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G overnor inaugurates College of engineering & Technology at UoS
Punjab Governor Muhammad Balighur Rehman on Thursday inaugurated the newly-constructed College of Engineering & Technology at Allama
Iqbal Campus of the University of Sargodha (UoS) The campus spread over 50 acres has been built through an investment of Rs1 100 million funds provided by the Punjab Higher Education
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UoS Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Qaisar
Abbas expressed his profound gratitude to the Punjab Governor for gracing the momentous occasion He briefed the Governor on the remarkable academic and developmental progress of the university and underlined the institution s dedication to providing skillbased knowledge to empower students to support themselves financially, rather than relying solely on their parents’ resources Furthermore Prof Dr Qaisar Abbas unveiled plans for the establishment of a cutting-edge center, envisioned to cultivate skills, nurture innovative ideas, and facilitate their translation into the market “This forward-looking initiative aligns with the university s commitment to producing graduates who are not only academically proficient but also wellequipped to make tangible contributions to their fields and the broader economy” he added
Addressing the enthusiastic gathering Governor Muhammad Balighur Rehman lauded the efforts of the university administration in successfully completing the project He commended the University of Sargodha s achievements, citing its prestigious ranking as the top institution in Punjab and the second-best in Pakistan for its exemplary teaching practices He urged the university to continue its commitment to educational excellence and to keep adapting to the changing educational landscape
T h e B a n k o f P u n j a b s e c u r e s t o p r a n k i n S B P ' s A g r i c u l t u r e C r e d i t S c o r i n g M o d e l f o r F Y 2 0 2 3
LAHORE S ta f f R e p o R t
Muhammad Balighur Rehman also highlighted the critical importance of investing in the youth, who are the future leaders of the nation and ready to take charge of the country s destiny The governor emphasized the need to equip students with technical skills and knowledge that would foster research productivity and innovation
The governor further emphasized, “The University should introduce the ‘Financial Assistance Program’ to address the needs of students who are forced to discontinue their education due to financial constraints and similar challenges
Dignitaries from various sectors also graced the inaugural ceremony, including Commissioner Sargodha Muhammad Ajmal Bhatti Regional Police Officer Shariq Kamal Deputy Commissioner Captain (Retd ) Shoaib Ali District Police Officer Faisal Kamran, exparliamentarians, representatives from civil society, as well as academic and administrative heads of the university
The ceremony concluded with Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Qaisar Abbas presented a commemorative souvenir to Governor Muhammad Balighur Rehman for his continuous support and presence
PM Shehbaz terms massive crime if contents of leaked ‘cipher ’ true
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I asked Don[ald Lu] if the reason for a strong US reaction was Pakistan’s abstention in the voting in the UNGA [United Nations General Assembly] He categorically replied in the negative and said that it was due to the Prime Minister s visit to Moscow The Intercept quoted from the purported cable
According to the text Lu then said I think if the no-confidence vote against the Prime Minister succeeds, all will be forgiven in Washington because the Russia visit is being looked at as a decision by the Prime Minister Otherwise I think it will be tough going ahead These words were ostensibly the threat that the former PM alluded to when he claimed there was a US conspiracy to overthrow his government
Obviously there is no conspiracy, but for a US official to use these words is unacceptable, a senior diplomat commented, referring to Lu’s remark that “all will be forgiven” if the vote of no confidence succeeds
The purported text of the cable details how Asad Majeed Khan tried to dispel the impression that Imran s visit to Russia was anything but a bilateral one that shouldn t be seen as an endorsement of Moscow s action against Ukraine The ambassador also conveyed how there was also a “feeling that while the US expected Pakistan’s support on all issues that were important to the US it did not reciprocate and we do not see much US support on issues of concern for Pakistan
Ministr y encourages devotees to apply for pilgrimage to annual Urs of Kh Moinuddin Chishti
ISLAMABAD
S ta f f R e p o R t
The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony has opened its doors to fervent Pakistani pilgrims encouraging them to seize the opportunity and apply for participation in the annual Urs of the revered Sufi saint Hazrat Khawaja Moinuddin Chishti scheduled to be held in Ajmer Sharif, India The Ministry’s Spokesperson Muhammad Umar Butt on Thursday informed that pilgrims could submit their applications through the dedicated Ziyarat form until August 31 2023 He said the Urs ceremonies a cherished tradition among followers were set to grace the holy city of Ajmer Sharif from January 13 to 23 2024 Devotees from Pakistan and beyond would have the privilege to engage in this spiritually uplifting event, he added He said in anticipation of an overwhelming response if the number of applications surpass the available slots a selection draw would be conducted on October 10 2023 particularly on Kashmir
