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Tuesday, 14 June, 2022 I 14 Dhul-Qadah, 1443 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XII No 345 I 12 Pages I Karachi Edition

Pakistan can default if subsidies on Petrol not abolished: Miftah

ISLAMABAD

shAhzAd PArAchA

INANCE Minister Miftah Ismail Monday claimed that Pakistan would default if the government did not abolish subsidies on petroleum products. Perhaps, Miftah Ismail is the first-ever sitting finance minister to say that the country would default. Speaking at a post-budget conference here, the finance minister said if the price of petrol and electricity is not increased, then the country will default. He said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has insisted on abolishing the subsidies on petroleum products, adding that the government is still subsidizing Rs 53 per liter on high-speed diesel, Rs 19 on petrol, Rs 24 on kerosene and Rs 23 per liter on light diesel. He said Sri Lanka also gave subsidies to its public and it, eventually, defaulted. “Today, Sri Lanka is purchasing expensive oil and they do not have funds to buy medicines for their people,” the finance minister said as he warned of a similar situation in Pakistan.

The Finance minister also said that Pakistan will have to further rise in prices of petroleum products and a difficult situation could arise in mid-July. In a bid to bring economic stability and revive the stalled multi-billion-dollar IMF programme, the government had increased the price of petrol by a whopping Rs60 per litre last month. It was also expected that after the budget, some hurdles would be removed in the IMF programme’s revival. But the finance minister last week said the IMF “was still unhappy with the government over the budget” mainly because it did not implement the Personal Income Tax (PIT) measures suggested by it. Miftah had also said last week that there was no financial emergency in Pakistan after the government took steps to rectify the ongoing economic turmoil and increased the price of petrol. But in today’s TV interview, the finance minister said if the government does not increase the prices, the IMF will not strike a deal with Pakistan, and if this happens, then the country will be pushed toward “destruction.”

“I have told the prime minister that we have to take tough decisions. The prime minister is unhappy with increasing the prices of petroleum products. Whenever I send a summary in this regard, the ministers curse me,” Miftah lamented. Miftah added that the PTI government did not make the decisions it agreed upon with the IMF. “We are in talks with the IMF; the PTI did not strike a good deal with it.” He also said that Pakistan needs $42 billion in the next fiscal year and we have to pay $21 billion in debt adding that he said that if we do not settle our matters with IMF, the World Bank will hold $9.5 billion and the ADB $8 8 billion in financing. He said that once the agreement with the IMF is reached and Chinese banks extend their loan facility to Pakistan, the market will regain confidence. He also said that government would also include 6 million people in the Benazir income support program. we have received 4 million texts in 10 days as the government announced to give Rs2000 for petrol subsidy. He said that the government has announced incentives for agricultural development in the budget and would also announce the export policy in a few days. Replying to queries regarding the increase in electricity tariff, he said that Economic Coordination Committee has approved jacking up the electricity prices by Rs7.91 per unit. The matter would be presented in cabinet meeting then we will gradually increase the prices of electricity. Replying to media queries on the ongoing discussion on Twitter about his company, the Finance minister said that there is no tax discount for his company. He said the Lay’s manufacturing company will get benefit as it wanted to export its product. “My company uses the candy colour but there is no reduction in the duty of candy colour”, he added. He also said that Pakistan will be out of FATF’s grey list soon.

KP govt unveils Rs1.33tr budget for FY 2022-23 AzIz BunerI Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Finance Minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra on Monday presented the provincial budget for FY 2022-23 with a total outlay of Rs1.33 trillion. Addressing the budget session of the KP Assembly, Taimur Saleem Jhagra said that the total outlay of the budget stands at Rs1,332 billion. “Despite hurdles, we have earmarked Rs319.2 billion for the development portfolio of which only Rs8 billion will be received under the PSDP,” he said. He announced a 16 percent increase in salaries of the government employees while pension was jacked up by 15 percent. The Shuhada package for police has also been increased in the budget. Sharing a relief package for the government employees, he said that the ‘work from home’ policy will be launched for employees to mitigate the impact of fuel prices while fleet cards having fuel limits will also be given to the departments to avoid unnecessary waste of fuel resources. Sharing details of appointments and permanent status to employees, the finance minister said that 675 doctors and 58,000 NTS teachers will get permanent status while 600 nurses will be recruited in the next fiscal year. “Sehat bumper card is also being introduced for the government employees which will also include their OPD treatment,” he said. Sharing further details of initiatives in the budget, he said that treatment for bone marrow transplant, thalassemia, and advance-stage cancer will also be added to Sehat card. “Four new medical colleges will be established in Dir, Buner, Charsadda, Haripur,” in addition he said that youngsters will also be given loans

PML-N, CEC plotting to rig next elections: Imran Khan ISLAMABAD Agencies

Former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan has accused the ruling PML-N and the top official of the chief electoral watchdog of working in cahoots to rig the next general elections. “The Chief Election Commissioner(CEC) takes orders from Hamza Shehbaz and Maryam Nawaz… they are planning to rig the next elections,” he said while addressing the farmers’ convention in Islamabad on Monday. The PTI chief has time and again accused the ECP and its chief of being the henchman of the PML-N and sought Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikander Sultan Raja resignation to ensure transparency in the polls. Imran, the ousted premier, also hinted at the possibility of snap polls, saying that he is expecting that the elections would

be held soon. Speaking about the prevailing economic crisis, the former prime minister reiterated his allegations that incumbent rulers were installed into power through the US-backed

regime change conspiracy which he said cannot dare to buy oil from Russia at discounted rates. “Despite the being the ally of the US, India is purchasing oil, weapons from Russia but slaves [in-

worth around Rs25 billion. He shared that the tax collection in the KP hiked to Rs75 billion from Rs31 billion. “Despite financial issues, we gave a development budget of Rs260 in FY2021-22 and spent 33 percent of it, contrary to Sindh and Punjab where 21 and 22 percent are spent respectively” he said. He said that their government has produced 2.1 million job opportunities in the province. “World Bank data also proved that unemployment remained lowest during the three year tenure,” he said. According to budget documents, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has made historic allocations of Rs319.2 billion under the Annual Development Programme (ADP) for fiscal year 2022-23. Of the total outlay of the budget, Rs1,108 billion has been allocated for settlement districts while Rs223 billion has been allocated for merged tribal districts. According to the budget documents, the total current budget of the province has been set at Rs913 billion, of which Rs789 billion has been allocated for settlement districts and Rs124 billion for integrated districts. The total development budget of the province covers Rs418 billion of which Rs319 are allocated for settlement districts and Rs99 for integrated districts. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Finance Taimoor Khan Jhagra has presented here on Monday a history Rs1.332trillion budget for the fiscal year 2022-23, including 1,109.1billion in the settled districts and Rs222.9billion in the newly merged district [NMDs] during a special budget session that chaired by Deputy Speaker Mahmood Jan here on Monday.

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cumbent government] is not allowed to buy oil..” He also lashed out at Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, saying that he had become the in charge of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and appointed his loyalist to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to “close down” his corruption cases. “They did not come [in power] for the people of Pakistan… they only came to get relief in corruption cases. We don’t expect anything from this imported government,” he added. Speaking about the RussiaUkraine conflict, Imran said the war has sparked fears of famine in the country due to a shortage of wheat. “Pakistan is facing a major challenge of food security. The RussiaUkraine war has disrupted the wheat supply and caused an increase in its price. The country can never proposer until pay attention to the agriculture sector,” he added.

China to promote in-depth development of bilateral relations with Pakistan: Zhang Youxia STORY ON PAGE 02

Imran Khan warns against looming threat of food shortage STORY ON PAGE 03

India’s ‘democratic face’ has been exposed globally: PM Shehbaz STORY ON BACK PAGE

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CHInA TO PrOMOTE In-dEPTH dEvELOPMEnT Of bILATErAL rELATIOnS wITH PAKISTAn: ZHAnG YOUxIA BeIJING

agencieS

HINA’S Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission Zhang Youxia said on Sunday that China and Pakistan were all weather strategic cooperative partners and the two sides had maintained close coordination and firmly supported each other on issues involving each other’s core interests over the years. In a meeting with Chief of Army Staff Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa in Qingdao, port city in China’s eastern Shandong province, Zhang said that Beijing was

willing to build up communication with Pakistan, strengthen cooperation, deepen pragmatic exchanges, properly respond to the complex factors in the regional situation, and promote the in-depth development of bilateral relations, according to the Ministry of National Defence of China. Zhang Youxia said that in the face of a century of change and the epidemic in the century, President Xi Jinping put forward global development initiatives and global security initiatives to provide China’s solutions to promote the establishment of a more just and reasonable global governance system. During the meeting, Gen. Bajwa said that the

friendship between Pakistan and China was unbreakable and as strong as a rock, and no matter how the international and regional situation changes, Pakistan will firmly stand with China at any time. He said that Pakistan was willing to further strengthen dialogue and coordination with the Chinese army, carry out mutually beneficial cooperation, combat terrorist forces, strive to improve the ability of both sides to deal with various security challenges, safeguard the common interests of the two countries, and contribute to regional peace. The two sides strongly condemned the terrorist attack on the shuttle bus of the Confucius Institute in

Karachi, and stressed that any attempt to undermine Sino-Pakistan friendship will not succeed.

KP govt regularize services of around 63,000 contract employees

Long March: Qureshi, Umar, 38 other PTI leaders granted interim bail

News DesK

IsLAMABAD

Khyber Pakhunkhwa government on Monday announced to regularize services of around 63,000 contract employees in the province. Finance Minister , Taimur Khan Jhagar while presenting provincial budget 2022-23 in the KP Assembly said that 675 ad-hoc doctors would be regularized from July 1. He said that KP government had fulfilled its promise of regularizing services of 58,000 contract teachers as it believed in welfare of all segments of society. He also announced to regularize jobs of 4,079 employees working in 128 projects of erstwhile FATA, merged districts.

Staff RepoRt

A Session Court on Monday granted interim bail till June 20 to PTI leaders – Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Asad Umar and Sh Rashid and 38 others in cases registered during long march to Islamabad. The cases were registered on charges vandalism against by PTI leaders during the long march to Islamabad on May 25. The Session Court judge questioned the prosecutor that if investigations into the case are completed? the Prosecutor Wajid Munir replied that it is still in process. PTI lawyer Babar Awan said that the party leaders went to the jail but they were sent back as the officer was not there. While he requested the court to let the process be completed and the party will not let the court down and all suspects will appear before the court. The judge directed every suspect must mark their attendance in the court and ordered the prosecutor to engage every suspect in the investigation. PTI leader Shereen Mazari said that they have appeared for investigation and now her lawyers will give arguments regarding the case. Replying to Mazari, the judge said that arguments can be done on Tuesday. While Mazari requested the judge to give her exemption to attend the hearing.

LG polls: Sindh IGP reviews security arrangements News DesK Inspector General of Police (IGP) Sindh Ghulam Nabi Memon on Monday chaired a meeting with senior officers to review the security arrangements for local bodies elections across the province. According to spokesman for the IGP, Memon directed the police officers to provide details of union councils and polling stations in all the districts of Sindh after categorizing them into highly sensitive, sensitive and normal on the basis of regular crime analysis, and prepare security plan accordingly. He ordered that necessary steps be taken as soon as possible, so that the protection of life and property of citizens on the occasion of local body elections could be ensured, the spokesman said. The Sindh Police Chief directed the officers to ensure permanent liaison with Pakistan Rangers Sindh and other law enforcement agencies to ensure foolproof security. Memon further said that during the local bodies elections, all measures should be taken for the observance and respect of the code of conduct and principles laid down by the Election Commission of Pakistan for candidates and voters. The IGP said that the police would not be allowed to act with any concession in regard to the imposition of Section 144 during the forthcoming polls.

Agriculture expert advises to cultivate new type sesame crop

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif along with party MPAs coming to Punjab Assembly for attending budget session. photo by zubaiR Mehfooz

KP govt allocates Rs144b for Elementary, Secondary Education News DesK Khyber Pakthunkhwa government has allocated Rs. 144 billion for 105 projects of Elementary and Secondary Education (E&S) in the provincial budget 2022-23. Finance Minister, Taimur Khan Jhagra while presenting the budget in KP Assembly said that Rs.17 billion were allocated for Elementary and Secondary Education under Annual Development Plan (ADP). Giving details of mega schools projects , he said that amount of Rs. 3.4 billion has been earmarked out of total Rs. 36.6 billion for establishing 711 schools both for boys and girls ,adding that Rs.3.2 billion out of total

Rs.35.5 billion allocated for reconstruction of 1,318 schools. The minister said that Rs.2.1 specified in the budget for improving standard of 521 schools and Rs.2.6 billion for up-gradation of 914 schools. He said that amount of Rs. 320 million allocated for giving basic facilities, provision of school bags and stationery. He also announced allocation of Rs.500 million for scholarship of students from class 1 to class 8 in merged districts. The current budget include Rs. 2 billion for purchase of furniture, Rs.1 billion for second shift classes, Rs.2.4 billion for scholarship for students.

JUI-F throws weight behind MQM-P in NA-240 by-poll KARACHI Staff RepoRt

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) on Monday announced support for Muttahida Qaumi MovementPakistan (MQM-P) candidate Muhammad Abu Bakar in the upcoming by-election to NA-240 constituency. The National Assembly seat comprising areas of Landhi and Korangi had fallen vacant after the death of MQM-P’s senior leader Iqbal Muhammad Ali Khan on April 19. Moreover, MQM-P has decided to hold a public rally in NA-240 constituency on June 14, the last day for electioneering. The by-election in NA-240 Karachi will be held on June 16. MQM-P’s Iqbal Muhammad Ali Khan had won the NA-240 seat in the 2018 general elections by securing 61,165 votes, defeating the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan’s (TLP) candidate, who had bagged 30,535 votes. Mohajir Qaumi Movement-Haqiqi (MQM-H) chief Afaq Ahmed had bagged over 14,000 votes, and the

Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) Mohammad Feroze had received over 7,000 votes. In the 2013 and 2008 general elections, the then MQM’s Asif Hasnain had won the constituency, which was NA-255 at that time, by a great margin. In the 2002 general elections, the MQM-H’s Mahmood Ahmed Qureshi had won the constituency, but after his death due to a heart attack, the MQM’s Dr Farooq Sattar had won the seat in the by-polls. NA-240 comprises various areas of Landhi that fall under District Korangi. The constituency was previously part of the former NA-255 and various areas of former NA-254. NA-240 is mainly dominated by Urdu speakers, but people from other ethnicities also live there. The NA-240 (Korangi Karachi II) seat have total of 5,29,855 voters. The electoral body has set up 100 polling stations for male voters, 99 PS for women voters and 110 joint polling stations for the by-election under its polling scheme.

COMSTECH offers 50 fellowships to Yemeni scientists News DesK COMSTECH, in collaboration with the Yemen Embassy and Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Government of Yemen Monday announced COMSTECH-CCoE Yemen Program awarding 50 fellowships to the Yemen scientists in the fields of public health and medical technology. This was announced as a part of Science Diplomacy Initiatives of COMSTECH and Ministry of Foreign Affairs during a press conference held at the COMSTECH-the OIC Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation on Monday. The press conference was addressed by the Ambassador of Yemen, Mohammed Motahar Alashabi, the coordinator general COMSTECH, Prof. Dr. M. Iqbal Choudhary, Vice Chancellor, Health Services Academy (HSA), Prof. Dr. Shahzad Ali Khan, Chairman Board of Governors, University of Lahore (UoL), Mr. Awais Raoof, Co-Director of the International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), University of Karachi, and Mr. Ali Sattar, Director, Science Diplomacy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Federal Minister of Science and Technology, Agha Hassan Baloch, in his message, appreciated the efforts of the coordinator general COMSTECH and the Ambassador of Yemen for their efforts to plan and launch this important capacity building program for the Yemeni national. He appreciated the generous offering of fully funded fellowships by UoL, HSA and ICCBS. Mr. Baloch urged the launch of more such tailor made country specific programs for other OIC countries to cater their specific needs. He appreciated COMSTECH programs and reiterated full support by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST) to COMSTECH programs. In his remarks, the Ambassador of Yemen thanked COMSTECH for launching this program.

