at the Islamabad High Court, the Dawn newspaper reported. The application was filed by the former premier's lawyers Khawaja Haris and Gohar Ali Khan. "The decision of the trial court in the Toshakhana case is against the law," stated the plea seeking for the verdict to be annulled. The petitioner's counsels have requested the high court to issue an order for the release of the cricketer-turned-politician by suspending the sentence pending the decision on the

9 killed in pair of bombings in Pak in attacks claimed by no group: Police

A roadside bomb struck a vehicle carrying a local politician and his friends in southwestern Pakistan on Monday, killing him and six others, police said. In a separate bombing, two people were killed in the northwest. The attack that killed seven happened in Kech, a town in Baluchistan province, local police officer Haider Ali said. He said that the slain politician, Ishaq Yaqub, was from the Baluchistan Awami Party and it was unclear who was behind the attack. For years, Baluchistan has been the scene of a low-level insurgency by small separatist groups and nationalists who complain of discrimination and demand a fairer share of their province's resources and wealth. The bombing in Baluchistan happened hours after a suicide bomber apparently detonated his explosives-laden vehicle prematurely in a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban, killing a married couple in a nearby car, officials said. A local administration official, Rehmant Ullah, said the bombing happened in North .

Pak shelves multi-billion-dollar gas project with Iran under US pressure

Pakistan has temporarily shelved the multi-billion dollar gas pipeline project to import cheap energy from neighbouring Iran, apparently under pressure from the US which has imposed sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear programme, according to a media report on Monday. The development comes as Pakistan struggles to put its cash-strapped economy in order with the help of the International Monetary Fund, which agreed to provide USD 3 billion in loan. The project was initially conceived as an India-Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline, but later, India left it and became a bilateral project between Pakistan and Iran. The sanctions imposed by the US on Iran over its nuclear programme have deterred Pakistan from constructing the pipeline. The Dawn newspaper reported that Pakistan had issued a notice of Force Majeure and Excusing Event' to Iran to suspend its contractual obligation on completion of the multi-billion-dollar Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline project because of external factors ...

Hockey ACT: Pakistan remain in semifinal race with 2-1 win over China

Goals from Muhammad Khan and Afraz helped Pakistan eke out a 2-1 victory over China to stay in the race for the semifinals in the Asian Champions Trophy hockey tournament here on Monday. However, the defeat meant that China were knocked out of contention for the last-four stage. The opening quarter happened to be a quiet one in terms of goal-scoring activities. Pakistan earned a couple of penalty corners but failed to convert them. It was followed by a field goal chance from both sides, but to no avail, as it was goalless at the end of the first quarter. Five minutes into the second quarter, Pakistan earned a penalty corner and Muhammad Khan successfully converted it to give his side the lead. While China challenged the goal through video referral for dangerous height, the TV umpire ruled it in favour of Pakistan. After a couple of more chances for Pakistan, including a penalty corner, it led 1-0 at the half-time break. Two minutes following the restart, China showed some urgenc

Hockey ACT: Pakistan captain Umar Bhutta rues team's finishing problem

Skipper Umar Bhutta on Sunday admitted that Pakistan need to analyse why they are unable to cross the line despite coming close to winning. Pakistan's latest contest was against Japan in the ongoing Asian Champions Trophy where they settled for a 3-3 draw despite gaining the lead a couple of times. "Firstly, we need to analyse why we are not able to finish the game despite coming so close to winning. It's understandable against bigger sides like Germany, who scored one goal, and it's a win-win situation for them unless the opponent scores," he told PTI after the draw. "Secondly, we struggled initially in the short corners. However, we are able to score in short corners as well as field goals now. Had these come beforehand, we would have been in a better position right now (in the competition)." "But overall, if I analyse my team and my players, I am impressed by their performance," he added. On Pakistan's upcoming encounter against China on Monday, a side that has not been at its

