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Friday, 11 March, 2022 I 7 shaʽban, 1443 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XII No 252 I 12 Pages I karachi Edition

imrAn Confident of trust vote triumPh desPite rebel mPs, CoAlition ruPture threAts

ISLAMABAD

staff report

mid growing ruptures within the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-insaf (PTi) party and strenuous efforts by the prime minister to contain the damage in time to fight the no-confidence vote against him, a confident imran Khan on Thursday said his government was firm on the political front. His views came during a meeting with Punjab Governor Chaudhry muhammad Sarwar and Chief minister Usman Buzdar in Lahore where he arrived on a day-long tour to soothe relations between the chief minister and the PTi legislators in the province demanding his removal. A group of some two dozen mPs led by disgruntled PTi leader Jahangir Tareen, who earlier this week welcomed another estranged party mP Aleem Khan to the fold, has ramped up the pressure on Khan, demanding Buzdar’s removal and discussing a possible no-confidence motion in the house to oust him. On Wednesday, a six-member dele-

gation of the posse, led by provincial minister Nauman Langrial, discussed the motion with Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, who is also the leader of the Pakistan muslim LeagueQuaid (PmL-Q), and sought guidance whether the disgruntled members could submit such a motion or not. Reportedly, the group also sought the PmL-Q’s support to remove the Buzdar government. But Elahi did not commit anything and agreed to stay in touch with the mPs. However, the prime minister, in his meeting with Buzdar and Sarwar, said the most important political matters will take place in islamabad given the fact the National Assembly is situated there. “A detailed discussion on Punjab’s political situation will be held after due diligence,” Khan said during the meeting. The meeting also discussed the latest political situation and administrative matters among other matters, Radio Pakistan reported. members of the federal cabinet Asad Umar, Shafqat mahmood, Hammad Azhar, Khusro Bakhtiar and Shah

CoronAvirus in

PAkistAn

CONFIRMED CASES:

1,516,789

LAST UPDATED AT 8:07 AM ON MARCH 10, 2022

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

NEW CASES:

639

RECOVERED:

DEATHS:

1,468,449 30,291 SINDH:

PUNJAB:

570,934

503,279

KPK:

BALOCHISTAN:

217,690

35,403

AJK/GB:

ISLAMABAD:

43,149/11,598

134,736

mahmood Qureshi are also with the prime minister in Lahore. Khan is expected to hold a meeting of the parliamentary party to seek assurance of the party members and address their grievances ahead of crucial voting on the motion, Geo News reported. BRING ON THE CHALLENGE: The prime minister has vowed to fight any move to unseat him. “Whatever they do, i’m ready for that,” he told a gathering in islamabad. in 2018, Khan and his party campaigned on promises to end widespread graft while building an “islamic welfare state”. “First of all, we will start strict accountability. i promise to my God that everyone who looted this country will be made accountable,” he said in a divisive speech in parliament after the elections. He faced myriad challenges including militant extremism, water shortages, and a rapidly growing population negating growth in the developing country, among others. most pressing was a looming economic crisis, with the government finding itself forced to seek a bailout from the international monetary Fund (imF) on unpopular terms, resulting in soaring prices and inflation. in march last year, he survived a vote of confidence by the parliament securing 178 votes in the 340-seat House through an open ballot. Today, opposition leaders claim Khan has lost public support as he struggles with inflation, a rising current account deficit and depleting foreign reserves. He has responded to economic problems with cuts in fuel and electricity prices, while rejecting calls to step down and warning the opposition of unspecified consequences if they force a vote of no-confidence. Both the opposition and Khan’s party are riven by factions. Khan won a confidence vote last year by six votes. The next general elections are due by 2023.

Police conduct operation inside Parliament Lodges, arrest 10 ISLAMABAD staff report

islamabad police conducted an operation inside the Parliament Lodges after members of Ansarul islam, a volunteer wing of the Jamiat Ulema-iislam-Fazl (JUi-F), entered the building in large numbers on Thursday. during the operation, the police made 10 arrests. However, according to Federal Capital Police, two JUi-F mNAs including Salahuddin Ayubi and Jamaluddin went along with the arrested and have been insisting to be arrested along with the JUi Force. Videos on social media showed police officials conducting a search inside the building, looking for “the ones in uniforms”, making arrests and forcing JUi-F workers out of the lodges. Earlier, islamabad inspector General of Police muhammad Ahsan Younus took notice of the group’s presence inside the building and suspended the officials in charge at d-Chowk, under whose watch the group members had entered the lodges. meanwhile, interior minister Sheikh Rasheed accused JUi-F of bringing workers of Ansarul islam inside the lodges. Talking to a private news channel, he said: “People were hidden inside the lodges. We still wanted the matter to be resolved peacefully …

Pakistan seeks India’s explanation over fall of projectile in Mian Channu newS DeSk inter-Services Public Relations (iSPR) director General maj. General Babar iftikhar on Thursday briefed the media on an indian “high speed flying object” that fell in mian Channu, Khanewal district on Wednesday night. “it was a supersonic flying object, most probably a missile, but it was certainly unarmed,” he said. Earlier reports had suggested that a private aircraft had crashed in the area. “On march 9, at 6:43pm, a high speed flying object was picked up inside the indian territory by Air defence Operations Centre of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF),” he began. “From its initial course, the object suddenly manoeuvred towards Pakistani territory and violated Pakistan’s air space, ultimately falling near mian Channu at 6:50pm.” “When it fell, it damaged civilian properties,” he said, adding no loss of life was reported. “PAF continuously monitored the complete flying path of the object, from its point of origin near Sirsa in india to its point of impact, near mian Channu. “it initiated requisite tactical

but they beat and locked up police officials and did not hand over Ansarul islam members.” “We are also trying to prevent others from coming to parliament,” he added. FAzL INsTRuCTs wORkERs TO HEAd TO CAPITAL: Later, JUi-F chief Fazlur Rahman arrived at the lodges and called on his party workers to gather in the capital. “i want to tell my party workers to either reach islamabad or block roads in their cities and resist this incompetent govt,” he said. “We demand that our mNAs and others be released and that they (authorities) apologise. We have declared war and will not forgive them for this terrorism,” he added. PML-N dEMANds RELEAsE OF JuI-F wORkERs: PmL-N President Shehbaz Sharif condemned the operation and demanded for immediate expulsion of police from the Parliament Lodges. “Raiding the residence of members of the parliament is [open] bullying. Police’s torture and arrests of parliamentary members is highly condemnable,” he said. PmL-N leader maryam Nawaz said islamabad police should refrain from becoming a “tool” of Pm imran and his government. “Taking the blame for such madness-based actions is not appropriate. [You] will have to suffer losses,” she warned.

more inside

SC serves notice on Pm in 2015 byelection case STORY ON PAGE 02

Govt set to provide Rs 8.280 billion Ramzan relief package STORY ON PAGE 03

actions,” he said. “it is important to highlight that the flight path of this object endangered many international and domestic passenger flights — both in indian and Pakistani air space — as well as human life and property on ground. “Whatever caused this incident to happen, it is for the indians to explain. it, nevertheless, shows their disregard for aviation safety and reflects very poorly on their technological prowess and procedural efficiency,” he said, adding that this could have resulted in a

major aviation disaster. “Pakistan strongly protests this flagrant violation and cautions against recurrence of any such incident in the future,” he warned. Air Vice marshall Tariq Zia told the media that at the time this projectile was picked up, there were two airway routes active and several commercial airlines in the area. “if you look at the speed and height of the projectile, it was 40,000 feet high, and the airlines were between 35,000 to 42,000 feet.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

Cracks emerge in Jahangir Tareen group as Pm Khan visits Lahore STORY ON BACK PAGE

Fawad says ‘Army stands with govt just as required under Constitution’ STORY ON BACK PAGE

Friday, 11 March, 2022 | KARACHI

NEWS

SC ServeS notiCe on PM in 2015 by-eleCtion CASe IsLAMABAD

Staff RepoRt

HE Supreme Court on Thursday issued a notice to the prime minister on a petition moved in 2015 by then-National Assembly speaker Ayaz Sadiq against his de-seating by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP)

as a member of the House. Sadiq was re-elected to the House in October 2015, months after an election tribunal de-seated him as MP from NA122 (Lahore-V) on charges of irregularities during the 2013 elections wherein he had defeated Imran Khan, defeating Abdul Aleem Khan of PTI by a narrow lead of around 4,000 votes.

The tribunal had also imposed a fine of Rs2.5 million on the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MP who then approached the Supreme Court against the judgement. In his appeal filed at the Lahore registry of Supreme Court, Sadiq had maintained the tribunal’s impugned order was against the facts of the case and laws

governing the election process. The petition was pending since then. On Thursday, after nearly seven years, a three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, took up the request and issued notice to the prime minister. During the hearing, the bench observed the case was related to the 2013

elections, adding the term of those polls had ended in 2018. At this, Sadiq’s counsel said his client was fined penalised. Subsequently, the court issued notices to the ECP and National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra), directing them to pay for the expenses borne during the scrutiny of record.

Graft watchdog team raids ‘Lost generation’ feared as coronavirus residence of former PML-N senator school closures fuel inequality LAHOre MonitoRing RepoRt

A team of the Rawalpindi Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) raided the residence of former Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) senator Chaudhary Tanvir Khan to arrest him in connection with an investigation into the purported occupation of state-owned land. The district administration claims a portion of land measuring 64 kanals belonged to the government and was meant for a highway. The senator’s house, commercial buildings and wedding halls and marquees encroached on the land, it claimed.

“Around 20 kanals of land was included in the house located adjacent to Bahria Town Phase VII while the remaining 44 kanals comprised the Walliayat Complex, which housed commercial plazas, marriage halls and marquees,” then-deputy commissioner Saifullah Dogar said in 2020. But, Daniyal Chaudhry, Khan’s son, claimed his family owned the land in question and had it in their possession for many years. Thursday’s raid was carried out to arrest Khan from his residence. Reportedly, at the time of the operation, the wedding ceremony of his son was going on at the place.

New DeLHI ReuteRS

Standing in front of India’s Taj Mahal, tour guide Raju Usmani fears for his daughter’s future. With Covid-19 decimating his income, he may have to pull her out of school just as she is catching up after nearly two years stuck at home. Areeba, 10, is among 1.6 billion children globally — more than 90 percent of all school students — who have been affected by pandemic school closures, which threaten to widen wealth inequalities both within and between countries. “We’re running the risk of a lost generation,” UN education expert Robert Jenkins told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “It’s a now-or-never moment to turn things around.” Without urgent action, many countries could end up without the skilled workers they need for their future development, said Jenkins, head of education at UN children’s agency UNICEF.

He is also increasingly concerned about the risk of social instability in countries where a large number of youths are left without skills, jobs or hope. Children in low- and middle-income nations have been disproportionately affected as their schools tended to shut for longer and they were less able to access remote learning, UNICEF said ahead of the pandemic’s twoyear anniversary on Friday. There are no global figures on the numbers who have dropped out. But evidence from Uganda — where schools reopened in January after being shut for a record 22 months — suggests up to 30 percent of children may not return to class. School closures have increased child labour, adolescent pregnancies and early marriages, children’s rights activists say. And many parents impoverished by lockdowns can no longer afford to send their children to school. The World Bank says classroom shutdowns could cost children $17 trillion in lifetime earnings — the equivalent of 14 percent of today’s global gross domestic

product (GDP) — as education losses limit their future opportunities. CRITICAL MOMENT: Educators say the world is at a crossroads. Reopening classrooms is not enough – schools must assess children and adapt curriculums to help them catch up. Evidence from past crises such as the 2005 earthquake in Azad Jammu and Kashmir show learning losses may even grow after children return to school if teaching does not adjust to meet their needs. In India, Usmani’s problems are far from over. His earnings have fallen to about $5 a day from $13 pre-pandemic. His wife is sick and his children have fallen way behind as they do not have internet access for online learning. Areeba, who wants to become a teacher, finally returned to school in January, rejoining the same grade she was in two years ago. She has forgotten sums she used to whizz through. Her brother Ayazuddin, 5, is back in kindergarten, struggling to remember his English and Hindi alphabets.

Engro signs Rs4bn financing facility with HBL Cheaper Afghan coal for expansion of telecom tower business comes to rescue infrastructure in Pakistan, thereby Press reLeAse cement sector providing an opportunity for the people to Engro Enfrashare has entered a financing arrangement amounting to Rs4 billion with HBL, Pakistan’s largest bank, for the development of telecommunication tower sites for various mobile network operators (MNOs). As per terms of the financing arrangement, the tenor of the financing will be seven years, including a grace period of two years. In 2021, Engro had announced to enhance its total equity investment in the Telecom Infrastructure Vertical to Rs21.5 billion and formed a dedicated platform for connectivity and telecom infrastructure initiatives by the name of Engro Connect (Pvt.) Limited (EConnect). EConnect is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Engro and now holds complete ownership of Engro Enfrashare (Pvt.) Limited (Enfrashare), which is Pakistan’s largest independent telecom tower company. Engro Corporation set up the Telecom Infrastructure vertical in 2019 to accelerate the development of connectivity

be part of the new digital era. Engro Enfrashare is engaged in the acquisition and construction of shared telecom towers, provision of telecommunication infrastructure, and related services, including state-of-the-art network monitoring solutions. Enfrashare has continued to expand its national footprint and achieved a scale of 2,246 operational build-to-suit (B2S), while catering to all four Mobile Network Operators in Pakistan. Enfrashare built over 75% of the total new B2S towers that were deployed in the country during the year 2021. This increase in the portfolio tripled its revenue growth in comparison with last year. Further, the business has secured orders to reach a scale of more than 3,300 sites by the end of 2022. According to Ghias Khan, President & CEO Engro Corporation, “Since starting its operations in late 2018, Engro Enfrashare has grown to become Pakistan’s largest independent telecom tower company.

Pervez Khattak’s brother Liaquat Khattak joins JUI-F News Desk Defence Minister Pervez Khattak’s brother and former PTI member Liaquat Khattak and nephew Abdul Ahad Khattak joined the Jamiat Ulema-eIslam—Fazl (JUI-F) on Thursday. During a press conference with JUIF chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman in Islamabad, Liaquat Khattak made the announcement that he, his son, and other people are joining the party. Fazl welcomed Liaquat to the party and said that their family members have

expressed no confidence in the government’s leadership. “The captain (Imran Khan) says he is a player and knows how to counter [problems]. You received funding from India, US, and Israel. You will suffer the same fate as Afghanistan’s Ashraf Ghani,” he said. “If you want to compete with me on a level playing field, then come out in the open,” he added. Later in the day, an MQM-P delegation — led by convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui — arrived at Fazl’s residence.

US Pakistan agree to revitalize trade, economic ties APP The United States and Pakistan agreed to reinvigorate and revitalize trade and business relationships to enhance bilateral trade and investment. It was decided during a meeting under the Pakistan-United States Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) held in Islamabad, said a press release issued by the Ministry of Commerce. Federal Secretary Commerce, Muhammad Sualeh Ahmad Faruqui, co-chaired the

meeting along with Christopher Wilson, Assistant United States Trade Representative (AUSTR) for south and central Asia. Secretary Commerce appreciated the visit of AUSTR which coincided with the 75th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic ties between Pakistan and the USA. Mr. Wilson acknowledged the longstanding and robust relationship between the two countries and hoped that this visit further strengthens the trade ties between the two countries.

IsLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Falling share prices of cement sector in local bourse bounced back for the second consecutive day as relatively cheaper Afghan coal provides the much needed support. According to a report of Foundation Securities, international coal prices have touched an all time high of $460 per tonne, surging around 114 percent in the last 3 weeks. This has forced local cement players to switch towards other resources where Afghan coal has taken a lead by cutting down input cost and providing a breathing space. Players like Cherat Cement, Lucky Cement, and Maple Leaf Cement Factory (MLCF) have switched to 60-70 percent usage of Afghan coal while Pioneer Cement’s usage stands at 40-50 percent and DGKC is using 2030 percent of Afghan coal in the northern region. Similarly, other players are also meeting a major portion of their overall coal requirement from Afghan origin coal. According to the brokerage, Afghan coal used to trade at 25 to 30 percent discount to Richards Bay Coal (RB1) until a few weeks ago. This differential has increased in recent days post significant jump in RB1 prices. As per market sources, on-site delivered Afghan coal price in the north currently stands at around $235 per tonne. This indicates that delivered prices are less than 50 percent of South African comparable coal. Similarly, usable domestic coal trades at around $170 per tonne i.e. at 64% discount to RB1, Foundation Securities cited. According to AKD Research, monthly availability of Afghan coal ranges from 0.2-0.25 million tonnes while local coal’s availability is in the range of 0.10.125 million tonnes. North’s monthly demand of coal at 0.42-0.45mn tons currently; hence, the northern region can easily replace 65-70 percent of its coal requirement through Afghan coal.

Friday, 11 March, 2022 | KARACHI

NEWS

Govt Set to ProviDe rS 8.280 billion rAMzAn relieF PACkAGe IsLAMABAD

Shahzad paRacha

HE federal government has approved Rs8.280 billion Ramzan relief Package to provide subsidies on 19 essential items at Utility Stores Corporation (USC). Sources said that the government would provide Rs2.534 billion subsidy on atta, Rs750 million on sugar, Rs4.050 billion subsidy on ghee, Rs300 million subsidy on oil, Rs30 million on dal chana, Rs10 million on dal moong washed, Rs5 million on dall mash washed, Rs30 million on daal masroor, Rs50 million on white gram, Rs50 million on

baisen, Rs 20 million on dates, Rs 25 million on rice basmati, Rs 10 million on rice sella, Rs36 million on broken rice, Rs15 million on squashes, Rs40 million on squashes & syrups, 125 million on balck tea, Rs 50 million on milk and Rs50 million on spices. The ministry of Industries and Production informed the ECC held on Monday that USC has been extending the Ramzan relief package as approved by the government across its network, with a special focus on the poor and needy since 1991. Historically, nineteen essential items have been sold at subsidized prices at USC outlets across Pakistan. In addition, USC

also negotiates better discounts from suppliers and has been able to offer reduced prices on other more than 1,000 items. Since Ramzan Relief Package is a regular feature, customers have come to expect special discounted prices at USC outlets during Ramzan which leads to sharp increase in footfall from customers. USC management also strives to ensure availability of goods across its network in order to ensure that maximum relief is extended to the deserving segment. This year, USC is working hard to make arrangements for the upcoming Holy month of Ramzan. Proposed Ramzan Relief Package-2022 is based on actual sales from

previous year’s Ramzan and current subsidy being offered on essential items under the Prime Minister’s Relief Package-2020. The ECC was informed that it is expected that more customers will be heading to USC outlets to get better prices than the open market given the inflationary pressure in 2022, which will drive up USC sales. The ministry also informed the ECC that USC is now equipped with POS systems across its network. There is full transparency and traceability of each transaction. This is a significant development which will greatly enhance efficiency, and control and will minimize cases of black marketing.

President calls for modernising goods supply sector IsLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

President Dr Arif Alvi has said that the government is taking steps to facilitate the goods supply sector for its modernisation, adding timely digitisation and identifying opportunities can catapult Pakistan to progress. Addressing the 1st Multimodal Logistics Conference on Thursday, the president said that development in the IT sector will bring an exponential revolution in the overall economy of the country. He said Pakistan can provide a gateway to Central Asian States to its ports. He said the Islamabad, Tehran and Istanbul freight train has resumed its service. Dr Alvi said leaders of the

Central Asian States are eager to join the Belt and Road Initiative and to take benefit from Pakistan’s ports. President Alvi mentioned that Uzbekistan has shown keen interest in transporting its commodities through Pakistan, while Turkmenistan and Iran were interested in the supply of natural gas. In this regard, he said an efficient cargo system in Pakistan is vital to substantially improve the supply-chain system, thus benefiting both the producer and consumer countries. “Pakistan has immense opportunities knocking at its doorstep and we need to take advantage with the implementation of a multimodal logistic strategy,” he said. He mentioned that the government had done a splendid job in improving the

remittances remain above $2bn for 21st month kArACHI Staff RepoRt

Remittances from overseas workers surged 2 percent on a month-on-month basis in February to clock in at $2.2 billion, after declining 14.9 percent in January 2022. According to the data released by the State Bank of Pakistan on Thursday, remittances on a year-on-year basis fell by 2.7 percent as compared to February 2021. Overall, the monthly remittances have been maintaining more than $2 billion psychological level since June 2020. The remittances during the first eight months of the current fiscal year 2021-22 have shown a growth of 7.6 percent to reach $20.1 billion on a year-onyear basis. Country wise, remittance inflows during February 2022 were mainly sourced from Saudi Arabia ($558 million), United Arab Emirates ($387 million), United Kingdom ($319 million) and United States of America ($210 million).

First of 50 shipments of Halal meat to reach tashkent within week: Dawood IsLAMABAD tLtp

The first shipment of 18 metric tonnes of Halal meat from Pakistan has been dispatched from Karachi and it will reach Tashkent within a week. Adviser to the PM on Commerce and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood announced this in a tweet on Thursday. “The ministry of commerce’s Silk Route Reconnect policy for Central Asia Republics (CARs) & beyond is now bearing fruit. For the last year and a half, we have been extensively engaged with CARs,” the advisor tweeted. The adviser said that the Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) and Transit Trade Agreement have been signed with Uzbekistan. Similar agreements are being explored with other CARs, he added. “We urge our exporters to utilise this new window opportunity,” he further said. As a result of Pakistan’s admission to the International Transport of Goods (TIR) Convention, new avenues of regional commerce have opened up, and bilateral trade between Pakistan and Central Asian countries is increasing. Pakistani exporters have begun shipping Halal beef to Uzbekistan by land, taking advantage of the potential for commerce with Central Asian countries. According to Malik Sher Khan, CEO of the Shaheen Group, there is a large market for Halal food in Central Asia, and TIR has made it simpler for Pakistan to enter the region. “In one month, 900 tonnes of meat will be shipped to Tashkent via Torkham in 50 consignments of 18 tonnes each,” he said.

farming, industry, and textile sectors during the pandemic; however, he mentioned the need for a smooth supply chain system. To bridge gaps between the manufacturer and consumer, he said, the policies needed to be formulated in consultation with government functionaries and the private sector. He said getting adjusted to changing trends, overcoming supply chain disruptions, and relying on two or more modes of transportation can substantially improve the logistics system. He said multi-model transportation requires more communication and collaboration and emphasised on training the country’s huge youth bulge into a productive human resource to achieve the

goals. Dr Ishrat Hussain, former adviser to the prime minister on institutional reforms and austerity, said that inefficiency of the supply chain could be overcome through the implementation of reforms in institutions. He mentioned that the reforms carried out in Civil Aviation Authority, Pakistan International Airlines, Pakistan Railways, and National Highway Authority are aimed at the improvement of consumer services. To improve the efficiency of public organizations, he said it is important for the ministries to work on policies only, while the regulatory bodies could function autonomously. He stressed a level-playing field for all stakeholders including the private sector relating to the supply chain to benefit the consumer.

Car sales surge over 57pc in eight months: PAMA kArACHI tLtp

Car sales have registered a massive growth of 57.46 percent during the first eight months (July-February) of the current fiscal year 2021-22 owing to macroeconomic recovery and launch of new models. According to Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA), total car sales increased to 149,813 units during the first eight months of the current fiscal year as compared to 95,139 units sold in the same period of the last fiscal year. On a month-on-month basis, the sale of passenger cars witnessed a rise of 6 percent in February, clocking in at 18,054 units as opposed to 16,985 units sold in January 2022. On a year-on-year basis, car sales surged one-thirds when compared to 13,570 units sold in February 2021. According to PAMA data, the total production of passenger cars was recorded at 18,263 units in February 2022. The less than 1000cc category took a lead as auto sales were recorded at 8,245 units within this category. Segment-wise, Suzuki Alto recorded the highest sales at 7,175 units, followed by Suzuki Bolan which sold 1,070 units in the said month. The second-highest number of sales was made within the 1300cc and above category at 6,471 units.

Within this category, Toyota Corolla and Yaris registered sales of 3,646 units. Honda Cars (Civic and City) recorded sales at 2,286 units. This was followed by Hyundai Elantra and Hyundai Sonata which sold 312 and 226 units, respectively. The ‘1000cc’ category took the third spot as the units sold during the month of February were 3,338. Suzuki Cultus recorded sale of 1,692 units, followed by Suzuki WagonR which sold 1,646 units. Meanwhile, the sales of trucks witnessed a 27 percent MoM decline in February 2022 to stand at 501 units, compared to 690 units sold in the previous month. Isuzu emerged as the best-selling truck, with sales of around 276 units during the month, followed by MASTER with 124 units. HINO and JAC made sales of 84 units and 17 units, respectively. Similarly, the overall sale of buses also fell by 49 percent MoM during the review month to clock in at 45units. Within this segment, Master made the maximum sales at 35 units while HINO recorded sales of 10 units. Cumulatively, total sales of trucks and buses during the month clocked in at 597 units against the production of 546 units while sales of two and threewheelers were recorded at 136,527 units. According to the data, LCVs, vans, and jeeps observed sales of 3,610 units, showing a marginal drop of 0.4 percent MoM during the period under review.

NEPRA notifies Rs5.94 per unit hike in electricity price AHMAD AHMADANI The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has jacked up the power tariff by Rs5.94 per unit on account of Fuel Charges Adjustment (FCA) for the month of January 2022 and issued a notification to this effect. According to NEPRA notification, an increase of Rs5.94 per unit on account of FCA for January 2022 will be charged from the power consumers through the electricity bill of March 2022 which will cause additional burden of approximately Rs58.5 billion on consumers, including the General Sales Tax (GST). Similarly, this increase in the power price by Rs5.94 per unit will be applicable to all the consumer categories except lifeline consumers of all the Ex-WAPDA power distribution companies (XWDISCOs). Furthermore, the said adjustment shall be shown separately in the consumers’ bills based on units billed to the consumers in the month of January 2022 by the DISCOs, said NEPRA notification. “While effecting the fuel adjustment charges, the concerned XWDISCOs shall keep in view and strictly comply with the orders of the courts notwithstanding this order,” read the notification issued by NEPRA on March 10, 2022. Earlier, the Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA), on behalf of power distribution companies (DISCOs), requested National Electric Power

Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) to approve Rs6.1060 per kilowatt (kWh) increase in the power tariff under the head FCA of the month of January 2022 for all consumer categories of distribution companies, except for lifeline and K-Electric consumers. The CPPA, in its application, informed that 5.83 per cent electricity was produced with water/hydel source, 33.15 per cent from coal, 6.73 per cent from high speed diesel (HSD), 14.37 per cent from natural gas, 7.12 per cent from imported Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), 14.37 per cent from nuclear power, wind 2.22 per cent, baggasse 1.22 per cent, import Iran 0.36 per cent and with solar source was 0.53 per cent. Similarly, total energy generated was 8,797 Gigawatt (GWh). It is also learnt from CPPA request that the most expensive electricity was generated from high-speed diesel during the month of January 2022 as the cost of the electricity generated from diesel (HSD) was registered at Rs25.98 paisa per unit while the cost of power generation from coal stood at Rs14.10 per unit, furnace oil Rs22.80 per unit, LNG Rs16.70 per unit, gas Rs7.74 per unit, nuclear Rs1.07 per unit, bagasse Rs5.98 per unit. Reportedly, the regulatory authority (NEPRA) had earlier increased power tariff by Rs3.09 per unit on account of FCA for December 2021 which placed an additional burden of Rs30 billion on the power consumers while more than 8.5 billion units of electricity were used in December last year, said the notification.

Shibli for promoting local industry to substitute imports IsLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Federal Minister of Science and Technology, Senator Shibli Faraz has emphasised on making Pakistan selfsufficient by promoting local industry and focusing on import substitution. The minister said this while chairing a meeting on import of scientific instruments and raw materials on Thursday. During the meeting, the federal minister said his ministry aims to work in line with the Science, Technology and Innovation Policy 2022 to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals as per the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan. He said that the country is currently relying on imported products and raw materials for its industrial needs and should follow in the footsteps of the fourth industrial revolution in the West. Faraz stressed the need to promote local industry by promoting research and development and creating close liaison between industry and academia, following the Triple Helix concept. The representatives of industries said that the present government needs to protect local manufacturing and make import substitution as a government priority. Efficient energy systems are being installed in the industry to achieve clean and sustainable industrial development, they said. Meanwhile, the representatives from Pakistan Science Foundation and National University of Science and Technology pointed out that there is a need to increase funding for research and development, which is the basis of every industrial revolution. Industrial mapping will be done to identify three to four initial testing phase projects and then a comprehensive action plan will be developed based on their findings, they said. Three industrial sectors including agriculture, engineering, and electronics will be the main focus at this stage, Shibli Faraz said. He said that the industries will be identified in the next meeting and a roadmap of three to six months will be drawn up to move forward with the initial phase. The minister stated that the new Small and Medium Enterprises policy is a great initiative and the government will ensure the protection of new industries.

Friday, 11 March, 2022 | KARACHI

NEWS

Women mark annual day With commitment to contriButing to development ISLAMABAD

Xinhua

uBINA Rizwan, a 43-year-old female driver for one of the largest app-based transportation services Careem in Pakistan, was skillfully driving through the crowded and tricky roads of Rawalpindi to drop her passenger off at an office on time. Rizwan said she likes the job she does to make her living despite many social and cultural challenges coming in her way. “When I started this career, my family told me that it is not an easy job for a woman and that I’d better find some other work if I want to stand on my feet […] but now after several years, not only I am financially stable, my family members are also extremely happy and supportive as they see it as an encouragement for other women to get out of the four walls of their houses to play their part in the country’s progress and prosperity,” she told Xinhua. As the countries around the globe celebrated International Women’s Day on Tuesday, Rizwan said everyone should join hands to empower women by promoting gender and social equity for a sustainable future. In Pakistan, a number of events including seminars and rallies, were held to celebrate the day with renewed commitment for women empowerment through inclusive social and economic policies.

ncoc daily update: 639 new cases, four deaths from covid-19 ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Pakistan on Wednesday registered 639 new Covid-19 cases and four more deaths, the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) said on Thursday. The NCOC said that the overall tally of Covid-19 cases has risen to 1,516,789, including 1,468,449 recoveries. There are 18,049 active cases in the country, including 707 patients in critical condition. According to the NCOC data, four more people died from Covid-19 on Wednesday, bringing the death toll to 30,291. Sindh is the most affected province in terms of the number of cases, with 570,934 infections, followed by Punjab which has reported 503,279 cases so far.