News DesK Sesame crop has capability to survive in drought condition, Talha Sheikh, Assistant Director Agricultural of Government Seed Farm said on occasion of cultivating new kind of sesame – millennium sesame here on Monday. He said that new type of sesame, Millennium sesame, was developed by the Nuclear Institute of Agriculture and Biology, Faisalabad, a subsidiary of Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission. Talking to farmers,he said that newly discovered millennium sesame was important and cash crop cultivated in Punjab contained more than 50 % edible oil in its seed. It has good protein estimated about 22 %, he said, adding that sesame oil was closer to olive oil following its productive qualities. Assistant Director said cost of sesame crop is less and per unit income higher depending on area and time. Sesame could be cultivated anytime between months of April to July. The two kilogram of the seed was sufficient for per acre land cultivation.

APHC expresses serious concern over ongoing killing, arrest spree in IIOJK News DesK The All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) has expressed serious concern over the ongoing spree of killing and arrest by the Indian brutal forces in Illegally Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). According to Kashmir Media Service, the APHC leadership at a toplevel meeting in Srinagar, today, stressed

that political engagement was the most effective way to move forward and end bloodshed. A statement issued after the meeting said that the participants were in agreement that India’s muscular policies had failed in bringing any change to the disputed nature of Jammu and Kashmir, nor would do it in the future. The leadership advised India to shun stubbornness and lay the foundation of

durable peace in South Asia by resolving the Kashmir dispute in line with the Kashmiris’ aspirations. Acknowledging the sacrifices of the people of Jammu and Kashmir for resolution of the lingering Kashmir dispute, the leaders reiterated that India had the opportunity to improve situation in IIOJK in the larger interest of peace and progress in South Asia. The meeting also expressed serious

concern over blasphemous remarks of Hindutva extremist Bharatiya Janata Party leaders, adding that it had reflected the growing trend of anti-minority particularly anti-Muslim policies in India. They said that the world was well aware of the policies of the BJP and the present policy of bulldozing houses of Muslim community members should be an eye-opener for the whole world.

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PArLIAMEnT CAPAbLE InSTITUTE TO LEAd TALKS wITH TTP, SAYS rAbbAnI IsLAMABAD

newS DeSk

AKISTAN People’s Party (PPP) Senator Mian Raza Rabbani on Monday stressed the need for making talks with the Tehreek-eTaliban Pakistan (TTP) as part of a national debate comprising parliament, experts, military commanders who fought against them and civil society.

“Two tribal jirgas sent for negotiations with the TTP cannot be a replacement for the collective wisdom of parliament,” he pointed out in a statement issued here on Monday. Rabbani emphasized that peace talks and subsequent agreement with the TTP will have far-reaching consequences on the constitutional boundaries of the federation within, on the creation of a parallel justice system, the rule of law and the constitution. The PPP senator declared that the

parliament has always risen beyond party lines from evolving terms of engagement with the US or operations against terrorists in Swat, Khyber and Waziristan. Rabbani was of the view that Pakistani people have the right to decide their future, adding that let a consensus decision be arrived at through a debate in which the parliament leads. A day earlier, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari formed a three-member committee to liaise with political parties on

the recent developments related to talks with Afghan Taliban and the banned outfit TTP. The three-member committee comprises PPP’s senior leaders Sherry Rehman, Farhatullah Babar and Qamar Zaman Kaira, and will take other political parties on board over the matter. The development came after a series of meetings were held between representatives of Pakistan and the outlawed TTP in Kabul to broker a peace deal. The Afghan Taliban are acting as a mediator.

neither public nor IMf happy with budget: Asad Umar

A tribal jirga, comprising elders, politicians and others from erstwhile tribal areas, also visited Afghanistan and met the TTP leaders. The flurry of meetings led to the banned outfit announcing an indefinite ceasefire.

OGrA’s enforcement team unearths three illegal oil agencies

sHAHzAD PARACHA

AHMAD AHMADANI

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Central Secretary General Asad Umar expressed that the budget created a ‘Doomsday scenario’ as the finance minister himself admitted that the budget neither met the expectations of the people nor of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In a statement issued from the Central Media Department (CMD) on Monday, Asad said that the imported government’s hurriedly presented budget caused widespread despondency in the country. He mocked that the government presented a wonderful budget, as people were angry, a bearish trend persisted in the stock market and rupee continued to lose its value further. Asad Umar said that the Federal Finance Minister Miftah Ismail accepted that the proposed budget failed to meet expectations of the people and the financial body. However, he raised a question that then who was happy with the budget except the candy making companies? On the other hand, PTI Central Secretary Information Farrukh Habib said that the ‘gang of corrupts’ was hell-bent to paralyze Pakistan economically and to make life of all and sundry a hell through flawed economic policies and wrong priorities. Reacting to Information Minister Maryam Aurangzeb’s press conference, Farrukh Habib said that the imported government was badly exposed during a short span of two months, as the gang of corrupts snatched all facilities from the people. He said that the imported government created a cost-of-living crisis in the country, as prices of daily used items skyrocketed, a flour bag was selling at Rs1300 in the market but the imported ministers were trying to mislead the people by presenting a rosy picture.

The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) Enforcement (North) team has discovered three illegal oil agencies and asked the Chief Secretary Punjab to take appropriate action against the illegal oil business being carried out in different areas of southern Punjab. As per details, OGRA’s Enforcement (North) team has inspected around 40 petrol pumps in south Punjab to check the accuracy of the measurements of oil, and their quality and prices, and to ensure safety standards at different outlets. And, OGRA’s Enforcement team, during the inspection process, has found three illegal oil agencies against whom appropriate action has been recommended to the Chief Secretary Punjab.

Sindh govt unveils budget for fY 2022-23 today KARACHI Staff RepoRt

The Sindh government will present budget for fiscal year 2022-23 on Tuesday with an allocation of Rs459.68 billion for the development projects in the province. According to the budget documents, the province will start 1,652 new development projects while it will continue executing 2,506 ongoing projects. Last year, the provincial government had earmarked Rs329 billion for the development programme. The budget proposes to set aside Rs332.16 billion under the head of Annual Development Programme (ADP). For districts, Rs30 billion have been allocated. The budget documents also include Rs51.50 billion in the ADP from foreign funding, the province is expected to receive. The federal government will provide Rs6.2 billion to the province under the head of PSDP. The budget proposes to allocate Rs253 billion for the ongoing 2506 projects while suggesting to set aside Rs79 billion for new 1652 development programmes.

LAHORE: UNHCR Representative Ghazala Mirza, Hammad Latif, Kamal Zeb, CLI Syed Muntazir, CEO Mudassir Javed and a large number of police officers in a group photo after a workshop on rights of immigrants at Police Training College Chung. Staff photo

FCA of April: NEPRA jacks up power tariﬀ by Rs3.99 per unit AHMAD AHMADANI The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has increased the power tariff by Rs3.99 per unit on account of fuel cost adjustment (FCA) for the month of April 2022 and issued a notification to this effect. According to NEPRA notification, this power price hike of Rs3.99 per unit shall be applicable to all the consumer categories except lifeline consumers of all the power distribution companies (DISCOs). The said adjustment shall be shown separately in the consumer’s bills on the basis of units billed to the consumers in the month of April 2022 by the DISCOs. The DISCOs shall reflect the fuel charges adjustment in respect of April 2022 in the billing month of June 2022, said NEPRA notification of power tariff hike on account of FCA for the month of April 2022. While effecting the Fuel Adjustment Charges, the concerned DISCOs shall keep in view and strictly comply with the orders of the court notwithstanding this order, the NEPRA notification added. According to sources in power sector, the Rs3.99 per unit increase in power tariff will put a burden of around Rs58.5 billion on consumers, including the General Sales Tax (GST) which is charged at 17%. Earlier, the Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA), on behalf of DISCOs, requested the NEPRA to jack up the power tariff by Rs4.5 per unit as FCA of April 2022 for the consumers of DISCOs. And, the Authority (NEPRA) conducted the hearing in the matter on May 31, 2022 and disagreed with the CPPA demand and approved a hike of Rs3.99 per unit. Actual Fuel Charge Component for April 2022 was recorded at Rs10.6010 per kilowatt hour (kWh) while corresponding reference fuel charge component was already fixed at Rs6.6087 per kWh. On the date fixed for hearing, representatives from CPPA-G, National Power Control Center (NPCC)/NTDC, Media and General Public were present. However, no representation was made from WAPDA Power Privatization Organization (WPPO), Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL), Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) and Ministry of Finance despite serving the hearing notice, said NEPRA decision.

During the hearing, the Authority also observed that energy from costlier RFO based power plants was generated to the tune of over Rs.44,094 million during the month of April 2022. The Authority has been directing NPCC/NTDC & CPPA repeatedly to provide complete justification in this regard, to the satisfaction of the Authority and submit complete details for deviation from Economic Merit Order (EMO), showing hourly generation along-with the financial impact for deviation from EMO, if any, and the reasons, thereof. As per additional note on decision of the Authority regarding Fuel Charges Adjustment of DlSCOs for the month of April, 2022, the data submitted by NPCC, the average RLNG allocated to power sector during the month of April, 2022 was 552 MMCFD against a demand of 690 MMCFD that resulted in indicative financial impact of Rs2,379 Million during the aforesaid month. During the FCA hearing of DlSCOs for the month of April, 2022, the reason for not utilizing the efficient RLNG power plants appears to be non-availability of RLNG. One reason for shortage of RLNG was lesser demand by NTDC/NPCC i.e. requisition of around 690 mmcfd against the actual demand of around 800 mmcfd (as apprised by the system operator to the Authority) another reason is less supply of RLNG by concerned quarters against the demanded quantity of RLNG. Efforts should have been made to improve the supply chain of RLNG to fully utilize the most efficient RLNG power plants and avoid the part load adjustment charges. As the RLNG is imported fuel and its availability can be ensured through better supply chain management, accordingly, such mis-management into the availability of required RLNG can’t be passed on to the consumers, said the additional note on decision of the Authority regarding Fuel Charges Adjustment of DlSCOs for the month of April, 2022. It is pertinent to mention that NEPRA’s decision of hike in power tariff will place an additional burden of billions of rupees on the power consumers while this price hike will not apply to K-electric and lifeline users who use upto 100 units a month and fall under protected category of the power consumers of all 10 DISCOs. However, this hike in power tariff will add additional burden to the already burdened masses/power consumers.

Russian envoy backs Imran Khan’s claim on Moscow visit News DesK Russian Ambassador to Pakistan Danila Ganich has said that former prime minister Imran Khan’s visit to Moscow earlier this year could be one of the reasons behind his ouster from the power. He made these remarks while responding to a question related to the exPM’s allegations that a “foreign conspiracy” was hatched against his government after his visit to Russia. In an interview with a local TV channel, the envoy said it was a “sheer

coincidence” that the former premier visited Moscow on the day Russia launched the invasion of Ukraine on February 24. “I think that was one of the factors but I also know that it was a sheer coincidence that he happened to be in Moscow on that very day.” The ambassador said had former PM Imran known about the Ukraine invasion, “definitely he would have tried to refrain from being there”. When the programme host precisely asked the envoy about Imran’s ‘foreign

conspiracy’ claims, Ganich said: “As an ambassador of a foreign country I would prefer not to interfere in your internal affairs. I do know that there was the conclusion that there was no conspiracy. So here I would say period.” On the ousted PM’s claims that Russia offered his government oil and wheat at discounted rates, the ambassador said no memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the two sides in this regard. “I can confirm that we did not conclude any MoU. But Imran Khan did

not say that we conclude any MoU but as for what kind of discounts could have been offered I cannot comment as this is indoor negotiation.” Earlier in April, the Russian foreign ministry had said the ongoing political developments “leaves no doubt” that the US intended to punish the “disobedient” PTI chief. In a statement, the Russian foreign office criticised the US for being involved in an alleged conspiracy to overthrow the then Pakistani premier, stating that the opposition was colluding with the Western superpower.

Punjab govt employees to get 30pc pay raise stAff RePoRt The Punjab cabinet on Tuesday approved up to 30 per cent increase in salaries of govt employees in the budget for the fiscal year 2022-23. The special cabinet meeting, headed by Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz, approved the budget proposals for the next fiscal year 2022-23. The provincial cabinet has approved a 15 percent increase in salaries and pensions of government employees and a 15 percent special allowance. According to details, the employees will get 15 percent increase in basic pay and 15 per cent disparity allowance. However, the disparity allowance will be limited to selected departments of the provincial government. According to sources, no new tax will be imposed in the budget while existing special concessions and incentives will continue. Moreover, Rs683.5billion has been proposed for development schemes, Rs56 billion for education sector, Rs173 billion for the health sector and 11.95 billion will be given to the ‘Saaf Pani’ project. Punjab has allocated Rs6.2 billion for governance and IT, Rs500 million for labour and HR development, Rs6.3 billion for transport and Rs1.8 billion for emergency service (1122), according to official documents.

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04 NEWS KP earmarks hefty amount for combating climate change APP The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has earmarked a hefty amount in billions of rupees for combating impacts of climate change with focus on creating awareness among public and promotion of solar power generation. According to budget documents, in the upcoming fiscal year 2022-23, four billion rupees have been earmarked for solar energy generation through installation of panels in 11,300 mosques in the province, Rs15.8 billion is reserved for investment in hydel power generation in the province, reads the budget document. In addition an amount of Rs1.2 billion is reserved for TESCO (Tribal Electricity Supply Company) for launching of hydel projects in merged districts. For promotion of eco-friendly tourism, an amount of Rs15.5 billion is reserved out of which Rs14.6 for developmental budget, Rs800 million for establishment of Special Developmental Institutions and Rs100 million for tourism police. Similarly for increasing plantation, Rs1.8 billion has been reserved for Billion Tree Tsunami, Rs150 million on Climate Smart Farming, Rs100 million for Air Quality Test and Rs100 million for Climate Change Action Plan.

FirsT baTch OF china’s vOcaTiOnal cOllege On elecTric engineering inauguraTed in sindh

NeWS DeSK

HE first branch of China’s vocational college on electric engineering in Pakistan was inaugurated in Sindh recently. Sindh Technical Education and Vocational Authority (STEVTA), Government Monotechnic Institute (GMI), Mehrabpur, Tang International Education Group, and Yantai Vocational College, China signed an agreement last week on joint training of talent and inaugurated the Sino-Pak international College on the ceremony. This is the second Sino-Pak international College under “CCTE” model in Sindh Province. The first one was inaugurated in collaboration with Government Polytechnic Institute, Dadu on May 21, China Economic Net (CEN) reported on Monday. “CCTE”, short for China-Pakistan Dual Diploma/Degree & China-Pakistan Cooperation, Chinese Language Courses & Chinese Commercial Cultural Courses, Technical Education Subjects & Technology in Education and Further Education & Employment”, is a model developed by Tang International Education Group. Students of CCTE programs will learn in Pakistan for the first two years and in China for the third year before obtaining degrees from both sides. Li

Jinsong, President of the Tang International Education Group, said on the inauguration ceremony that power shortage was a sore point in Pakistan’s economic development. He expected the joint education program in Sindh, where there were many thermal and wind power plants, could cultivate more talent in electric engineering to meet the market demand, serve the long-term development of local enterprises, and promote people-to-people bond between the two countries. Wen Jinxiang, president of Yantai Vocational College

also attended the ceremony. He said that STEVTA, GMI Mehrabpur, Tang International Education Group, and Yantai Vocational College would jointly develop the curriculum standards. He expressed his hope that the program could be sped up to produce professional, modern, and international talent for the development of Pakistan and China. Saleem Raza Jalbani, Chairman STEVTA, said that since the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries in 1951, technological sector, especially technology education, had been one of the priorities in bilateral cooperation. According to Dr. Ghulam Mustafa Suhag, Managing Director of STEVTA, STEVTA recognized the importance of learning from China’s experience, introducing Chinese technologies and disciplines, and collaborating with Chinese universities to train talents for CPEC construction and Pakistan’s development. He informed that a Chinese language learning center has been set up in Karachi to improve the language capacity of local students and empower them to learn in the CCTE programs. He also anticipated more vocational cooperation between Sindh and China to enlarge the talent pool for the infrastructure, energy, socioeconomic and technological development under CPEC.

