In partnership with
SIDDQUI LABELS PTI’S APPROACH TO DIALOGUE, AS ‘CHILDISH AND ZIGZAG’
Profit
Sunday, 26 January, 2025 I 25 Rajabul Murajjab, 1446
PML-N SENATOR DISMISSES PTI’S EFFORTS TO FORM AN ALLIANCE TO CHALLENGE GOVT, ASSERTING SUCH ATTEMPTS ARE BOUND TO FAIL
S
g
g
QAISER SH EMPHASIZES THERE IS NO ALTERNATIVE TO NEGOTIATIONS FOR STABILITY OF COUNTRY
welcome. Until then, we have no plans to make any announcements. We have already completed 80% work on response
to their demands and are prepared to finalize the rest provided they show a willingness to continue negotiations.”
Commenting on PTI’s overall strategy, Senator said, “After exhausting all negative tactics like spreading hatred, inciting unrest, and running failed propaganda they briefly turned to negotiations, only to abandon them too. This shows their lack of sincerity and inability to sustain a constructive political process.” In response to a question, the Senator said that PTI likely believes that engaging in democratic dialogue with the government does not align with their political agenda. Instead, they appear inclined to revert to their old pattern of negative politics, which involves lobbying against the country and promoting baseless conspiracies on international platforms, he added.
ISLAMABAD
for discussions with genuine intent and open hearts,’ he said. The PTI chairman stressed that negotiations were the best course of action and lamented that the government did not reciprocate. Khan said: ‘The PTI had urged the government to announce a judicial commission within seven days. We specifically asked the government to make an official announcement within a week, but no steps were taken,’ he
said. ‘If the commission could not be formed, there was no point in sitting for mere photo sessions or hollow exchanges,’ Khan asserted. Earlier, Gohar had stated that the party's founder has put negotiations on hold. Barrister Gohar said to the media, "Seven days were enough to announce the commission. We are ready to reconsider, but the government must take the step of announcing the commission."
ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
POKESPERSON of Govt Negotiation Committee, Senator Irfan Siddiqui, said on Saturday criticized PTI for its “inconsistent and unserious approach” to dialogue, labeling it as “childish and zigzag behavior” while Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh emphasized that no alternative to negotiations for stability of the country. Speaking to a private news channel, he said that those who began the negotiation process with great enthusiasm abruptly abandoned it without any logical reason. “PTI lacks a structured and disciplined decision-making process. Their founder says one thing, while other leaders express entirely different views,” he added. The Senator further said that “Initially, they hesitated to engage in negotiations. Later, they wasted time by delaying their written demands. When they finally submitted them, both committees mutually agreed that the government would provide a written response within seven days, with January 28 set as the deadline. However, PTI prematurely announced the end of the negotiations before the set date.” He further clarified, “If PTI wants to return to the table on January 28, they are
Govt shown lack of commitment to initiate dialogue: Gohar STAFF REPORT
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Saturday claimed that the government had shown a lack of commitment to initiate dialogue. Speaking to the media outside the Anti-Terrorism Court in Islamabad, Khan said: ‘The PTI had approached the government with sincerity and goodwill to initiate dialogue.’ ‘We sat
Pakistan reports first mpox case of 2025 at Peshawar airport ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
Rs 20.00 | Vol XV No 201 I 8 Pages I Islamabad Edition
Pakistan reported its first mpox case of 2025, detected during screening by Border Health Services staff at the Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar. According to the Ministry of Health spokesperson, the suspected case tested positive, bringing the total number of Mpox cases to 10 since the health emergency was declared last year. Addressing a presser here in Islamabad on Saturday, Health Coordinator Dr Mukhtar Bharth informed that the patient had a travel history linked to Gulf countries. “We are ensuring effective measures to protect the public from Mpox. All airports have robust screening systems in place, and compliance with International Health Regulations is being ensured. Both federal and provincial governments are committed to combating Mpox,” Dr Bharth stated. Meanwhile, KhyberPakhtunkhwa Health Advisor Ehtesham Ali confirmed that the first Mpox case of 2025 was reported at Peshawar Airport. Upon detection, the Public Health team immediately reached the airport. He further added, “The Public Health team transferred the patient to Police Services Hospital, from where the patient’s samples were sent to the Public Health Reference Lab. Mpox was confirmed in a 35-year-old individual who arrived from Dubai.” The Provincial Health Advisor also mentioned that a letter has been sent to the Peshawar Airport Manager requesting passenger details of those in proximity to the patient. “Once passenger information is received, respective District Health Officers (DHOs) will be notified for contact tracing,” he added. The statement revealed that a total of 10 Mpox cases have been reported in the province so far, with two in 2023, seven in 2024, and the first case of 2025. It urged the public to practice social distancing and remain vigilant. Last year, the health ministry confirmed the country’s eighth case of the mpox virus this year, involving a 32-year-old patient who had recently returned from the Gulf.