Shabana Malik, a senior supervisor at a private company in Karachi, told Xinhua her workplace used to be mainly dominated by men when she first joined the company 16 years ago. “In the past, a majority of the women preferred to work in their homes or at farms

[…] their participation rate in formal employment was significantly low, however with improved education and skills, and better transportation system, now the trend is changing gradually in Pakistan.” “More and more women can be seen at workplaces and becoming financial sup-

port for their families,” the mother of three said, adding that giving equal opportunities to women will help our society to thrive. Women in Pakistan are about half of the population, yet their representation in the workforce remains largely under par when

compared with other countries in the world, said Farzana Bari, a prominent women’s rights activist and former director of the Center of Excellence in Gender Studies at Quaid-i-Azam university. Despite increasing in recent years, female labour force participation in Pakistan stands at around 25 percent, which is quite low, undermining the government’s goal of sustained and inclusive socio-economic development, Bari told Xinhua. Multiple factors including social and cultural norms, lack of quality education and vocational training, gender pay disparity, transportation and security concerns lie behind the low participation, she said. “The incumbent government should continue to devise comprehensive policies to create enabling environment for women to encourage them to play their key role in the country’s labour force,” she added. In a conversation with Xinhua, Saleem Rehman, an MP, said the federal government has been taking measures on administrative and legislative levels, to forge a conducive environment for women so that they can play their due role in nation-building. Several initiatives, including special women development funds, the establishment of vocational training centres to impart various skills, and loan schemes to run small and medium-sized enterprises, are helping women in the country to bring changes in their lives, he said.

Peshawar mosque bombing death toll rises to 65 PESHAWAR

15 injured as bus overturns in Balochistan

MonitoRing RepoRt

Another victim of the suicide bombing at a mosque during prayers last Friday in Peshawar died of injuries on Thursday, increasing the death toll to 65. The deceased, later identified as Asif, was under treatment at a local hospital. It is to be noted here that almost 60 people were martyred in a suicide attack inside the Imambargah in Kucha Risaldar, Peshawar. The remaining breathed their last in hospitals. Islamic State claimed responsibility for the bombing in a statement, which would make it one of the biggest attacks carried out by the group inside Pakistan. An armed man who arrived near the mosque on a motorcycle opened fire when

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

he was stopped by police, before forcing his way into a crowded hall and detonating his suicide vest, senior police official Haroon Rasheed said. The attacker first shot at the police guards at the mosque’s entrance, killing

one of them, he said. “The armed man entered the mosque and started firing on the worshippers and finally blew himself up,” Rasheed added. Previously, police had said they were two men on the motorcycle.

At least 15 people were injured after a passenger bus overturned in Balochistan, media reported. According to the reports, the accident happened in the Khuzdar district of the province when the driver lost control of the vehicle due to overspeeding. Police told media the injured included women and children, adding that the victims were rushed to a nearby hospital.Road accidents frequently happen in Pakistan due to poorly maintained roads, violation of road safety rules, and reckless driving.

Minister apologises for raid on N. Korea embassy on bootlegging suspicions ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

A day after the diplomatic mission of North Korea in Islamabad lodged a protest with the capital police over a “brutal” raid at its embassy, Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed Thursday said the incident occurred due to a “misunderstanding” and he “apologised” for it. The government has “apologised [to the mission] and informed them [the incident had] happened out of misunderstanding,” Ahmed said in a press conference in Islamabad. In a letter addressed to the Islamabad police chief, Ahsan Younis, the mission said seven police personnel, including a woman, from the F-10 police station made an “unlawful entry” into its premises on March 7. “The mission staff reminded them that the premises of the embassy are the sovereign territory of DPRK and asked them to immediately stop this brutal act,” it said. “But the police ignored the request, searched the storerooms at the backyard on the pretext of seizing some items and threatened the staff with guns.” The police officials damaged the door and

broke into a room in the basement, the letter stated, blaming “some external force” for being behind the raid. “The embassy of the DPRK expresses its serious regrets on this incident and requests the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and security organisations to undertake a thorough investigation against those involved and take measures to prevent recurrence of such incidents.” However, citing a source at Shalimar police station, a report in Dawn said the raid was carried out after a tipoff that a “huge quantity of liquor” was present at the embassy. In 2017, senior police and customs offi-

cials discovered a large amount of liquor from the embassy, leading them to conclude that some North Korean diplomats were involved in selling alcohol either to make money for themselves or to provide funds for the cashstarved regime in Pyongyang. The North Korean government is facing increasingly tough united Nations-backed economic sanctions because of its nuclear weapons and missile development programs. At the time, an officer said North Korean diplomats in Pakistan had been doing this for years, though he didn’t provide direct evidence of such sales.

Friday, 11 March, 2022 | KARACHI

NEWS

Pakistan seeks India’s explanation over fall of projectile in Mian Channu continued from page 01 This could have been very detrimental to the safety of passengers.” The DG also made it clear that there was no sensitive installation in Mian Channu where the projectile fell. In response to a question, he said “testing and trial of such weapon systems do take place”. “But what this was, India has to explain.” “This incident reflects the questionable capabilities of the human resources working on these programmes in India as well as this technology.” Asked for more details about the object, he said “we are not claiming anything right now”. “As a responsible nation, we will wait for India to respond. We have given details of whatever we know right now. But it is for the Indians to explain what happened in Mian Channu.” “All our forces are alert to the threat and challenges that we face.” During the Q&A session, the DG ISPR was also asked whether the army was standing with Prime Minister Imran Khan, in relation to the current political situation and his impending no-confidence vote. “I had clearly stated in my last press conference that the army has nothing do with politics,” he replied. “It is this way and it will remain this way.” He also requested that there “be no unnecessary speculations about this now”.

PM’S StAteMeNtS ‘CleArly Show hIS feAr’: ShehBAz l EADER of the Opposition in the National Assembly and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday said that Prime Minister Imran Khan has “lost his mental balance” and the same can be determined by his recent statements. Talking to the media personnel outside a special court in Lahore, he said: “PM Khan has not only damaged the

Kashmir cause but has also pushed the country into a corner.” Regarding the no-trust motion filed by the opposition parties against the premier, he said that he is confident in the outcome and “all political parties are united for the motion to get rid of the ruling party, which has caused the prevailing crises, damaging the country’s economy”. He added that PM Imran’s state-

ments in recent days “clearly show his fear”, adding that the premier’s “legs are trembling”. Earlier, he attended case proceedings in the court regarding his alleged money laundering case registered by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA). On Tuesday, a delegation of senior opposition lawmakers, including Rana Sanaullah, Ayaz Sadiq, Shazia Marri

Strategy launched to foster gender mainstreaming in ANF

Punjab ombudsman chairs meeting to end online harassment of children LaHore staff report

Punjab Ombudsman retired Maj. Azam Suleman Khan said a composite roadmap would be drawn up in collaboration with line departments, welfare bodies and assembly members to curb online exploitation and harassment of children. He said this while presiding over a meeting of the working group for the elimination of online exploitation of children. At the outset, Ombudsman Khan disclosed the working group would outline practical recommendations in collaboration with line departments to eradicate the menace of online exploitation of children and promote safe internet activities in the province. The government was committed to promoting a child-friendly society at the provincial, divisional, district and grassroots, he stressed. Instead of myriad helplines of government departments, there should be a dedicated helpline to deal with children’s issues so that the needy could be timely helped, he suggested. It is needed to sensitise the general public to promote a child-friendly society and the role of social media is important, he added. He further said the ombudsman’s office has a forum for the protection of children rights and complaints related to children were being dealt with on time. The participants also discussed the case referral system and it was decided that a roadmap would be chalked out to ensure timely delivery of justice through mutual coordination of line departments.

and Marriyum Aurangzeb, had submitted the no-trust motion against PM Imran Khan with the National Assembly Secretariat. The opposition had submitted two sets of documents, one under Article 54 of the Constitution to requisition the National Assembly because it was not in session, and the other a resolution calling for a no-confidence vote against the prime minister. news desk

Pakistan calls on world to fight climate change for development, conflict prevention united nationS

No-trust motion against PM is constitutional: SCBA Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Muhammad Ahsan Bhoon has said that the no-trust motion filed by the opposition parties against Prime Minister Imran Khan is in accordance with the Constitution. In a statement on Thursday, the SCBA said that it is “closely monitoring the rather fragile political situation of the country, and is of the opinion that the resolution submitted by the opposition is constitutional and in accordance with Article 95. It further said that the no-trust motion contains no “ultra vires” to the Constitution and has been conducted under proper authority. Bhoon emphasised the need to call the session of the National Assembly urgently within seven days, the time frame, as provided in Article 95 of the Constitution, the statement read. Earlier on Tuesday, a delegation of senior opposition lawmakers, including Rana Sanaullah, Ayaz Sadiq, Shazia Marri and Marriyum Aurangzeb, had submitted the no-trust motion against PM Imran Khan with the National Assembly Secretariat. The opposition had submitted two sets of documents, one under Article 54 of the Constitution to requisition the National Assembly because it was not in session, and the other a resolution calling for a noconfidence vote against the prime minister. news desk

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iSLamaBad news desk

A gender strategy for the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) was launched by the Ministry of NarcoticsControl (MNC) here on Thursday. U.S. Embassy’s International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Section, UNDP and the Ministry of Narcotics-Control Pakistan launch Anti-Narcotic Force’s first ever Gender Strategy to increase women’s representation in counter narcotics law enforcement. The strategy aims to foster gender mainstreaming and create opportunities for gender transformation in the ANF. It is also accompanied by a robust action plan and framework for organizational wide activities and practices. The strategy stresses on creating an enabling environment for gender empowerment and inclusion, identifies barriers to gender and social inclusion and access to justice, and proposes practical recommendations to achieve its set targets. It was developed following a series of consultations with government interlocutors, like-minded national and international partners, and UN agencies, as well as research and analysis on existing legal frameworks, policies, and procedures that facilitate access to justice for women and marginalized groups in Pakistan. Federal Secretary Ministry of Narcotics-Control, Government of Pakistan Dr. Syed Kaleem Imam thanked INL and UNDP for supporting the MNC and ANF in initiating interventions for gender mainstreaming and women empowerment. “MNC is committed to create a safe and enabling environment for women personnel and this strategy will help us review our existing policies and practices and revise them to increase women’s representation in law enforcement agencies”. He further said that the strategy should be disseminated through Inter Agency Taskforce for a wider outreach. The U.S. Embassy’s International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) section Director Mark Tervakoski noted the strong partnership with the Ministry of Narcotics Control, the Anti-Narcotics Force, and the UNDP.

“I thank the UNDP and ANF for their efforts and partnership with INL, and our common objectives of combating drugs transiting through Pakistan and promoting the recruitment, retention, advancement, and gender mainstreaming of women police in Pakistan.” Director Tervakoski also highlighted that this year we celebrate the 40-year anniversary of the partnership between INL and Pakistan under the banner of ‘Justice, Security, and Prosperity. “With more than $1 billion invested by INL across four decades to improve citizen security and enhance law enforcement capacity across Pakistan. The fight against drugs and illicit contraband is a priority for Pakistan, the United States, and the international community. When we work together, we accomplish great things.” Speaking at the occasion, UNDP Assistant Resident Representative Mr. Kaiser Ishaque said that the benefits of recruiting, training, and promoting more women officers are now being recognized by law enforcement agencies across the world. “In Pakistan, there are multiple challenges in doing so, but creating an enabling environment for women in the force to thrive and encourage others to join it is crucial. The Gender Strategy will provide a vision and plan to help ANF review department policies on social inclusion and gender mainstreaming, ensure gender responsive budgeting and develop outreach programmes for targeted recruitment of women among other steps.” He further added that INL and UNDP are also working on infrastructure projects in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Islamabad Capital Territory that will all contribute towards ensuring women’s inclusion and participation in law enforcement agencies. Gender Expert Ms. Sidra Minhas delivered an overview of the Gender Strategy and said that there are multiple challenges to increasing women’s participation in the law enforcement agencies, but the strategy proposes various activities to mitigate and overcome them. It also includes a key strategic framework that guides through the major tasks and responsibilities”.

JKT group boycott PTI’s Punjab parliamentary meeting newS deSk The members of the Jahangir Khan Tareen (JKT) group, a disgruntled faction of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), announced on Thursday that they would boycott the party’s parliamentary meeting in Punjab, which is scheduled to be held later today in Lahore. According to a news outlet, the meeting would be chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan, who would reach the provincial capital today on a one-

cmYk

day visit. Earlier on Tuesday, the group had said that it would support the government in the no-trust motion on the condition of removing Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar from his post, adding that it would boycott any parliamentary meeting of the party till Buzdar remains in office. During his visit, the premier is expected to meet Buzdar and the members of the Parliament from all divisions of the province.

Underscoring the need for limiting global warming, Pakistan called for leveraging climate finance in ways that maximise synergies between climate action, development and conflict prevention. “Unless we act, climate change will jeopardise land, water, resources and jobs and perhaps exacerbate conflicts,” Ambassador Munir Akram told a UN Security Council Arria-Formula meeting on climate finance, which relates to the money needed for a whole range of activities that will contribute to slowing down climate change and which will help the world to reach the target of limiting global warming to an increase of 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. The United Arab Emirates (UAE), a non-permanent member of the 15-nation Council and currently its president, organized the meeting held under the format named after Diego Arria, a former Venezuelan UN ambassador. It is an informal consultation process that affords the Security Council the opportunity to hear persons in a confidential setting. Noting that very few adaptation projects promote integrated approaches, the envoy said that adaptation must be the focus of climate finance. “It is critical to prevent livelihood-driven conflicts and disputes,” Ambassador Akram said, pointing to the most critical areas such as water, conservation, management and efficient use, inter alia, to halt desertification, especially in the Sahel but also in the Middle East and South Asia. “Safe drinking water is key in both urban and rural settings as is waste disposal and control air pollution,” the Pakistan envoy said adding Job creation should be an integral part of national adaptation strategy. Climate finance should be deployed to build or rebuild sustainable infrastructure — energy, transport, etc. in developing countries as part of efforts to meet mitigation and sustainable development targets. Ambassador Akram urged developed countries to fulfil their pledge of $100 billion a year in climate finance to support the needs of developing nations. “We need to simplify procedures to access climate finance for developing countries from multilateral and bilateral sources of climate finance,” the envoy said, stressing standardisation of project approval process to ensure speedy approach and allocation of finances. Climate finance, he said, needs to be complemented by capacity building in the developing countries, to design and prepare a pipeline of viable projects that promote adaptation and mitigation and sustainable development goals and can attract public or private investment. The envoy said that climate finance should also be accompanied by access to and the local application of the technologies and processes required for efficient adaptation and mitigation. “We should ensure that double counting is avoided and climate finance should be in addition to the commitments by the developed countries under other frameworks,” he added.

06-07 Comments - 11th March 2022_Layout 1 3/10/2022 9:53 PM Page 1

Friday, 11 March, 2022

06 COMMENT

Shadows of the past

Political confrontation taking toll of economy

Another Winter War?

