Page 97 - Pakistan

China agrees to reschedule Pakistan's $2 billion debt recovery for 2 years

This is a major relief to Pakistan government which is in the process of rebuilding foreign exchange reserves through fresh loans and rolling over maturing debt

Pak Finance Minister Ishaq Dar's name likely to be pitched for interim PM

The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party is considering proposing the name of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for taking up the position of caretaker prime minister, a media report said on Sunday. Dar's name came into focus as the Shehbaz Sharif-led government mulled changes in the Elections Act 2017 to empower the upcoming caretaker set-up to take decisions beyond its constitutional mandate, with a view to ensure continuity of the recently rolled out economic plan and expedite the process aimed at receiving foreign investment in state-owned entities, reported The Express Tribune. The Pakistan Muslim League (N) (PML-N) was considering proposing the name of Dar for the caretaker prime minister as part of a broader plan to ensure the implementation of the economic policies, sources were quoted as saying by the Express Tribune newspaper. However, the final decision about the candidature of Dar will be taken next week in consultation with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) - one of the tw

Amid Pak's economic crisis, Punjab govt to spend Rs 2.3 bn on new vehicles

Meanwhile, Pakistan's external debt servicing obligations are $ 2.44 billion for the current month of July 2023, including $ 2.07 billion in non-guaranteed debt owed to China

Pakistani citizen Seema Haider files mercy petition with President Murmu

Pakistani citizen Seema Haider, who entered into India in May without a visa, has filed a mercy petition with President Droupadi Murmu requesting that she, along with her four children, be allowed to stay at her "matrimonial home" in Greater Noida. Haider has also urged for an oral hearing from the president in her case. The petition, filed on her behalf by Supreme Court advocate A P Singh, was received at the President's secretariat on Friday. In the petition, Haider (30) states that she is in love with Sachin Meena (22) who lives in Greater Noida and she came to India with her four children to live with him. The Pakistani citizen claims she has converted to Hinduism and got married to Meena as per Hindu rites and rituals at the Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu, Nepal. "...Hon'ble madam, petitioner has found peace, love and happiness and a sense of purpose with Sachin Meena as a beloved husband, his father as father-in-law and his mother as mother-in-law that the petitioner never

Pilgrimage to Gurdwara through Kartarpur corridor suspended for 2 more days

Pilgrimage to the historic Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan through the Kartarpur corridor was on Saturday further suspended for the next two days because of rains. The decision was taken following an on-ground assessment by Gurdaspur Deputy Commissioner (DC) Himanshu Aggarwal along with senior officials of the Border Security Force (BSF). On Thursday, the pilgrimage was suspended for three days due to the rising water level in the Ravi river. The Kartarpur corridor links Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan, the final resting place of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev, to Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district. Rains lashed many parts of Punjab and Haryana on Saturday, leading to a rise in water levels of rivers. Speaking to reporters in Dera Baba Nanak, Aggarwal said because of rains in the hilly areas and Gurdaspur, the water level in the Ravi river has risen by 20,000 cusecs from Friday. He said he examined the area with BSF and Land Port Authority officials. Officials of th

Pak petroleum dealers threaten strike as govt fails to rise profit margins

The petroleum dealers in cash-strapped Pakistan have threatened to hold a nationwide strike from Saturday as they are dissatisfied with Shehbaz Sharif-led government on its failure to increase their profit margins, a media report said on Friday. Speaking at a press conference here, Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) Chairman Samiullah Khan, expressed their frustration over the government's inability to raise their profit margin to 5 per cent on the sale of two major petroleum products, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. Currently fixed at Rs 6 per litre (2.4 per cent), the 5 per cent margin would amount to over Rs 12 per litre, given the prevailing petrol and diesel prices of Rs 253/litre and Rs 253.50/litre, respectively, the report said. The latest fortnightly work for determining petroleum product prices, effective from July 16, indicated that the dealers were receiving Rs 7/litre instead of the claimed Rs 6/litre. However, this Rs 7 margin falls significantly sh

China agrees to reschedule $2 billion debt of Pakistan for 2 years

China has agreed to reschedule over USD 2 billion debt of Pakistan for a period of two years, providing a major relief to the cash-starved government, which is in the process of rebuilding foreign exchange reserves through fresh loans. The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet, chaired by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Thursday, approved the revised terms of the agreement reached between Islamabad and Beijing, according to senior Pakistani officials, the Express Tribune reported. Pakistan has built two nuclear power plants in Karachi that have a combined generation capacity of 2,117 megawatts. The total cost of the plants is USD 9.5 billion, including the USD 6.5 billion financing from China. The loan was extended by the Export-Import (Exim) Bank of China. Of USD 2 billion, over USD 625 million was maturing in this fiscal year that will now be paused. The USD 6.5 billion is a publicly guaranteed debt, and over USD 2 billion repayments were maturing in two years that ..