Civil society rallies, demands govt to ascertain reason behind wildfire incidents SWAT syed shahabuddin

Civil society and political parties on Monday started raising questions after alarming rise in wildfire incidence in forest and mountain across Swat region. The Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) took to the streets to record their protest against the rising incidence of wildfire in the area, demanding the government set up a high-level commission to ascertain reason behind the unabated fire incidents. Addressing the protest rally at Matta Chowk, PkMAP local leaders including Umar Ali Yousafzai and Sher Bahadur Khan said that wildfires incidents have been taking place continuously but reason for these incidents could not be ascertained yet. They said that several people were claimed to have been arrested for arson but the public did not know what action was taken against them. FRESH FIRE INCIDENTS: On the other hand، the incidents of fresh fires were reported in the mountains and forests of Babuzai Tehsil, KhwazaKhela Tehsil, Barikot Tehsil and Kabal Tehsil here on Monday.

Rescue 1122 spokesperson Miss. Shafiqa Gul claimed to have controlled over 71 out of 73 blazes in various parts of Swat district since June 1st. However, the fire in the mountains of Marghazar valley could not be brought under control on the fourth day which extended to Amlook Dara and Ghalegay area of Barikot Tehsil. According to the forest officials, wildfire broke out in the hills of Shamelai in Babuzai Tehsil, Muhammad Baig and Shalhand of Kabal Tehsil, Manyar of Barikot Tehsil, Toha in Charbagh tehsil and Chinko-

Death anniversary of Shahenshahe-Ghazal Mehdi Hassan observed NeWS DeSK The 10th death anniversary of renowned singer known as Shahenshah-e-Ghazal Mehdi Hassan Khan was observed here on Monday. He was born on July 18, 1927.In 1957, he was given the opportunity to sing on Radio Pakistan, primarily as a thumri singer.

He was honored with numerous awards including Nishan-e-Imtiaz, Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Pride of Performance and Hilal-e-Imtiaz by the Government of Pakistan. He sang for over 300 films during his music career. He breathed his last on June 13, 2012 after a protracted illness in Karachi.

Court sends train gangrape accused to jail on remand KARACHI staff RepoRt

A local court sent all accused of Bahauddin Zakaria Express gang-rape case to jail on judicial remand on Monday. The Judicial Magistrate-South sent the accused to jail and directed the investigation officer (IO) to submit case challan in the next hearing of the case. In an earlier hearing of the train gangrape case, the investigation officer had revealed that the suspects had also filmed the gang rape. He added that the investigators need to retrieve videos from the mobile phones of the criminals and recover their uniforms. The court had extended the physical remand of the five arrested suspects including: Muhammad Zahid, Aqib Muneer, Zohaib, Amir Raza and Abdul Hafeez. Police said that the railway staffers had allegedly gang-raped the lady, when she was

returning to Karachi from Multan. A case had been filed at the City Railway police station, whereas, the victim identified two suspects during the identification parade. It was learnt that a ticket-checker had offered a seat in the air-conditioned compartment of the train to the woman who was travelling alone in an economy class and later he and four other railway staffers gangraped her. On Thursday, the victim had identified two of the suspects during an identification parade held in the court of the judicial magistrate Karachi South. The victim had testified in court that the accused had gang-raped her on the Zakaria Express on May 27, after which the court made the identity parade report part of the case. According to FIR, the incident occurred on May 27 when the victim, who hails from Karachi’s Orangi Town, boarded the train from Multan railway station for .

lai of Khwazakhela Tehsil of Swat District on Monday, adding that an operation is underway to control the fire. Local residents of Marghazar valley Fazal Amin and former Nazim Amjad Ali said that the fire almost burnt all the vegetation on the hill to ashes and was reaching the residential areas. They blamed the government and other departments for not taking part in fire-fighting operation, adding that locals are carrying out efforts to extinguish the fire and prevent its spread to save residential areas.

President asks taxpayers to approach FTO for cost-free, speedy justice APP President Dr. Arif Alvi on Monday urged the taxpayers and business community to approach the office of the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) through its complaint system for the redressal of their taxation grievances on a priority basis. Addressing an awareness seminar on the services of FTO here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, he said the FTO was ensuring prompt dispensation of justice regarding the tax-related petitions at the doorsteps of the complainants. President Alvi said that engaging business entrepreneurs and the general public to increase awareness about the FTO services and expanding the outreach with the aim of creating a fair, just, and equitable tax system. He mentioned that FTO was effectively endeavoring to implement its mandate of providing cost-free justice to taxpayers within around 60 days, and even without the obligation upon the complainant to engage a lawyer. He expressed satisfaction that FTO disposed of 2,867 complaints out of the 3,371 received during the year 2021 and added that the significant increase in numbers of complaints indicated the enhanced trust of taxpayers in the FTO office. He lauded that the average disposal time of complaints was also reduced from 68.43 days in 2020 to 57.29 days in 2021. He said it was the responsibility of all institutions under the government to improve their performance and emphasized that immediate redressal of taxpayers’ problems would promote tax culture in the country. President Alvi said FTO was acting as a public relief-oriented institution with the introduction of a fast system for the registration of complaints and formulation of strategies for quick resolution of the tax-related problems.

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Tuesday 14 June, 2022 | KARACHI

NEWS

PuNjaB gOvT aPPrOvEs DEvElOPMENT BuDgET Of rs685B lahore

Shahab Omer

HE Punjab government has approved a development budget of Rs685 billion for the upcoming fiscal year 2022-23 for different sectors. According to the documents available with Profit, the highest development budget has been allocated for the health sector as a total of Rs174.9 billion have been allocated for the Universal Health Insurance Program while Rs1.8 billion have been allocated for the revamping of THQs. Similarly, a total of Rs1.6 billion for Integrated Reproductive Maternal New-

born & Child Health, Rs1.6 billion for establishment of Nursing In-Teritary Care Hospitals, Rs1.3 billion for the revamping of DHQs and Rs1.16 billion has been allocated for the Population Welfare House, SCM and Advocacy. It is pertinent to mention here that the development budget of health for the FY 2021-22 was Rs115.86 billion and for FY 2020-21 was Rs55.16 billion. However, development funds of Rs56.2 billion have been allocated in the education sector of which Rs4.8 billion for afternoon school program, Rs2.5 billion for establishment of universities in five major cities of Punjab, Rs1.6 billion for Punjab

Chinese companies keen to invest in Balochistan: President MCCT

non-formal education, Rs1 billion for retrofitting of partially dangerous school buildings, Rs0.5 billion for construction of shelter-less schools in Punjab, Rs0.4 billion for establishment of 04 special education centers, Rs0.5 billion for provision of missing facilities in schools and Rs0.1 billion for construction of additional classrooms have been allocated. However, for the coming FY 2022-23, the Punjab government is spending a little more on the education development budget than last year as during the last FY 2021-22, the development budget of the education sector was Rs54.3 billion, which has been increased by only Rs2 billion this year.

Pak-China agree to deepen cooperation in art, culture, film

news desk

The Chinese investment companies expressed their interest in investing more in the energy sector in Balochistan, said a handout issued by the CM Secretariat Balochistan on Monday. “Chinese companies will come up with the plans to develop safe and clean alternative energy sources in Balochistan, President of Chinese Company MCCT Dong Gufeng said while talking to Chief Minister Balochistan Abdul Quddus Bizenjo, during a meeting held at CM Secretariat. Chairman MRDL Sendak Hee Joping, Provincial Minister Zamrak Khan Achakzai and Member Provincial Assembly Mitha Khan Kakar were also present on the occasion. The Chief Minister on the occasion expressed his delight over the interest shown by the Chinese companies in investing in Balochistan. “The provincial government is ensuring a conducive environment for investment in the province”, he said, adding that it was pursuing a comprehensive policy of providing all necessary facilities to the investors. During the meeting, issues related to progress of Sendak project were also discussed. “Expansion of Sendak project agreement is an important development”, Bizenjo stressed and added that the investor companies should allocate development funds for the development of mining sector. Scholarships and training opportunities should be provided to the youth of Balochistan, CM maintained.

Pakistan Ambassador to China Moin ul Haque and General Manager Hu of Silk Road International Cultural Exchange Center, China have agreed to deepen cooperation in art, culture, movie, and other areas. Ambassador Haque along with officers of the Pakistani Embassy in Beijing visited Silk Road International Cultural Exchange Center in Langfang, Hebei province, where they toured various sections of the center and reviewed its state-of-the-art facilities. General Manager Hu and Ms. Claudia Yang, Director of International Arts briefed the Ambassador and his team on the role of the center in popularizing performing arts of China and different countries.

Pakistan develops new intercropping-specific soybean line to reduce imports news desk This season, the total demonstrative area of maizesoybean strip intercropping technology in Pakistan has surged to over 400 acres, about 2.67 times that of last autumn.Besides, more types of crops are being included in the intercropping system including wheat-soybean and sugarcane-soybean intercropping. Now, harvesting is going on in the demonstration plots, which is expected to achieve promising results soon. “Last season, more than 200 farmers have used our technology, and the number is still rising day by day. Farmers are quite satisfied with the results. They are contacting us and want to adopt the technology on more land,” Dr. Muhammad Ali Raza, Director of National Research Center for Intercropping, IUB and post-doc of Sichuan Agricultural University (SAU) told CEN. Maizesoybean strip intercropping technology was introduced from Sichuan Agricultural University, China to Pakistan in 2018.

Moreover, the development budget of Urban Development, Water Supply & Climate Change has been reduced to Rs74.3 billion in the coming FY 2022-23 from Rs108.5 billion in the FY 2021-22. Similarly, the development budget for energy, environment and climate change has also been reduced to Rs10 billion as compared to the FY 2021-22. The development budget of Punjab Emergency Service has been significantly increased this financial year and Rs1,800 million has been allocated which was Rs1,100 million FY 2021-22 whereas in this budget, new vehicles and motorcycles will be procured for the emergency serv-

They also expressed a keen desire to showcase Pakistani cuisine, music and films in China to deepen cultural exchanges between the two countries, CEN reported. Appreciating the role of Silk Road International Cultural Exchange Center, Ambassador Haque highlighted the affinity between the culture and artistic styles of Pakistan and China and their role in solidifying bilateral relations between the two countries. He hoped that the center would continue its endeavors for acting as a bridge between diverse cultures and civilizations of the world and for fostering a spirit of friendly sentiments among them. Both sides also discussed plans for organizing events this year to promote Pakistani culture and history in China.

KP govt unveils Rs1.33tr budget for FY 2022-23 Continued from page 01 This year’s total estimated receipts are around Rs1, 333billion. Federal Transfers including federal Tax assignments, one per cent War on terror, and straight transfers are budgeted at a total Rs670.5billion, the budget document said. Taimur Saleem Jhagra said that the total outlay of the budget stands at Rs1332 billion. “Despite hurdles, we have earmarked Rs319.2 billion for the development portfolio of which only Rs8 billion will be received under the PSDP. According to budget documents, the total revenue for the province is estimated at Rs1,332 billion. A sum of Rs570 billion would be received from the federation in terms of taxes, while the province is expecting to receive Rs68.60 billion in the war on terror. Similarly, the document revealed that the KP will get Rs31 billion in oil and gas royalties, while net profit and arrears of electricity is expected to be Rs61.90 billion. Likewise, a sum of Rs85 billion will be collected in terms of provincial taxes, whereas foreign aid of over Rs88 billion is also included in the budget. It added more than Rs4 billion allocated for external development assistance for integrated dis-

tricts. According to budget documents, grants of Rs208 billion will be given to tribal districts, while other revenue has been estimated at Rs212 billion According to the budget documents, Rs25billion earmarked for Sehat Insaf Card programme. Rs6 billion capacity expansion grant for MTIs and its allied entities and medical college. Similarly, according to the ADP 2022-23, a sum of Rs11 billion (current and development) has been set aside for medicines of primary and secondary healthcare, and Rs4 billion for provision of free OPD medicine in all public sector health facilities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. A sum of Rs2billion has been proposed for provision of missing furniture in schools, while an amount of 2.4billion allocated for Scholarships with a majority of its going to girls. Likewise, an amount of Rs1 billion has been set aside for providing ambulatory services for expectant mothers. Rs2 billion provided as an operational budget to universities. ccording to budget documents, a sum of Rs29,458 million has been allocated for agriculture sector, including Rs14, 813 million for current expenditure and Rs10, 665 million for development while Rs3, 980 million is foresees on head of foreign as-

sistance. A sum of Rs4, 191 million has been earmarked for Auqaf and Religious Minority, of the total amount, Rs3, 057 million allocated for current expenditures while Rs1,134 million for development. The budget document said an amount of Rs73 million has been allocated for the Bureau of Statistics. Similarly, a record allocation of Rs227,087 million for Elementary and Secondary Education including Rs3,410 million for current expenditures while Rs16,996 million for development and Rs12, 857 million foreign aid. As per budget documents, an amount of Rs71,653 million has been allocated for Communication and work, including Rs10,987 million for current expenditures, and Rs47,809 million for development while Rs12,857 million would be received from foreign assistance. For the energy and power sector, a sum of Rs29,203 million has been set aside under ADP, including Rs527 million for current and Rs7,725 million for development while Rs20,951 million would be received from foreign Aid. A sum of Rs4,191 million for Environment has been allocated, including current Rs4,144 million and Rs47 million for development.

ice while five new emergency services will also be set up. The Punjab government will spend a huge amount on development of gender empowerment in the coming FY. However, Rs900 million has been allocated for gender development whereas last fiscal the development budget of this sector was Rs500 million. The Punjab government has not made any significant changes in the development budget for the industries, investment, commerce and skills development sectors as the development budget of the said sector has been set at Rs12.5 billion for the FY 202223 which was Rs12.2 in FY 2021-22.

Emergency, OPD wards to be functional by December at Nishtar-II hospital news desk Emergency and Out Patient Door (OPD) of under-construction Nishtar-II will be operational by December 2022 to serve the people from across the region. This was stated by officials in a briefing given to Commissioner Multan Division Aamir Khatak, during his visit at the site, here on Monday. According to official sources, Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz tasked the Commissioner Multan to ensure completion of Nishtar II within stipulated time period. Commissioner Multan Aamir Khattak visited the site and sought briefing on the pace of work. He stated that Punjab government had released funds to tune of Rs six billion for Nishtar II. The hospital Nishtar II will reduce burden on patients on Nishtar-1. The officials informed that Rs 9.4 billions were being spent on first phase of Nishtar II. The hospital is being constructed at an area of 58 acres. The work on installation of electricity was heading forward rapidly. Generators, Cooling system and UPS are also being installed. During first phase, the hospital will have 500 beds. Earlier, Commissioner Multan visited Nishtar-1 and inspected Mustufa Kamal Lecture Theatre Complex, being constructed with cost of Rs 250 millions. The Commissioner lauded the initiative. He observed that smart class rooms were of vital importance in modernizing teaching techniques.