Hold NA session without delay

URING the last week the PTI leaders had challenged the opposition to submit its promised no-trust move against the Prime Minister. As the opposition delayed the move PTI ministers and spokesmen made fun of their opponents, maintaining that they would never bring a no confidence motion as they didn’t have the required numbers. The opposition finally submitted the motion on Tuesday. A day later Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry and energy Minister hammad Azhar held a press conference to request the National Assembly Speaker to convene the assembly session immediately to end the prevailing political uncertainty. The National Assembly Speaker has been accused of acting as a PTI activist instead of an independent custodian of the house. Complaints have been made that he violated parliamentary rules, procedures and precedents in the process. This has frequently led to protests and walk outs from the house by the opposition. Presently he is required to decide when to call the Nationasl Assembly session. he doesn’t need any advice from the Information Minister to announce the date for the make-or-break session. A signal from the PM would have been enough for him to announce the date. Mr Chaudhry has rejected the opposition’s claim of having the support of 185 MNAs. According to him the Prime Minister has the support of more than 179 MNAs and the number might touch 184 with the inclusion of five more legislators of other political parties in the PTI’s ranks. This indicates that the govt plans to indulge in horse trading. This would deprive it of any moral justification to complain if the opposition too follows the practice. The government intends to bar treasury members other than the PTI’s chief whip from attending the session. In case the dissidents are stopped from entering the National Assembly, this would force the opposition to go to court. In case this happens, the political crisis, which has created a sense of uncertainty, would be prolonged further. The way out is to convene the National Assembly session at the earliest and let all who want to take part in the proceedings enter the house irrespective of their party affiliation.

at Penpoint m a NiaZi

he world is appreciative that Ukraine has resisted the initial Russian onslaught, but even this is not the last word of Russia. The initial bumbling of the Russian Army revives memories of how the Red Army initially stumbled in its 1939-1940 campaign against Finland, known as the Winter War. The War came after the German invasion of Poland had occurred, and after the UK and France had declared war on it, thus setting off World War II. This was a period of ‘phoney war’, as it was called by the Anglophone press, because there was no actual fighting between the completion of the German conquest of Poland and its invasion of France. There was much excitement in the West at the Finnish resistance, but the USSR was not to be deterred. Though its initial offensive was blocked, there was a change in Soviet command, a greater artillery preparation, and a renewal of the tank offensive. The Soviets began a new offensive in February using 600,000 troops, more than the 500,000 used on November, and 600,000 shells were fired into the Finnish line in 24 hours. After that, the attack began, with 25-26 divisions, up from the 10 used in the initial assault. The invasion had in its background the pre-Soviet Czarist occupation of Finland, not as a part of the Russian empire, but as the Grand Duchy of Finland, with the Czar as the Grand Duke. Finland separated from Russia, but the USSR began hounding it because it wanted to make St Petersburg (then Leningrad) defensible.. It is worth noting that Russian President Vladimir Putin was not only born in Leningrad, but educated there, and worked there in the KGB until 1991, when he resigned, and began a political career. he only went to Moscow in 1996, before becoming Prime Minister in 1999. Though Finland made territorial concessions enhancing Soviet security in the March 1940 Treaty of Moscow, the real guarantee of Finnish security was what is called ‘Finlandization’. Finland was perhaps the only country which fitted the category, but it saved Finland from any further encroachments for four and a half decades. While Finland remained capitalist, it maintained a strict neutrality, as it still does, having refused to join NATO. however, after the collapse of the USSR, Finland did join the european Union in 1995. The only other country that could be said to fit the ‘finlandization’ category would be Sweden, which was neutral during World War II. however, after the invasion of Ukraine, both Sweden and Fin-

The wrong side the ECP The PTI has ended up on the wrong side of all disputes

he PTI might have realized that taking on the election Commission Pakistan (eCP) is not exactly a wise strategy. The loss of its candidate to the PPP’s in the by-election on the Senate seat vacated when Faisal Vawda was disqualified should have brought home the lesson that eCP is not going to go according to the PTI’s wishes, but will do its best to conduct elections fairly. The PTI has been in hot water because of its clashes with the eCP, and it almost seems an inevitability that the eCP will find itself opposed to the PTI on virtually any issue, whether it be the eCP’s duty to supervise political parties, or the views on how elections are to be conducted. The Vawda case is instructive. Mr Vawda was about to be unseated for having made a false declaration at the time of election to the National Assembly. Some bright spark thought that Mr Vawda could save himself if he went up to the Senate on a true declaration. The seat he gave up was won by the PPP. however, the eCP also unseated him from the Senate because of the original false declaration. Now the PPP has also won the Senate seat. Mr Vawda is not the only source of friction: the eCP has also raised queries about the PTI’s internal elections. The PTI’s attempt to hold elections had led to many disputes within the party, and the PTI’s solution, of keeping on postponing them, cannot be acceptable to the eCP for all that much longer. Then there is the foreign funding case. The PTI has legislated electronic voting at home and ivoting abroad, as well as permitting elected officials to campaign, but these are steps which the eCP sees problems with, as do all other parties. The PTI must realise two things. First, the eCP is not acting arbitrarily, but merely according to the laws it must administer. The PTI must also remember that this is precisely why it must lose, because it is acting illegally, and the eCP is winning the legal battles.

How it is being used to change democracy into autocracy Dr Umair ashraf

OPULISM as a political ideology propagates the will of common people against the elite class in a society. Thus, populism actually brings common people against the elites by labeling them as the comrades of evil. Despite the etymological definition of populism, regarded as the beacon of class conscience, it was once perceived as a panacea in political systems. After the Renaissance in europe, populism was conceived as an essence of democratic principles and a liberator from elitism. Later in the 18th century, it was seen as a defiance of democratic norms and liberal political cultures in the West. however, populism remained in existence throughout the 19th and 20th century in one form or the other. It continued to receive both criticism and praise by various nations, depending on their political cultures. The question that has always pressed the academia and political philosophers, is the relation between populism and democracy. Democracy has developed into its present state as the result of centuries of western progressivism and liberal values. Thus, it is placed in high regard in the western sphere of the world and humanity has witnessed utmost efforts by the West to establish liberal democracy everywhere in the world. Populism, once considered the essence of democracy, is now presented as a threat to it. And the rising populism witnessed in the contemporary world is, in fact, a threat to democracy. Populist leaders and populist cultures have continued to grow at a fast pace in recent times. From Latin America to europe, from Central Asia to the east Indies, from North to South, populism today has become a panacea. Populist leaders project themselves as the liberators of the common citizenry from the subjugation of elites. They play on the socio-political and economic prejudices of the common citizenry and present themselves as the voices of the masses. They propagate the inevitability of

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There are past influences on Russia which help explain the past, but do not justify the invasion. When the USSR invaded Finland, it had set up a rival government in exile, headed by a Finnish communist living in Moscow. So far, there has been no such puppet Ukrainian government, even though there are quite a few Ukrainians still in Russia

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Is rising populism a problem for democracy?

Dedicated to the legacy of late Hameed Nizami

Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

land are thinking of ending their neutrality and joining NATO. Therefore Russia is incentivized to make sure neither does so. As mentioned, Russia has fought Finland in the 20th century. It has not fought Sweden since 1809, but before than there were more than a dozen wars going back to the 15th century. In fact, the last Russo-Swedish War was not just the last time that Sweden went to war, but was also when it ceded the Grand Duchy of Finland to Russia. While there has been attention paid to Ukraine, the fate of the three Baltic republics of estonia, Lithuania and Latvia is also up for grabs. All three joined both NATO and the eU in 2004. They had first become independent after the 1917 Revolution, and Russia used the freedom it had got from the 1938 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact for occupying these three countries. The regained their independence after the USSR collapsed, and indeed it was Lithuania’s declaration of independence which signaled the break-up of the USSR. Again, the Baltic Republics were considered important for the defence of Leningrad. In World War II, the three were first occupied by Russia, then by Germany when it attacked the USSR in 1942, and later re-taken by the USSR. It might be remembered that the famous Kharkov offensive, one of the largest tank battles of World War II, took place near the Ukrainian city, now Kharkiv. It might be remembered that some of the heaviest Soviet-German fighting took place on Ukrainian soil. It might also be remembered that when Poland was split up in the 18th century, Austro-hungary got a large portion of Ukraine, while Russia got the rest. however, when Poland was recreated after World War I, it got those Ukrainian territories. When Germany conquered Poland, it left the USSR to occupy the eastern, Ukrainian, portion, which it retained after World War II. This is perhaps the reason that the Western part of Ukraine is not only Catholic, but also more supportive of joining NATO than the east. It is interesting that what the USSR demanded from Finland in 1940 was less than what it actually took from Finland. One of the war aims of Russia is the defence of the Donetsk and Luhansk republics, which now claim a larger territory than before. The Russian absorption of Crimea is instructive. First a

republic was set up, and then Russian forces moved to support it, and then the republic acceded to Russia. The expanded republics will probably accede to Russia. Is Putin aiming for the Iron Curtain to be reimposed or merely the borders of the USSR? If the former is the case, then all those countries which got out of the Iron Curtain after the collapse of the USSR, had better watch out. That includes a lot of NATO members. Such countries as Poland, hungary and Rumania would be liable to have Russian tutelage at least, if not necessarily absorption. Apart from Ukraine, Putin may look at the Caucasian republics, such as Georgia and Armenia, and then there are the Central Asian Republics. The example of Belarus might be a good one, for that tiny country is closely linked to Russia. however, it is technically independent. When the British in India dealt with the native states, they left to them the running of the country to the advantage of the dynasty, even leaving many armies of their own. however, they insisted on their letting the Paramount Power (Britain) handle foreign relations and defence. even monarchies like Nepal and Afghanistan, who were theoretically free in that respect, had to stay on the right side of Britain. Afghanistan did not allow itself to be occupied by the Raj, but its monarchs retained power by virtue of maintaining friendly relations with the Raj; and their attempt to play off Russia against the UK failed miserably. Nepal went so far as to allow the Raj to recruit among its citizens for its own Army. Is Russia trying to develop some such system? Its imperial outreach had led to imperial overstretch, and it appears that Russia, propped up by its oil and gas exports, has regained enough confidence to aspire for worldpower status once again. On its side is now China. however, that support is a double-edged sword, for China itself aspires to Great-Power status. It is giving Russia support on Ukraine, but it has territorial disputes of its own. Will Russia break with China later? There are past influences on Russia which help explain the past, but do not justify the invasion. When the USSR invaded Finland, it had set up a rival government in exile, headed by a Finnish communist living in Moscow. So far, there has been no such puppet Ukrainian government, even though there are quite a few Ukrainians still in Russia.

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taking over elites and bring social order in the society. They function on the instincts and inherent desire of common people to expand their political base. hence, we see populism is growing like a wildfire and sweeping across countries in every continent of the world. Populism and populist leaders are responsible for erosion of democratic institutions in the world today. They substitute themselves as the sole alternative for progress and development. The celebrity cult culture, once embodied by hollywood stars, is now cultivated by populist leaders. The late Venezuelan former President, hugo Chavez, a perfect example of populist leader, presented to its people as a celebrity. he ran TV shows to create for himself a stardom and at the same time continued victimization of his political opposition. Populism has resulted in the rise of autocracy across the world. Although Western Liberal democracy, once seen as the final stage of politics throughout the world, is now seen succumbing to rising autocracy in many countries. Turkey, once considered the epitome of strong democratic institutions, gave itself away to Tayyab erdogan, who brought socio-religious populism in the country. erdogan, now considered an autocrat, continues to topple the democratic institutions of Turkey to perpetuate his protracted rule. Populism has also strengthened the phenomenon of nationalism in many countries. The target of growing nationalism is established against foreign nations and globalization. Populist leaders use nationalism as a tool to cultivate their political success and on that foundation, continue their populist policies. Narendra Modi and his political party BJP, are considered as populist and ultra-Nationalist. In order to establish their firm rule in India, Modi and BJP

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used nationalism as a weapon and thus eroded the secular image of India. Modi has built his base on hindu and hindutva ideology and is considered as a classic example of populism. Similarly, Donald Trump caused tremendous damage to the socio-political fabric of American society, which is considered as an upholder of democracy. In short, populism finds its way through the structural flaws of democracy and democratic institutions. The essentials of democracy become the tools of populist cultures. Populist leaders sway the electorate, bring in technocracy, weaken the governance and accountability, bulldoze the legislature, cultivate media optics, create poor policies and impede economic activities. They weaken the democratic institutions, bureaucratize the executive, victimize political opposition, increase corruption and evade political commitments. Their only focus is to continue revitalizing class consciousness through public speeches and mouldilng public opinions. Populism also disintegrates pluralism in a society by damaging the essence of social diversity. It creates polarization and bipartisanship in the country. All these and related factors contain the seed of destruction for democratic stability and political integrity in a country. Populism is continuously growing throughout the world due to the fact that democracy as an ideology has weakened. Democracy is seen as an impediment and not an imperative today. The failures of democratic systems are propagated as the failure of democracy itself. This notion is, however, based on a false premise and merely propaganda. The rising autocracy and populism are a threat to the global sociopolitical order and if democracy is not reinvigorated through collective efforts of humanity, the globalized world will find itself in an existential crisis.

Populism is continuously growing throughout the world due to the fact that democracy as an ideology has weakened.

Web: www.pakistantoday.com.pk

The wr[ter can be drumairashraf95@gmail.com

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

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06-07 Comments - 11th March 2022_Layout 1 3/10/2022 9:53 PM Page 2

Friday, 11 March, 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

Family courts in Lahore

The ‘script’ Modi lives out Modi is the biggest single threat to the region

amjeD jaaveD

UMAN beings, particularly the macho typos, think they are independent decision makers. But subconsciously they are slaves to the subconscious, to the scripts they have learned to live with. In his book, Scripts People Live, Claude Steiner analyzes “life scripts” which we choose at an early age and which rule every detail of our lives until our death. Steiner postulates that people are innately healthy but develop a pattern early in life based upon negative or positive influences of those around them. Thus children decide, however unconsciously, whether they will be happy or depressed, winners or failures, strong or dependent, and having decided, they spend the rest of their lives making the decision come true. For those who choose a negative script, the consequences can be disastrous unless they make a conscious decision to change. The tragedy is that the person who needs to rewrite his or her life script most is unwilling to admit that he needs to revamp it. Narendra Modi is such a person who by his conduct and political statements reflects that he suffers from a negative life script. he wants to pose as a “prince”, though he is actually a “frog”. Modi’s recent statements provide a clue to how he is neurologically programmed. Modi on Thursday took a swipe at former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru for ‘failing’ to liberate Goa soon after India achieved independence from the British. While addressing a rally in Mapusa town of North Goa, Modi claimed that Nehru allowed freedom fighters to be killed by the Portuguese police without offering any assistance. he shouted, “Many people do not know about the fact that Goa became independent 15 years after independence of India. It had to stay enslaved for 15 years more. India had a force; it had the army, a strong navy. What could have been done in a few hours, the Congress delayed for 15 years? The people of Goa continued to

fight for their freedom, satyagrahis braved bullets, and continued to tolerate atrocities but the Congress government did not help them. “The first Prime Minister of the country Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru spoke from the Red Fort and you can listen to his speech on YouTube. he said from the Red Fort that he could not send the army to help the satyagrahis, who were fighting and freeing Goa. That means you do what you want, if you want to die,; die, live if you want to live. This is what he did! This is how the Congress treated Goa and it continues to treat it now,” he added. Again, while launching a scathing attack at Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, Narendra Modi slammed the Congress Government for failing to merge Kartarpur Sahib, the final resting place of Guru Nanak Dev, within India’s territory during Partition in 1947, or after wins in subsequent wars. “even during the 1965 war, Congress did not bother to take back the land. During the 1971 war, then the government sitting in Delhi would have returned 90,000 Pakistani soldiers on the condition that it returned the Tapobhumi of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, Kartarpur Sahib Gurudwara.” “When the country was partitioned, the people of Congress were there, did they not understand enough that Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s Tapobhoomi should be kept in India at a distance of 6 km from the border? Congress people have committed a crime, crushed our sentiments,” he added. India’s former prime minister Manmohan Singh reminded Modi that his foreign policy was a “complete failure”: “old friends getting alienated and neighbourly relations deteriorating”. he alleged that the government was “trying to bury the issue of Chinese transgressions along the LAC”. Modi’s faulty policies had led to galloping inflation and joblessness, About 4000 covid19 patients kept dying each day for want of beds or oxygen. Poor people dumped dead bodies of their loved ones in holy Ganges River as they could not afford costly wood to cremate them. In just one day 150 dead bodies were recovered to save them from vultures and stray dogs. There is only one electric incinerator/cremator in India at Calcutta yet to be operated. Shobhaa Dea asked `What’ll it take for Modi to stop playing ostrich? (Deccan Chronicle May 15 2021). The national students’ union

