ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad police on Saturday formed a joint investigation team (JIT) to investigate a suicide blast occurred in the capital city a day earlier.
DIG Operations Sohai Zafar Chattah has issued a notification in this regard. The eight-member JIT will be headed by the SSP Counter Terrorism Department, while SP Industrial Area, SDPO Sabzi Manid, and officers of intelligence departments will be part of it.
A case of the suicide bombing was lodged at the Sabzi Mandi police station in the federal capital lae Friday under various sections, including charges of terrorism and murder.
On Friday morning, suicide blast took place in Islamabad’ sector I-10 in which a policeman was martyred and two terrorists were killed.
The minister, in a statement, said a man and a woman were in a vehicle which entered Islamabad from Rawalpindi. A team of the Eagle Squad stopped it for snap checking when the terrorists blew up the car, killing both of them. He said the terrorists aimed at hitting some “high-value targets” in the capital city.
Rana Sanaullah said six people, including four policemen, were injured in the incident, adding that the injured personnel were out of danger and being treated at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS).
Following the blast, security has been beefed up in Islamabad and Rawalpindi while checking at exit and entry points of the cities also has been made stricter.
LAHORE: As the political turmoil continues in Pakistan‘s largest province, the Punjab Assembly on Friday passed a resolution, deploring Governor Baligh-ur-Rehman’s “illegal” move to remove Parvez Elahi as the chief minister.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) MPA Mian Muhammad Aslam Iqbal moved the resolution, calling on President Arif Alvi to take action against the province’s governor.
The opposition — comprising parties from the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) — staged a walkout even before the resolution against the governor was presented.
The resolution mentioned that the “imported government” in the centre has “attacked” Punjab and an attempt is also being made to destabilise the province.
“People, who sold their conscience, have initiated an undemocratic invasion of the house and tried to destabilise the government,” the resolution mentioned.
It also mentioned that the governor exceeded his powers when he issued the notification for the chief minister’s removal and also “disrespected” the Punjab Assembly.
“The president should take notice of this shameful move. The president should also initiate proceedings to remove the governor from his office,” the resolution mentioned, as the reassured its “confidence” in CM Elahi.
In his address to the house, the chief minister said that no matter what his political enemies attempted to do, his government would continue to rule in Punjab.
“We do not seek anyone’s help except for Allah and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). We will continue our work and I assure all of you today, that even our generations will work for the religion.”
In a sweeping statement against PTI Chairman Imran Khan, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Rana Mashood questioned: “Today is December 23, why aren’t you dissolving the assemblies?”
Speaking to media persons outside the Punjab Assembly, Mashood berated Khan and said that the ongoing terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is because of the PTI chief.
“Pakistan needs to get rid of this mess created by Khan,” he said, adding that the opposition has boycotted the assembly proceeding as “we believe session shouldn’t be called until the court’s decision is announced”.
The political crisis in Punjab does not seem to be ceased soon as lawmakers sitting on treasury and opposition benches appeared at loggerheads over who will get the CM’s Office and who will take it over next.
In his bid to oust the chief minister, the governor — a member of the PML-N — had ordered the CM to take a vote of confidence at 4pm on December 21.
But Punjab Assembly Speaker Muhammad Sibtain Khan Punjab — a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader — termed the order against the Constitution and adjourned an ongoing session till Friday — which resumed today.
In response, the governor disagreed with the speaker and rejected his reasonings for not summoning a session. He added that the ruling has “no bearing” on the order to hold a session for the confidence vote.
Following this, in a notification issued in the wee hours of Friday, the governor de-notified Elahi as the chief minister, citing his reluctance to take a vote of confidence.
Rehman said that since he believes that Elahi does not command the confidence of the Punjab Assembly, he was de-notifying him as the chief minister and also dissolving the provincial cabinet.
But the PTI and PML-Q alike rejected the notification and moved the Lahore High Court against it.
LAHORE: A newly formed bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) is hearing hear Parvez Elahi’s petition against the de-notification order of Governor Baligh Ur Rehman.
The petition was scheduled for hearing earlier today but a judge recused himself from the case after which the bench was dissolved.
The LHC CJ had formed a five-member bench headed by Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh to hear the petition. However, when the hearing started, Justice Abid Aziz said that Justice Farooq Haider had represented the petitioner in many cases and he has requested to be excluded from the bench.
After this, the matter was again referred to the chief justice. Now, Justice Asim Hafeez has been included in the bench, replacing Justice Farooq Haider.