KP revenue collection registers manifold increase app The revenue collection of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has registered a manifold increase during the last three years, said a review of the budget for fiscal year 2021-22. In his budget speech, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Finance, Taimur Saleem Khan Jhagra said that for the first time in history, the revenue collection will surpass the amount of Rs75 billion. He said that due to the efforts and hard work of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Revenue Authority (KPRA), the revenue collection has registered a record 122% increase. He claimed that KPRA has become the best revenue authority of the country. The finance minister said that the provincial government has carried out record development schemes worth Rs260 billion during the outgoing financial year which is higher than the development expenditures of Punjab and Sindh provinces.

Capital market reform measures improves investor participation: Annual Report news desk Capital market reform measures have improved investor participation by allowing ease of entry into the market, said a Annual Report issued here by Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan. In this regard, not only domestic but foreign investors and NRPs have also shown more interest in investing in our capital market. According to the annual report,owing to facility of online account opening process for NRPs, approximately Rs2.589 billion funds have been received for investment in securities as of June 30, 2021. Further, the online account opening facility introduced in January 2021 has resulted in opening of more than 10,500 accounts through this facility, which forms approximately 38% of total new UINs reg-

istered during the period, report added. Measures undertaken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic also resulted in seamless market operations without any disruption. Securities brokers retained uninterrupted access to the market while investors continued to open their accounts from across the country. Report said that for implementation of new brokerage regime, introduction of Professional Clearing Member model is imperative. Subsequent to provision of regulatory coverage, license has been issued to a company to function as PCM which has set the stage for finalizing and introducing brokers categorization, thus paving the way for enhanced investor protection. Further, corporate governance of PSX has been enhanced which shall improve operational efficiency and functioning of PSX

in the capital market. Other corporate governance measures have resulted in removing over-regulation and rationalizing educational qualification and experience requirements for senior management officials of SROs. In addition, reform measures foster investor confidence in our capital market resulting in increased investor participation. Also, investors are facilitated to easily attend AGMs when AGMs are scheduled through PSX AGM Calendar and by encouraging companies to provide electronic modes for shareholders to attend AGMs, report added. To perform ongoing risk analysis, SECP has a dedicated Systemic Risk Wing to monitor cross segment systemic risk indicators, macroeconomic and political developments, structural and regulatory matters affecting the markets. The SRW interacts internally

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through the systemic risk review committee (SRRC), and coordinates SECP’s efforts at the national level through the National Financial Stability Council. The SECP also coordinates with SBP on micro and macro level risk management and conducted various sessions during the year to get an insight on risk protocols implemented in SBP. The initiative is aimed at increasing inter-agency collaboration and capacity enhancement, to improve risk functions and protocols of the SECP. During FY 21, the markets remained relatively stable, as evident from the performance of benchmark Index, which improved during the year. This can be mainly attributed to higher returns, lower volatility and increased liquidity, as compared to FY20. Monitoring and generating reports on daily and fortnightly basis, for medium to

long term analysis of capital market vis-àvis macroeconomic indicators. During the year, a scenario analysis carried out in collaboration with NCCPL, to gauge the resilience of the market in case of a sharp decline within short time span. It was observed that, even after increasing the margin requirements significantly, the existing collateral levels were found to be sufficient in meeting the additional margin requirements, which suggests that the existing regime is covering market volatility efficiently. An in-house model developed by SECP and NCCPL conducts forward looking stress and reverse tests on daily basis, to give an insight on resilience of margins, settlement guarantee fund and other resources of clearing house. The results indicate that there are ample risk management protocols in place to handle any crisis in the capital market.

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Tuesday, 14 June, 2022

06 COMMENT

Missing women

Talks with TTP Deal to aﬀect the whole country

ePOrTS appearing in the media about secret talks between unknown security and military personnel and the TTP in Afghanistan have justifiably raised eyebrows. The TTP is responsible for the killing of thousands of innocent citizens and army men. Their latest ghastly act was the killing of about 150 school children and teachers in Peshawar Army Public School. A question is being asked if the state is willing to simply forgive those who conducted suicide and gun attacks in bazars, mosques and shrines killing unsuspecting citizens. In a goodwill gesture, the state has reportedly freed and pardoned some convicted high-profile militants, including the notorious Swat terrorist Muslim Khan. The reports indicate that the state is suing for peace. So far we only know about the demands of the Taliban. The terrorist network wants the reversal of the merger of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that rid the tribal people of the Frontier Crimes regulation (FCr), a relic of the colonial era and brought the population into the mainstream. What is more the TTP also wants Pakistan’s laws and courts to be replaced by Sharia laws enforced by Sharia courts in Malakand followed by other tribal areas. how come a terrorist network beaten and dismantled comprehensively has popped up again and is imposing conditions for peace on those who defeated it? Can Pakistan afford to compromise its hard-won dominance and sovereignty, thus losing in talks what it had won on the battlefield? The issue is too important to be left to security and military personnel. Apparently the state institutions involved in talks are little concerned about the legal, political and social consequences of accepting the TTP’s demands. This is likely to give birth to more complex conflicts. There is a need to explain how a badly defeated network has managed to attain a position where it feels confident of imposing its terms on Pakistan. Who are the forces that have helped TTP to gain strength? Instead of holding secret talks with the most lethal terrorist group, the issue of talks with the TTP should be brought into the mainstream discussion. What is more, the Parliament needs to be taken into confidence over the situation and handed over the issue for an in-depth discussion.

The legacy of patriarchy

MuhaMMad Sharif

he iron lady hillary Clinton once exclaimed with ambitious tone” Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world.” Today, no one can deny the fact that countries where women have been empowered and hold country’s executive positions are progressing by leaps and bounds. Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh hasina Wajid, Sanna Marrin, Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen, President of Greece Katerina Sakellaropoulou and exChancellor of Germany Angela Merkel are glaring example in this regard. One can observe the sound performance, development, culture of transparency and accountability in these regions where women are holding higher position. But irony of fate is that we developing countries still fail to realize the worth, value, power and strength of women. The phrase ‘missing women’ first coined by the Nobel Prize winner Amartya Sen who figured out that millions of women surprisingly disappeared in India owing to the curse of patriarchy. The noted phrase ‘missing women’ refers to sex ratio in which Sen tried to convince the rationale that day by day female population is proportionately shrinking. he postulated that from sex-selective abortion to infanticide, there is a patriarchal social and culture practices in which sonpreferences is considered as a top cultural norm. The phenomena of devaluation of females’ population does not standstill here with sex-selective abortion. If a female child get lucky to be born and survive from the curse of patriarchy, then she would face challenges in accessibility and availability of health facilities, quality education and political participation. For women, spheres are full of predicaments. From killing baby girls in the shape of sex selective abortion to forcefully marrying off a well-educated woman and throw them into marriage market, there is a vicious cycle of missing women. Pakistan, having a patriarchal culture, also practices these norms and values. From son- preference, sex-selective abortion and de-

How to solve a problem like Wazir? The MNA is soon becoming a yardstick of sorts

e’S a representative of the people of his constituency in Waziristan, but Ali Wazir is also representative of the true nature of our state and the place that the representatives of the people - and through them, the people themselves - have in it. he’s been hauled away to jail for a speech in a flimsy case that the deep state has made no attempt to deny is about its hurt feelings. As Wazir’s colleague from the neighbouring constituency, Mohsin Dawar, quipped, let us shut down the courts, then, when an apology is all it takes to acquit defendants. To make matters worse (and better in the eyes of his supporters) Wazir refuses to apologise either. And that summarises the problem. The previous speaker of the national assembly, Asad Qaiser, attracted a lot of flak from the then opposition on the former’s refusal to issue a production order for the MNA. You’re not a good custodian of the house, they chided him, if you can’t even bring one of our own back here for the proceedings. Well, a political lifetime later, after some polarities have flipped, we’re back to square one: Wazir in jail and the Speaker skittish about the issue of his production orders. The powers that be let him come back to the assembly for participation in the vote of no confidence. he voted against the then government, but (ostensibly) not as some sort of quid pro quo because his opposition to the PTI was well known. he then even attended the swearing-in ceremony of PM Shehbaz Sharif. And was then hauled back to jail. Incumbent speaker raja Parvez Ashraf is in a fix. he shouldn’t be. By way of competence, the former prime minister knows what he has to do. And ideologically, as well, we know what his party line is. The co-chairman (now the foreign minister) has made his position on Ali more than clear. Party stalwart Farhatullah Babar has, most notably, registered his objection to the lack of action on this front. But that isn’t enough. We don’t merely need “good cops” from the Speaker’s party, we need action, and from the entire government. Not many expected Asad Qaiser to take a principled stance for a member of the opposition benches. let us see how the self-styled torchbearers of democracy help out a member of the treasury benches.

An issue that remains undocumented, undiscussed in Pakistan

MehMil Khalid Kunwar

ArITAl rape remains a taboo subject. The traditional belief says that it is a private matter between husband and a wife and hence it is mostly brushed under the carpet and never emerges as a serious point of discussion. “Marital rape” is a concept that is often regarded as a western-induced-idea that threatens to weaken the marital bond and create feelings of detachment between a husband a wife. It is presumed that as western society believes in a more liberal relationship between spouses, it is more likely to be prevalent in such a society that supports the say of both individuals strictly in a relationship. rights activists insist that it is quite unfortunate that despite creating serious hurdles between peaceful bonding of a husband and a wife, marital rape has not been criminalized in Pakistan yet and no specific law is present that properly governs its ruling. According to a study reported based on 152 cases, it was found that approximately 33-43 percent of married woman endured marital rape in Pakistan during the year 2009. Marital rape is regarded as “domestic violence” so its original statistics do not be-

Arif Nizami (Late) Founding Editor

Yousaf Nizami M. A. Niazi

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but also country’s economy become fragile. But the irony of fate is that we have a culture of political mockery where the curse of patriarchy, and its implication, is taken for-granted, and is considered as a parody. Consequently, country suffers at each level, from fragility of morality to economic downturn. According to Global Gender Gap report 2020, Pakistan was ranked at 143 out of 147. GGG measures the performances of a country on the indicators of economic participation, health facilities and political empowerment of women. In all these given indicators, Pakistan is lagging behind. As a result, on the one side, country’s soft image get tarnished, and on the other, country economic performance become downturn owing to untapped half population. It goes without saying that socio-economic and political development is directly associated with women empowerment. Countries, where women get empowered, flourish at the socio-economic and political levels. Today, Pakistan’s economy is at the stake of fragility and recession due to various reason but gender disparity is major one. Bangladesh, an emerging economy of south Asia, introduced reforms, policies and did legislation for women empowerment to ensure the flourishment of its economy in 1990. Bangladesh used multi-faceted modus operandi. Today Bangladesh on the one side has crossed the neighboring states in socioeconomic development. For this purpose, Sheikh hasina, PM of Bangladesh, did a remarkable job to make sure the gender parity in her country by enhancing budget on women empowerment. She not only did myriad legislations and reform but also worked hard on female education. In the Global Gender Gap report of 2020, Bangladesh has crossed all south Asian state in the field of gender parity. As a result, today, one can see that Bangladesh is progressing by leaps and bounds. Cut the long story short, it has been proven if a country wants development, improvement and progression, the key principle for this purpose is to engage its women population as well. It demands cogent plans and reforms to eradicate the curse of patriarchy from the root. In this regard, media plays a groundbreaking role in changing the patriarchal attitude and mentality of masses by highlighting the importance of women at the sphere of lives.

After marriage, the patriarchal social norms compel an educated female to sacrifice her dreams to help her inlaws in house chores.

Marital rape

Dedicated to the legacy of late Hameed Nizami

Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

valuation of women sex to the marriage practices in the shape of dowry and Patrilocality, each and everything is revolved around the patriarchal structure. In this regard, the malpractice of patrilocality and post-marriage residence consolidates this vicious cycle. After marriage, a well-educated and professional woman confronts bottlenecks to pursue jobs or any productive, academic or professional activity due to patrilocality under the patriarchal social practices, like all the time busy in-house chores, helping or serving in-laws. however, in developed countries, marriage life and personal life function parallel; women are allowed to do job or continue study post-marriage. According to Pakistan Bureau of statistic 2021, there is only 25 percent female labor force participation in country. The rest of female population are compelled to live under the four walls of patriarchy. 48% percent of the population is female according to census of 2017. Thus, this low involvement of females in economic activities portrays a bleak picture. Because, out of 48 percent female population, only 25 percent population is engaged in contribution towards country’s economy and rest of them remained slothful and become dependent upon country’s economy. however, there is also an assumption that, in country’s rural areas, one can see females’ participation in agricultural activities. Thus, this little thing is insufficient to justify the gender disparity. There is 60 percent literacy rate in Pakistan in which there is 47 percent female literacy according to Pakistan literacy rate report of 2021. Despite that, the bitter irony is that only 25% female can be seen in job sectors. Girls with MBBS, engineering, Computer science, IT degrees along with distinction disappear in the job market. each year, millions of girls do graduation, and obtain specialized credentials but remain idle. Moreover, there are only 7 percent women who hold financial account; irked, it shows a gloomy picture. Question arises what are the responsible factors which push such a large population into the four walls of patriarchy. After marriage, the patriarchal social norms compel an educated female to sacrifice her dreams to help her in-laws in house chores. The problem is not with marriage institution but its specific expected social roles and practices which are associated only with females. Owing to those roles, values and norms, not only female suffers

come evident to the public and most of its cases go unreported due to it being a “private matter.” What actually is marital rape? Marital rape, also known as spousal rape, is the act of sexual intercourse with one’s spouse without the spouse’s consent. Nowadays, marital rape is treated under the category of “domestic violence” as it directly involves coercion and absence of consent of one’s partner. Since no proper definition of “marital rape” is present and made available to the public, the description of “marital rape” is found nowhere except the term “rape” itself that also gives vague meanings of its description. Considering such ambiguous legal arrangements of this issue, it becomes difficult to criminalize the very practice that remains unresolvable in nature and exacerbates in society potentially. In 2006, a bill was introduced for the protection of women that redefined rape as “sex without a woman’s consent.” This practice did make marital rape an offensive and punishable crime, but there was no specific mentioning of “marriage” in the change. Sara Malkani, a high court lawyer in Pakistan showed her concerns against marital rape and said that there were “no known convictions on grounds of marital rape” in Pakistan. The officials’ complaint are nonexisting and “even if a complaint is filed, the case does not go to trial,” she said. When the legal authorities and the agencies dealing with the matter remain clueless about the nature and cause of the issue and how to resolve it due to lack of guidance and proper information, they will abuse the available evidence to the best interest of the perpetrators and might show reluctance to resolve it. This is, perhaps, one of the major reasons why Pakistan remains in 36 countries in the world that are yet to explicitly criminalize marital rape. Another reason that makes this issue more com-

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The author is a freelance columnist

plicated and less handling is the irresponsible attitude of religious ulemas and clerics who have failed to give proper counselling on this subject to people due to which they have created their own interpretations of the matter in their minds. haroon Ghazi, a right-wing Islamic cleric in Pakistan, said, “signing the marriage covenant in and itself established consent” to sex. however, he was of the opinion that a man should abstain from beating his wife as that is considered immoral and sinful in Islam. Since the issue is perceived as an “absolute private matter” of the husband and a wife, most men regard it un-Islamic and impractical to consider it as a “criminal act.” A marital rape survivor in Karachi was questioned about her filing of divorce against her husband. She said that her husband would involve religion every time he would demand sex. “My husband would tell me that the angels would curse me for denying him(sex),” she said. “he would say if I pleased him in bed [that] I would go to heaven directly, and if he was angry with me, no matter what I did, I would go to hell”, she further explained. Observers say marital rape can only be criminalized in Pakistan when it stops being a taboo subject and gets a proper legal placement in Pakistan Penal Code with complete definition covering all aspects. This will not only make it mandatory for the authorities to abide by the law but also raise the gravity of issue as creating a strong disturbance in the society. Moreover, activists insist, the practice should not be considered as a “pure spousal matter” as it then makes it a taboo subject which further jeopardizes its resolution. Both men and women should be educated on the matter at hand and act maturely in understanding the position of each other. Unlike other cases of rape, marital rapes exist in abundance that can only be limited if it is legally handled under the control of concerned authorities.