Could be jailed for life if guilty: Pak Law Minister on Imran Khan

Pakistan's law minister said on Thursday that former premier Imran Khan could be jailed for life if he was found guilty of jeopardising national security by exposing a controversial diplomatic communication commonly known as cypher. Khan used a cable sent by the Pakistan embassy in Washington in March last year to blame the US for orchestrating his ouster from power a month later. Addressing a press conference, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said the minimum punishment for leaking an official secret was two years. But the nature of crime would change if the cypher was made public and its contents were leaked for vested interest then an accused can be sentenced to up to 14 years. Sharing or making public classified documents for vested interest or if it is prejudicial to the national interest than a category for [sentence] is 14 years, he added. Fourteen years' punishment in jail is maximum in Pakistan and is also considered as life imprisonment. Tarar clarified that the cypher, a

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Pakistan is not providing weapons to Ukraine: Foreign Minister Bilawal

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Thursday said that Pakistan was not supplying weapons and ammunition to Ukraine, as he called for a peaceful resolution of hostilities between Russia and the eastern European country. Bilawal made the remarks at a joint press appearance with Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba after the two held detailed talks on matters of mutual and bilateral interests. He said the two sides discussed the situation in Ukraine and Pakistan shared with the foreign minister "our deep concern at the prevailing situation and offered our condolences on the loss of precious lives and immense human suffering". Responding to a query, Bilawal said that "Pakistan is not providing any weapons to Ukraine". Bilawal also said that Pakistan believed that prolonged conflict brings immense hardship and suffering to the civilian populations and hoped that peace would prevail so that the people of Ukraine and Russia can enjoy peace dividends. "In our meeting, I emphasised

Pakistan is not providing weapons, ammunition to Ukraine: Bilawal Bhutto

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Thursday said that Pakistan was not supplying weapons and ammunition to Ukraine, as he called for a peaceful resolution of hostilities between Russia and the eastern European country. Bilawal made the remarks at a joint press appearance with Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba after the two held detailed talks on matters of mutual and bilateral interests. He said the two sides discussed the situation in Ukraine and Pakistan shared with the foreign minister "our deep concern at the prevailing situation and offered our condolences on the loss of precious lives and immense human suffering". Responding to a query, Bilawal said that "Pakistan is not providing any weapons to Ukraine". Bilawal also said that Pakistan believed that prolonged conflict brings immense hardship and suffering to the civilian populations and hoped that peace would prevail so that the people of Ukraine and Russia can enjoy peace dividends. "In our meeting, I emphasised

Pakistan court acquits PM Shehbaz, family in money laundering case

An accountability court in Pakistan acquitted Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his family members on Thursday in a multi-million-dollar money laundering case after the anti-corruption agency failed to provide any solid evidence against them. "An Accountability Court acquitted Prime Minister Shehbaz, his wife Nusrat, his son Hamza and daughter Javaria in the PKR 7 billion money laundering case filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in 2020," a court official told PTI. The official said the court acquitted the premier and his family members after the NAB failed to provide any solid evidence against the suspects regarding the laundering of millions of dollars abroad, especially to the United Kingdom. The official further said the court, however, declared another daughter of the premier, Rabia Imran, a proclaimed offender and issued her an arrest warrant. Rabia had left for the UK since she was named in the case.

Imran Khan can be arrested if fails to cooperate in probe: Pak Minister

Pakistan's Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah on Thursday warned Imran Khan that he might be arrested if the former prime minister fails to cooperate with the investigation into the leaking of national secrets in what has widely come to be known as the cipher case.' Sanaullah's warning came a day after a close aide of Khan accused his ex-boss of using a diplomatic cable from Pakistan's mission in the US to build an anti-establishment narrative.