The bench headed by Justice Sheikh will include Justice Chaudhry Muhammad Iqbal, Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh and Justice Muzamil Akhtar Shabir.
In the petition, Elahi has appealed to the court to declare the governor’s move denotifying him as chief minister “illegal”.
It informs the court that the Punjab Assembly Speaker Sibtain Khan was asked to summon a session for vote of confidence. It added that the speaker did not summon the session as one was already underway.
“No action can be taken against any chief minister over speaker’s actions,” maintains the petition.
Governor Rehman has been made respondent in the case via his principal secretary and chief secretary of the province.
Meanwhile, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Attaullah Tarar advised Elahi that rather than approaching the court he should have taken the vote of confidence.
“He (Elahi) has no other option but to take a vote of confidence. Even the court cannot finish the vote of confidence. This has to be done legally as well,” tweeted Tarar following the submission of the petition.
The PTI and PML-Q had already announced their intention to approach court over the governor’s move.
Elahi, who has been denotified from his position as chief minister of Punjab by Governor Balighur Rehman, had rejected the notification and made up his mind to move the court.
“I reject the de-notification. I am the Chief Minister of Punjab and the cabinet will continue to function,” Chaudhry Parvez Elahi said while talking to the media in Friday’s early hours.
LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday constituted a full bench to hear pleas regarding Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman and former prime minister Imran khan’s disqualification in Toshakhana case.
The Chief Justice of Lahore High Court (LHC) Muhammad Ameer Bhatti will head the three members full bench, whereas Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh and Justice Sajid Mehmood Sethi are the other two members.
LHC chief justice had requested to form larger bench for hearing of two different pleas in this case.
The three-member bench headed by LHC Chief Justice Muhammad Ameer Bhatti will hear the case on January 9.
Earlier, the Lahore High Court judge asked the CJ LHC to constitute a larger bench to hear the plea against the disqualification of former prime minister Imran Khan in the Toshakhana case.
Judge Sajid Mahmood Sethi heard the plea filed by a citizen of Mianwali, named Jabir Abbas through his counsel Azhar Siddique. The applicant in his plea stated that ECP is not a court and it cannot disqualify lawmakers.
It is pertinent to note here that the ECP declared Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan disqualified in its verdict in the Toshakhana reference.
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday reserved the verdict on local government (LG) elections in the Federal Capital of Islamabad.
According to details, Chief justice Islamabad High Court (IHC) Justice Aamer Farooq heard the petitions regarding LG polls in Islamabad.
Chief justice said that if LG tenure was completed in 2020 then the election should have been held at that time but the party which is in power never takes interest in holding LG polls.
He said that until the city has no small parliament like Delhi, the federal capital will remain a hub of problems.
The petitioner said that the state should not deprive citizens of their basic right of casting vote if this happens then the transparency of LG polls will be questioned.
In response, the Director General Election Commission said that the number of union councils were increase after the LG polls scheduled. The December 31 Islamabad LG polls should be held on the previous schedule, DG ECP added.
However, the chief justice said that the court cannot interfere the in the ECP jurisdictions as it is an independent institution.
The court reserved the verdict on the Islamabad LG polls case.
QUETTA: A man was killed and more than a dozen other people were injured after Afghan border forces targeted civilian population on the Pakistan side in an unprovoked shelling near Chaman border crossing between the two countries.
Tension flared up for second time at the Chaman border, which links Pakistan’s western Balochistan province with Afghanistan s southern Kandahar province, in less than a week. Afghan troops martyred six Pakistani civilians and wounded 17 others in indiscriminate fire of heavy weapons on Sunday.
A heavy gunfight took place between the Pakistan and Afghan forces after the shelling. Local administration officials said the border area was being evacuated after clashes and an emergency had been declared in DHQ Chaman. Levies officials said multiple artillery rounds were fired around the Boghra Road and Custom House areas from the Afghan side, targeting civilian population.
Authorities said the clashes erupted when Afghan forces made interventions during the repair of the fence in the Sheikh Lal Muhammad sector of the border. The fresh clashes come as US Centcom chief Gen Michael “Erik” Kurilla is visiting Pakistan and he is scheduled to lead a delegation to the Torkham border with Pakistan.
Officials said a befitting response was given by the Pakistani forces to the unprovoked shelling by the Afghan forces. Following the Dec 11 incident, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the killings. “The Afghan interim government should ensure that such incidents are not repeated,” he said in a statement.
The foreign office, in a statement, also warned that such unfortunate incidents were not in keeping with the brotherly ties between the two countries. It also asked the Afghan authorities to take strictest possible action against the preparators. It remained the responsibility of both sides to protect civilians along the border, the foreign office said.
KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Thursday ordered that no cases should be registered against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) Senator Azam Swati in the province any more in the controversial tweets case.
At the outset of the hearing, Inspector General of Sindh Police Ghulam Nabi Memon apologised to the court for his comments during the previous appearance.
Meanwhile, Sindh Prosecutor General Faiz Shah informed the SHC that Swati’s custody has been given to Islamabad Police. He also added that the cases registered against the senator have been categorised as “C-class”.
“All applications are now ineffective,” said the government lawyer, adding that the cases were registered by private citizens.
“According to law, the statement of these persons was bound to be recorded,” he added.
At this, Justice Karim Khan Agha lauded the Sindh government and IG Memon for resolving the “problem”.
The court then directed that no further FIR should be registered against Azam Swati in the case. It added that multiple cases were registered against Swati in different areas of the province on a single charge.
The court also directed that the C class report should also be submitted to the concerned courts in three days.
The court then disposed of the petitions filed by Usman Swati — PTI senator’s son.
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) on Wednesday asked the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) whether the party would resign from the assembly if the Apex Court ordered National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf to accept resignations tendered by the PTI members.
The apex court was hearing PTI chief Imran Khan’s plea against amendments to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) ordinance. Justice Mansoor Ali Shah asked whether the PTI leaders were still members of the National Assembly.
Khwaja Harris, a lawyer representing Imran Khan, said the PTI National Assembly members had tendered their resignations from the assembly. The PTI won by-elections on some seats left vacant after resignations while the NA speaker did not accept the resignations on other seats following government’s political strategy, he argued.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah remarked it was the PTI’s constitutional right to resign from the assembly, saying no assembly seat must be left vacant. The PTI members were drawing salaries for the assembly memberships but were not attending the assembly sessions, he said.
Khwaja Harris replied that the members whose resignations were accepted did not face the speaker. He said the speaker accepted some resignations without following the code of conduct.
Justice Ijazul Ahsan asked why the speaker did not accept all the resignations at once. He said the members who did not agree with the speaker’s orders must raise an objection.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah asked whether the PTI was ready to resign from the assembly if the SC ordered the NA speaker to accept resignations. The PTI’s counsel replied in the affirmative.
ISLAMABAD: President Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon has arrived in Pakistan for a two-day official visit at the invitation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday.
The president was welcomed by Commerce Minister Naveed Qamar at the Islamabad airport. Twenty-one gun salute performed to honour visiting dignitary.
Two children clad in traditional attire presented bouquets to President Emomali.
The Foreign Office in a statement said the two sides would exchange views on further strengthening bilateral cooperation in a wide range of areas.
During the visit, a number of bilateral agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) are expected to be signed.
“The Tajik President’s visit to Pakistan is expected to impart a renewed impetus to deepening cooperation between the two countries in diverse fields and further strengthen the growing geo-economic partnership,” the statement said.
Pakistan and Tajikistan are brotherly countries linked through longstanding historical, cultural and religious bonds. These ties are marked by mutual respect and exceptional cordiality. The two countries have a commonality of views on various regional and international issues.
Tajikistan is the closest neighbour of Pakistan in Central Asia separated by the narrow Wakhan Corridor. This proximity makes Tajikistan an important partner of Pakistan in Central Asia.
This is the second time that the Tajik president will be meeting PM Shehbaz this year.
The two leaders had last met in September of this year when the Pakistani premier was in Uzbekistan for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.
In the last meeting, the two leaders held wide-ranging talks covering all aspects of mutually beneficial bilateral cooperation, including regional and international issues.
The prime minister thanked Tajikistan for its support to the flood affectees in Pakistan and shared details of the devastation caused by the massive floods, induced by climate change.
PM Shehbaz also underlined the importance of regular meetings on bilateral institutional mechanisms and the establishment of mutually beneficial cooperation in the implementation of energy projects.
He also reiterated Pakistan’s resolve to timely completion of the important “CASA-1000” power transmission project.
Apart from the two leaders meeting, this will be the Tajik president’s second visit to Pakistan within two years.
He was last in Islamabad in June 2021 when Imran Khan was in power.
During the visit, Pakistan and Tajikistan entered into 12 accords for cooperation in diverse fields including trade, anti-corruption, infrastructure, education, and culture.