According to a study reported based on 152 cases, it was found that approximately 33-43 percent of married woman endured marital rape in Pakistan during the year 2009

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The writer is a polymer engineer with a profound interest in politics. She works on social issues and gender bias. She can be reached on Twitter @mehmilkhalid

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

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Tuesday, 14 June, 2022

COMMENT 07 Editor’s mail Send your letters to: Letters to Editor, Pakistan Today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan. E-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk Letters should be addressed to Pakistan Today exclusively

Karachi University

A treasonous president and a nation in peril Righting the wrong

dr alon ben Meir

he Congressional committee investigating the January 6 insurrection began the first of its public hearings yesterday. each of these is of the highest importance to the country, even if many Americans are unlikely to be swayed by them. last Thursday’s hearing revealed neverbefore-seen footage of the violence that erupted in the nation’s capital, and testimony from officials and advisors close to Trump (including Attorney General Barr and Ivanka Trump) made it clear that they did not believe Trump’s fabrication of a stolen election and told him so. These hearings are crucial to our republic, to maintaining the integrity of our democratic norms and institutions, and to preventing not simply another violent mob outbreak, but another attack on our democracy orchestrated, as this was, by the highest office in the land. Indeed, what happened on January 6, 2021, was unprecedented in our history. It was the culmination of a concerted monthslong effort by the President of the United States to halt the transfer of power and stage a coup that would have meant the end of this country as we know it, had he been successful. The rule of law hung in the balance that day. Trump knowingly lied and continues to lie about the results of the 2020 election, and he summoned a mob to the capital promising that January 6 would be “Wild” – a last ditch effort to prevent the certification of Biden’s election victory. every president in our nation’s history has honored the constitutional duty to relinquish power and allow the peaceful transfer of executive authority – every president that is, until Donald Trump.

This is what many Americans still fail to grasp or acknowledge: Trump struck at the very heart of our democracy, he broke a solemn oath and in doing so he has made it easier for this to happen again. If presidents are unwilling to honor the results of free and fair elections, then the future of this republic in the gravest of danger. As it is, Trump has forever stained the office of the president: in breaking his oath to the constitution he has irrevocably broken the sacred trust between the American people and their chief executive. Nothing will ever change the fact that a sitting president attempted an illegal, unconstitutional, and profoundly immoral coup to remain in power; that is a cause not only for the gravest concern but for the deepest sadness. These hearings then are among the most important ever conducted in the 246 years since this nation was born, for they bear on nothing less than the very survival of this country as a constitutional democracy. The existential danger that burst into deadly mob violence on January 6 has not been laid to rest, it is ongoing. It is still poisoning our country and casting a shadow over the next presidential election. Trump continues to lie to the public; republican lawmakers continue to parrot those lies and downplay what happened on January 6 or excuse and even justify it as “legitimate political discourse.” If a mob attack on the Capitol is “legitimate political discourse” then our fate is already sealed – it is, then only a matter of time until the next violent insurrection; and the next one may well make January 6 look like a mere rehearsal. If Trump had his way, then Vice-President Pence would have also broken his oath to the constitution and derailed the certification of electoral votes. Our continued existence as a republic might very well have hung on Pence’s actions that day. The mob’s response was to call for Pence to be hanged, and a noose

I am at a loss for words to express my horror as I watched the first segment of the public hearing of the Congressional committee investigating the January 6 insurrection.

and scaffold was erected apparently for that very purpose. What was Trump’s reaction when he was told that the mob was calling for Pence’s summary execution? his words were: “Maybe our supporters have the right idea.” Mike Pence “deserves” it. Trump did not want the attack to stop, responded angrily to advisors that begged him to call off the mob, and supported their aim to see Mike Pence, one of his most loyal followers, hanged. The country as a whole must reckon with and acknowledge what a sitting president perpetrated and the existential harm he brought on this country with his reckless, abhorrent, and illegal actions. To be sure, Trump was personally and directly responsible for the worst attack on the Capitol since 1814, and as long as he is at the helm of the republican Party, he remains a very serious threat to the United States. The republican Party has been irredeemably hijacked by Trump’s autocratic ambitions. In following him they are bringing this country ever closer to another existential precipice. Congresswoman liz Cheney of Wyoming – effectively excommunicated from the republican Party simply for performing her sworn duty as a member of Congress – said what every republican lawmaker “defending the indefensible” must hear and take to heart: “There will come a day when Donald Trump is gone, but your dishonor will remain.” Indeed, if these hearings assure us of anything it is that history will not be able to forget or deny the peril in which the nation was placed by a violent mob deployed by the President of the United States to overturn the result of a legitimate elections. It is now clear, even before we hear more testimony, that Trump and his co-conspirators engineered a coup to prevent the peaceful transfer of power even though he handedly lost the election. Trump knowingly violated the constitution that he swore to uphold and protect. Thus, there should be no doubt in anybody’s mind that he has committed treason against the United States, for which he must be charged and face his day in court.

If Trump had his way, then Vice-President Pence would have also broken his oath to the constitution and derailed the certification of electoral votes. Our continued existence as a Republic might very well have hung on Pence’s actions that day. The mob’s response was to call for Pence to be hanged, and a noose and scaffold was erected apparently for that very purpose.

Dr Alon Ben-Meir is a professor of international relations at the Centre for Global Affairs at NYU. He teaches courses on international negotiation and Middle Eastern studies. alon@alonben-meir.com

ThOSe familiar with the norms and organisational culture of Karachi University know that it often takes months, even years in some cases, to issue an identity card or an enrolment card; both are issued separately by different departments under different procedures. Many students receive their enrolment or identity cards well past their graduation from the university, thanks to the inefficient administration comprising people with pathetic work ethics. It is against this background that one should see the chaos at the entrance points to the university following the recent terrorist attack outside the KU’s Confucius Institute in the wake of which the security staff refused to allow anyone inside without ‘proper documentation’, meaning the identity or enrolment cards. All this, including the terrorist attack itself, could have been avoided had the university administration issued identity and enrolment cards to students on time, and kept a vigilant eye on who entered the campus. Amid this chaos and inefficiency, the greatest loss is that of the students. The one thing the KU administration is good at is in matters related to promotions and benefits. There have been instances of retrospective promotion of retired and even deceased employees. The university bureaucracy is short of qualified people, and it appears to be resolving this issue through promotion of clerks, superintendents and assistants. As a result, the middle cadre of officials has disappeared from the university bureaucracy, which is the very group of officials that ensures smooth running of affairs, like, say, the issuance of identity cards to students. It is high time the higher authorities and the university officials realised the actual cost of their unprofessionalism and rather blatantly selfserving lethargy. FARHAN AHMED KARACHI

Education for life The word “education” is literally taken from the root “educe” which means “to lead out”. More emphatically education is guided by the holy Quran in its fullest meaning as “to lead one out from darkness to light”. It becomes clear that education leads one from darkness to light. holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon him) said, “Seek education from cradle to the grave”. It is therefore clear that education is for life. The journey starts when one keeps learning very beginning when he takes birth and it ends when he dies. like ways, there is no state of life without learning, and there is no age when the process of education comes to its end. education lasts throughout the entire life of man, beginning from birth and ending only at death. Before one goes to seek an education, one must be committed to getting the right education. The education guides him to live life with the right principles. It is more clear if he undertakes with full deliberation the better education which teaches him morality, honesty and acts with just to his fellow being. The right education helps him to choose the straight path. The kind of education is not merely intellectual education but also an education for life, of which academic education is only a part. holy Quran has laid the test for those who follow the right path. he definitely shall go through hardships in his life. The Quran says in its verses with the following guidelines that life inevitably involves all kinds of hardship for those who live the right life. It says further, “And we shall test you with hunger and fear, and with loss of property, fruits and lives; then glad tidings to those who are patient under suffering”. It means that education for life shall not be complete without tests and trials. It is therefore we as students go under examination of various sorts. Our teachers at school teach us different subjects, of which some are theoretical and others are practical, all lead us to be better qualified in the life. This is the real essence of education. We as students must set the mind that we are getting an education for life. It may be religious education, scientific education, moral education or social community education. MUJEEB ALI SAMO LARKANA

Toshakhana rules IT was a good initiative by the current PMlN Government to highlight Toshakhana gifts taken by the previous Prime Minister on allowable low rates. The current PMl-N government should continue this initiative and declare the gifts given to Pakistani leaders by foreign countries. They should declare all the gifts received by them on their recent trips to Saudi Arabia, USA and UAe. The government should also change the rules of Toshakhana and only allow the purchase of gifts at full rates and make it customary to declare the gifts by every official and create a secure online list and values of all gifts in Toshakhana. This way no future government official will be able to take away expensive gifts given to the government of Pakistan. SHAHRYAR KHAN BASEER PESHAWAR

Innocence of the Nation We as a nation seem to be very innocent and enthusiastic to react in a very quick manner and get convinced easily one whosoever whatever says. elections are in the offing and political parties would start their political campaign sooner or later in which they would claim as they do usually before the election that once they come in power would so and so. We all should understand that no individual or a political party has a magic stick to remove all the hurdles, problems and issues being faced by the nation overnight such as tackling corruption, skyrocketing inflation, fighting terrorism and crown of all issues paying heavy debts under which our country is since very long instead these issues would take considerable time to resolve. We need to understand that an individual or a political party might have different policies from another party or an individual but these issues cannot be resolved overnight so there is no need to be fascinated about any political party. let’s vote sensibly and select the best of the party among the available ones but be patient and play your part towards the solution of these issues and the progression of our country. FAISAL ANSAR KARACHI

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Tuesday, 14 June, 2022

08 WORLD VIEW

The fuTure defederaTion of russia ALL EMPIRES EVENTUALLY I AM NOT CALLING FOR THE COLLAPSE OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION — I FALL APART. THE RUSSIAN AM PREDICTING IT...THE DISINTEGRATION COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED — IT WOULD HAVE BEEN ENOUGH NOT TO START A WAR WITH UKRAINE FEDERATION IS NEXT

MosCow TiMes alexander etkind

hAT happened to the russian empire? It disintegrated at the end of an imperialist war. What happened to the Soviet Union? It disintegrated at the end of the Cold War. What will happen to the russian Federation? The answer is obvious, even if it saddens many. russian patriotism is such that even those who do not support the Kremlin regime are not ready to recognize the imperial nature of the present russian state. even those who consider the present russian government unjust, incompetent or simply dangerous believe in the survival of the russian Federation with its present borders. even people like me, who wish Ukraine a military victory and the russian rulers an international trial, are not ready to admit that this will consequently lead to the end of the country itself. Collapse has long been feared and predicted. It could have been slowed down by taking advantage of the favorable economic situation, by relying on a competent government, a skillful diplomatic game or simply by counting on luck. The ruling party had managed to choose a name that reflected its deep fear of disintegration as well as its lack of other values: “United russia.” On the international scene, russia’s partners did not want this disintegration. Some were grateful to the federation for ending the dangerous and costly Cold War. Others simply resented the changes, whatever they might be, fearing those more than war itself. The collapse that

threatens the federation will not happen because of foreign peoples or governments, but against their will and in contradiction to their predictions. It is likely that it will also happen against the will of the russian population: such problems are not usually solved by voting. For a long time — two decades — nothing really significant happened in russia. everything changed with the second russian-Ukrainian war, a war that should never have been started by supporters of the idea of a united russia. For those concerned about the preservation of the federation, the moment of truth has come. The era of empires is long gone. The empires of the past collapsed after wars and uprisings and gave birth to a multitude of nation-states that emerged on the ruins of their former colonies. Polish-British writer Joseph Conrad held that there was not a single piece of land in the world that had not been colonized. england, a former roman colony, became the metropolis of a new empire. Poland, the center of gravity in eastern europe, was divided by three hostile states. east Prussia, a former metropolis and the place of royal coronations, became a colony. earlier, much the same thing had happened to the land of the Tatars. history unfolds without any rules. empires rise and fall, like waves on a stormy sea. That said, almost all empires disappeared in the 20th century, in a process that has been called “decolonization.” empires were defeated by other types of state: national and federal. Contemporary russia, a nation-state, calls itself a federation, like Germany or Switzerland, when in fact it is behaving like an empire in its hour of decline. What is the difference between a federation and an empire? A federation is defined by free entrance and exit of its members. empires are maintained by force, while federations do not oppose their self-dissolution. In the early 20th century, this was called “the right to self-de-

termination, including secession.” This principle was enshrined in the Declaration of the rights of the Peoples of russia, adopted by the Bolsheviks in November 1917. Later it disappeared from constitutional texts. Some “composite” federations have disintegrated without the use of force, such as the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia. But other cases of disintegration caused civil wars with international interference. This happened earlier in the United States, and it happened before our eyes in Yugoslavia: the forces were unequal, and one party imposed its will on the other. In still other cases, the disintegration was peaceful but wounded pride and aborted ambitions led to deferred violence. This is called revanchism, and it paves the way to a new war. I am not calling for the collapse of the russian Federation — I am predicting it, and that makes a difference. Again, the disintegration could have been avoided — it would have been enough not to start a war with Ukraine. But revanchism was stronger than caution. The collapse of this federation — a complex, artificial, highly unequal and increasingly unproductive community — will take place because of its leaders in Moscow, and only because of them. Those who love the federation; those who think that if it were to disappear, people would be worse off; those who see the idea of a united russia as the main and even the only political value — all should blame those and only those who started this war. how many parts will the federation break into, and will these parts correspond to the present delimitations of its republics and provinces? In each case, people will decide. At the local level, the existing institutions, leaders and borders will have a role to play in the implementation of the “right to self-determination, including secession.” But there are many other determining factors: economic and cultural, domestic and international.

The corruption case troubling india’s Gandhi family

The new states will be diverse: some will be democratic, others authoritarian. All will be linked more to their neighbors, their trading and security partners, than to their old, worn-out and repulsive “kin.” The territories that belonged to other national entities before becoming part of russia after the Second World War (east Prussia, parts of Karelia, the Kuril Islands) will leave the federation with undisguised pleasure. ethnic and religious tensions in particularly complex regions such as the Caucasus may lead to new wars. With the collapse of the federation, social inequalities, a hallmark of russia in recent decades, will increase further. The provinces producing raw materials will be richer, and other regions will be poorer. enjoying freedom, their people will show new creativity. They will start trading in what only free societies can create. They will invent their comparative advantages, new and unique. history will continue. Sooner or later the international community, which does not like upheavals, will take note of the changes and make an effort to avoid bloodshed. At this point a peace conference will be held, modeled after the Paris conference of 19181919, organized by the victors of the First World War. russia, which had signed a separate peace agreement in Brest-Litovsk, was not invited. In the new peace treaty, the neighbors of the new countries will mediate the negotiations: Ukraine, China, Norway, Poland, Finland, Kazakhstan, and others. historically more successful federations, such as the european Union and the United States, will have their part to play. A new eurasian Treaty will complete the work begun at Versailles a century ago. Alexander Etkind is a historian and cultural scientist. He is a professor of history and the Chair of Russia-Europe relations at the European University Institute In Florence.

Patriotism, optimism and striding ahead: the often overlooked story of Muslim Britain

In 1947, when India won independence, Nehru resigned as chairman of the board of newspaper after taking over his role as PM. But the Congress party continued to play a huge role in shaping the newspaper’s ideology. In a message to the National herald on its silver jubilee in 1963, Nehru himself spoke about the paper “generally favouring Congress policy” while maintaining “an independent outlook”. The National herald went on to become one of the leading english dailies under the tutelage of some of India’s finest journalists, even as the paper continued to be funded by the Congress party. But the newspaper again ceased operations in 2008 for financial reasons. In 2016, it was relaunched as a digital publication.

