Tag: Politics

LAHORE - Politics of revenge has never been the Pakistan People's Party's (PPP) policy while the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz's (PML-N) history is full of retribution and victimisation of political opponents, PPP Punjab chapter office bearers said on Saturday reacting to PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif's statement that the federal government wanted to implicate him and Punjab CM Shahbaz Sharif in former Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer's assassination case, said the PML-N that persecuted

ISLAMABAD - The dispute over sharing of booty among parliamentarians from FATA has exposed the dirty money-driven politics of selling loyalties by lawmakers for the Tribal Areas to successive governments and pressure groups. After the surfacing of reports that some FATA senators paid MNAs to get themselves elected to the Senate, eight FATA MNAs on Friday gathered at the residence of their parliamentary leader Munir Orakzai to devise a strategy to face legal consequences of allegedly

RIYADH - Ousted Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali has been barred from any political activity relating to his country while he shelters in Saudi Arabia, Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal said Wednesday.
"This act (of sheltering Ben Ali) should not lead to any kind of activity in Tunisia from the kingdom... There are conditions, and no act in this regard will be allowed," Faisal told Saudi television. Saudi Arabia has kept a total blackout on Ben Ali's activities since he

LAHORE - The newly-appointed Punjab governor, Latif Khosa met PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif at his residence in Jatti Umra on Tuesday, where the two agreed to cultivate better ties, a smooth working relationship and foster politics of reconciliation.
It was the Punjab governor's first meeting with any political head reflecting an opening of a new phase of relationship between the PPP and PML-N. Nawaz also accorded Khosa and his team - Raja Riaz, Tanvir Ashraf Kaira and Imtiaz Safdar

RAWALPINDI - The brother of a Pakistani police guard who assassinated a liberal politician for opposing the country's anti-blasphemy laws is optimistic he will never be prosecuted - and he probably has good reason to be.
After the police guard, Mumtaz Qadri, pumped 27 bullets into Punjab Governor Salman Taseer on Jan. 4, he was viewed as a hero by many Pakistanis, highlighting how deeply religious extremism has penetrated mainstream Pakistani society.
How the case unfolds

PORT-AU-PRINCE - Haitians on Tuesday were marking the one-year anniversary of a devastating earthquake, against the backdrop of a looming post-election report that could stoke political unrest.
Former US President Bill Clinton, who is helping to coordinate international rebuilding efforts, was expected to take part in the official ceremonies marking the anniversary of the catastrophic earthquake, which killed some 220,000 people and flattened the western hemisphere's poorest

NEW DELHI - A growing scandal over Hindu militants linked to bombings in India has highlighted how the ruling Congress party and the main opposition are increasingly exchanging bitter barbs ahead of key state elections this year.
Congress, stung by graft allegations and food inflation that have hit its approval ratings, hopes to gain the initiative over the Bharatya Janata Party (BJP) after a report linking alleged Hindu militant bombers with its ideological parent organisation.

QUETTA - Political parties from Balochistan formed a coordination committee on Saturday to bring an end to the role of the establishment, particularly intelligence agencies, in political affairs.
An all-parties conference arranged by the Balochistan National Party on Saturday decided to jointly struggle for the survival of the political culture in the country, saying a new social contract was inevitable for strengthening democracy.
BNP Acting President Jahanzain Jamalidini,

ISLAMABAD - The central executive committee (CEC) of the ruling Pakistan People's Party (PPP) is meeting today (Sunday) at Naudero House, Larkana, under the joint chairmanship of party chief Bilawal Bhutto and co-chairman President Asif Ali Zardari.
A party source told Pakistan Today that the meeting could prove to be a launching pad for Bilawal's entry into mainstream politics. "There is a strong possibility that Bilawal announces the beginning of his political career during the

NEW DELHI: Indian film stars Katrina and Ranbir Kapoor surprised all with their solid portrayal of youngsters who are forced to join politics owing to circumstances.
Kareena is all set to follow into Katrina's footsteps as she too has been approached by Farhan Akhtar's production house Excel Entertainment for a political drama. Filmmaker Sudhir Mishra who gave Kareena 'Chameli' has been roped in to direct the film.
Will the critically acclaimed actress-director pair be able

KARACHI: Formation of a new political party, led by Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nation Abdullah Hussain Haroon, is in the pipeline, Pakistan Today has learnt.
Haroon, a vocal critic of the government's treatment of Benazir's assassination case, has been meeting influential political leaders of Sindh including former Punjab governor Ghulam Mustafa Khar,
former national assembly speaker Illahi Bux Soomro, former provincial minister Ghulam Murtaza Jatoi

COMMENT - The number-weak government on Friday crossed the first obstacle. The Senate passed the recommendations by its committee on the Reformed General Sales Tax (RGST) with a voice-vote when louder than "no", the "ayes" had it.
The Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) played the key role in denting the strong opposition camp by opting to walk out just before Chairman Farook Naek called for the voice-vote. Though the PML-Q apparently walked out from the House in protest against

ISLAMABAD: Doctor's negligence and departmental politics took the life of Nadia Ahmed, a 23-year-old expecting mother at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) on Monday.
Married two years ago in Koral Town, Nadia was admitted to the delivery ward of the hospital a day before Eidul Azha. She died soon after giving birth to her first baby, a beautiful son. A medical student was asked to handle this normal delivery case since no senior doctor was available, sources

LAHORE: Shopkeepers and retailers have alleged Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) workers are distributing sugar to favourites and ignoring the majority of shops, Pakistan Today has learnt on Sunday.
The availability of sugar also disturbed due to closure of Akbari Mandi and no supplies during Eid days. It is not for the first time that PML-N is using commodities for bagging votes, as similar tactics were adopted in sasta ata (cheap flour) distribution at tandoors and to shops,

NEW DELHI: India's main opposition party on Tuesday accused the government of corruption surrounding the just-finished Commonwealth Games, saying it would stall parliament next month unless an impartial probe was ordered.
The threat from the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) comes as the government struggles to find political support for tough reforms bills in parliament which opens on November 9. The government is also preparing for a visit by US President Barack

Punjab University Department of History Lecturer Mahboob Hussain's new book entitled "Students' Politics in Pakistan" has been published from Germany.
The book addresses the issues of political consciousness of the students and their response to the major political events, which took place during the Ayub Khan's regime. The work deals with the historical context as well, in which it examines the phase of students' active participation in the Pakistan movement. The book also