Pak citizen case: Central investigation agencies meet Noida Police

Central investigation agencies met the Noida Police on Thursday in connection with the probe in the Pakistani citizen Seema Haider's illegal entry into India, official sources said. The meeting comes in the wake of Uttar Pradesh Police's Anti-Terrorist Squad questioning Seema and his Indian partner Sachin Meena on Monday and Tuesday. "Officials of central investigation agencies on Thursday morning met with senior officers of the Noida Police in connection with probe into the Seema Haider case," an official source told PTI. While the UP ATS questioned the couple for two days, the Noid Police are separately investigating the case in which they are yet to file a charge sheet. "Apart from the probe done so far, the police are trying to find out which identification cards were submitted by Sachin to get a forged Aadhar card made for Seema," a senior officer said. "Police investigations are underway and charge sheet would be filed in the case after due probe is completed and evidence ..

Pakistani passport ranks world's fourth weakest among 227 nations: Report

Pakistan has been ranked as having the fourth weakest passport in the world on an index compiled by a global citizenship and residence advisory company. Among 227 countries assessed on the index compiled by Henley & Partners, the country stands at the 100th position, which has been determined based on the number of destinations Pakistani residents can visit without needing a visa. Earlier this year, the nation of over 220 million was listed among the five countries with the lowest-ranked passports by the London-based advisory firm. Pakistanis had access to 35 countries with an on-arrival visa facility until January this year, which has now come down to 33, Geo News reported. Singapore leads the index with the most-coveted passport in the world, pushing Japan, which had topped the list for the last five years, to the third position shared with South Korea, Austria, Finland, France, Luxembourg and Sweden, granting their citizens access to 189 destinations without a prior visa, it ...

Imran Khan apologises again for threatening Pakistani female judge

Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday again apologised for his controversial remarks against a female judge, saying he was sorry if he crossed the line. Just months after his ouster in April 2023, Khan in a fiery speech threatened Islamabad's top police officials and judge Zeba Chaudhry and said he would not "spare" them and file cases against them for "torturing" his party leader Shahbaz Gill. Khan, 70, Wednesday issued an apology, again, in the district and sessions court in connection with the case, Geo News reported. Khan's apology came during his appearance at the court of Judicial Magistrate Islamabad, Malik Aman, during the hearing of the case. Khan earlier too expressed readiness to apologise for his controversial remarks.

Viral blue-eyed chaiwala from Pak now owns a cafe in London, details here

Arshad Khan who became an instant sensation for his striking looks and blue-eye gaze in 2016, has opened 'Cafe Chaiwala' on East London's Ilford Path

Pakistan facing 'exceptionally high' economic challenges, says IMF

The IMF assessment noted that Pakistan's economic challenges were complex and multifaceted, and risks were exceptionally high

Pakistan govt to dissolve Parliament on Aug 8 to get extra time for polls

Pakistan's major ruling coalition partners have agreed to dissolve the National Assembly on August 8, a few days before the completion of its five-year term, to get extra time for general elections, according to a media report on Tuesday. The five-year constitutional term of the incumbent National Assembly expires on August 12 at midnight four days after the date on which both parties have reportedly agreed to dissolve the legislature. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) the two major stakeholders in the federal government have agreed to dissolve the National Assembly on August 8, the Geo News reported. August 9 and 10 also came under discussion, but it was decided to go for August 8 to avoid any hurdle in the early dissolution of the lower house of Parliament, the report said, quoting sources. According to the law, if the president doesn't approve the recommendation, the National Assembly stands dissolved after 48 hours giving the ...

Pak gets another $600 mn loan from China to help shore up forex: PM Shehbaz

Cash-strapped Pakistan has received a rollover of an additional USD 600 million loan from its all-weather ally China to help shore up the country's foreign exchange reserves on the back of an IMF deal, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Tuesday. It is in addition to the over USD 5 billion in loans that Beijing has rolled over for Pakistan in the last three months, helping the debt-ridden nation avert a default as negotiations to secure the IMF bailout dragged on, the Dawn newspaper reported. Pakistan secured a last-gasp USD 3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund on June 30, which later disbursed an initial upfront instalment of about USD 1.2 billion. Sharif said the Exim Bank of China has provided the rollover, increasing the country's foreign exchange reserves by USD 600 million. Our foreign exchange reserves are increasing but we want to do it not through loans but generating our income, he said at an event here. Apart from the IMF bailout and the Chinese loan