Two Pakistani drones recovered near IB in Punjab's Amritsar, Tarn Taran

Two Pakistani drones were recovered near the India-Pakistan International Border in two separate incidents in Punjab's Amritsar and Tarn Taran districts, a BSF official said on Monday. At around 10 pm on Sunday near Rattan Khurd village in Amritsar, Border Security Force (BSF) troops heard the buzzing sound of an unmanned aerial vehicle entering from the Pakistan, the official said. "As per the laid down drill, troops endeavoured to intercept the drone, the official said. In a joint search operation, the BSF and the Punjab Police on Monday recovered the drone (hexacopter) with a battery from a field in Rattan Khurd, the official said. In another incident, BSF personnel heard the sound of a drone coming from Pakistan near Rajoke village in Tarn Taran district at around 3:30 am, following which they tried to intercept it. Later during a joint search, the BSF and the police recovered the drone (quadcopter) from a field in Rajoke, the official said.

Pak authorities to inspect site of railway accident that killed 31 people

Pakistan's railway department will conduct an inspection on Monday at the site of a major accident in Sindh province where an express train derailed and killed at least 31 people and injured 130 others. The Hazara Express train travelling from Karachi to Rawalpindi derailed on Sunday in Nawabshah district near the Sarhari Railway Station, 275 kilometres from the provincial capital Karachi. Ten bogies went off the track and they were removed while repair works were underway. The administration of the People's Medical College Hospital in Benazirabad - the district home to Nawabshah, said that over 120 injured had been shifted to the facility and most of them have been discharged after treatment while 30 people are currently undergoing treatment, Geo News reported. Also, a total of 29 bodies were claimed and taken by family members while the bodies of two deceased women - who could not be identified - are still at the hospital. The railway department will conduct an inspection of the

Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan can only be knocked out by votes, not courts

Past Pakistani leaders, including Khan's predecessor Nawaz Sharif, have been disqualified on equally flimsy grounds. In many ways, though, Khan's hold over his followers is unique

22 killed, nearly 100 others injured in train accident in Pakistan

At least 22 people were killed and nearly 100 others injured on Sunday when several compartments of an express train derailed in Pakistan's southern Sindh province, officials said. The Hazara Express train en route from Karachi to Rawalpindi derailed in Nawabshah district near the Sarhari Railway Station, 275 kilometers from Karachi. Senior Railway and police officials confirmed the death of 22 passengers in the accident. Federal Railways Minister Saad Rafiq told the media that the number of casualties could rise as some of the injured were in critical after being hospitalised. He said around 10 bogies had derailed and the cause of the accident is being investigated. Pakistan Railways Sukkur Divisional Commercial Officer (DCO) Mohsin Siyal said 15 out of 22 bodies have been retrieved from the wreckage and the rescue work aided by the Pakistan Army was continuing. So far, we have had 22 casualties including women and around 100 injured sent to hospitals, Siyal said. Earlier, Depu

IC-814 hijacking: How pilot scared Lahore ATC to get permission to land

Twenty-four years after the shocking hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC-814 from Kathmandu in Nepal, its pilot Captain Devi Sharan has revealed that he had made a secret plan to scare the Air Traffic Control at Lahore by pretending to crash land the aircraft on a highway. Till date, it was understood that Capt Saran, his co-pilot Rajinder Kumar and flight engineer AK Jaggia had decided to land the aircraft at the Lahore airport against the decision of the Pakistani authorities, and while doing so, they mistook a highway for the runway as lights on the runway were switched off. It was a narrow escape as the aircraft was about to touch the highway when they realised it and pulled it up immediately. Way back in 2003-04, Jaggia, while narrating the IC-814 hijacking story to the media, said that when ATC refused them permission to land at the airport and switched off the runway and airport lights, they had no option but to grope in the dark to locate the runway as the aircraft was ..

