Day: February 9, 2021

ISLAMABAD: Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has said that time has arrived to eliminate sense of deprivation prevailing in far-off areas of province.

In a statement, he said the journey of progress has been taken towards neglected cities, which were deliberately ignored in past.

He said that the former rulers preferred their personal liking and disliking rather than meeting the actual needs of province.

He said PTI Government has addressed the glaring deficiencies of past term and wrong tradition to utilize national resources for personal gain has been eliminated.

Usman Buzdar said in first time of Punjab’ history, equal division of national resources has been ensured which will guarantee equal development in whole province.

ISLAMABAD: Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Sardar Masood Khan has demanded an international tribunal to hold trial of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for war crimes in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

Addressing two separate webinars organized by Scottish Human Rights Forum and the Pakistan Embassy in Sudan, he said the people of Jammu and Kashmir are faced with a terrible war, and what India is doing is ethnic cleansing and genocide.

Sardar Masood Khan appealed to the Scottish parliamentarians, Sudanese government and the people to speak in favour of the Kashmiri people, and hold India strictly accountable for its crimes against mankind.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan-Turkey joint military exercise ATATURK-XI has started. The opening ceremony was held at the Special Service Headquarters, Tarbela.

Turkish Special Forces and Pakistan Army’s Special Service Group troops are participating in three weeks long exercise. It includes counter terrorism, close quarter battle, cordon and search, Fire and Move Techniques, helicopter rappelling, compound clearance, and Rescue and Free Fall operations.

According to the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military exercise will further strengthen the bond of two brotherly nations and will help in adapting the emerging trend in military modernization and cooperation.

ISLAMABAD: Adviser to the Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Dr Babar Awan called on Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser here on Tuesday and discussed matters pertaining to legislation.

It was decided to summon the session of National Assembly on the requisition of opposition. In his remarks, Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser said rumpus in the house is neither a service to the democracy nor the people.

He stressed that the house should hold discussion on matters of national importance including legislation.

Asad Qaiser said the elected representatives can propose effective solutions to the problems faced by the masses by effectively using the platform of the parliament.

Dr Babar Awan commended the role of Asad Qaiser for efficiently conducting the proceedings of the National Assembly.

He expressed the confidence that the elected representatives will play a positive role in maintaining conducive environment in the next session of the lower house.

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Shibli Faraz has said that opposition parties are trying to promote horse trading by maintaining secret balloting in the Senate elections.

Talking to a private television channel, he said the ruling party has tabled the amendment bill in the National Assembly and seeking guidance from apex court for holding Senate elections with open balloting. He said the PTI government wants to close doors of buying and selling of votes.

ISLAMABAD: Planning Minister Asad Umar has said the government will take every possible measure, within the Constitution, to ensure transparency in the upcoming Senate elections and to end horse-trading in the polling process.

He was briefing media here on Tuesday, along with Minister for Information and Broadcasting Syed Shibli Faraz, about decisions taken at the federal cabinet, which met here in the federal capital with Prime Minister Imran Khan in the chair.

The Planning Minister said it is an open secret that sale purchase of votes has been a tradition in the history of Senate elections in Pakistan. He said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has come to power on the belief that it will take all possible steps to check horse-trading in the Senate polls for which it has tabled a Constitution amendment in the National Assembly to hold Senate elections through open ballot.

Similarly, the government has also filed a presidential reference to the Supreme Court with a request for interpretation of the law pertaining to the Senate polls that whether these elections can be held through show of hands instead of the secret ballot. He said the government will respect apex court’s decision in this regard.

Asad Umar said the opposition parties, especially the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the Pakistan People’s Party, had too promised in the Charter of Democracy to hold Senate elections in a transparent way, but now they are faltering from this commitment. He said we want to make the election process credible.

Speaking on the occasion, Syed Shibli Faraz said the cabinet has approved extension of Afghan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement for three months with effect from Thursday.

He said the cabinet also expressed displeasure on the unscheduled load shedding, and asked the authorities concerned to end this on urgent basis.

He said the cabinet was also apprised that government’s Roshan Digital Account initiative is yielding positive results and so far around 500 million dollars have been received under this project.

Talking about steps taken to control inflation in the country, the Information Minister said market committees have been abolished and district administrations has been asked to control prices of the essential items to provide maximum relief to the common people.

He said the meeting was apprised that effective measures have been taken to curb smuggling of petrol, which resulted in ending a loss of 120 billion rupees in revenue.

ISLAMABAD: Ambassador of Iran to Pakistan, Syed Mohammad Ali Hosseini has said that promotion of relations with Pakistan is a cornerstone of the foreign policy of his country.

In his message on the 42nd anniversary of the Iranian revolution, he said the value and importance of the friendly and brotherly neighboring country of Pakistan has increased more than ever and has become one of the priorities in the foreign policy of the Tehran government.

He said friendship between Pakistan and Iran would last forever. Syed Mohammad Ali Hosseini also congratulated people of Pakistan and around the world on the auspicious occasion of Iranian Revolution. The Ambassador said Iran has emphatically extended the hand of peace and friendship to all free and right-seeking nations in the region and beyond.