India’s top court on Friday ordered a jailed opponent of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be released on bail, allowing him to campaign in an ongoing national election. Arvind Kejriwal, chief minister of the capital Delhi and a key leader in an opposition alliance formed to compete against Modi in the polls, was detained in March over a long-running corruption probe. He is among several leaders of the bloc under criminal investigation, with one of his colleagues describing his arrest the month before the election as a “political conspiracy” orchestrated by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Supreme court Justices Sanjiv Khanna…
Author: Hasnain Abid Khanzada
MUZAFFARABAD: After the police reportedly detained as many as 70 activists in a bid to prevent a ‘long march’ announced by the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee to press the government to comply with an agreement reached between the two in Feb this year, the committee spearheading the movement has announced a “shutter-down and wheel-jam” strike across the region today (Friday). The public action committee has been leading a rights movement to protest ‘unjust’ taxes levied on electricity bills and observed a shutter-down strike for the same reason in Aug last year. The movement demands that electricity should be provided to…
RAWALPINDI: PIA commenced its Haj flight operation on Thursday, with its first flight carrying 329 pilgrims departing for Madina at 10:30am from Lahore after a two-hour delay due to a fire incident which caused a temporary suspension of the operation at Allama Iqbal International Airport. According to an official, the fire erupted due to a short circuit in immigration counter’s ceiling. A PIA spokesman said that following the departure of first flight (PK717) from Lahore, the second flight (PK713) from Islamabad left for Madina at 7:10pm with 327 pilgrims. The first Haj flight from Multan is scheduled to depart for…
ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecution in the £190 million corruption reference admitted before the Islamabad High Court that the order of the National Crimes Agency (NCA) that confiscated the amount sent by property tycoon Malik Riaz was not brought into the judicial record. IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri resumed hearing on the petitions. Special Prosecutor Amjad Pervaiz was arguing on the post-arrest bail petitions of former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi in this reference. In response to Justice Jahangiri’s query about whether the prosecution obtained the certified copy that froze…
NORTH WAZIRISTAN: A private girls’ school was blown up by unidentified militants in Tehsil Shewa of North Waziristan district on Wednesday night, police sources said. They said the militants first tortured the school watchman and later blew up two rooms of the school. There was, however, no loss of life in the explosion. Similar attacks took place in May of last year when two government schools for girls in Mirali were blown up. No loss of life was reported in the incidents. Around 500 girls were enrolled in the two schools — Government Girls Middle School, Noor Jannat and Government Girls…
PESHAWAR: Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said here on Thursday that the army should leave merged districts and put an end to its role in politics. He was addressing a big public gathering arranged by JUI-F on Dalazak Road to protest the alleged rigging in February 8 general elections. He subjected military and its political role to harsh criticism. The JUI-F chief said that army should now leave the merged areas. He said that time was over for expressing sympathy in the garb of military operations. He said that tribesmen were destroyed in the name of restoring peace during 15…
ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court Aamer Farooq on Thursday issued notices to the PTI, Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), Election Commission of Pakistan and federal and provincial governments on a petition that challenged the ECP’s power to deprive election symbol and deny reserved seats to political parties. The petitioner, Amna Ameer Abdullah, a lawyer, contended before the court that ECP has no jurisdiction to interpret the Constitution or statutory provisions and the same is unsustainable in the eye of law. The ECP is neither a court of law nor a judicial tribunal. Such jurisdiction has not been given to the…
RAWALPINDI: As a small number of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) supporters took to the streets in Rawalpindi to mark the first anniversary of the May 9 riots triggered by the arrest of its founder Imran Khan, the police rounded over a dozen, including two local leaders, for violation of Section 144. The protesters demanded the release of Imran Khan, who is imprisoned in Adiala jail following his conviction in multiple cases, and also chanted slogans against the PML-N government. On Rawal Road, a group of up to 30 PTI workers led by ex-MPA Seemabia Tahir gathered at ‘Gaye (cow) Chowk’ near Shehbaz…
ISLAMABAD: As the PTI seemingly failed to draw out large crowds across the country to mark the first anniversary of the May 9 violence, former president and party leader Arif Alvi was given an “important responsibility” by party chief Imran Khan to “resolve things” through dialogue apparently with the powers that be. This was revealed during a press conference held by PTI leaders, including National Assembly Opposition Leader Omar Ayub, Arif Alvi, and PTI spokesperson Raoof Hasan, outside Adiala jail after their meeting with the ex-PM in the jail. The PTI did not share details of the ‘important’ task…
Prince Harry garnered his late mother, Princess Diana’s family’s support after his father, King Charles, refused to meet his son during his trip to the UK. For the unversed, the Duke of Sussex visited London for three days to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games at St Cathedral. It was reported that the former working royal expressed his desire to meet his ailing father, however, the Monarch’s official team said he has official engagements to attend. On the other hand, Diana’s siblings, Earl Spencer and Lady Jane Fellowes, stepped out to support Harry to celebrate the Invictus Games’…