Asad Majeed Khan also asked the US diplomat that if Pakistan s position on Ukraine was so important to Washington why it had not engaged with Islamabad prior to the Russia visit by then-PM Imran Khan
At this, Donald Lu replied that: The thinking in Washington was that given the current political turmoil in Pakistan, this was not the right time for such engagement and it could wait till the political situation in Pakistan settled down
Subsequently in his own assessment at the tail-end of the purported text of the cable Asad Majeed Khan noted that Lu could not have conveyed such a strong sentiment without the express approval of the White House, to which he referred repeatedly ” In the envoy’s own assessment it was clear that Lu “spoke out of turn on Pakistan’s internal political process We need to seriously reflect on this and consider making an appropriate demarche to the US charge d affaires in Islamabad
‘PML-N SUPREMO RETURNING TO PAKISTAN NEXT MONTH’
Meanwhile, outgoing Prime Minister Shehbaz
Sharif on Thursday said PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif would return to Pakistan next month
After the caretaker government takes the reins I intend to take a trip to London where I will finalise the programme with him If God permits, he will return to Pakistan next month, Shehbaz said about the expected return of his elder brother on a TV talk show
The elder Sharif departed the country in November 2019 for medical treatment following his conviction in a corruption case He has not returned since and faces multiple cases in Pakistan When Shehbaz was asked about the possibility of the caretaker government creating any issues” for Nawaz upon his return, the PM replied, “He will face the law ” He further said that God willing, Nawaz would lead the PML-N’s election campaign and assume the role of the prime minister for a fourth time if the PML-N would emerge victorious in the polls Nawaz s expected return next month would also coincide with the retirement of Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial, who PML-N leaders have termed an impediment in the way of Nawaz’s return Meanwhile in what was seen as a move to pave the way for Nawaz’s return the National Assembly and Senate approved the Elections (Amendment) Act 2023 in June which empowered the Election Commission of Pakistan to unilaterally fix the date for elections and also limits the lawmakers disqualification period to five years with retrospective effect The bill, dubbed as ‘person-specific legislation’ by the opposition, was expected to benefit Nawaz and newly-formed Istehkami-Pakistan Party (IPP) patron Jahangir Khan Tareen The two were disqualified for life more than five years ago after a Supreme Court judgement ruled that the disqualification under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution was for life
State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) introduced a comprehensive Scoring Model to gauge the agriculture credit performance of the banks Based on this scoring model banks are ranked according to their sizes The Bank of Punjab (BOP) has been ranked at 1st Position in the Mid-Size Banks for the FY 2023 It is pertinent to mention here that on an overall basis, BOP s score is the second highest among all commercial banks regardless of their Tier Size This score has weightage of outstanding borrowers regional / geographical disbursements outstanding portfolio and overall disbursement with regards to Agriculture sector and includes both Farm and Non-Farm Sectors BOP has not only increased its agriculture customer base but also booked one of the largest Collateral Free Loans portfolios of Agriculture customers whereby loans are extended for Poultry Dairy and Animal Fattening against personal guarantee of the borrowers Introduction of Customer Centric proposition is the heart of bank s strategy Bank has dedicated branches to cater to Agriculture Sector needs, equipped with well-trained Agriculture Relationship Managers BOP offers extensive products under the Kissan Dost Umbrella which ranges from Lucrative everyday Banking accounts to Need Specific Loan Products BOP is also focused to use modern day technology and innovative tools for the well-being of its customers Recent launch of Kissan Digital Portal is the testimony to this fact, followed by its collaboration with different Agritechs for provision of Advisory Services in respect of Weather Forecasts Cropping Pesticide spraying and Utilizing Drones for Sprays to the Farmers Bank has also collaborated with Punjab Land Record Authority for real time lien marking on Agriculture properties situated in Punjab Province BOP stands committed to promote development and sustainability of agriculture sector by leveraging its Network and State of Art products and services
Lahore police constable ‘steals’ 40 motorcycles
LAHORE S ta f f R e p o R t
Pak- C hina welding school help loc als lighten up future
In an astonishing incident a Lahore police constable stands accused of orchestrating the audacious theft of forty motorcycles A police constable, identified as Ilyas allegedly masterminded the theft of an astounding forty motorcycles, swiped right from under the nose of the very institution he was tasked to protect The audacious crime unfolded when Constable Ilyas reportedly conspired with an individual named Akram who was reportedly known in local circles as a junkie The duo meticulously executed their plan, making away with forty parked motorcycles that were stationed just outside the police station Their audacity reached new heights as they covertly stashed their loot in a warehouse located in the Harbanspura area KARACHI
A Karachi-based “Welding School” under the Greater Karachi Water Supply Scheme – also known as K-IV – has trained several technical talents locally helping the locals receive both training and
According to the school, it was jointly launched by Pakistan Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) and China Communications Construction Company Limited (CCCC) and each training session lasts for seven days training center led by professional Chinese welding masters specifically providing practical training and technical guidance for local
This school is dedicated to helping the locals improve their welding skills
After training, the project will greenlight outstanding trainees’ employment by allowing them to join the project or they can also choose to work for other companies P a k i s t a n i F e d e r a l M i n i s t e r f o r Wa t e r R e s o u r c e s S y e d K h u r s h e e d A h m e d S h a h h i g h l i g h t e d t h a t t h e c o m p l e t i o n o f t h e K - I V p r o j e c t w i l l effectively alleviate the water shortage in Karachi and so to improve people s l i v e s a n d p r o m o t e e c o n o m i c development in the region
K-IV is the largest livelihood project in Pakistan to date, and upon completion, it will solve the water problem for over 20 million people in Karachi
The reporter learned that the project has been underway for one year and 39% construction has already been completed
The appearance of the purported cipher text sheds a poor light on our security
ABOUT a year and a half after Prime Minister Imran Khan was removed from office, The Intercept magazine of the USA has printed the cipher that Mr Khan has claimed showed he was removed due to a conspiracy involving the USA and the opposition The purported text shows US Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu as telling the Pakistani Ambassador that Mr Khan’ visit to Moscow on the day Russia invaded Ukraine had been noted but ‘all would be forgiven’ if Mr Khan was removed through the no-confidence motion There has been a lot of controversy about this cipher, as it was allegedly discussed by Mr Khan with Cabinet colleagues (who have since left the PTI) and his Principal SectretaryAzam Khan, who has since turned approver against him Mr Khan waved a copy of the cipher before being ousted to a public rally, but before being ousted
Perhaps the most intriguing part of the whole affair is where the magazine got a copy of the cipher It said that it did so from a military source in Pakistan This requires strict accounting, because a cipher is supposed to be a very secret document not a flier that can be handed out to any casual visitor Foreign Office denials are not going to be enough An investigation is required not just to assign blame, but also to recommend procedures preventing a recurrence After all Pakistan stands revealed before the world as a country that cannot be trusted, because there will be no knowing when or where cipher reports of conversations with its diplomats may appear in the media The waving of the cipher represented the first time such use was ever made of a secret document by a Prime Minister A separate issue has also developed that of where the waved document has gone Mr Khan airly says that he has ‘lost it Perhaps he need be told that while sufficient explanationfor cricket-boot laces, it will not wash for diplomatic ciphers
Apart from the issue of criminal liability under the Official Secrets Act, there is the question of timing The appearance of this report coincides with Mr Khan beginning a jail sentence for asset concealment and with the end of the government consequent upon the dissolution of the National Assembly Mr Khan has deep roots within the expatriate community, and personal contacts abroad It is within the realm of possibility that he might be using them
Dedicated to the legac y of late Hameed Nizami
Arif Nizami (Late)
Founding Editor
Yousaf Nizami Editor
M A Niazi Joint Editor Umar Aziz Executive Editor
PTI chief Imran Khan’s arrest was qualitatively different from two months ago Then it had been in execution of a NAB warrant by Rangers personnel to make him join an investigation, from the premises of a high court, where he had gone in connection with other cases This time, it was in execution of a conviction by a sessions court by the Punjab police to make him begin a sentence of imprisonment from his home
That it was from his home and not the court is a sign of how mildly the legal system has dealt with an ex-PM By not arresting him initially, the court had not submitted him to the indignities of an under-trial prisoner, which included the rather remote risk of being placed in leg-irons to prevent him trying to make an escape
It was to no one s credit that Imran was the third former Prime Minister to be arrested as well as convicted though in the case of the first two Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Mian Nawaz Sharif, the more orthodox method of arrest before conviction was observed Actually, Imran was the fourth to be convicted, Yousaf Reza Gilani being found guilty of contempt and Mian Nawaz Sharif in his last term being removed by the Supreme Court finding him not sadiq and ameen and thus liable to disqualification Imran was the first to be removed by a vote of no-confidence
Except for 1993, the Supreme Court upheld all the four dissolutions of the National Assembly carried out by the President under Article 58 (2b) (1988 1990 1993 1996) In 1993 though the Assembly was restored the crisis continued when Mian Manzoor Wattoo replaced Ghulam Hyder Wyne after the dissolution, and resisted the federal imposition of Emergency, with the result that the President resigned and the Prime Minister dissolved the National Assembly Elected in 1996 Mian Nawaz did not confront the military but the judiciary Not only did he have the Chief Justice removed but he repealed Article 58(2b) However, not only was he removed by a military coup, but the judiciary upheld that decision
Since then, the pattern has continued of the Prime Minister losing office around the third year of his term The National Assembly remains and a new PM emerges The first example is of Zafarullah Jamali who took office in 2002 and resigned in 2004 making way for Shaukat Aziz Yusuf Reza Gilani took office in 2008 at the head of a PPP government, and was then convicted by the Supreme Court of contempt, and thus disqualified as an MNA, thus removed as PM Raja Pervez Ashraf replacing him until the House was dissolved Nawaz Sharif was disqualified by the Supreme Court from the National Assembly in 2017 being replaced by Shahid Khaqan Abbasi His disqualification for not being sadiq and ameen was later declared to be for life To that extent, Imran is also better off, for the Constitution prescribes that he will be disqualified for five years after his release from jail His original sentence being for three years subject to the usual remissios, he should be released in a year and a half If he pays the fine of Rs 20,000, well and good, but if he doesn’t, another six months would be tacked on to his sentence again subject to the usual reissions Add five further years of disqualification it would mean he would not be able to return to politics till 2032 If elections are held on time it would mean that Imran would not only miss this election, but the next, in 2028 He would only be able to return to electoral politics a year before the election of 2033 Of course that is if the next elections are held on time which is not necessarily a safe assumption Another factor is that Imran who is already 70 would be 80 in 2033 Of course, he could look to the example of his archenemy, Mian Nawaz He is proclaimed as likely to return as PM a fourth time That implies he has been forgiven by the establishment for whatever signs led to his ouster in 2017 He is going to turn 75 in December That seems to be no bar If he can make a comeback why can’t Imran? Of course Nawaz has had the immense advantage of having Shehbaz at his side, not just a loyal deputy to fill in as party president and PM but also someone who can build bridges with the establishment Neither Imran s sisters nor sons can perform the last role even if they could fill in the others Because of this one of the major problems for Imran seems to be finding a substitute for the party leader Before May 9 there was a lot of jostling but now there is not because of the number of desertions Those who have retained loyal are not being rewarded but are viewed with suspicion by Imran mainly because of their contacts with the establishment The question seems to be why would the establishment allow them to remain, when it had pulled out everyone else? in 2009 Imran on the other hand has received a threeyear sentence for what is actually a white-ollar crime
It must also be noted that Bhutto and Nawaz were convicted in ways that made the courts look bad Bhutto was convicted for abetment of murder and became the only person ever sentenced to death for abetment, and to have the death sentence upheld by the Supreme Court Interestingly, no court has followed that precedent
Similarly Nawaz did not look anything like a hijacker or a terrorist nor had he been on the plane when the alleged hijacking took place
On the other hand the charges against Imran are credible Of course, supporters would swear by his honesty, but the crime is not one which is beyond him Nor did the judge have to strain any laws in making the conviction He may not have an honest face but then no one would claim it was particularly dishonest
There are certain problems with the conviction which may provide grounds for appeal, however First is the issue of the debate on maintainability The second is the refusal of the trial court to allow the defence witnesses However it will be up to the appellate forum whether it allows the appeal to result in an appeal or it orders a retrial For example if the trial was not maintainable, the appellate court may identify the appropriate forum, and remand the case there If it allows the witnesses it may order the trial court to pronounce a fresh verdict after hearing the witnesses
Politicians are attracted by the support they will get, the electables thrown their way. The landscape seems littered with parties that at one time or another were flavour of the month. However, no party leader at the moment seems comfortable with establishment interference in politics. That is a problem for the establishment perhaps bigger than Imran‘s fate.
It is also possible that such appeals are held back for the right time when the establishment has need of him again Pakistan s political history seems to show that the establishment does not make fresh mistakes and merely repeats the old ones The political forces it has produced have certain roots in the people already; that is why they are patronized
However, one encouraging sign for Imran is that the charges against former PMs are growing less serious Bhutto faced a capital charge and was duly convicted and hanged Nawaz faced a hijacking charge the first time and went into exile after getting two life terms in 2000 The conviction was quashed
