Panama Case Verdict Announced Court orders formation of JIT to investigate PM Nawaz Sharif Thursday, 20 April, 2017
- ISI and MI officials will be part of JIT
- PM Nawaz to appear before JIT
- JIT to report findings to SC bench every 2 weeks, JITreport must be compiled within 60 days
- Three of the judges agreed to the judgment passed outby apex court whereas two judges had a dissentingopinion and Wanted Prime Minister to be de-notified
- PM Nawaz would not be disqualified
ISLAMABAD Supreme Court’s larger bench announces the much-awaited verdict of Panama Leaks Case against the ruling Sharif Family.According to the judgment, the premier would not be disqualified and a JIT (Joint Investigation Team) would be formed to probe money trail of Sharif family. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif along with Hassan and Hussain nawaz would appear before the JIT. Chairman NAB, FIA both failed to perform their duties Supreme Court. The JIT would report to the court after every two weeks and would complete the proceedings in 60 days. It would be including representatives from Intra Services Intelligence, Military Intelligence, Federal Investigation Agency, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and National Accountability Burueau.
The JIT would start its proceedings in next seven days and a supreme court bench would formulate the JIT. Justice Asif Saeed and justice Gulzar Ahmed also had a dissenting opinion regarding formation of a JIT. ‘JIT would be headed by additional director of Federal Investigations Agency and the final decision of supreme court would be based on the report finalized by it’ stated the judgment.
Three of the judges agreed to the judgment passed out by apex court whereas two judges Justice Asif Khosa and Justice Gulzar Ahmed had a dissenting opinion, who wanted premier to be de-notified.The judgment comprising of 540 pages was majorly authored by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan. Page 193 of Panama verdict says neutrality and impartiality of the Chairman NAB has been found compromised in the matters of PM.It also stated that the chairman NAB was unable to perform his duties which led to the formation of Joint Investigation Team (JIT).The judges observed that an investigation was still needed to probe money trail regarding Qatari investment. The judgment was announced by a five-member bench headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa and comprising Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, Justice Gulzar Ahmed, Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed and Justice Ejaz ul Ahsan.
Self-confessed Indian spy awarded death sentence
ISLAMABAD: Indian spy Kulbushan Yadav who was caught from Balochistan last year and who has confessed to fomenting terrorism in Pakistan has been awarded the death penalty in an unprecedented decision that immediately sparked a bitter diplomatic spat between the two hostile neighbours. “The spy [Kulbushan Yadav] has been tried through the Field General Court Martial (FGCM) under the Pakistan Army Act (PAA) and awarded the death sentence,” the military announced on Monday through a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). The COAS [chief of army staff] Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa confirmed the death sentence awarded by [the] FGCM,” the military’s media wing added. Identified as Kulbushan Sudhir Yadav, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) agent had been operating in Pakistan disguised as Hussein Mubarak Patel and was tried on charges of espionage and sabotage activities in Pakistan. Yadav was arrested on March 3 last year during a counter-intelligence operation from the Mashkel area of Balochistan. A few weeks later, the army had released his recorded confessional statement in which he had admitted to have been working for RAW to stoke unrest and instability in Pakistan. In a six-minute video shown on the national media, Yadav confessed that he had been tasked with creating unrest in Balochistan and Karachi, to which he had apparently made several visits under a fake identity since 2003. India denies Yadav was a RAW agent but admits that he was a retired naval officer.
According to the ISPR, Yadav has also confessed before a magistrate and the court that he was tasked by RAW to plan, coordinate and organise espionage and sabotage activities aiming to destabilise and wage war against Pakistan by impeding the efforts for restoring peace in Balochistan and Karachi. “He was tried under Section 59 of the Pakistan Army Act (PAA) 1952 and Section 3 of the Official Secret Act of 1923. The FGCM found Kulbushan Sudhir Yadav guilty of all the charges. The accused was provided with a defending officer as per legal provisions,” the ISPR said. Under the Pakistan Army Act, Yadav can file an appeal against the decision before the applet court that will be headed by a major general. If the death sentence is upheld by the applet court, he can still file a mercy petition before the army chief and the president of Pakistan.
Former Army officer Lt Col Mohammad Habib goes missing in Nepal
Indian RAW suspected behind the kidnapping of Ex Pak Ar my officer from Nepal. According to details, the former Army officer went missing on April 6, 2017 after which investigation has been launched to recover him. It is to be mentioned here that Lumbini is about 5 kilometers away from Indian border. Initially, no clue was available to trace the plot behind the abduction of retired Lt Col Mohammad Habib but a subsequent probe by the officer’s family and friends showed that the UK telephone number from which he had received the call for a job interview was fake and computer generated.
Surprisingly, the email domain and its associated website were registered in India, which leads to suspicions that the Indian spy agency RAW could have been behind the kidnapping. In addition, Mohammad Saad Habib, the officer’s son also suspects the involvement of ‘anti-state elements’ behind the kidnapping of his father in an FIR, which in Pakistan’s case appears no other than the RAW (Research and Analysis Wing). In his complaint, Mohammad Saad Habib, said his father had reached Kathmandu via Muscat. ‘I received his last phone call from Kathmandu on April 6, and he told me that a person named Javaid Ansari had received him from the airport and after that my father went missing’ he said. Saad Habib said in the FIR that his father after retirement from the Pakistan Army three years ago was in search of a job. Recently, he received a phone call from the United Kingdom and the caller, who identified himself as Mark Thomas, offered him an attractive job. Retired Lt Col Mohammad Habib took a flight from Lahore to Kathmandu via Muscat on April 5 and reached Lumbini the following day with the help of Javaid Ansari, a local contact in Kathmandu. After reaching Lumbini, the army officer’s all communication links, including telephone and SMS messages, were disconnected, his son stated. Saad Habib suspected that his father had been kidnapped for ulterior motives through Javaid Ansari and Thomas by enemy’s intelligence agencies most probably in a veiled reference to ‘RAW’.An investigation officer linked to the now high-profile kidnapping claimed that the police was in touch with the interior ministry and was exploring every option to recover the official.