BBC Zoya Mateen

AhUL GANDhI, leader of India’s Congress party, appeared before a government agency on Monday in connection with corruption allegations. Mr Gandhi marched to the office of enforcement Directorate (eD) - which fights financial crime in national capital Delhi, accompanied by his sister Priyanka and hundreds of party members. earlier in the day, the Delhi Police had detained some Congress members - including senior leaders such as Adhir ranjan Chowdhury, KC Venugopal and Ashok Gehlot - during a protest. The eD recently summoned Mr Gandhi and his mother, Congress party president Sonia Gandhi, to explain allegations of money laundering in what has come to be known as the National herald Case. Ms Gandhi has Covid and was admitted to a hospital on Sunday - a party spokesperson has said her condition is “stable”. The eD has issued her a fresh summons for 23 June. The case was brought by Subramanian Swamy, a politician from India’s governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who accuses the Gandhis of misusing party funds to buy a firm that published the now-defunct National herald newspaper. The Gandhis deny any financial impropriety. WHAT IS THE NATIONAL HERALD? The National herald newspaper was started in 1938 by Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first prime minister and rahul Gandhi’s great grandfather. The newspaper was published by Associated Journals Limited (AJL) which was founded in 1937 with 5,000 other freedom fighters as its shareholders. The company published two other dailies - the Qaumi Awaz in Urdu and Navjeevan in hindi. Shaped by some of the most influential leaders of the time, the National herald came to be identified with India’s freedom struggle, earning it the reputation for being the great nationalist newspaper of the country. The newspaper’s fierce and incisive editorial style Nehru routinely wrote strong-worded columns - were met with the derision of the British government, which banned it in 1942, forcing the daily to shut down. But the paper reopened three years later.

WHAT ARE THE ALLEGATIONS AGAINST THE CONGRESS? The case against the Gandhis was brought in a trial court by Mr Swamy in 2012. Mr Swamy has alleged that the Gandhis used Congress party funds and took over AJL to try to acquire more than 20bn rupees in property assets. At the time of shutting down the National herald in 2008, AJL owed the Congress an accumulated debt of 900m rupees ($13m; £10m). In 2010, the Congress assigned this debt to Young India Private Limited, a non-profit company that had been created a few months earlier. Sonia and rahul Gandhi are among its board of directors and they each own 38% of the company. The remaining 24% is owned by Congress leaders Motilal Vora and Oscar Fernandes, journalist Suman Dubey and entrepreneur Sam Pitroda, who are also named in the case. Mr Swamy alleges that the Gandhis used subterfuge to “take over” assets worth millions in a “malicious” manner. Young India acquired complete control over AJL and its real estate, located in Delhi, Lucknow, Mumbai and other cities, the BJP leader has alleged. WHAT DOES THE CONGRESS SAY? The party has described it as “a strange case of alleged money laundering without any money” and accused the BJP of “political vendetta”. It says that the Congress - which governed India for most of the years since the country became independent - will “not be cowed down” and “fight it out”. The party says that Congress bailed out the herald publisher AJL when it ran into financial problems because it believed in its historical legacy. Over time, the Congress lent about 900m rupees to AJL. In 2010, the party says, AJL became debt-free when it swapped its debt for equity, and assigned the shares to the newly created Young India Private Limited. Young India, the Congress says, is a “not-for-profit company” and that no dividends have been paid to its shareholders and directors. The AJL, it insists, “continues to be the owner, printer and publisher of National herald and that there is no change or transfer of property”. Party spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi said by targeting the National herald, the BJP was “disrespecting and dishonouring India’s freedom fighters, the stalwarts of the nation and their contributions to the freedom struggle”. he also accused the government of using eD and other federal law enforcement agencies against its political opponents to harass them. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP government has been widely accused of using government agencies to target its critics.

Guardian Miqdaad Versi

here is a powerful narrative about British Muslims that is often overlooked: one of belonging and optimism. It’s easy to understand why. At many levels of society, we see barriers of Islamophobia preventing Muslims from participating as equal citizens. Consider the workplace: a new hyphen-Savanta Comres poll shows that a staggeringly high 69% of UK Muslims have experienced some form of Islamophobia in the workplace. And if you’re a black Muslim, the figure is 76%. Just having a Muslim name makes it less likely that you get a job, find a flat or even get insurance. Or consider the education system: a Department for education study that showed 18% of the pupils polled in england have seen other children being bullied for being Muslim. This was reiterated in responses to findings by Childline, where young Muslims had specifically reported being called “terrorists” and “bombers” by classmates. Or consider politics: whether it’s the rampant and institutional Islamophobia in the Conservative party or the (smaller albeit extremely serious) challenges in the Labour party, where more than one in four Muslim members of the party had directly experienced Islamophobia. even those who succeed despite Islamophobic political campaigns end up facing Islamophobia in office, including Sadiq Khan, who needs 24/7 protection due to the “colour of his skin and the God he worships”. Let’s not even go into the media, where only 0.4% of British journalists are Muslim, and almost two-thirds of articles that mention Muslims or Islam paint them in a negative light. But it’s not just employment, education, politics and the media – the structural challenges are even deeper. half of British Muslims face poverty, far more Muslims live in deprived housing conditions than the UK population average (35% v 13%) and Muslims are hugely over-represented in the criminal justice system: 15% of all prison inmates in england and Wales are Muslims, despite

being less than 5% of the total population. Maybe these barriers are unsurprising given the racist views held by many when it comes to Muslims. Britons are reportedly almost three times more likely to hold prejudiced views of Islam than they are of other religions, and conspiracy theories such as believing Muslim immigration was part of a wider plot to make Muslims the majority in Britain infect a sizeable minority of the country. Of those canvassed for one poll, 22% would be concerned if a Muslim family moved in next to them. These facts on the ground make up an important evidence-based narrative about the challenges facing British Muslims, and should not be overlooked. however, that is only part of the story. The new hyphen-Savanta Comres poll, corroborated by other research, also supports a more nuanced narrative: one that does not erase the institutional racism and barriers to equality facing Muslims, but instead acknowledges how despite the discrimination and these structural challenges, British Muslims are overcoming the odds, defying the stereotypes peddled by the far-right and their allies and instead respond with a sense of belonging and optimism. For example, most Muslim respondents (53%) to the new poll said there is an improved acceptance of Muslims in the UK. Other polling shows 93% of Muslims felt they belonged to Britain and more Muslims feel proud to be British than the national average. Alongside belonging, there is optimism: most (57%) believe that young Muslims will be more successful than their parents, many Muslim pupils are already outperforming peers at school, and far more Muslim parents (66%) thought it “very likely” that their child would go on to university to do a degree in the future, compared to the national average (38%). But why is this the case? Why, despite the Islamophobia being faced, do most Muslims still feel like they belong and are optimistic about their future? On the one hand, there are more role models and greater representation across all walks of life: Mo Salah, FWA footballer of the year, the mayor of London, Oscar winner riz Ahmed, radio 4 presenter Mishal husain and Nadiya hussain, a Great British Bake Off winner. And more structurally, it seems part of the reason is youthful optimism (half of British Muslims are under the age of 35), a religious sense of belonging and an immigrant mentality of working hard and making the best of difficult situations (British Muslims are predominantly first- or second-generation migrants). The reality is that we do not know. It’s good that we celebrate the optimism, but let’s not ignore the challenges of Islamophobia and the inaction in tackling it. A nuanced narrative about Muslim communities is hopefully not too much to ask. Miqdaad Versi is public affairs spokesman for the Muslim Council of Britain.

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Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi exchanging views with Turkish Ambassador H.E. Mr Ihsan Mustafa Yardakul at Naval Headquarters Islamabad.

Asian Development Bank’s Director General Central and West Asia Department, Mr. Eugenue Zhukov and Country Director Mr. Yong Ye called on Federal Minister for Power Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan and Minister of State Hashim Notezal in Islamabad.

Dr. Izhar-ul-Haq Hashmi (Director, Akhwat) receiving shield from Dr. Nadim-ur-Rehman (Medical Director, Sanofi Pakistan). Team members of Akhuwat and Sanofi are also present to commemorate partnership for the implementation of glogal program - KIDS on diabetes education in schools.

haBiBMeTro signs agreement With noWPdP (PR): HABIBMETRO Bank has once again collaborated with NOWPDP (Network of Organizations Working for Persons with Disabilities in Pakistan) for the inclusion of PWDs in the workforce and HABIBMETRO’s workplace. Through its ongoing collaborative initiatives with NOWPDP, HABIBMETRO aims to increase employment opportunities for differently-abled individuals. Under this agreement, HABIBMETRO will contribute as a sponsor for NOWPDP’s Center of Excellence for Financial Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities – a facility aimed at promoting inclusion of PWDs. HABIBMETRO will also engage NOWPDP’s consultancy services for initiatives such sensitization and sign language trainings and other activities for a more inclusive workplace. The ceremony was commenced by President & CEO, HABIBMETRO Mr. Mohsin Ali Nathani and President NOWPDP Mr. Amin Hashwani who shared their thoughts about the initiative. The agreement was signed by Mr. Asad Ali, Head Human Resources at HABIBMETRO and Mr. Omair Ahmad, CEO NOWPDP. Ms. Sheeza Ahmed Head Of Marketing & Corporate Communications at HABIBMETRO and Ms. Muneeba Haroon Director Operations at NOWPDP were also present at the ceremony.Speaking at the ceremony Mr. Mohsin Ali Nathani said.

Mastercard study advocates financial inclusion for better access to health education Islamabad: Financial inclusion is driving better access to health and education across Middle East and Africa, according to a new white paper from Mastercard. The study, Financial Inclusion+ - Connecting People to Finance, Health, and Education, explores how health, education, digital, and financial inclusion are all intertwined to unlock greater prosperity and wellbeing for communities across the region. It reveals that access to finance, healthcare, and education has become even more of a challenge over the past two years, since the start of the COvID-19 pandemic, as a result of movement restrictions and lockdowns. This has placed a greater need for digitally delivered financial inclusion; and for using this as a platform to distribute health and education services to the masses. Mastercard is playing a leading role in addressing financial inclusion, with a previous goal to bring 500 million excluded individuals into the digital economy – a goal that was achieved in 2020 – and then raised during the height of the pandemic with a new pledge to include 500 million more – making a total of one billion people by 2025.

PRESS RELEASE

EvEN of the best-performing clients of Khushhali Microfinance Bank (KMBL) were shortlisted to win prestigious accolades at the “14th “CitiPPAF Micro Entrepreneurship Awards – 2022”. Five of these seven shortlisted candidates, personally attended the ceremony organized by Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) and Citi Foundation in Islamabad, to recognize the achievements of successful micro-entrepreneurs across Pakistan. The Citi Micro-entrepreneurship Awards Programme is a resourceful initiative, to showcase Pakistan’s real success stories to a global audience, to enrich the nation’s image. These awards recognize the achievements of the most successful micro-entrepreneurs across Pakistan, who have effectively utilized Micro-Loans, to build sustainable businesses and revenue streams to elevate their quality of life. They are enabling socio-economic

growth for their families, communities, and the nation, despite resource constraints and extraordinary challenges. Following are the brief profiles of the KMBL customers, shortlisted for the awards. “Through access to finance, Khushhali Microfinance Bank has enabled its clients to escape the poverty cycle. Our clients have used loans to make their financial decisions independently to expand their trade and business,” said President KMBL, Ghalib Nishtar acknowledging the award. “I would like to congratulate all the winners. I hope this achievement provides inspiration to other people with dreams of accomplishing their goals. KMBL is always there to support Pakistanis with a vision. I believe, people will let the possibilities inspire them more than the obstacles to discourage them”, he further added. Naik Bano a resident of Jutial, Gilgit, was born in 1973 and is married with 3 children now. She had no funds to start her own small business. When she got a 30,000 Rupees loan from

KMBL, she invested to produce Gilgit’s cultural embroidery products like bed sheets, cushions, bed sets, and hand-crafted pieces. She is now able to get medical treatment for her child (suffering from Cancer), while her other two children have also joined the school. Gaining prosperity, she has repaid her loan and is now training other women in her village too. Rawaila Jan – a single mother living in Haripur, was granted multiple loans from KMBL to invest in her own livestock and dairy business, which grew rapidly to acquire many goats and 3 buffaloes. Good profitability has enabled her to repay her loans on time, educate her 3 daughters and build her own house too. This business is also planning to hire a few neighborhood women. Zaib-Un-Nisa from Nomal, Gilgit, got a loan for her Agriculture, vegetables and Dry-Fruits business and was able to timely pay offer the loan. She plans to produce and sell a special bread of Gilgit – Azrukh too. Her family is now getting good nutrition, while her 5 kids are studying in English-

Medium private schools. She has also inspired other women in her region to earn additional income and support their husbands. Anwar Jan – a lady from Muzaffarabad took a loan to invest in her home-based, Milk-Selling and Grocery business which has grown very rapidly, to provide a healthy income for her family. Ameer Mukhtar – a man living in the Nankana area, took out a loan to invest in his small Tandoor. Adding more furniture and crockery, today “Apna Ghar Restaurant & Bar-B-Q offers a vast Menu for lunch and dinner, while 5 employees have been hired to serve the customers. It has now grown to achieve monthly sales of 450,000 per month. Abdul Ghaffar from the vehari area took a loan for expanding his furniture-making workshop into his own furniture display store. He is now earning much more to provide his children with a better standard of living, with good food, shelter, and education. Now he plans to transform his furniture shop into a large display center and retail system.

Over one million Nokia feature phones produced in Pakistan KarachiHMD Global, the home of Nokia phones, has achieved the milestone of producing over one million locally assembled mobile phones in Pakistan in just 6 months after setting up the assembly unit in the country. The company has partnered with Techno Pak Electronics (Private) Limited last year in setting up the assembly plant of Nokia phones in Pakistan which has invested an amount of $2 million in its factory & related channels in 2021 which generated over 500 skilled jobs so far. Arif Shafique, Country Manager Pakistan HMD Global, the home of Nokia phones, said, “Nokia Phones continue to be a favourite product among different ages of mobile phone users in Pakistan for the past many years. The demand for our handsets has been evident in the local market with the production of over one million units in a very short span of time.” The plant capacity is to produce over half a million mobile phones per month and our aim is to assemble the complete range of Nokia phones from Pakistan. HMD Global has made a significant contribution to the economy through the transfer of technology to the local level, tax rev-

enues to the national kitty, saving of foreign exchange and most importantly creating more local jobs. “Opening the facility in Pakistan is not only an important business decision for us, but also a historic initiative as we continue to expand our global footprint with it. We aim to scale up our productions every month so that we will be able to meet the demand of our Pakistani consumers,” Shafique added. He expressed his hope that local authorities and regulators will continue to extend their full support to the industry for doing business and making investments in Pakistan. The assembly plant of Nokia phones in Korangi, Karachi reached completion in December 2021. The unit produces various designs of mobile handsets with cutting-edge hardware tools, signature durability and user-friendly operating software. Pakistan has an enduring association with Nokia mobile phones, which has translated into strong brand affinity. With Pakistan’s mobile phone penetration at 193 million and the mobile industry’s contribution to Pakistan is expected to reach USD 24 billion in 2023.