While addressing a rally in Mapusa town of North Goa, Modi claimed that Nehru allowed freedom fighters to be killed by the Portuguese police without offering any assistance.

registered an FIR against “missing” home minister Amit Shah. Instead of facing the truth, The BJP states prosecuted even social posts about covid-19 situation under India’s National Security Act. For instance, journalist Kishorchandra Wangkhem and activist erendro Leichombam were booked under the NSA for Facebook posts that point out that cow dung or urine cannot cure covid-19. Cow sheds were found to have been used at covid-9 clinics. Oxygen and concentrators were sold at exorbitant prices. even fire-extinguisher cylinders were sold as oxygen cylinders engrossed in holding “mammoth” rallies during the state assembly elections, the Narendra Modi government shrugged off warnings of an imminent upsurge in the covid-19 wave. For instance, on May 1, Reuters released a story headlined “Scientists say India government ignored warnings amid coronavirus surge”. It claimed some scientists from the governmentappointed consortium of national laboratories tasked with genome-sequencing, had “warned Indian officials in early March of a new and more contagious variant of the coronavirus taking hold in the country”. But, the government was in no mood to impose social restrictions to prevent the contagion. The Modi-Amit Shah duo was shouting “oey Didi,oey Didi” (contemptuously calling at Bengal chief minister Mamta Bannerjee) when the pandemic had assumed alarming proportions. On April 17, the cases started growing by over 260,000 a day. Yet, the BJP government did not truncate its election rallies. Instead, Modi applauded the massive turnout of milling unmasked throngs at the Asansol rally. The Rashtraya Swayamsevak Sangh supported the Modi government in election rallies. Yet, even it was compelled to admit neither the people nor the government cared a fig for socialdistancing norms. Modi is convinced that his electoral achievements are due to his macho (strongman) image. Lest his image should be shattered he delayed withdrawing anti-farmer laws for about a year since the farmers began protesting. he trumpets his “surgical strikes”, celebrates “Kargil victory”, and anti-Muslim citizenship laws. Modi is still fettered to his teenage memory as a waiter at a tea-stall. The Modi government should turn a new leaf in India’s relations with its neighbours by shunning the strong-man image. he could do better by attending to the economic welfare of the masses and promoting social harmony.

Modi is still fettered to his teenage memory as a waiter at a tea-stall. The Modi government should turn a new leaf in India’s relations with its neighbours by shunning the strong-man image. He could do better by attending to the economic welfare of the masses and promoting social harmony

The writer is a freelance journalist, has served in the Pakistan government for 39 years and holds degrees in economics, business administration, and law. He can be reached at amjedjaaved@gmail.com

A normal person who has never encountered the troubles of a broken family before may not be able to understand the depth of the way our courts play us. Therefore, it is our duty as citizens of this country, to bring awareness about the hidden elements in the system followed by our family courts. As we enter into the rusty, dirty, and confined streets of the court area, a bunch of goons pop up out of nowhere in the parking lot, or at the entrance gate, and start harassing women openly, but no one stops them, despite noticing their disgusting acts. Then, as you enter into the hallway and step onto the stairs, you’ll either come across clerks with never-ending gazes, sellers who beg for extra cash, and husbands or wives of broken people trying to get their chances with you. The time you somehow make it to the actual courtroom, it looks like a mess with no judge, no lawyers, and no one to help you confirm your dates, comfort your terror as a victim, and no respect for another. That place is hell for some people and a bar for some others. Finally, after patiently waiting for the other party to arrive at the court when you reach the meeting area, you’ll hear loud cries of little infants, screaming exes, the reaction formation of kids towards their parents, and the over-empowering love of fathers for their kids, which never happened when they were ordinary like other happy families. Customer-focused is not a static term, and it should stand as the number one priority in these courts. The judges, clerks, lawyers, bailiffs, and even other parties than the judiciary must be trained and groomed and reminded of their true motives in a court. If people come to the court, so should the judges come on time and be there to hear out the cases, that’s what they were positioned for. An integrated management system is the key to keeping attendance and important decisions up to date. Why a decision-maker wasn’t there, why did the dates keep adding up, and why did no one show up on the day of the decision to be announced. There must be a disciplined, centralized system to cater to all of this, to track and keep checks on each individual who enters the courtroom. If performances are inspected, judges will always show up on time, the defending parties won’t always be favoured corruption-wise, and the right person will get their rights there and then. everyone must look up to factual decisionmaking, based on evidence and not wealth or status. Furthermore, the involvement of media must be zero. A third party who dares to enter into a contractual relationship without being invited has no right to interfere in someone’s private life and convince children to choose one side of the party. Who gives them a right in the first place, does it to earn fame for their future, but do not realize they’re destroying the future of thousands of little brains in that messy situation. Fathers who bring their lawyers or clerks to sit along during the meeting must not be allowed to add any other party apart from them and their children during the meeting, this creates bias and wins them over through emotional blackmailing. Communication on the other hand should be a must for everyone from the time someone enters the court till they leave. Communication resolves misunderstandings and keeps the chain of command go in a positive flow. Then, the significance of documentation is priceless and this factor if ignored, must not let a judge continue with his career at the court. Write every piece of information you know and what you wrote will prove as evidence for you tomorrow and for the people who come for help to you. And of course, bribery lovers like fake sellers, bailiffs, and clerks in the court should be dismissed immediately. There should be clean, organized seating arrangements for people in the court. Collectively, judges and top members must be neutral and not biased in any condition. These are just a few ways the family court system can be improved in Lahore. The strategy is for the authorities to learn and be committed which reflects qualitative decisions for anyone. The top authorities must also take note of the mess, the culture, and the core principles which should be followed by everyone in the family court so no one remains biased and unfairly treated. every day, daily checks and trails on each judiciary member should be mapped, to make sure customer needs are met on time and according to the laws of the country. No one must be favoured because of their status, but because of what they have to prove. The court can have expert teams who come now and then to ensure things are going systematically and planning, training, and relationships between members and non-members are maintained. No one, as well, should be allowed to make excuses, and absence must be accepted no more than twice. When the system will be disciplined and the same for everyone, it will only then be capable of being a quality management system. MAHNOOR ASHRAF LAHORE

Abysmal education system TheRe is no denying the fact that the prevalent education system in Pakistan is at the heart of multiple challenges facing the country currently on many fronts. Being in constant grip of these challenges is symptomatic of the failure of the education system. Socially, the education system has not only failed to transform the burgeoning population into a social asset for the country but has also unleashed waves of polarization and divisiveness, rupturing the social fabric. Moreover, the multiple education systems of the country are also barricading gigantic hurdles in the way of accomplishing sky of success. Students fall prey to various types of learnings that cripples their minds to acquire something that will help them in the next level of life. Moreover, the poor quality of education especially manifests itself in the form of the absence of critical thinking among students. It is an open secret that the prevalent education system has been designed in such a way that it lacks the capability to inculcate the values of logical reasoning and analytical skills among the students, which not only gives a severe blow to creativity but also aggravates the students’ chances to realize their true potential. Talking more clearly, the system of education in Pakistan is still archaic. The syllabus is not rejuvenated for a long time. Cramming is rampant in every educational institution of Pakistan. Therefore, it can be said that the education system sector is in severe disrepair, which is in dire need of reforms. The gravity of the situation can be gauged from the fact that the country is faced with all sorts of socio-economic and political problems, the underlying cause of which is, undoubtedly, the failing education system. Briefly, the current government needs to pay attention to the system of education to embellish and to add beauty to the image of the country nationally and globally by producing intellectual minds. NASRULLAH KHADIM SINDH

08 WORLD VIEW 11th March 22_Layout 1 3/10/2022 9:43 PM Page 1

Friday, 11 March, 2022

08 WORLD VIEW

WhaT does defending europe mean? “THE REFUGEES FROM UKRAINE ARE COMING FROM AN ENVIRONMENT WHICH IS IN ITS CULTURAL, RELIGIOUS AND HISTORICAL SENSE SOMETHING TOTALLY DIFFERENT FROM THE ENVIRONMENT OUT OF WHICH REFUGEES FROM AFGHANISTAN ARE COMING”

Project synDicate SlavOj ŽiŽEK

FTER the Russian attack on Ukraine, the Slovene government immediately proclaimed its readiness to receive thousands of Ukrainian refugees. As a Slovene citizen, I was not only proud but also ashamed. After all, when Afghanistan fell to the Taliban six months ago, this same government refused to accept Afghan refugees, arguing that they should stay in their country and fight. And a couple of months ago, when thousands of refugees, mostly Iraqi Kurds — tried to enter Poland from Belarus, the Slovene government, claiming that Europe was under attack, offered military aid to support Poland’s vile effort to keep them out. Throughout the region, two species of refugees have emerged. A tweet by the Slovene government on February 25 clarified the distinction: “The refugees from Ukraine are coming from an environment which is in its cultural, religious and historical sense something totally different from the environment out of which refugees from Afghanistan are coming.” After an outcry, the tweet was quickly deleted, but the obscene truth was out: Europe must defend itself from non-Europe.

This approach will be catastrophic for Europe in the ongoing global struggle for geopolitical influence. Our media and elites frame that struggle as a conflict between a Western “liberal” sphere and a Russian “Eurasian” sphere, ignoring the much larger group of countries, in Latin America, the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia, that are observing us closely. Even China is not ready to support Russia fully, although it has its own plans. In a message to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un a day after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that China is ready to work to develop China-DPRK relations of friendship and cooperation “under a new situation”. There is a fear that China will use the “new situation” to “liberate” Taiwan. What should worry us now is that the radicalisation we see, most clearly with Russian President Vladimir Putin, is not just rhetorical. Many on the liberal left, convinced that both sides knew they could not afford a fullon war, thought Putin was bluffing when he massed troops at Ukraine’s borders. Even when Putin described Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky’s government as a “gang of drug addicts and neo-Nazis”, most expected that Russia would just occupy the two breakaway “people’s republics” controlled by Kremlin-backed Russian separatists or, at most, extend the occupation to eastern Ukraine’s entire Donbas region. And now some who call themselves leftists (I wouldn’t) are blaming the West for the fact that US President Joe Biden was right about Putin’s intentions. The argument is well-known: NATO was slowly encircling Russia, fomenting colour revolutions in its near-abroad, and

WiTh hindu exTremism groWing unchecked, india is on The edge of a precipice

ignoring the reasonable fears of a country that had been attacked from the West in the last century. There is, of course, an element of truth here. But saying only this is equivalent to justifying Hitler by blaming the unjust Treaty of Versailles. Worse, it concedes that big powers have the right to spheres of influence, to which all others must submit for the sake of global stability. Putin’s assumption that international relations is a contest of great powers is reflected in his repeated claim that he had no choice but to intervene militarily in Ukraine. Is that true? Is the problem really Ukrainian fascism? The question is better directed at Putin’s Russia. Putin’s intellectual lodestar is Ivan Ilyin, whose works are back in print and given to state apparatchiks and military conscripts. After being expelled from the Soviet Union in the early 1920s, Ilyin advocated a Russian version of fascism: The state as an organic community led by a paternal monarch, in which freedom is knowing one’s place. The purpose of voting for Ilyin (and for Putin) is to express collective support for the leader, not to legitimate or choose him. Aleksandr Dugin, Putin’s court-philosopher, closely follows in Ilyin’s steps, adding a postmodern garnish of historicist relativism: “[E]very so-called truth is a matter of believing. So we believe in what we do, we believe in what we say. And that is the only way to define the truth. So we have our special Russian truth that you need to accept. If the United States does not want to start a war, you should recognise that [the] United States is not any more a unique master. And [with] the situation in Syria and Ukraine, Russia says, ‘No you are not any more the boss.’ That is the question of who rules the world. Only war could decide really.”

Slavoj Žižek, professor of Philosophy at the European Graduate School, is international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London and the author of “The Sublime Object of Ideology” (Verso Books, 1989).

The end of globalism CHINA CAN PARTLY FINANCE RUSSIA AND PROVIDE A MARKET FOR SOME OF RUSSIA’S ENERGY EXPORTS. IN THE MEDIUM TERM, AS WESTERN CORPORATIONS DENY RUSSIA EVERYTHING FROM MAINTENANCE OF BOEING AND AIRBUS PLANES TO APPLE COMPUTERS AND IPHONES AS WELL AS WESTERN-BASED CREDIT CARDS AND BANKING SERVICES, CHINA HAS THE MEANS TO REPLACE ALL OF THESE

“While India is sensitive to international criticism of its treatment of Muslims, it does little to address the problem” PeoPle’s Daily online Qing Ming

Hindu extremists are increasingly taking their “militant message” into the mainstream while fermenting “communal hate” in a push to convert India into a Hindu state, wrote the New York Times earlier last month in an in-depth article headlined As Officials Look Away, Hate Speech in India Nears Dangerous Levels. The article pinpointed the rampant hate speech adopted by Hindu extremists against the Muslim community, including promoting a genocidal campaign to slaughter “2 million Muslims” and even pushing rhetoric in support of ethnic cleansing targeting Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar. Such hate speech “is stoking communal tensions in a country where small triggers have incited mass-death tragedies,” the article wrote. The prevalence of Islamophobic sentiments and rising incidences of violent attacks targeting Muslims have not garnered enough attention from the Indian government at both the central and local levels. On the contrary, Hindu extremists’ heinous agenda is being “enabled” and even “normalized” by political leaders and law enforcement officials in the world’s second-most populous nation, the article highlighted. In consequence, Muslims and even other religious minorities in the country have had to contend with the mounting perils of hate speech and violent attacks. Emboldened by the re-election of Yogi Adityanath (a monk who in the past formed a youth group accused of inciting violence), who serves as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, India’s largest state, Hindu mobs in 2020 staged a series of riots in New Delhi that resulted in the grisly deaths of 53 people (many of whom were burned to death), and over two-thirds of which were Muslims. In 2021, several video clips of violent attacks by Hindus went viral in India on social media: one showed a 45-year-old rickshaw driver being paraded through the streets of Kanpur, a city in Uttar Pradesh, as his teary daughter begged the mob to stop beating him, as reported by the BBC. In January this year, an Indian pastor and his wife were assaulted and wounded by a mob of Hindu extremists, and when they attempted to file a police report they were rejected by the local police. India’s political figures have not only turned a blind eye to Hindu extremists, but they instead have fostered a symbiotic relationship with them, since the group remains the staunchest supporter of India’s right-wing politicians. On March 1, Bloomberg published an analysis entitled Anti-Muslim Hatred Is Shaping India’s Elections, which pointed out that Indian political leaders have been exploiting “existing divisions in society” and “deep-rooted religious hatred” to cement their positions. “While India is sensitive to international criticism of its treatment of Muslims, it does little to address the problem,” the analysis noted. In January, Gregory Stanton, director of Genocide Watch, who previously predicted the massacre of the Tutsi in Rwanda before events broke out in 1994, said at a briefing that there were early “signs and processes” of genocide in India, according to Al Jazeera. Stanton was convinced that the Hindu extremists and their genocidal agenda must be stopped. “Because once the mobs take over it could turn deadly,” he said.