Morocco boat tragedy survivors to be repatriated: Foreign Office ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
The Foreign Office on Saturday issued a statement announcing that 22 Pakistanis who survived a migrant vessel capsizing near Morocco will be repatriated. The FO said on January 16 that the boat, carrying 80 passengers, capsized near Morocco, with over 40 Pakistanis reportedly among the dead. Migrant rights group Walking Borders said as many as 50 migrants may have drowned in the latest deadly wreck involving people trying to make the crossing from West Africa to Spain’s Canary Islands. Last Saturday, a high-ranking government team was dispatched to
Morocco on the orders of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to assess the situation. The team conducted detailed interviews of the 21 survivors in the Moroccan town of Dakhla, as well as meetings with officials at the Pakistani embassy in Rabat. According to the FO statement issued today, arrangements are being made for the repatriation of 22 Pakistani survivors staying in Dakhla. “Following thorough investigations and careful coordination with Moroccan authorities, these individuals will be returned to Pakistan in batches,” the statement read. The FO added that the embassy in Rabat has been closely working with Moroccan authorities and that the consular team in Dakhla was “instrumental” in
planning the return of survivors. “The Foreign Ministry’s Crisis Management Unit (CMU) has been actively engaged in monitoring the situation, providing necessary support to the affected individuals, and maintaining active communication with their families,” the FO added. “National identity verification remained a critical component of this process which was completed expeditiously in coordination with the Interior Ministry and the relevant departments.” The statement added that the FO is facilitating the repatriation of 11 Pakistanis from Mauritania through a separate process, adding that they have “voluntarily chosen to return home”.
Two ringleaders among 30 terrorists neutralized in three KP-wide IBOs RAWALPINDI
STAFF REPORT
Security forces killed 30 terrorists, including two ringleaders during three separate intelligence-based operations across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the military’s media wing said on Saturday. A statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that the first encounter took place in KP’s Lakki Marwat, where an intelligencebased operation (IBO) was carried out on the reported presence of terrorists. During the operation, security personnel engaged the terrorists, killing 18 of them and leaving another six injured, it added. The second IBO was conducted in Karak, according to the statement. “In [the] ensuing fire exchange, eight khwarij were effectively neutralised by the security forces,” the ISPR said, using the term designating members of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). In the third encounter, security personnel conducted an (IBO) in the Khyber district’s Bagh area, where they killed four terrorists and injured two others. “Four khwarij including kharji ring leaders Azizur Rehman@ Qari Ismail and Mukhlis were sent to hell, while two khwarij got injured,” the ISPR said. Weapons and ammunition were recovered from the slain terrorists, who “remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the area against the security forces as well as killing of innocent civilians”, according to the ISPR. “Sanitisation operations are being conducted to eliminate any other Kharji found in the area as the security forces of Pakistan are determined to wipe out the menace of terrorism from the country,” the statement concluded. On January 17, five terrorists were killed in an IBO in the Khyber district’s Tirah area, the military’s media wing said. A statement from the ISPR said the IBO was conducted based on the reported presence of terrorists. It added that the security forces engaged the terrorists and as a result, five, including ringleader Abidullah aka Turab, “were sent to hell” while one was apprehended. Pakistan has been grappling with an uptick in terror activities, especially in KP and Balochistan, since the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan broke a fragile ceasefire agreement with the government in 2022. According to the report of the Islamabad-based think tank Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS) released earlier this month, the number of terror attacks in 2024 reached levels comparable to the security situation in 2014 or earlier. It said that terrorists no longer controlled specific territories inside Pakistan as they did in 2014, terming the prevailing insecurity in parts of KP and Balochistan “alarming”. It said that over 95 per cent of terrorist attacks recorded in 2024 were concentrated in KP and Balochistan.
PTI replaces Gandapur with Junaid Akbar as party’s KP president ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has appointed MNA Junaid Akbar as the party’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa president, replacing the incumbent provincial president Ali Amin Gandapur, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said on Saturday. Talking to reporters outside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail on Saturday, Raja claimed, “The change has been made to lessen burden of Ali Amin Gan-
dapur who has a great deal of responsibilities as KP chief minister and faces many challenges in governance and ensuring law and order.” “Therefore, at his (Gandapur’s) request, PTI founder Imran Khan decided that Junaid Akbar Khan will become PTI president in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.” A day ago, Akbar was elected chairman of the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) unopposed, filling a position left vacant since the General Elections in February 2024. “Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, Opposi-
tion Leader Omar Ayub Khan, Senator Shibli Faraz and others proposed the name of Junaid Akbar Khan,” a press release from the NA read, adding that he received support from MNAs including Riaz Fatiana, Malik Aamir Dogar, Wazhiya Qamar and Sardar Muhammad Yousaf Zaman. The PTI secretary general continued that party’s woman leader Aliya Hamza will be assigned a greater role in the party. “Imran Khan wants her to have a bigger role. We will have a meeting and decide what role to assign her.”
After being appointed PTI KP president, Akbar issued a statement on X expressing gratitude for his appointment. “I am a middle-class person and I got this position because of hard work. Which is not found in other parties,” he wrote. Speaking to reporters, he said, “Do not confuse our good faith with weakness. We want the rift between the public and institutions to be closed. We will not be scared or pressured, because we are not a party that can be scared or pressured.”
Justice Shah objects to bench formed for hearing ICA against contempt notice g
SAYS JUSTICE MANDOKHAIL AND JUSTICE MAZHAR CANNOT SIT ON LARGER BENCH DUE TO CONFLICT OF INTEREST ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
Senior puisne judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah has raised objection to inclusion of two judges in the larger bench formed to hear the additional registrar’s intra-court appeal (ICA) against issuance of contempt notice. A three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah on January 21, issued the contempt notice to Additional Registrar (Judicial) Nazar Abbas after a slew of cases were withdrawn from the bench and were referred to a committee of the constitutional bench for re-listing. Following the development, Nazar Abbas filed an ICA against the show-cause notice, which was listed for hearing before a six-member larger bench on Thursday.
An SC committee formed the bench led by Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail and comprising Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Shahid Waheed and Justice Musarrat Hilali by a majority vote. The bench is scheduled to hear the case on January 27. Taking exception to the bench, Justice Shah said the judges who have a conflict of interest cannot sit on the bench. “Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar are the members of the committee constituted under clause (4) of Article 191-A of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan,” said Justice Shah in his written objections to the larger bench. “The said Committee took up the matter of CPLA No.836-K/2020 and fixed it on 27.1.2025 before the Constitutional Bench, hence they
cannot be members of the Bench as the decisions of both the Committees are in question in the contempt proceedings,” he said. Justice Shah said after the meeting of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan on Friday, Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi called an informal meeting of the three-member committee in his chambers. CJP Afridi, Justice Shah and Justice Aminuddin Khan attended the meeting. “It was agreed that a larger Bench be constituted to hear the Intra Court Appeal in the matter. I recommended the constitution of a larger Bench comprising five judges in order of seniority, excluding those who cannot hear the said ICA due to conflict of interest. “However, the CJP expressed that he would like a four-member bench in the matter and the meeting ended
there. Later in the night [of January 23], I received a WhatsApp message at 9:33 pm from my Secretary seeking approval regarding a proposed sixmember Bench for approval as a member of the Committee. “I informed my Secretary that I will attend to this file in the morning. Later on my Secretary at 10:28 pm shared the Court Roster on WhatsApp issued by the Registrar after approval from the two members of the Committee constituted under section 2(1) of the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023. “On receipt of the Court Roster, I communicated my objection through WhatsApp for onward transmission to concerned officials. I am recording the said objection here for record along with the background regarding the constitution of the said larger Bench.
“My objection to this hurriedly constituted larger Bench is that the judges who have conflict of interest in the matter cannot sit on the Bench,” he added. Justice Shah said that since he did not get a chance to record his opinion on the file as the actual file
was never sent to his office and the majority itself decided the matter and issued the roster. “Therefore, I want this note to be placed on the record of the decision of the Committee dated 23.1.2025 constituting the larger Bench,” he concluded.