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PTI leader Asad Qaiser on Friday said his party would “merge” with the Sunni Ittehad Council if the Election Commission of Pakistan accepted its recent intra-party polls and returned its electoral symbol of ‘bat’. In January, after back-and-forth verdicts by the ECP and the Peshawar High Court (PHC), the PTI’s electoral symbol ultimately was revoked by the Supreme Court. On March 3, the PTI conducted its intra-party elections …

ISLAMABAD: National Assembly lawmakers and MPAs from Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will elect six senators in a by-election, being held on the vacant seats of the upper house of parliament today. Besides a seat from Islamabad, five seats — three from Balo­chistan and two from Sindh — fell vacant after the occupants were elected to the national and provincial assemblies. …

ISLAMABAD: Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Wednesday accused the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) of conspiring against Pakistan by approaching the European Union (EU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), against the country’s interests. “PTI spokespersons are getting instructions from [Adiala] jail to harm the country. But no one will be allowed to harm the economy,” Mr Tarar said while addressing his …

RAWALPINDI: Pakistan Rangers, the anti-terrorism wing of Punjab Prison, Rawalpindi police, Bomb Disposal Squad and emergency services Rescue 1122 conducted a joint mock exercise to deal with terrorism and emergency situation in Adiala jail on Wednesday. In addition, the contingents of Rawalpindi police carried out a search operation around the jail, which lasted for more than five hours. It may …

ISLAMABAD: Days after refusing to attend the oath-taking ceremonies of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur broke the ice as he called on the premier on Wednesday, assuring him of working together “with a positive intention to resolve problems of the people”. After a long political battle in which …

The government on Thursday withdrew a notification appointing a former federal secretary as chairman of the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) after strong opposition from the PPP, a provincial lawmaker said. According to a picture of the notification shared by Sindh MPA Maleeha Manzoor on X, the orders for the Irsa chairman’s appointment were to be “treated as withdrawn”. A day …

The Peshawar High Court on Thursday dismissed the Sunni Ittehad Council’s petition challenging the Election Commission of Pakistan’s decision to reject the party allocation of reserved women and minority seats. In a 4-1 verdict earlier this month, the electoral watchdog ruled that the SIC was not entitled to claim quota for reserved seats “due to having non curable legal defects and violation …

LAHORE: Hussain and Hassan, sons of PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif, returned to the country on Tuesday, six years after they left for London to avoid arrest in corruption cases in the Panama Papers scandal. Their return was made possible after an accountability court had last week suspended their arrest warrants in three corruption cases related to Panama Papers. Like their father, both had …

ISLAMABAD: The government declared its intention on Tuesday to negotiate a “longer and larger” ec­o­­nomic bailout package with the International Mo­n­­e­tary Fund (IMF), targeting to sustain the nasc­ent macroeconomic stability. In his first formal media interaction after having a series of briefings, including on external account needs and fiscal situation, Finance Minister Auran­gzeb Khan, a professional banker, also hinted at …

As the Peshawar High Court on Wednesday resumed hearing the Sunni Ittehad Council’s petition pertaining to the allocation of reserved seats, Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan said a political party could get reserved seats only if it won a general one. The SIC — joined by PTI-backed independents who won the elections sans their electoral symbol — has challenged the …