Suicide bomber targets census team in Punjab’s capital
LAHORE( 5 Apr, 2017): In less than two months after the deadly Mall Road attack, terror revisited Punjab’s provincial capital on Wednesday when a suicide bomber targeted a census team in Lahore’s outskirts, killing at least seven people – including four soldiers of the Pakistan Army – and injuring 15 others. According to Punjab govt spokesperson Malik Ahmed Khan, the attack took place early in the morning at Manawala Stop on Bedian Road, when army troops were boarding a van, engaged in census duty. Outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) later claimed responsibility for the attack.
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14 van passengers martyred in Kurram Agency blast
PESHAWAR: At least 15 people, including five woman and four children, including Four Khassadars providing security to census team among the dead, and nine others sustained injuries when a passenger van hit a landmine in Godar area of Kurram Agency . Sources said that the passenger van was en route to Sadda from Godar when it hit a landmine in Pato Kot village. An official said that an anti-tank mine planted along the road caused the explosion. The dead included two sisters and their children. Among the dead was six months old Bibi Maryam. Her pictures went viral on the Internet causing pain and outrage among those following the Kurram Agency blast story.The outlawed militant group, Jamaatul Ahrar, which is a breakaway faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the attack.
KP GOVT APPROVES SPECIAL FORCE FOR CPEC SECURITY
A Special Cell will also be established to monitor the daily activities related to CPEC. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has approved special force for security of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). According to a press release issued in Peshawar on Wednesday, the government will purchase necessary equipments costing above one billion rupees. The special security force will comprise four thousand two hundred security personnel at initial stage. They will be deputed at different places the corridor. A Special Cell will also be established to monitor the daily activities related to CPEC.
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Int’l media recognises Pak as ‘safe haven for investment’
Islamabad – Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reform Ahsan Iqbal has said that Pakistan has achieved an economic growth rate of 5 percent and global media has recognised Pakistan as a safe haven for investments.While addressing the seminar on ‘CEPEC Myths And Realities’ at Fast School Management Islamabad, he said that a favourable ecosystem has resulted in attracting the interest of key global investors which are now eying Pakistan as a potential market for investments. He said that CPEC presents Pakistan with a historical opportunity to uplift the country’s status as the hub of economic activity in the region. The minister urged the audience to prepare themselves in order to benefit from the opportunities offered by CPEC and play a constructive role in transforming the economy to a modern industrial economy by adding value at different levels. The minister apprised the audience that China is promoting regional and global connectivity across the Asia Pacific region as part of its One Belt One Road initiative. Similarly, Pakistan’s Vision 2025 focuses on helping Pakistan to leverage its geo-strategic location in order to explore the inherent economic options, he added.
Over 50% of Pakistanis store cash at home: A new study of Standard Chartered
KARACHI: By Farhan Zaheer (THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE/ BUSINESS) | On average, 11% of the emerging affluent class in the eight countries store cash at home, whereas India’s tally stood at 15%. Under this head, Pakistan lags behind by a great margin. Moreover, according to the study, only 4% of Pakistan’s population use advanced savings methods such as mutual funds, stocks/equities, fixed income and pensions compared to India’s 24%. The average of eight countries is 17%. The top concern for Pakistanis is the education of their children, so we have to provide products that can cater to their needs,” said Standard Chartered Head of Wealth Management Muslim Reza Mooman while commenting on the survey’s results. Participants of the survey from Pakistan were all graduates between the ages of 25 and 55 who earn over Rs40,000 per month while the upper limit is Rs500,000 per month.
‘27pc deaths in children can be prevented through vaccination’
KARACHI (26-Apr-2017) : As world marks global immunisation week, revealed health experts at a press briefing. Pakistan Pediatric Association (PPA), Sindh President Professor Jamal Raza said that without vaccines, epidemic of many preventable diseases could result in increased and unnecessary illness, disability, and death. He said vaccines were available free of cost at EPI centers, so that parents could get their children vaccinated against deadly diseases.
Dr Mushtaq Memon said, “Immunisation is one of the most successful and cost-effective health interventions that prevents 2 to 3 million deaths every year.” To a question why there was a need for vaccination, Dr Mushtaq informed that Pneumonia killed an estimated 1.2 million children under the age of five every year, globally; more than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. “Rotavirus gastroenteritis is estimated to cause more than half a million child deaths,” he said, and added, “Two billion people are infected with Hepatitis B virus and about 780,000 people die.” All of these can be prevented through vaccination and immunisation,” added Dr Mushtaq.
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11,764 Pakistanis imprisoned in other countries: Sartaj Aziz
ISLAMABAD (19-4- 2017) : Advisor to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz informed National Assembly that in all 11,764 Pakistanis are imprisoned or detained in other countries and all accredited missions are extending all possible legal and consular assistance to them. He informed the House that respective diplomatic missions abroad undertake regular consular visits to the prisoners and detainees for necessary legal and financial Assistance. He also informed the House that when any case of detention surfaces Pakistani mission in respective country approaches authorities and legal aid is provided to detained persons.