But what about the people of Syria and Ukraine? Can they also choose their truth or are they just a battlefield for would-be world rulers? The idea that each “way of life” has its own truth is what endears Putin to right-wing populists like former US President Donald Trump, who praised Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as the act of a “genius”. And the feeling is mutual: When Putin talks about “de-nazification” in Ukraine, we should bear in mind his support for Marine le Pen’s National Rally in France, Matteo Salvini’s Lega in Italy, and other actual neo-fascist movements. The “Russian truth” is only a convenient myth to justify Putin’s imperial vision, and the best way for Europe to counter it is to build bridges to developing and emerging countries, many of which have a long list of justified grievances against Western colonisation and exploitation. It’s not enough to “defend Europe”. The true task is to persuade other countries that the West can offer them better choices than Russia or China can. And the only way to achieve that is to change ourselves by ruthlessly uprooting neo-colonialism, even when it comes packaged as humanitarian help. Are we ready to prove that in defending Europe, we are fighting for freedom everywhere? Our disgraceful refusal to treat refugees equally sends the world a very different message.

american ProsPect ROBERT KUTTnER

keep thinking of August 1914. Before World War I, Europe’s economy was tightly intertwined by trade and finance. Capital exports were Britain’s leading product. Imports and exports of goods were a major share of every nation’s economy. You could travel anywhere on the continent without a passport. It was as if there were already a European Union. Norman Angell, prefiguring Tom Friedman, won a Nobel Peace Prize for his 1910 book with the unintentionally ironic title The Great Illusion. Angell condemned the arms buildup of that era, and assured the public that with this degree of economic interdependence, there should never be another major European war. Europeans, unwilling to disrupt summer vacation plans, expected that the August war would be over in a matter of weeks. World War I not only killed 20 million people and the era of prewar prosperity. It irrevocably put an end to Globalization I. The catastrophic 1919 Treaty of Versailles failed to resurrect global commerce and finance in a sustainable way. There followed two other brands of globalization. After World War II, the Bretton Woods system created a managed form of global trade, in which countries had plenty of policy space to pursue full employment, creation of welfare states, and economic planning. Globalization II coexisted with a Cold War, in which the Soviets had no economic contact with the West. But as capitalists recovered their normal political influence in a capitalist system, this bout of shared prosperity and mixed economy gave way to Globalization III—the attempt to resurrect something like laissez-faire. Tariffs were cut, regulations reduced, and global deals promoted by domestic policy shifts and World Trade Organization rules. Meanwhile, the Cold War ended. Russia and China each displayed variations on dictatorship combined with elements of capitalism. Russia’s was built heavily on exports of oil and gas, blending corrupt klepto-capitalism with deals with new Western partners. China’s was more productive, combining extensive state subsidies with market exports, and

even more deals with Western corporations and banks. Both violated supposed Western norms about both capitalism and democracy. But Western capitalists and their allies in government didn’t mind, because there was so much money to be made. Now, Vladimir Putin has blown Globalism III to hell. Even if he were to suspend military operations in Ukraine tomorrow, Humpty Dumpty will not be put back together again. In the space of a week, economic links with Russia that took decades to create have been abruptly severed. Some banks and corporations ended commercial ties because official sanctions required it, others out of concern for reputational damage. If the war ends well, with a retreat by Putin, he will still have killed thousands of Ukrainians and destroyed billions of dollars’ worth of homes and buildings. The West will not be inclined to reward him by reverting to the prewar economic status quo. Corporations and banks will be wary of future crises and sanctions. And if an attempted Russian occupation of Ukraine drags on, the West will act to further isolate Russia’s economy. The fact is, the Western economic system, with more than half of the world’s GDP, got along just fine without Russia before 1989, and it can get along without Russia now. Oil prices averaged $110 a barrel between 2011 and 2014, and we adjusted to it. If oil prices stay high, that will help accelerate the shift to renewables. Putin’s war also upends pre-existing assumptions about China and the global economy. Until Putin invaded Ukraine, there was an ongoing conflict between traditional corporate free-traders and those in the Biden administration who wanted a tougher stance on China. The goal of the hard-liners was to limit China’s violations of trade norms and its geopolitical expansion, and also to rebuild U.S. production capacity. A middle ground called for resetting the U.S.-China relationship, and establishing a new modus vivendi, allowing each nation to pursue its own domestic model but constraining predatory trade. Now, the hard-liners win by default, because Putin is suddenly far more dependent on China. But this is far from the desired China reset. In the short run, China can partly finance Russia and provide a market for some of Russia’s en-

ergy exports. In the medium term, as Western corporations deny Russia everything from maintenance of Boeing and Airbus planes to Apple computers and iPhones as well as Western-based credit cards and banking services, China has the means to replace all of these. Three major Russian banks are already working with Chinese banks in the hope of replacing lost Western credit cards. But the more China bails out Putin, the more China chills its relationship with the West. Chinese banks could be vulnerable to secondary sanctions. Cold War II could restore the pre-1989 alliance of Russia and China, but with a far more muscular China as the dominant partner, and with both nations as even more iron dictatorships. This can only chill the U.S.-China relationship even further. “I have trouble imagining that this plays out in a way that improves China’s relationship with the U.S. unless China plays the improbable role of peacemaker,” says James Mann, author of several books on China and the newest member of the U.S.-China Commission. The signs so far are that Xi Jinping is less than thrilled with this new role and new risk, because China’s goal is to become a larger global economic player, not a global economic pariah like Putin, and China needs the West more than it needs Russia. China abstained on the U.N. resolution calling on Russia to withdraw. It also remains to be seen whether Xi can act as any kind of restraint on Putin. In principle, China has a lot of leverage, but using it is another matter. It feels almost obscene to speak of silver linings in this grotesque war. However, the laissezfaire brand of globalization, relentlessly promoted since about 1990 by U.S. banks and corporations at the expense of American workers, is now caput. The abrupt imposition and acceptance of economic sanctions makes clear that democratic governments do have the power to rein in global corporations and banks. If they can be restricted because of gross violations of human rights, maybe labor and environmental rights are next. Let’s hope that will be a core principle of Globalization IV. Robert Kuttner is co-founder and co-editor of The American Prospect, and professor at Brandeis University’s Heller School.

Friday, 11 March, 2022 | KARACHI

NEWS

corporate corner great news for tea Lovers! haleeb foods to launch a new product - Zafrani tea whitener KARACHI: Haleeb Foods Limited the pioneer dairy and beverages processor in Pakistan has recently announced the launch of their new product for Tea Max (Liquid Tea Whitener) in Zafran Flavour. Tea Max being one of Pakistan’s most popular tea creaming brand by Haleeb Foods has unveiled a new product of matchless and tantalizing taste for tea lovers. The new Zafran (Saffron) flavoured liquid tea whitener gives a strong and delicious taste to your tea and offers a nice Zafrani Aroma. Haleeb Foods has introduced this product at a very economical price point. People will get the ‘Naya Zafrani Zaiqa’ in their tea, enjoying a nice bonding experience with friends and family over a cup of tea. Talking about the new product launch of TEA MAX (Liquid Tea Whitener), Mr. Adil Mumtaz, Brand Manager Haleeb Foods said: “At Haleeb Foods, we strongly believe in product innovation, unparalleled taste and exciting flavors to make tea time more enjoyable for our beloved consumers. This new Zafran Tea Whitener is another addition to our existing range of Tea Max Cardamom and Original flavors. ” pr

acca pakistan converges thought leaders at ‘pakistan Leadership conversation 2022’ KARACHI: ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) Pakistan, in collaboration with SEED Ventures, successfully hosted the inaugural Islamabad chapter of its flagship conferences Pakistan Leadership Conversation (PLC 2022). The fourth edition of PLC centered on the theme “Rethinking our world: Sustainable growth for Pakistan” and brought together leading policy makers, thought leaders, corporate influencers, academia and business operators for a dialogue centered on the power of digital, sustainability/ESG, ethics and future ready workforce. Mr. Shaukat Tarin, Federal Minister for Finance & Revenue, was the Chief Guest and shared his thoughts on rethinking public financial management and how the government lead the recovery after the pandemic. The first session, titled, “Beyond the pandemic - Roadmap to Pakistan's economic recovery” featured Muhammad Azfar Ahsan, Minister of State and Chairman - Board of Investment, Pakistan, Ayla Majid, ACCA Council Member, Founder and CEO Planetive, Sardar Abubakr, SEVP - Mobilink Microfinance Bank, Barkan Saeed - CEO Viztech, Hassan Daud Butt, CEO - KP Board of Investment & Trade, Abid Qaiyum Suleri, Executive Director - SDPI and Noor ul Ain Zafar, Head of Department Professional Qualifications, TMUC. pr

Murad accuses opposition parties for conspiring to overthrow pM iMran Khan on whiMs of the west ISLAMABAD

news desk

EDERAl Minister for Communications Murad Saeed Thursday accused the opposition parties for conspiring to overthrow Prime Minister Imran Khan on the whims of the western world. “When Prime Minister Imran Khan challenged Europe and made it clear that Pakistanis are not a slave nation, this slave gang is mobilized to overthrow the government,” said the minister in a statement. He said that after every few months, the opposition’s gang of thugs gathers and starts the circus. “From the day Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government was formed, the opposition chanted that he would not get a vote of confidence due to insufficient numbers. But they were

faced with shameful defeat,” he added. Murad said whether it were elections in Gilgit-Baltistan or Azad Kashmir, budget approval or legislation for electronic voting machines, the right to vote for overseas Pakistanis or any key legislation for the country, PTI has succeeded. “The opposition has always opposed the legislation whether it is related to FATF as PTI wanted to save Pakistan from being blacklisted or any key issue. This gang of dacoits has literally fulfilled the prediction of the Prime Minister that when legal action is taken against the thieves, they will all unite in order to safeguard their corruption,” he added. Calling Bilawal Zardari as a ‘Parchi Chairman’, Murad said that legs of the PPP leader were shivering when he rached Islamabad. “When Prime Minister Imran Khan reduced the prices of petrol in the public interest, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi

objected, justifying his criticism as when the price of petrol is increasing in the world, why it is being reduced in Pakistan,” he argued. He said the main issue of the opposition is Maqsood Chaprasi who had 375 crores in his account. “Very soon you will all be in jail,” he warned the opposition. He said Imran Khan became the ambassador of Pakistan on Kashmir and he raised Kashmir dispute in the United Nations General Assembly. He said Khan also emerged as the spokesman of the Islamic World when no one was ready to speak. “PM spoke on Islamophobia, highlighting the issue of the Muslim Ummah related to the blasphemous caricatures. As a result, today the presidents of Canada and Russia are talking about Islamophobia. Allah has given Pakistan the honor of leading the Islamic world,” he said.

“Six days from today, all the leaders of the Islamic world are coming to Pakistan. Isn’t this a victory of Pakistan?” he argued. Murad Saeed said that when Nawaz Sharif went to India for personal business, he did not meet Hurriyat leaders but met all Indian business friends. “Jandaal was invited to Pakistan without visa while he invited fascist Modi to his granddaughter’s wedding. Zardari goes to the US and tells the CIA Director to carry out drone strikes we will tackle in Pakistan,” he added. Referring the Wikileaks cables, Murad said that Fazlur Rehman also begged the then US Ambassador to give him a chance and he will serve the US more than Nawaz Sharif and Zardari. “The world respects independent leaders and nations and not the slaves,” he concluded.

first-ever career guide expo 2022 on March 11-13 ISLAMABAD pr

Keeping up with its commitment of prioritising safety and well-being, foodpanda organised a road safety awareness session for its riders, which was conducted by Sindh Traffic Police. The session was conducted by DSP Saeed Arain, and was followed by a talk by the DIG Traffic Police, Mr. Ahmed Yar Chohan. pr

frieslandcampina engro pakistan promotes higher education for women; awards scholarships to farmers’ daughters

Wateen Telecom and Beaconhouse have partnered to provide Managed internet services across BSS campuses. The partnership was signed by Adil Rashid, CEO, Wateen Telecom and Kasim Kasuri, CEO, Beaconhouse. pr

Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training in collaboration with Educational Institutions and EdTech Companies is organizing the first ever Career Guide Expo 2022 for students of schools and colleges from 11 to 13 March at Pak China Friendship Centre Islamabad. It is first of its kind youth development event at National level which will provide a platform to put together School & College students, their parents, academicians, career counselors, eminent scholars of higher education institutions and corporate sector. This will be a great and unique opportunity for kids to get oriented about numerous fields they have ahead of them. They will broaden their scope beyond traditional professional lines. A special focus also included inspiring young girls to pursue highly coveted and respectable professions. Many organizations, from all spectrums of professional circles, will participate and set up 70 stalls, book fairs, food courts, Fun zone, live streaming on social media. One on one career counseling on Education Technology, Social Sciences, Medical Research, Entrepreneurship, Business & Projects Management, Artificial intelligence, Urban Development, Journalism and much more. In addition, prominent speakers from all walks of life will deliver talk for motivating young students to pursue their careers with passion, and diversify their prospects immensely. The speakers include: Dr Amjad Saqib Chairman Akhuwat, Samar Minallah Social worker, Syed Javed Hassan, Chairman NAVTT, Waqasul Hassan, CEO Karandaz etc.

shibli faraz vows to implement sti policy ISLAMABAD pr

KARACHI: FrieslandCampina Engro Pakistan Ltd, building upon their scholarship program aimed specifically for the children of their dairy farmers, awarded 2 Student Scholarships under the FCEPL Scholars Initiative. Muhammad Sohail Sarwar Chaudhary, Head of Agribusiness at FCEPL, awarded the scholarships covering a year’s tuition fee to Hira Hafeez, daughter of Hafeez Ahmed from Dunyapur, and Narjis Ijaz, daughter of Ijaz Gondal from Pindi Bhattian. Hira Hafeez is pursuing a PhD degree in Botany and Narjis Ijaz is set to complete her matriculation. Dairy farmers are the backbone of FCEPL’s supply chain. Improving the lives of the farmers and their families is a vital part of the company’s ethos. This year, in line with the theme of Women's Day to ‘Break the Bias’, the Company is committed to promote quality higher education, particularly for women and girls within its farmer community. pr

nBp press statement on server status “Some of NBP branches and ATMs services were affected today (10th March 2022) by an unforeseen breakdown in our computer servers. We continue to serve our clients through alternative means and with certain limitations. We regret the inconvenience caused to our customers, and assure them that we are taking all necessary measures to restore the full suite of our services at the earliest possible time.” pr

Hashoo School of Hospitality, Management holds student orientation session Hashoo School of Hospitality and Management held the student orientation session of its second batch at CTTI auditorium. Hashoo School of Hospitality and Management (HSHM) welcomed its second batch of students at the Orientation Session on 8th March 2022, held at the Construction Training and Technical Institute (CTTI) auditorium. Mr. Azam Jamil, Minister of State, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Tourism Coordination, Chairman PTDC, Chairman NTCB, Government of Pakistan, was the Chief Guest at the event. Among the attendees were Mr. Haseeb Gardezi, COO Hospitality and Education Division – Hashoo Group, Colonel Atif Jalil, Director CTTI, HSHM faculty and executives from Hashoo Group, along with the first and second batch of students.

