Pakistan

A special court on Wednesday extended former prime minister Imran Khan’s and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s judicial remand in the cipher case till September 26. The cipher case pertains to a diplomatic document which reportedly went missing from Imran’s possession. The PTI alleges that it contained a threat from the United States to oust Imran from power. Following the suspension of the …

SUKKUR: Building steam on the campaign trail, Pakis­tan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday raised objections to the lack of a level playing field in the run-up to general elections, saying there was a need to do away with outdated methods of running the country. In a response to a question during his visit to Sukkur, Mr Bhutto-Zardari …

The Lahore High Court (LHC) adjourned proceedings for a week in the petition demanding the recovery of missing anchorperson Imran Riaz after the Punjab police chief assured the court that the investigation was “going in the right direction”. Imran Riaz — a YouTuber and television anchor — was arrested two days after violent protests broke out across the country following PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s arrest on …

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a global financial institution, has committed about $1.5 billion in short- and long-term investments in Pakistan in fiscal year 2023, doubling its investments from the previous year against a backdrop of economic challenges in the country. The IFC — a member of the World Bank — describes itself as the largest global development institution focused …

Samreen Amir has been appointed as the first woman additional station house officer (SHO) in merged districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to Kurram District Police Officer (DPO) Mohammad Imran, who said this was also the first instance of a Christian woman’s posting as the SHO in the province.   Samreen Amir has been posted as the additional station house officer …

GILGIT: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Tuesday announced action against elements spreading chaos in the name of religion in Gilgit-Baltistan. He directed the authorities concerned to identify the elements and take strict action against them. Prime Minister Kakar along with Information and Broadcasting Minister Murtaza Solangi, Interior Minister Sarfaraz Bugti, Minister for Communication Shahid Tarar, Secretary Planning Syed …

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Wednesday said his party believed that Pakistan’s pressing issues and myriad crises necessitated engagement with all political parties to secure a sustainable solution. The former foreign minister made these comments during a gathering in Muzaffargarh, where he made a veiled criticism of the PML-N. With elections potentially just a few months away, Bilawal has been …

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial on Monday said that “bitter” constitutional litigation had impacted the Supreme Court’s performance. “The court was put to test in a trying contest which was… only hostile and aggressive [and] as a result we sat back and became [its] victim and suffered in performance,” the CJP acknowledged, while speaking at a …

PESHAWAR: As part of an inquiry into the alleged corruption, the National Accountability Bureau, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has formally asked the health department for the records of government hospitals outsourced in the year 2021-22 under the public-private partnership programme. The NAB letter has been sent by the directorate-general (health services) to the public sector Health Foundation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which has been …

ISLAMABAD: The second senior-most position at the National Account­abi­lity Bureau (NAB) fell vacant on Monday after Deputy Chairman Zahir Shah resigned, citing personal reasons. Just days earlier, on Saturday, NAB Prosecutor General Asghar Haider had also tendered his resignation. The resignation of two top officials within three days has raised many eyebrows, but NAB is keeping mum on the matter and …