Pak court ordered Imran be put in Adiala jail not Attock prison: Report

Imran Khan awoke on Sunday as an inmate in the high-security Attock prison in Attock city but should have been in Adiala jail in Rawalpindi, according to the order issued by an Islamabad trial court that found the former Pakistan prime minister guilty in a corruption case. Khan, 70, was arrested from his home in Lahore on Saturday shortly after being convicted and sentenced to three-year imprisonment in the Toshakhana corruption case.

Khan facing consequences for his misdeeds, malice: Pak's interior minister

He said that PTI chief remained away from appearing before the court, hence, the court completed legal requirements of the case and announced its verdict

Pak law minister says polls not possible till new census approved

Talking to Geo News on Saturday, Tarar said a meeting of the Council of Common Interest (CCI) headed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif "unanimously" approved new census results

Pak ex-PM moved to Attock jail after 3-year sentence in corruption case

Imran Khan was shifted to Attock jail in Pakistan's Punjab province amid tight security on Saturday after a trial court found the former prime minister guilty of corrupt practices in a corruption case and sentenced him to three years in prison. Khan, 70, was arrested from his Zaman Park home in Lahore on Saturday shortly after the Islamabad trial court convicted him in the Toshakhana corruption case.

Inzamam set to take over as Pakistan team chief selector, says PCB source

Former Test captain Inzamam-ul-Haq is set to take over as Pakistan team chief selector even as director Mickey Arthur and head coach Grant Bradburn will know by next week whether they will remain part of the national selection committee. A source in the Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed that Inzamam has given his consent to becoming a paid chief selector again after he held the position between 2016 and 2019. The Cricket Technical Committee members including Misbah ul Haq, Inzamam and Muhammad Hafeez have been discussing the new selection committee and it is yet to be decided whether Arthur and Bradburn should remain members on it, the source told PTI. He said Misbah would make his recommendation to the board chairman Zaka Ashraf after taking point of view of captain Babar Azam on whether the experiment of having the team director and head coach on the selection panel has been beneficial for the team. Once Babar's views are taken, the Cricket Technical Committee will also finalize i

Pakistan elections likely to be delayed as cabinet endorses census results

Pakistan's general elections could be delayed, albeit briefly, following the unanimous endorsement of the latest census results by a top constitutional body on Saturday. The Ministry of Planning in a briefing to the meeting of the Council of Common Interest (CCI), chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and attended by Cabinet ministers, provincial chief ministers as well as other senior officials, showed that Pakistan's population had reached 240.10 million. All participants unanimously approved the results of the census carried out in March and April with enumerators going door to door, while people also had an option to login and register their family details. After the approval of its result, it is mandatory for the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to carry out a new delimitation exercise to determine new electoral districts in the entire country for elections, which is expected to impact the 60 or 90 days period needed to hold the upcoming elections after the end of the .

No 'hurdle' left in holding polls after ex-PM Imran's arrest: Pak analyst

Imran Khan's conviction and his three-year jail term in a corruption case have cleared a "major hurdle" for the ruling PML-N and the military establishment, who appear to be on the same page, to hold the elections, a leading political analyst said on Saturday. Former Pakistan prime minister Khan, 70, was arrested from his Zaman Park home in Lahore on Saturday shortly after an Islamabad trial court found him guilty of corrupt practices in the Toshakhana corruption case and sentenced him to three-year imprisonment.

Pakistan police arrest 10 PTI workers for protesting ex-PM Imran's arrest

Police in Pakistan's Punjab province on Saturday arrested 10 PTI workers for protesting a trial court's conviction and sentencing of former prime minister Imran Khan in a corruption case. Khan, 70, was arrested from his Zaman Park home in Lahore on Saturday shortly after an Islamabad trial court found him guilty of corrupt practices in the Toshakhana corruption case and sentenced him to three-year imprisonment. The case alleges that Khan deliberately concealed details of the gifts he retained from the Toshakhana, a repository where presents handed to government officials from foreign officials are kept, during his time as the prime minister and proceeds from their reported sales.