NEPRA holds workshop on industry-acdemia linkages PRess ReleAse NEPRA under the leadership of the Chairman NEPRA, Mr. Tauseef H. Farooqi hold a workshop on Industry-Academia linkages with the objectives to help creating a nexus between industries and academia, figure out how Industry and academia join hands to address upcoming challenges and contribute towards national growth by aligning academic programs to meet cross-sectoral needs. The workshop was first of its kind in the history that was attended by large number of top professionals from the power sector and members of the academia besides NEPRA’s Professionals. Chairman NEPRA, Mr. Farooqi in his opening remarks highlighted the importance of engaging industries in the academic research, providing a platform to academia and the industries to collaborate for developing better human

resource as well as undertaking researches that help addressing the practical issues of the industry. Mr. Farooqi stressed for creating an enabling environment that would create a pull among the licensees to engage with the academia for collaborative research work. Mr. Farooqi also urged the participants from the industries to share their most crucial problems with the academic institutions for prolific research work. A number of speakers from the academia and industry also spoke on the occasion followed by Questions-Answers session, wherein the participants while appreciating the efforts of NEPRA required that the government institutions like NEPRA should help bridging the gap between industry and academia, support in developing cooperation for improving the curriculum, undertaking joint research and development and giving practical orientation to the students and the faculty members.

nTiny-e: nusT realizes Pakistan’s first Truly indigenous embedded Microprocessor Islamabad: Semiconductor chips are at the heart of all electronic devices and consumer appliances that we use every day. Global semiconductor sales reached US $556 billion in 2021 but Pakistan has not been able to benefit from this lucrative market. NUST, in line with its vision of undertaking applied research and innovation, embarked upon the journey to make Pakistan self-reliant in this critical technology. Researchers at the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) have successfully completed full functional testing of the country’s first truly indigenously designed microprocessor, NTiny-E. The embedded microprocessor chip was designed by the research team of the NUST School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (SEECS).

Turkish ambassador calls on air chief Turkish Ambassador H.E. Mr. Ihsan Mustafa Yurdakul called on Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu, Chief of the Air Staff, Pakistan Air Force in his office today. During the meeting, both dignitaries discussed matters of professional and mutual interest. While appreciating professionalism of Pakistan Air Force, Turkish Ambassador H.E. Mr. Ihsan Mustafa Yurdakul acknowledged PAF’s rising indigenous capacity in aviation industry. The Air Chief said that Pakistan and Turkiye have longstanding religious, cultural and historical bonds which were manifested through strong ties between the Air Forces of two countries.

Philip Morris (Pakistan) Limited wins three GDEIB Awards KARACHI PRESS RELEASE

Philip Morris (Pakistan) Limited (PMPKL), in recognition of its efforts for workplace diversity and inclusivity, has won the Global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Benchmark (GDEIB) Awards in three categories of Advancement & Retention, Job Design, Classification & Compensation, and Work Life Integration, Flexibility & Benefits. The awards were assessed on merit-based scores on a scale of 1-5 including Best Practice, Progressive, Proactive, Reactive, and Inactive with

a mission to help organizations become sustainable through inclusive cultural and behavioural change. PMPKL has undertaken multiple initiatives to incorporate inclusivity and diversity in the organization, some of which include; Women’s Inspirational Networks, SmartWork, power hours, full mental health coverage, health screening checkups, enhanced parental leaves, and, routinely communicating with employees through internal podcasts and emails to motivate to take time off from work and focus on their mental and physical health. Additionally, PMPKL launched the

‘MakeYourComeBack’ Program, a 3month project, for women who took a break and wanted to return to the workforce. PMPKL has also been taking part in yearly audits by the Equal Salary Certification (an independent not-forprofit organization) since 2019, achieving the ESC annually and becoming the first multinational company in Pakistan to have ever achieved the certification. Furthermore, PMPKL has been recognized as a Top Employer 2022 for its excellence in people practices which reflects the company’s employee-centric approach, strong com-

mitment, and an agile mindset. Mirela Spagovic, Director People and Culture at PMPKL, expressing her gratitude at the recognition of the company’s efforts by GDEIB, said, “At PMPKL, we see diversity as a strength and are committed to building an inclusive culture and workplace. Therefore, our focus is on creating an environment where our employees have an equal opportunity to participate, use their skills, share their ideas and perspectives, and feel valued. We are continuously working to ensure a supportive place to inspire and empower employees and to achieve equity in workplace.”

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10 foReIgn neWs

Afreen emergeS AS icon of StrUggle AS indiA tArgetS mUSlim proteSterS

Agencies

ROMINENT young Muslim activist, Afreen Fatima, has emerged as an icon of courage and struggle against the Hindutva regime of India’s Narendra Modi as the house of Afreen was bulldozed by authorities in Uttar Pradesh, India. The 20-year-old termed the move as an

“act of vendetta” by the government in response to the protests against BJP officials that she had actively been a part of. Within a few hours, the house was torn down and the belongings of the family, such as furniture and books, were thrown outside. Reportedly, among those belongings, was a poster that said: “When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty.” The demolition came after riots and

protests emerged in India following blasphemous remarks by BJP officials. The protests became global, resulting in nearly 20 nations uniting against India. Fatima told Al Jazeera that she was not even at home when the house was reduced to rubbles. The police allege that Fatima’s father, Javed Mohammad — who is a prominent face in the anti-CAA protests — called for

protests on Friday, The Wire reported. The police had raided the house the same day and took with them the 57-yearold without any warrant. Javed is a politician who belongs to a Muslim party and was charged with rioting. He was then labelled the “mastermind” behind the protests. “My mother and my sister were illegally detained for more than 30 hours,” Fatima told Al Jazeera TV.

The young activist has rejected all the allegations and says that the bulldozing was illegal. City officials had pasted a notice on their house saying that the two-story building was an “illegal structure that would be demolished on Sunday.” “The demolition is absolutely illegal because it is not even my father’s property. The house belongs to my mother,” she told Al Jazeera. Fatima belongs to a student group called the Fraternity Movement and rose to prominence during nationwide protests that happened after a controversial citizenship law passed by the Modi government in 2019. She was also elected the president of the women’s college students union at Aligarh Muslim University which is India’s largest minority institution based in Uttar Pradesh.

Think tank warns of global nukes to grow for first time since Cold War Agencies

taliban kill iSKp commanders responsible for mosque attacks KABUL Agencies

The Afghan Taliban carried out search operations in the Bagram district of Kabul on Sunday and killed two main commanders of the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), who attacked mosques and religious sites, and arrested many others. According to Taliban’s Spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid, sleeper cells were raided on Sunday night by the district administration, special forces and local police. The contingent managed to kill the most wanted ISKP commander Yousaf and arrested Muhammad Agha, among others. Yousaf and Muhammad Agha were responsible for planning attacks on religious sites, power stations and power installations across the country, including Kabul, according to Mujahid. “On their information, raids were conducted in central and suburban Kabul, and scores of them [ISKP members] were arrested and killed,” the spokesperson added. Mujahid stated that more details of the operation would be shared once received. A series of deadly attacks have rocked Afghanistan in recent months, a little under a year since the Taliban takeover. On Saturday, a bomb blast on a minibus killed at least four people and injured several others in the Afghan capital, police said. Dozens of civilians were killed in Kabul and other cities in primarily sectarian attacks during the holy month of Ramazan, which ended on April 30 in Afghanistan, with some claimed by the Islamic State group. Many of those attacks targeted the Hazaras and Sufi communities. Some of the bombings struck minibusses ferrying passengers from offices or markets to their homes. But the deadliest attack during Ramazan came in the northern city of Kunduz, where a bomb targeting Sufi worshippers tore through a mosque on April 22. At least 33 people were killed in that blast and scores more were wounded. The regional branch of IS in Afghanistan has repeatedly targeted minorities such as Sufis, who follow a mystical branch of Islam.

The global nuclear arsenal is expected to grow in the coming years for the first time since the Cold War while the risk of such weapons being used is the greatest in decades, a leading conflict and armaments think tank said on Monday. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Western support for Kyiv has heightened tensions among the world’s nine nucleararmed states, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) think tank said in a new set of research. While the number of nuclear weapons fell slightly between January 2021 and January 2022, SIPRI said that unless immediate action was taken by the nuclear powers, global inventories of warheads could soon begin rising for the first time in decades. “All of the nuclear-armed states are increasing or upgrading their arsenals and most are sharpening nuclear rhetoric and the role nuclear weapons play in their military strategies,” Wilfred Wan,

director of SIPRI’s Weapons of Mass Destruction Programme, said in the think tank’s 2022 yearbook. “This is a very worrying trend.” Three days after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, which the Kremlin calls a “special military operation”, President Vladimir Putin put Russia’s nuclear deterrent on high alert. He has also warned of consequences that would be “such as you have never seen in your entire history” for countries that stood in Russia’s way. Russia has the world’s biggest nuclear arsenal with a total of 5,977 warheads, some 550 more than the United States. The two countries possess more than 90 per cent of the world’s warheads, though SIPRI said China was in the middle of an expansion with an estimated more than 300 new missile silos. SIPRI said the global number of nuclear warheads fell to 12,705 in January 2022 from 13,080 in January 2021. An estimated 3,732 warheads were deployed with missiles and aircraft, and around

2,000 — nearly all belonging to Russia or the US — were kept in a state of high readiness. “Relations between the world’s great powers have deteriorated further at a time when humanity and the planet

Macron’s majority in doubt after first-round of parliament vote PARis Agencies

French President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist alliance was in danger of falling short of a majority after the first round of parliamentary elections on Sunday saw a surge in support for a new left-wing coalition. Macron’s “Ensemble” (Together) alliance ran neck-and-neck with the left-wing NUPES grouping in Sunday’s first round, with the former netting 25.75 percent of the popular vote compared to the latter’s 25.66 percent. Extrapolating from these figures, four polling firms projected that Ensemble would win 225-295 seats in the decisive second round of voting next Sunday, possibly short of a majority of 289 but comfortably

the biggest group. “We have a week ahead of us to mobilise,” Prime Minister Elizabeth Borne told reporters. “One week to convince, one week to obtain a powerful and clear majority.” Ensemble was “the only political grouping capable of getting a majority”, she said. NUPES, a newly unified alliance of leftists, Socialists, Greens and Communists, was projected to win 150-220 seats, a major break-

through that would make them the biggest opposition force in the National Assembly. “It’s a very serious warning that has been sent to Emmanuel Macron,” political scientist Brice Teinturier told France 2 television, noting how support for the president’s party had fallen since the last election in 2017. “A majority is far from certain,” he added. If Macron’s coalition does fall short, it is expected to be forced into messy bill-by-bill deals with right-wing parties in parliament, or he will have to try to poach opposition or independent MPs to his side. Under France’s constitution, the president has exclusive control over foreign and defence policy, but needs a majority in parliament to pass domestic legislation.

face an array of profound and pressing common challenges that can only be addressed by international cooperation,” SIPRI Board Chairman and former Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven said.

Biden urges quick action after US senators reach bipartisan gun control deal Agencies U.S. President Joe Biden has urged lawmakers to get a deal on gun reform to his desk quickly after a group of senators announced a limited bipartisan framework on Sunday in response to last month’s mass shootings. The plan includes support for state “red flag” laws keeping firearms from potentially dangerous people, tougher criminal background checks for gun buyers under the age of 21 and a crackdown on “straw purchases” by people buying weapons for others who could not pass a background check. Crafted in response to last month’s massacres at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas and a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, the proposed deal is a modest breakthrough offering measured gun curbs while bolstering efforts to improve school safety and mental health programs. The agreement does not ensure that legislation will be approved. Lawmakers still must hammer out legislative language that can attract enough votes to pass in both the Senate and House of Representatives, each narrowly controlled by Democrats.

China to India: ‘Properly resolve situation’ emerged after BJP leaders’ profane remarks BeiJing APP

A Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson on Monday hoped that India would properly resolve the relevant situation emerged as a result of BJP leaders’ blasphemous remarks causing strong dissatisfaction among Indian Muslims and Islamic countries. “We have noted relevant reports and hope that the relevant situation can be properly resolved,” Wang Wenbin said during his regular briefing here while commenting on Bhartia Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nupur Sharma’s remarks about the Prophet Muhammad PBUH which caused strong dissatisfaction among Indian Muslims and Islamic countries. The Muslims countries includ-

ing Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Oman, Indonesia, Iraq, the Maldives, Bangladesh, Jordan,

Libya and Bahrain have condemned the remarks. Many Muslim countries foreign offices also summoned the Indian

envoys to register their protest besides issuing strongly worded statements. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) also issued a strongly worded statement against blasphemous remarks by Indian leaders. Wang Wenbin said that China had always maintained that different civilizations and different religions should respect each other and live on an equal footing. “We should abandon arrogance and prejudice, deepen our understanding of the differences between our own civilization and other civilizations, and promote exchanges, dialogue and harmonious coexistence among different civilizations,” he added. In a statement, Cheng Xizhong,

Visiting Professor of Southwest University of Political Science and Law said that massive Muslim demonstrations across India, demanding arrest and punishment of the two members of BJP for using blasphemous remarks reflected not only the aspirations of the vast Muslim community in India, but also the aspirations of the entire Muslim world, and the Indian authorities, which have always advocated democracy, should respond positively. However, the Indian authorities have resorted to brutal measures against the unarmed protesting Muslims and used the security forces to suppress them. The international community should pay close attention to the atrocities committed by the Indian authorities and strongly condemn the

disproportional use of security forces on Indian Muslim protestors, he added. He said that India should immediately shun its Hindutva policies and stop targeting its minorities, hurting their religious sentiments and put an end to rising incidents of violence and spreading of hate against Indian minorities, especially Muslims. Otherwise, the worsening ethnic contradictions and religious conflicts in India will lead to the final division of the country, he added. Nupur Sharma made some controversial remarks in a televised debate last month and another party official, Naveen Kumar Jindal, who was media head of the party’s Delhi unit, had also posted a provocative tweet on the issue.

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SPORTS 11

Tuba, MaTheWs voTed ICC PlayeRs of The MonTh foR May

news Desk

AKISTAN’S debutante spin sensation Tuba Hassan and Sri Lanka’s batting star Angelo Mathews have been voted the ICC Women’s and Men’s Players of the Month for May 2022. Pakistan’s Tuba Hassan was named the ICC Women’s Player of the Month after enjoying significant success with the ball during her debut international series, said a press release issued here. The 21-year-old leg spinner was instru-

mental in restricting scores set by opponents Sri Lanka in the three-game T20I series in Pakistan, where she captured the Player of the Series award, taking five wickets at an average of 8.8 and an economy rate of 3.66. The highlight was during her debut international fixture in Karachi, in which she grabbed three for eight to limit the tourists to 106, setting the platform for a six-wicket win. On what was an excellent month for Tuba, former Pakistan international and member of the voting panel Sana Mir said, “Tuba has shown a lot of confidence and skill to make an impact for Pakistan in her

debut series. She has been working hard for some time and it is really heartwarming to see her celebrating success in her first series for Pakistan.” In securing this month’s award, Hassan overcomes fellow nominees in compatriot Bismah Maroof, and Jersey’s Trinity Smith. Tuba is the first female player from Pakistan to win in the ICC Player of the Month awards. Meanwhile, Mathews was voted the recipient of the ICC Men’s Player of the Month for May after piling on the runs over the course of his side’s impressive ICC World Test Championship series victory

against Bangladesh. Amassing 344 runs at an average of 172 over the course of the two Tests, Mathews registered a huge score of 199 in the draw at Chattogram, and a supreme 145 not out in Mirpur. His epic innings in the second Test enabled his side to post an imposing total of 506 and complete a 10-wicket victory, gaining valuable points in the ICC WTC standings powered by MRF Tyres. Mathews becomes the first Sri Lanka player to be named the ICC Player of the Month since its inception in January 2021,

Chinese tennis players win three titles in one day

Husnain Mehmood becomes Pakistan’s newest White Badge Tennis Umpire news Desk Husnain Mehmood, Pakistan’s Green Badge Tennis Umpire who had proceeded to Vietnam to take part in ITF Level 2 Officiating School, Tay Ninh from June to 13, has successfully completed the course in his first attempt, and has thus qualified as an ITF White Badge Chair Umpire, Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) said on Monday. It is a matter of great pride and satisfaction that the PTF will now have two qualified White Badge Chair Umpires. Pakistan was awarded the previous White Badge some 23 years ago, a PTF statement said. Salim Saifullah Khan, President PTF has congratulated Husnain on the achievement. It is a matter of immense pleasure and satisfaction

that PTF has been able to achieve a breakthrough in this segment after a very long time, he said. He also complimented Shahzad Akhtar Alvi, the only other authorized ITF WB Umpire and Head of Officiating at the PTF, for having performed his duties in the country and overseas single-handedly over the years. He said that tennis officiating was an lucrative career and further efforts would be made to increase the number of qualified White Badge Chair Umpires, which would greatly facilitate the associations and organizers for the better conduct of the national and international tournaments. He welcomed Husnain Mehmood to the fold of select ITF qualified Officiating Members and wished him all the best in his future endeavors.