LONDON: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has scored a huge defamation victory at the London High Court against Associated Newspapers Ltd (publishers of Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday) over an article published by reporter David Rose.
The court records show that the newspaper took nine extensions to file a defence in support of its story which was published on the basis that the paper and the reporter have all the evidence already in their possession.
When Daily Mail and Mail On Sunday published the article on 19 July 2019, they claimed they were publishing the article based on complete evidence of corruption.
However, later on, the paper told the court it was looking for evidence and needed time to find and file the evidence to prove PM Shehbaz and his son-in-law Imran Ali Yousaf stole the money of British taxpayers from the Department For International Development (DFID) aid sent to Pakistan in 2006 to help victims of the devastating earthquake.
Court papers show that Daily Mail delayed the filing of its defence for over a year citing the security situation in Pakistan and the inability of its team to travel to Pakistan due to COVID-19 restrictions.
It was around the time when courts and officers were functioning through online means and obtaining material from Pakistan through the Assets Recovery Unit (ARU) was not a problem as it was the ARU, headed by Shahzad Akbar, that was behind the original article in papers published by the ANL.
PM Shehbaz won an early victory in February 2021 when Justice Matthew Nicklin ruled that David Rose’s Mail on Sunday’s article carried the highest level of defamatory meaning for both PM Shehbaz and Yousaf.
Court papers show that it took Daily Mail nearly three years to file a defence of Rose’s article.
The defence was filed in February 2022 and when the defence was served in the same month, the Daily Mail made it clear it didn’t seek to defend the DFID allegations for which the Daily Mail has now apologised and deleted the whole article.
This was in marked contrast to the position Daily Mail had taken since the article was published nearly three years ago in July 2019.
Here is a full timeline of what happened in the case that dominated Pakistani politics for over four years.
The first order given by Master Thornett that extended the time for Daily Mail to submit its defence was on May 21, 2021.
Later, the orders were given on eight other dates — July 14, 2021, Aug 2, Sept 21, Oct 5, Nov 25, Feb 2, 2022, Feb 22 and March 8, 2022.
Daily Mail published “Did the family of Pakistani politician who has become the poster boy for British overseas aid STEAL funds meant for earthquake victims, asks DAVID ROSE” on 13 and 14 July 2019 – when the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was in power.
PM Shehbaz issued a claim against Associated Newspapers Ltd through Carter Ruck on January 1, 2022, and held a press conference at the firm’s office with his lawyers.
PM Shehbaz vowed he would take the paper to the court and will win an apology as he also sought the withdrawal of all allegations. The acknowledgement of service was filed on February 17, 2020, at the court.
Justice Nicklin gave the first order on April 20, 2020, for the listing hearing window on April 21, 2020, to July 31, 2020.
Justice Nicklin gave the second order on May 7, 2020, extending deadlines.
The justice gave the first order on October 20, 2020, joining the claims of PM Shehbaz and his son-in-law Yousaf.
Justice Nicklin gave another order on January 28, 2021, regarding the preliminary issue trial.
He gave a judgement and order on February 5, 2021. The judge ruled at the meaning hearing at the London High Court in favour of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz and his son-in-law.
Justice Nicklin ruled that Mail on Sunday’s article carried the highest level of defamatory meaning for both — Shehbaz and Yousaf.
He gave the order on February 18, 2021, regarding various deadlines.
The Daily Mail filed the defence on March 15, 2022.
Master Thornett gave the order for filing the defence on March 17, 2022. He then gave the orders for extending the time of filing the defence on June 23 and September 20, 2022.
After March 2022, Daily Mail and PM Shehbaz entered into negotiations to settle the case and it became clear to the premier’s legal team that Mail newspaper will apologise and remove the article on his terms.
Justice Nicklin gave an order on September 26, 2022, and set a joint case management conference listed for November 9.
It was three days before this hearing that PM Shahbaz made a tactical move and withdrew his stay application in favour of a full trial.
The court, as per rules, was not informed that Daily Mail’s lawyers have been in negotiations with PM Shahbaz’s lawyers for several months behind the scenes, offering to apologise.
The prime minister was advised by his legal team that there was no point in filing further documents as the paper had already agreed to apologise and remove the defamatory and false article.
Daily Mail publishers and PM Shehbaz’s lawyers signed an agreement of settlement with Tomlin Order in the second week of December 2022 after which Daily Mail removed the defamatory article and apologised to the prime minister and his son-in-law.
The ANL has promised it will never repeat these false allegations at any forum and has already worked with Google to remove all articles carrying Daily Mail’s article.