The students from the first batch shared their experiences and motivated the new students with their achievements. Colonel Atif Jalil, Director, CTTI, gave an overview of the institute. Mr. Haseeb Gardezi thanked Mr. Azam Jamil for attending the event and shared motivating words with the new students. On the occasion Mr. Murtaza Hashwani, Deputy Chairman and CEO, Hashoo Group; Chairman Board of Governors, HSHM, acknowl-

edged all the hard work that has gone into establishing the Hashoo School of Hospitality in partnership with CTTI and in collaboration with Sheffield Hallam University. “Encouraged by the positive feedback from our first batch, we look forward to serving the youth of Pakistan, while continuing being the hospitality leaders”, he further added. “I want to assure you that you are joining a studentcentered academic community. pr

Minister for Science and Technology Mr. Shibli Faraz chaired a meeting on Import of scientific equipment and raw materials and discussed ways to make Pakistan self-reliant by promoting local industry and focusing on import substitution. Mr. Shibli Faraz, in his opening remarks, said that the goal of the ministry is to ensure implementation of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) policy to achieve sustainable development goals in line with vision of PM Imran Khan. He stated that the country is currently reliant on imported products and raw materials for its industrial needs and this must be fixed by following the fourth industrial revolution of the West. He said that his goal is to bring together triple helix; Research & Development, Industry, and Academia to boost import substitution. The representatives from industry were of the view that government needs to provide protection to local manufacturing and make this import substitution a priority of the government. Energy efficient systems are being installed in the industry to achieve clean and sustainable industrial growth. The representatives from NUST and PSF pointed out that the funding needs to be increased in research and development sector that forms the base of every industrial revolution. Industrial mapping will be carried out to identify three to four initial testing stage projects and then on the basis of their results a comprehensive action plan will be developed. Three industrial sectors; agriculture, engineering, and electronics would be the main focus at this stage. The minister told the stakeholders that industries will be identified in the follow-up meeting and a three to six months roadmap will be charted to proceed with the initial stage. He said that the new SME policy is a great initiative and the government will make sure to protect infant industry. He concluded by saying that all relevant stakeholders will be made part of this process to achieve these collective goals.

Friday, 11 March, 2022 | KARACHI

10 FOREIGN NEWS Yoon Suk-Yeol elected South korean preSident, vowS national unitY

Mian abrar

oon Suk-yeol, leader of the main conservative opposition People Power Party, won a narrow victory in the South Korean presidential election held on Wednesday, results show.

Yoon garnered 48.56 percent of the votes, defeating his liberal rival Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party, who gained 47.83 percent, according to the final tally released by the national Election Commission. Sim Sang-jung of the progressive Justice Party won 2.37 percent.

The president-elect celebrated with jubilant party officials at the national Assembly building, telling them that it was a victory of the great people. He expressed thanks to his rivals, Lee and Sim, saying the whole country should work together and be united now that the election campaign has ended.

Yoon’s election indicated a strong desire among his supporters to snatch power from the current liberal Moon Jae-in government to the conservative bloc. The election took place amid soaring CoVID-19 cases in South Korea and tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

Yoon, a former prosecutor general, had pledged to realize sustainable peace and safety on the peninsula through complete, verifiable denuclearization, and vowed to come up with all possible measures to resume the stalled denuclearization talks in cooperation with the United States.

Taking a hard line on national security, he had pledged to strengthen the comprehensive strategic alliance between Seoul and Washington and deploy additional units of the U.S. THAAD anti-missile system in South Korea. People watch a television screen showing a news broadcast with file footage of a DPRK missile test, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, March 5, 2022.

China demands U.S. not harm rights and interests over Russia Mian abrar China demanded on Thursday that the U.S., in handling the Ukraine issue and relations with Russia, shall not harm the legitimate rights and interests of China. Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, made the remarks at a regular press briefing in response to recent questions

by the U.S. and some other countries that China didn’t take concrete actions to solve the crisis in Ukraine and claims by some U.S. tanks that China’s “balanced strategies” on Ukraine-Russia conflicts don’t play any constructive role. “China firmly opposes all forms of unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction by the United States,” the spokesperson said at a regular press.

Countries accusing China of standing on the sidelines of Ukraine issues should ask themselves who the culprit behind the current crisis is and who drove nATo’s five rounds of eastward expansion, he said. China always forms its own position and policy according to the merits of the matter itself and plays a constructive role in peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Zhao stressed.

u.S. closes door on combat aircraft supply for ukraine, citing ‘high risk’ agencies The U.S. on Wednesday closed the door on supplying combat aircraft to Ukraine, saying the intelligence community assessed it would be a “high risk” move that could increase the chances of a Russian military escalation with nATo. nATo member Poland surprised Washington on Tuesday with a public offer to transfer its Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets to a U.S. base in Germany as a way to replenish Ukraine’s air force as Kyiv had implored the West for combat aircraft. Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby explained the U.S. decision, saying that the transfer of MiG-29s would change little for Ukraine relative to Russian capabilities, and stressed U.S. support for supplying other types of weapons. “The intelligence community has assessed that the transfer of MiG-29s to Ukraine may be mistaken as escalatory and could result in significant Russian reaction that might increase the prospects of a military escalation with nATo,” Kirby said. “Therefore, we also assess that the transfer of MiG-29s to Ukraine to be high risk.” Kirby declined to offer details on what specifically drove the U.S. intelligence assessment. What’s behind U.S.’ shuddered decision on combat planes? The United States has sought to speed up weapons deliveries to Ukraine. But it shuddered on Tuesday at the prospect of flying combat aircraft from nATo territory into the war zone. Russia’s defense ministry warned this week that countries even offering air fields to Ukraine, let alone flying in fighter jets, for countering Russia may be considered as having entered the conflict. nATo has said it does not want direct conflict with Russia, a fellow nuclear-armed power, and U.S. President Joe Biden has ruled out sending U.S. troops into Ukraine to fight, something the Pentagon has said would apply to troops on the ground or in the air, flying missions. Although the Pentagon denied that the decision on Poland’s offer amounted to a new red line, it did indicate that supplying Ukraine with combat aircraft is yet another military option that has been taken off the table, at least for now.

Modi’s BJp wins big in india’s largest state election agencies Indian Prime Minister narendra Modi’s party won the country’s most populous state with a big majority, according to the count on Thursday of a state assembly vote that could offer clues to the national mood before a 2024 general election. The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had won or was leading in 251 of the 403 seats in Uttar Pradesh, which it currently rules, according to the Election Commission of India. Final results are expected to be out in a few hours but unlikely to change much. Party workers in the state staged impromptu rallies to celebrate and smeared each other in the BJP’s saffron colours. “The BJP will form a government in Uttar Pradesh with a thumping majority,” said party spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia. “The people of the state have rejected the opposition that was building a castle in the air.” Uttar Pradesh is home to about a fifth of India’s 1.35 billion people and sends the most legislators to the parliament of any state. The victory in the northern state has come despite the state and federal government’s much-criticised handling of Covid-19, lack of jobs and anger over farm reforms that Modi cancelled last year after protests. The BJP has long predicted it would retain the state because of policies such as free staples for the poor during the pandemic, a crackdown on crime, and its popularity among the Hindu majority reinforced by the construction of a temple on the site of a razed mosque. Key to majority: In elections in four smaller states over the past month, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) that governs the national capital territory of Delhi won a landslide victory in Punjab, while the BJP looked set to retain control of Manipur, Goa and Uttarakhand. The AAP, whose name means “common man” in Hindi, PID (I) 6373/21 emerged in 2012 out of an anti-corruption movement.

Friday, 11 March, 2022 | KARACHI

SPORTS 11

AgenCIes

dour draw on a lifeless pitch in Rawalpindi in many ways doused the enthusiasm of Pakistan’s cricket fans seeing Australia play in their own backyard for the first time since 1998. Only 14 wickets fell over five days in the opening Test of the three-game series which concluded on Tuesday with batters overwhelmingly dominant over the bowlers. Criticism has been abound despite Pakistan humbling Australia’s three-pronged pace attack of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and skipper Pat Cummins, who had been irresistible during their 4-0 drubbing of England in the Ashes earlier this year. Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ramiz Raja admitted on Wednesday the draw “wasn’t a good advertisement” for Test cricket but added the pitch was prepared keeping the home side’s strengths in mind. “I understand the frustration of the fans,” Ramiz said in a video posted on PCB’s official Twitter feed. “It would’ve been good if a result came out. But the point to be considered is that this is a series of three Test matches. Just for the heck of it, we can’t prepare a fast pitch or a bouncy pitch and put the game in Australia’s lap.” The former Pakistan captain also pointed out that Pakistan had been depleted due to in-

RAmiz ReFleCts on RAwAlpindi test, ReiteRAtes plAns on pitChes

juries to key pacers heading into the first Test. “It’s important that when we play at home, we play to our strengths,” he added. “We also had limited resources, unfortunately. Our opening-ball pair was disturbed because Hasan Ali and Faheem were both unfit. “Similarly we had a brand-new opening pair — Abdullah Shafique had only played 2-3 matches, and we were keeping a worrisome

eye on his form, and whether he could handle such a good bowling attack or not. Imam-ulHaq was also making a comeback. “When your opening bowlers and batters are new and raw, you have to prepare according to that. We also didn’t have leg-spinner Yasir Shah so we came into the field with an under-sourced 15. “And we should not ignore that Australia is a powerhouse and they came here after winning the Ashes. And giving respect to their talent we could not go so quickly on experimental mood keeping in front our strength.” The PCB chief added that Pakistan should dwell on the positives ahead of the second Test which begins in Karachi from Saturday. “I understand that we have gained a lot of confidence from this performance,” he added. “The batting has sparkled, and on the bowling front, a spinner [Nauman Ali] has taken six wickets. So these are bright points. “Fans should understand that we will make every effort to have a result-oriented

series, but you can’t wave a magic wand and get green pitches or result-oriented pitches. We need to beat Australia, and we need to prepare our strategy accordingly, and the strategy is for low-bouncy tracks where reverse can happen, where lbw and bowled will be in play, where our spinners can show their performance, and where the batters, who have grown up on low-bounce pitches, can utilise that advantage. “I want to say again that it wasn’t a good advertisement, but keep your morale high and keep watching. It’s a big achievement to have brought so many great Australian players here, and on an individual level there’s a lot to look forward to, from both the Pakistan team and the Australian team. I hope that this series, going forward, will become more interesting, but only one match is done, so don’t jump the gun, there’s a lot of cricket to be played.” AP adds: Talking to reporters after the draw on Tuesday, Cricket Australia chief ex-

ecutive Nick Hockley said the occasion of Australia’s first Test in Pakistan in 24 years had “really surpassed any concerns about the pitch”, although he said he’d like an even contest in the next Test. “We’d love to see an even contest between bat and ball. We want to see results in Test matches,” Hockley said. “I think the two teams had an opportunity to really size each other up, so, you know, we’d love to see a bit more balance in the pitches for Karachi and Lahore.” Security concerns had kept the Aussies away from Pakistan for nearly a quarter of a century but Hockley said the relationship between PCB and CA had been strengthened thanks to this series. “We firmly believe in Australia that we need a strong global game,” he said. “And a strong global game [means] the best countries are playing regularly against each other. We’ve got two teams here that are that are extremely strong and very competitive.

New Zealand beat India by 62 runs at Women’s World Cup WeLLIngTOn The AssociATed Press

Host New Zealand finally produced a performance to catch the attention of its main rivals at the Women’s Cricket World Cup when it beat India by 62 runs on Thursday in its third group match. New Zealand lost its opening match against the West Indies, then beat Pakistan in a performance that was dominant but not eye-catching. India had played only one match before Thursday, beginning its campaign with an equally emphatic win over Pakistan. That meant India went into the match at Hamilton in third place and New Zealand in fifth place in the eight-team round-robin from which four teams advance to the semifinals. In that context, the match became a must-win for New Zealand and its performance was both timely and impressive. Amy Satterthwaite scored 75 and Amelia Kerr added

50 as New Zealand made 260-9, batting first after India won the toss. Harmanpreet Kaur made an outstanding 71 from 63 balls to lead her team’s response but India was all out for 198 in the 47th over. Kerr’s 50, her sixth in one-day internationals, came from 63 deliveries and she was out next ball. Satterthwaite made 50 from 60 balls and strung together a series of partnerships which built New Zealand’s total. She added 67 with Kerr for the third wicket, 54 with Maddy Green for the fourth wicket and 49 with Katey Martin for the fifth wicket. “There were certainly patches when I really struggled but I tried to build an innings with whoever I was batting with and take it as deep as we could,” said Satterthwaite who eventually was out in the 43rd over. “I thought the bowlers were outstanding in that first 20-odd overs which were exceptional. “We’ve talked about our starts and couldn’t have asked for much better.”

New Zealand scored steadily at a rate of more than five runs per over through the first half of its innings and was only constrained later by excellent India bowling. Rajeshwari Gayakwad and Pooja Vastrakar played an important role, slowing New Zealand’s scoring between the 40th and 47th overs when New Zealand added 30 runs for the loss of four wickets. Vastrakar, especially, troubled the New Zealanders with her full and accurate bowling, taking 3-19 in her second, six-over spell. New Zealand lost Lea Tahuhu and Jess Kerr to consecutive balls in the 47th over and tallied only 49 runs in its last 10 overs but still built a total which required India to achieve a record Women’s World Cup run chase in order to win. The New Zealanders then put the squeeze on India at the start of its innings. Smitri Mandhana fell early and New Zealand shut down the scoring opportunities for the India batters so that 7.4 overs had been bowled before the first boundary was hit.

Imam-ul-Haq makes a name for himself, relatively speaking KARACHI AFP

Opener Imam-ul-Haq has shed some of the burden of being the nephew of a legend with a century in each innings against Australia in the drawn first Test. The 26-year-old’s uncle is former captain Inzamam-ul-Haq, but Imam’s exploits in the drawn Rawalpindi Test have now given him recognition in his own right. The pitch may have been a batting-friendly flat track, but Imam still had to show immense concentration and discipline for knocks of 157 and 111 not out. In doing so, he became the 10th Pakistan batsman to score a century in each innings of a Test, and only the fourth against Australia, behind former captains Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq and Azhar Ali. His performance will not only cement his place in the Test side, but will also silence a legion of critics who go after him after every failure. The criticism usually circles back to suggestions he only has a place in the side through the family name. “I don’t care what people say here and there and never lose heart,” Imam said after scoring his maiden Test century on Friday. “I want to take challenges and excel.” Despite being cricket royalty Imam’s journey hasn’t been easy. His uncle is Pakistan’s third-highest

Test run-scorer with 8,830 and most prolific in OneDay Internationals, 11,701. Despite obvious natural talent Imam was labelled parchi — an Urdu term used for someone given undue favouritism — and not helped by the fact that he was first picked in 2018 when his uncle was the chief selector. nePotiSm at Play? Imam had the game, most fans agreed, but was nepotism at play?

The bespectacled Imam was Pakistan’s highest rungetter in the 2014 Under-19 World Cup — where Pakistan lost in the final — finishing with 382 runs in six games. He also showed form in an A Series against Bangladesh, before scoring 848 in 11 matches in the 2016-17 domestic season. Inzamam insisted he wasn’t playing family favourites, saying his nephew was selected on the advice of coaches Mickey Arthur and Grant Flower. “Mickey and Grant came to me and stressed that they wanted him for the team, so only after that, he was selected,” he said at the time. The youngster made an instant impact, scoring a hundred on his ODI debut against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi in 2017. His first Test, in 2018, was a matchwinning 74 not out against Ireland when Pakistan were teetering at 14-3, chasing 160. While Imam’s ODI form only improved, his Test fortunes slumped and he was dropped after failing in Australia in 2019. But on the back of two hundreds in domestic cricket, Imam returned to the fold — and made the chance count in Rawalpindi. “Every time I failed, they started trolling me but I have a resolve that I will answer them with my bat, with my runs,” he said. “I want to make my own name.”

After 10 overs, India was 26-2, after 20 overs it was 50-3 and its task had become almost insurmountable. When Mithali Raj and Richa Ghost fell to consecutive deliveries from Kerr in the 30th over, India’s hopes had all but faded. Harmanpreet Kaur hit six boundaries and two sixes and continued her outstanding individual innings until the 44th over when she was out with India 178-8.

Football giants Chelsea’s future in jeopardy after Britain freezes owner Roman Abramovich’s assets AgenCIes Unpreceded restrictions were placed on Chelsea’s ability to operate by the British government on Thursday after owner Roman Abramovich was targeted in sanctions. Abramovich was among seven wealthy Russians who had their assets frozen by the government. It freezes his ability to sell Chelsea which was announced last week after Russia invaded Ukraine. The government has issued what it calls a special licence to ensure Chelsea can continue to play games and staff can be paid. But the club won’t be able to sell new tickets to any fans or sell merchandise. It is about depriving Abramovich of benefiting from his ownership of the club, Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries tweeted. “I know this brings some uncertainty, but the government will work with the league and clubs to keep football being played while ensuring sanctions hit those intended. Football clubs are cultural assets and the bedrock of our communities. Were committed to protecting them,” she said.

Australia look to second spinner after Rawalpindi stalemate KARACHI AFP

Australia are likely to play two spinners as they go in search of a win in Saturday’s second Test in Karachi after Pakistan batted their seamers into the ground in the draw at Rawalpindi. The historic occasion — Australia’s first Test in Pakistan since 1998 — was marred by a pitch described as “dead” by vice-captain Steve Smith as Pakistan piled up 728 runs for the loss of just four wickets, and one of those was a run out. Openers Imam-ul-Haq and Abdullah Shafique both made maiden Test hundreds — Imam scoring one in each innings — while senior batsman Azhar Ali also passed three figures during five attritional days. The series now moves to Karachi’s National Stadium, a favourite hunting ground

for Pakistan, who have won 23 of the 43 Tests they have played there while losing only twice. Australia have never won in Karachi in eight attempts, losing five and drawing three. With conditions sultry, the pitch is likely to help the slow bowlers, prompting Australia to rest at least one of their famed pace trio of captain Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. ‘Still feeling freSh’: “From our intel in Karachi and Lahore, a second spinner is probably the way to go but we’ll have a look,” said Cummins, hinting that leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson, 28, could make his Test debut alongside veteran off-spinner Nathan Lyon. “Just about everyone got into the series,” said Cummins, whose side made 459 in their only innings in Rawalpindi without anyone making a century.

“All the batters got some runs. We’re still feeling relatively fresh going into the game.” Pace bowler Hasan Ali, who missed the first Test through injury, is likely to replace Naseem Shah for the hosts. But Faheem Ashraf, who missed the first Test through injury, has now been sidelined with Covid. Left-arm spinner Nauman Ali, who took a career-best 6-107 in Rawalpindi, was Pakistan’s match-winner in Karachi last year on debut against South Africa with seven wickets. “The way our batters played and how Nauman bowled in difficult conditions was good,” said Pakistan captain Babar Azam of his side’s performance in the first Test of the three-match series. “There were some positives to take for us. We have some of our fast bowlers available for the second Test so we should be stronger in that department.”

Ramiz Raja, the Pakistan Cricket Board chairman, defended the flat pitch in Rawalpindi. “I understand the frustration of the fans but there is a lot of cricket still remaining to be played,” said Raja. “Just for the heck of it, we can’t prepare a fast pitch or a bouncy pitch and put the game in Australia’s lap.” The third and final Test takes place in Lahore from March 21-25. PakiStan (from): Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan, Abdullah Shafique, Azhar Ali, Fawad Alam, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imam-ul-Haq, Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood, Hasan Ali, Zahid Mahmood, Naseem Shah australia (from): Pat Cummins (capt), Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazle-

wood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Mark Steketee, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner Umpires: Aleem Dar (PAK) and Ahsan Raza (PAK) tV umpire: Rashid Riaz (PAK) match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (SRI)

Friday, 11 March, 2022

prayer tiMings

NEWS

CRACkS EmERgE IN JAhANgIR TAREEN gROuP AS Pm khAN vISITS LAhORE ISLAMABAD

Mian abrar

RACKS emerged within the Jahangir Tareen group of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Thursday as at least four senior members of Tareen group violated the group’s decision and attended the PTI’s parliamentary party meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan in Lahore. Those who attended the PTI meeting chaired by Imran Khan and even opposed the Tareen group’s demand for removal of Chief Minister Usman Buzdar included Punjab Ministers Asif Nakai, Akhtar Malik, Samsam Bukhari and Hashim Dogar. On the other hand, Tareen group has announced its association with the provincial ministers who met Prime Minister Imran Khan. Spokesperson of Tareen group Saeed Akbar Nawani told media in Lahore that Asif Nikai and Akhtar Malik attended Tareen group meetings but they were never part of the group. Saeed Akbar Nawani said that Asif Nakai, Akhtar

Sheikh Rasheed says ‘PTI defectors will be disqualified by NA speaker’ Minister for Interior Sheikh Rashid on Thursday seemed confident about the government’s ability to defeat the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan, saying those Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers who will cross the floor to vote against the premier will be disqualified by the speaker. Speaking to reporters in Islamabad, the federal minister said the speaker has powers to disqualify lawmakers over possible defection. At the time of the passage of the 18th Amendment, all political parties decided to give these powers to the speaker to stop horse-trading, Rashid claimed. “No one can challenge the ruling of the speaker,” he went on to add. staff report

Malik, Samsam Bukhari, Hashim Dogar have never been members of Tareen group. “We know that there are difficulties when a stand is taken against any government. Transport and pumps of our brother Ajmal Cheema have been closed since last day,” he added. “We are in the PTI but joined Jahangir Tareen on the basis of our differences. We believe that the man we used to blame for destroying party was later removed by the Prime Minister. Hence, the decision of the Prime Minister proved that our position was right,” he added without mentioning the name of Shehzad Akbar. “Once proved that our position was right, our position should be accepted or we should be proved wrong by argument,” Saeed Akbar Nawani said. Spokesman of Jahangir Tareen group said that consultations are underway and the situation is being reviewed on a daily basis. “We stand by our position and we have no regrets. No one should ever refuse for a dialogue. None of our group has been nominated for the post of Chief Minister yet. We did not have any consultation in this regard

yet,” he maintained. Responding to a question about differences with Aleem Khan, Saeed Akbar Nawani said that he had lot of respect for Aleem Khan and he is part of Tareen group. “Pervez Elahi is our speaker and our friends met him at his request. There is no word of no return in politics,” he added. It is to be noted that some members of Jahangir Tareen group have opposed the decision to remove Bazdar. In this regard, provincial minister Samsam Bukhari also announced his separation from Tareen group. After Punjab Minister Asif Nakai, Provincial Minister Samsam Bukhari also announced a meeting with the Prime Minister. Samsam Bukhari said that he would meet the Prime Minister in the Chief Minister’s House on Thursday. Earlier, Asif Nikai had said that he was 100 percent with Imran Khan. A day back, Sardar Khurram Leghari of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Jahangir Tareen group had also rejected the decision of removing Usman Bazdar.

Amid fierce criticism, govt tells IHC it’s ready to withdraw fake news law ISLAMABAD inp

The government was ready to withdraw amendments recently made in the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016, through a presidential ordinance, Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP) Khalid Jawed Khan on Thursday told the Islamabad High Court (IHC). IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah while hearing a petition had issued notice to AGP Khan to appear before the court in a personal capacity. Among effecting other changes that have rendered the stringent law originally introduced in 2016 by the

government of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) even more so, the ordinance makes online defamation a non-bailable, cognisable offence and increases the prison term to a maximum of five years. AGP Khan told the court the matter can again be referred to the cabinet to get a second opinion and include those of the stakeholders in the press. A timeframe should be fixed to work on this law, he said. “We will sit with the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA) and other media unions to sort out the matter,” he added.

“PECA amendment is a draconian law if it comes into force in the present shape,” AGP conceded. “I have held a detailed meeting with the prime minister and defended the case on his special instructions [… ],” he said. “The court wants to set an example through this case,” the bench commented. The court had clubbed all the petitions against the ordinance. The PBA and other petitioners had challenged the PECA ordinance. The PBA in its petition had claimed the ordinance has been released to promote censorship and the president must have strong grounds before issuing any ordinance.

Tarin directs for steps to attract Saudi investors ISLAMABAD staff Correspondent

Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin has emphasised the need for tapping immense business potential for investment between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. The finance minister said this while talking to Chairman Board of Investment Azfar Ahsan and Ambassador of Pakistan to Saudi Arabia Ameer Khuram Rathore on Thursday. The fi-

nance minister urged the Board of Investment to finalise discussion with prospective investors in Saudi Arabia. He directed the BoI to pay special focus on project development in consultation with respective ministries and the provincial government, besides finalising discussion with prospective investors in Saudi Arabia. The minister appreciated the efforts being made by the Pakistan Embassy in Saudi Arabia for playing as the

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Opposition to approach ECP for ‘early verdict’ in 2014 foreign funding case ISLAMABAD Monitoring report

After submitting a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan, the joint opposition has decided to approach the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for an early verdict in foreign funding case against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party. Sources privy to the development told that opposition parties — including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) — will file a joint application with the commission for early decision in the case pending since 2014. The opposition leaders will appear before the ECP office where they will request the election body to deliver a verdict. In a previous hearing on March 2, the lawyer for the ruling party completed arguments, while the bench directed the counsel for the petitioner, Akbar S. Babar, to conclude his arguments on the next hearing of the case. Babar claimed the PTI received $7.3 million in funding from foreign donors, including those from India and offshore companies. He claimed then-PTI chairman Imran Khan gave fake certificates to the commission.

If you have anything against Zardari, prove it in courts, Bilawal tells govt ISLAMABAD: PPP Chairman Bilawal BhuttoZardari Thursday said his father and former president Asif Ali Zardari was acquitted in corruption cases by the courts and if the government has anything on him, they should prove it in a court of law. Addressing a news conference in Islamabad on Thursday, he challenged the rulers if they wanted to initiate any action against them, they can do it today, adding “tomorrow you may not find an opportunity.” Bilawal also indicated at Shehbaz Sharif becoming the next prime minister. “We will ask Shehbaz Sharif to appoint a competent interior minister” he added. He declared the public had given its verdict rejecting the “selected: prime minister proving that they were with the democracy. The PPP chairman said the masses during the PPP’s long march had given their verdict in support of the no-confidence motion. Bilawal said it was now up to the parliament to honour the people’s hopes. Responding to a question, Bilawal described the “drone attack” on Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari as “intolerable”. A belligerent PPP chairman further said: “We can see that the drone was heading towards Aseefa and us constantly.” “When PPP march came out of South Punjab, this drone was with us, it continued to fly towards us slowly.” he further disclosed. Bilawal demanded of the security agencies to probe the “attack on Aseefa”. He disclosed they were receiving life threats. “We never talk of politics of gun but we know how to fire it. We will teach you such a lesson which your coming generations will remember for long,” he warned. Bilawal, however, said he is a man of peace and will remain peaceful. Bilawal further observed: “The more he (Imran Khan) is worried the more he will hurl abuses on others.” Responding to allegations against Zardari, Bilawal said: “Asif Zardari had been acquitted by courts with honour, though he was kept in jail without any conviction. If you have anything against him, bring it to the court and prove it.” staff report

Fawad says ‘Army stands with govt just as required under Constitution’ Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Thursday rejected the notion that the military establishment was now supporting the opposition, saying that the armed forces continued to stand with the government as required under the Constitution. It is pertinent to note that Chaudhry’s remarks were in reply to a reporter’s question about the “impression that opposition parties now had the “army or establishment’s support” in their bid to oust Prime Minister Imran Khan from the top office through a vote of noconfidence. “In our constitutional scheme, the army has to stay with the government,” Chaudhry said at a press conference in Islamabad today. “The army has to follow the Constitution, and it will follow the Constitution.” The information minister said a meeting of the political committee was held earlier in the day where concerns were raised over a “campaign against the Pakistan Army”. In this regard, he referred to a statement by Maulana Fazlur Rehman, president of an alliance of opposition parties, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM). A clip was then played at the press briefing in which Rehman was shown speaking at a press conference alongside PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif and PPP Co-Chairperson Asif

Ali Zardari. The presser was held earlier this week, hours after opposition parties submitted a no-confidence motion with the National Assembly Secretariat against the prime minister. In the clip, Rehman was shown to be saying: “We also think about reforms for our institutions. The jurisdictions of all institutions have been defined in the Constitution and we want to move towards that so that such complains or questions never arise in the country again.” Chaudhry, while commenting on Rehman’s statement today, linked the mooted “reforms” with the opposition’s attempts to have “political control over the army”. The information minister alleged that PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif had been trying in the past to control “the army just like Punjab police”, saying that these “reforms” would be a continuation of these efforts. He further referred to the memogate scandal, which had surfaced after the publication of a secret memo asking Washington for help reining in the Pakistani military during the PPP’s tenure in 2011. The matter pertained to Dawn publishing details of a high-level civilmilitary meeting discussing the issue of banned outfits operating in Pakistan — which quoted government officials warning the military leadership of international isolation if

Pakistan failed to act against militants. Chaudhry stated that he was mentioning these incidents of the past to refresh people’s memories about the age-old ambitions of current opposition parties to malign the Pakistan Army. He further addressed the opposition’s objection to PM Imran’s criticism of European Union (EU) countries for asking Pakistan to vote against Russia during the recently held special session of the United Nations General Assembly. He wondered why the prime minister’s rebuke of EU countries had the opposition worried and then asked for clip to be played in which PML-N leader Hamza Shehbaz was seen criticising PM Imran on the issue. Chaudhry said the opposition’s reaction equated to questioning “why does Pakistan have an independent foreign policy?” He further remarked that the no-trust motion had been submitted because the foreign policy of “absolutely not” and criticising EU countries had perturbed the opposition. “But should we protect their assets in Europe and London, or should we move forward with an independent foreign policy?” Chaudhry posed a rhetoric question. He said Pakistan wanted good ties with all countries, but not at the cost of its self-respect. news desk

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