Anita Karim makes Pakistan proud at MMA competition Monitoring report Pakistan’s first-ever female mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Anita Karim unanimously won the fight against her Australian opponent under the banner of Fairtex Fight Promotion at Lumpinee Stadium, Bangkok. According to media reports, the 25year-old fighter from Hunza beat Uyen Ha in all three rounds of the bantamweight fight. Anita’s proud brother Uloomi Karim took to social media to share his sister’s unique achievement. He said that his sister is the only Pakistani martial arts fighter who has fought at the prestigious Lumpinee Stadium. “Anita Karim getting another W after putting on a clinic today at Fairtex Fight Promotion in Bangkok, Thailand. P.s. Anita is the only female Pakistani (and one of the VERY FEW women in the WORLD) to have fought at the world-famous Lumpinee Stadium!,” he wrote. “Another one, Alhumdulillah All praises to the Almighty and a big thank you to everyone who showed love and support. Huge shoutout to my team @fairtexofficial for the knowledge and for pushing me every single day to get better! #teamfightfortress #anitakarim,” Anita Karim wrote on her Twitter handle with a video clip of her fight. Last year while talking to media,

Anita expressed how proud she was to be the country’s only woman MMA fighter. “It is quite usual, to be honest. I belong to a family of Taekwondo black belt holders and to an area where the women do all the toughest work. The bodies of the women in our region are trained to do hard work. From an early age, we carry a lot of load on our backs and climb up the hills. A woman carries around 20 to 30 kilogrammes of wood, crop and other necessities for many kilo-

metres. This makes our muscles adapted to hard work,” she said. Anita Karim rose to fame after defeating Indonesian opponent Gita Suharsono in One Warrior Series (OWS) back in 2019. She is also known as the ‘arm collector’. Anita joined MMA when she was 20-year-old. She moved to Islamabad to join her brother’s academy and aimed to become the first professional women MMA fighter in Pakistan. It only took Anita two months to get her

grip on the sport and make it to the international ring. Ehtisham, while talking to media, said that Anita was tough since the beginning. “When we brought her to the gym, she passed all the tests and was comfortable with all the techniques other male fighters learn,” he said. “Since the beginning, she had a spark in her and that is why we decided to train her for professional MMA fights.” According to Anita, it is not tough to pursue MMA full time, but the real challenge is social pressure. “The time I decided to go for MMA, I called up my father and told him that I am going to cut my hair and take a break from studies to train for MMA fights. My mother and father were reluctant to allow me, but when they saw the passion I had for MMA, they relented,” she said. “The real hurdle began after that.” “The time I cut my hair and dedicated myself completely to the MMA, people back home started talking about how I’m not doing the type of work that ‘normal’ women do. They criticised me a lot on my appearance and [for] the path that I took. Unfortunately, this is why many female fighters give up; just because they face pressure from the society. I was lucky that I had a supportive brother, and he asked me to ignore everything and just focus on my training and ambition.”

Haaland ‘proud’ to be transferred to Manchester City Agencies Erling Haaland said his transfer to Manchester City from Borussia Dortmund is a “great move” for his career as the Norwegian aims to fire the Premier League champions to more silverware. City announced last month they had beaten off competition from Europe’s top clubs to agree a deal with the German giants after triggering Haaland’s reported £51 million ($63 million) release clause. The 21-year-old’s move was officially completed on Monday with Haaland penning a five-year contract to follow in the footsteps of his father Alfie Inge Haaland, who played for City between 2000 and 2003. “This is a proud day for me and my family. I have always watched City and have loved doing so in recent seasons,” said Haaland. “I want to score goals, win trophies, and improve as a footballer and I am confident I can do that here. This

is a great move for me, and I can’t wait to get started in pre-season.” The arrival of one of world football’s biggest talents end City’s search for a specialist striker to succeed Sergio Aguero, who left the club last year. City’s attempt to sign England captain Harry Kane from Tottenham fell short last summer, but Pep Guardiola’s men still had enough to pip Liverpool by a point to win a fourth Premier League title in five seasons. However, the English champions again failed in their bid to win the Champions League for the first time, losing a dramatic semi-final to Real Madrid 6-5 on aggregate. Haaland has scored 23 goals in 19 Champions League appearances for Dortmund and RB Salzburg and will be expected to get City over the line when it matters most in Europe. “There are so many world-class players in this squad and Pep is one of the greatest managers of all time, so I believe I am in the right place to fulfil my ambitions,” he added.

scooping the award ahead of fellow nominees Asitha Fernando (Sri Lanka), and Mushfiqur Rahim (Bangladesh). On being named the ICC Men’s Player of the Month, Mathews said, “I am absolutely honoured and delighted to be the ICC Men’s Player of the Month. I would like to congratulate Asitha Fernando and Mushfiqur Rahim who were front runners for this award, on their spectacular performances. “I am grateful for the opportunity and I wish to thank the almighty, my teammates, support staff, and fans for believing in me and supporting me as always. I would like to dedicate this to the people of Sri Lanka. Let’s never stop believing.” JP Duminy, the former South Africa international and ICC Player of the Month voting panel member said, “The great grit and determination that characterized Angelo’s performances during the month has shown that he still has the hunger and desire to make the difference at the elite level.”

“You can’t help but admire their style of play, it’s exciting and they create a lot of chances, which is perfect for a player like me.” Haaland had almost his pick of Europe’s top clubs thanks to a buyout clause below his market value and a stunning record of 86 goals in 89 games for Dortmund. He rejected Manchester United’s advances when moving from Salzburg to Dortmund in January 2020 and his decision to choose the Etihad as his destination is a coup for City’s rising status. “His rise has been remarkable, but he is still only 21. His best years are ahead of him, and we are confident he can get even better working with Pep,” said City’s director of football Txiki Begiristain. “He is a huge talent and has been one of the best strikers in Europe over the last few seasons. “His goalscoring record is exceptional and his performances at Borussia Dortmund and in the Champions League in particular have proved he can succeed at the highest level.”

news Desk Chinese players showed their strength on tennis court on Sunday to win three major titles around the world. In the Nottingham Open WTA tournament, Zhang Shuai, who paired up with Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia, won the women’s doubles title by beating Monica Niculescu and Caroline Dolehide in straight sets 76(2), 6-3. “Amazing tournament and I always play so well here,” Zhang said. “It’s a really tough match, and both girls play well. It’s the first time me and my partner have played together, but anyway, I think we will do more tournaments together,” she added. Zhang, 33, also reached the women’s singles last eight as the No. 4 seed in Nottingham. Her doubles partner Haddad Maia won the singles title.

Irfan gets his 51st Guinness World Record approved App Pakistan’s acclaimed martial artist Irfan Mehsood has added another feather to his cap after his 51st Guinness World Record was approved for the most jumping jacks in one minute carrying a 40lb pack. “I attempted the record in Dera Ismail Khan in December last year. The said record was previously held by Egypt’s Mahmoud Mohamed Ayoub who had done 89 jumping jacks in one minute,” he told APP. “I broke his record by doing 94 jumping jacks in one minute.” “I have been practicing wushu since 2005. I was inspired by seeing videos of record holders and reading several editions of the Guinness World Records book and worked towards record titles of my own,” he said. He said he trains for four to five hours daily for every record he attempts until he feels he can break the one he’s aiming for. “My aim through breaking records is to promote my region of Waziristan while also advocating a healthy lifestyle and staying active. I hope to achieve a total of fifty record titles,” he said. Irfan Mehsud was the only player in the world to have set 23 world records in the push-ups category and has so far broken 13 Guinness World Records of India. He holds a total of 51 Guinness World Records.

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PTI awards TIckeTs To candIdaTes for Punjab by-Polls IsLAMABAD

sTaff rePorT

AKISTAN Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Monday announced its candidates for the Punjab byelections, slated for July 17, as the party seeks to retain the seats it lost last month. Twenty-five lawmakers — 20 elected on general and five on reserved seats — were de-notified by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on May 23 for going against party lines and voting for

Hamza Shahbaz in the chief minister’s election. ECP earlier this month ruled that the allocation of reserved seats — three women and two minorities — would be notified after the conclusion of the byelection for 20 vacant Punjab Assembly seats. In a bid to secure the reserved seats, the PTI had asked the ECP to issue the notification based on the current numbers in the Punjab Assembly, but the election body ruled that it would notify the allocation of reserved seats once the by-election takes

place on July 17 — and the new party position is formed. The by-elections will take place on PP-7, PP-83, PP-90, PP-97, PP-125, PP127, PP-140, PP-158, PP-167, PP-168, PP170, PP-202, PP-217, PP-224, PP-228, PP-237, PP-272, PP-273, PP-282 Layyah, and PP-288. Taking to Twitter Monday, PTI Central Information Secretary Farrukh Habib said the party’s parliamentary board approved the candidates’ list for the bypolls and has allocated tickets to the respective people.

India’s ‘democratic face’ stand exposed, says PM shehbaz News Desk

Karachi journalist picked up by men in plainclothes: police kARACHI news Desk

A journalist working for a private television channel was taken away by unidentified men from near his residence in Karachi on Monday, according to his family and the police. Nafees Naeem, who is associated with Aaj TV, was picked up by men in plain-

clothes near his residence in Nazimabad area of Karachi, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police West-Zone Nasir Aftab told media. Naeem works as an assignment editor for the TV channel. Aftab said police immediately contacted Naeem’s family after learning about the incident, adding that a station house officer (SHO) from the Nazimabad Police Station also visited the journalist’s house.

The DIG said the police had obtained CCTV footage of the incident, which showed plainclothed men aboard a Vigo [a four-wheel-drive truck] approaching the journalist and picking him up. The police officer said he spoke to the wife of the journalist who said her husband had left home at around 3:50pm to get some groceries and hadn’t returned since then. The DIG said the police had asked

the family to lodge a first information report (FIR) if they wanted to. DIG Aftab confirmed that the journalist was not detained at any police station in his jurisdiction. Meanwhile, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah has taken notice of the abduction of the journalist and contacted IGP Sindh and directed him to produce the journalist.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif Monday said that India had unleashed its brute and oppressive apparatus to browbeat Indian Muslims into submission. Commenting on the unabated persecution of Muslims in India by the Narendra Modi-led regime pursuing the Hindutva ideology, the prime minister said the whole plan was to further marginalise the the Indian Muslims politically, economically and culturally. “The whole plan is to further marginalise them politically, economically & culturally. The reality of India’s “democratic face” is before the world to see,” the prime minister remarked on Twitter.

Punjab by-polls: ECP invites applications for postal ballots IsLAMABAD sTaff rePorT

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday invited applications for issuance of postal ballot papers. “The applications for postal ballots can be submitted uptill July first,” the ECP said in a statement. Government employees and special persons could apply to the election commission for postal ballot papers, the ECP stated. “The inmates of jails in 20 vacant constituencies can also apply for the postal ballots,” according to the ECP. “The applications can be submitted to concerned returning officers. Such voters could not cast their votes at polling stations after issuance of postal ballot,” the election commission said. Polling for by election on 20 general seats of Punjab Assembly will be held on July 17. The ECP announced

fM bilawal’s two-day trip to Iran begins today IsLAMABAD news Desk

Foreign Minister Bilawal BhuttoZardari will travel to Tehran on a twoday official visit on Tuesday (today). Foreign Office sources informed on Monday that it will be his first visit to the country after taking office. According to sources, the foreign minister will meet his Iranian counterpart and other important government figures during his trip. They further added that both sides will discuss matters related to Pakistan-Iran’s cooperation in various fields, including energy, etc.

no differences on cabinet formation: syed Hassan Murtaza News Desk Punjab Senior Minister and General Secretary Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Central Punjab Syed Hassan Murtaza has said that there is no deadlock between Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and PPP on formation of the Punjab cabinet. Talking to the media outside the Punjab Assembly here on Monday, he said that former president Asif Ali Zardari would now stay in Lahore and monitor the upcoming by-elections. He said that relief had be given in almost every sector in the budget 2022-23 including health and agriculture.

by election on 20 provincial seats vacated after defecting MPAs of the PTI were de-seated. The ECP de-seated 25 dissident members of the PTI, who voted for PML-N’s Hamza Shehbaz Sharif in Punjab chief minister’s election. Speaker Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi had sent reference against 25 members including five members on reserved seats. The dissident lawmakers included Abdul Aleem Khan, Nazir Ahmed Chohan, Uzma Kardar, Faisal Hayat, Raja Sagheer Ahmed, Malik Ghulam Rasool Sangha, Saeed Akbar Khan, Mohammad Ajmal, Mohammad Amin Zulqernain, Malik Nauman Langrial, Mohammad Salman, Zawar Hussain Warraich, Nazir Ahmed Khan, Fida Hussain, Zahra Batool, Mohammad Tahir, Aisha Nawaz, Sajida Yousaf, Haroon Imran Gill, Malik Asad Ali, Ijaz Masih, Mohammad Sabtain Raza, Mohsin Atta Khan Khosa, Mian Khalid Mehmood and Mehar Mohammad Aslam.

juI-sherani forms alliance with PTI for upcoming polls IsLAMABAD mian abrar

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Sherani group (JUI) on Monday announced political and religious alliance with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). According to sources, Head of JUI Sherani Group, Maulana Mohammad Khan Sherani along with a 25-member delegation met PTI Chairman Imran Khan and announced to form an alliance with the PTI. Sherani group has strong following in Balochistan Province where the PTI doesn’t have strong following. Former NA deputy speaker Qasim Suri, former FM Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Pir Noorul-Haq Qadri, Senator Ijaz Chaudhry and other PTI leaders were also present in the meeting. Maulana Sherani said that the struggle against Islamophobia is one of the commonalities. Imran Khan welcomed the Head of JUI Sherani Group Maulana Khan Sherani along with a 25-member and said that PTI strives to achieve higher political and social goals beyond traditional politics. JUI leader and the CII’s exchairperson Maulana Muhammad Khan Sherani is regarded one of grand religious leaders of the followers of Deoband school of thought from Balochistan. Sherani who remained JUI-F’s head of Balochistan chapter had part ways with Maulana Fazkur Rehman and formed his own group in December 2020. On the occasion, Sherani said he had “inherited politics from great leaders”, announcing the separation of what he claimed was the original party from Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s group. The development came days after Sherani, as well as Hafiz Hussain Ahmed, another senior JUI leader, were expelled from Fazl’s faction over controversial statements against the party leader. Sherani had said Fazlur Rehman formed his “own group called the JUI”, clarifying that neither he nor his followers were ever a part of the JUI-F or the faction created by Fazlur Rehman. “We have always been and will always remain members in accordance with the constitution of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam,” Sherani, the former chairperson of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII), stressed. ‘DevoiD of truth anD honesty’: The former CII boss underlined that none of the JUI-P’s members would ever take any action against the teachings of Qur’an and Sunnah and that his companions needed to make their own decisions as to “whether to please God or to follow their own desires”. “What is happening now is devoid of truth and honesty,” he said, slamming Fazlur Rehman for differences among the party. “We have inherited politics from great leaders [but] these members are no longer members of this party,” he added.

Published by Arif Nizami at Plot No 66-C, 1st Floor, 21st Commercial Street, Phase-II (Extension), DHA Karachi and printed at Ibn-e-Hassan Printing Press, Hockey Stadium, Karachi, for PT Print (Pvt) Limited. Ph: 021-35381208-9. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk