NEWS

• A former terrorist commander of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Swat group, who whipped women, was killed in an intelligence-based operation in Swat.  On September 7, 2023, based on secret information, the Pakistan Army and CTD conducted a successful operation in Fizagat area of Swat. In this operation, former Tehreek-e-Taliban Swat commander Nik Muhammad alias Niko alias Umar was killed.  The slain terrorist commander was a close aide of the former head of Tehreek-e-Taliban Swat, Mullah Fazlullah, while the slain terrorist was the leader of the whipping team of Tehreek-e-Taliban Swat in the early days of militancy in Swat. The terrorist commander was also involved in dozens of terrorist activities against security forces in Swat during the height of militancy After “Operation Rah-e-Rasat” in Swat, the terrorist commander Naik Muhammad fled to Afghanistan with his family. Earlier this year, the terrorist commander secretly returned to Swat with the TTP formation and started target killing of police. Along with this, the terrorist commander Naik Mohammad also started receiving extortion for TTP. In June 2023, the terrorist commander along with his other terrorist accomplices brutally attacked two police constables near Mingora vegetable market. While in order to disturb law-and-order situation in Swat, he planned to target DPO Swat with a suicide attack and IEDs. Pakistan Army and other law enforcement agencies are active to eradicate any individual or organization involved in terrorism in Swat Valley. (Nawaiwaqt, The News, Tribune. Daily Pakistan, Daily Islam, Urdu Point)

• Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faiz Isa has made new appointments. Jazeela Islam is the new Registrar of Supreme Court while Dr. Mushtaq Ahmed has been appointed as the secretary of Chief Justice. Abdul Sadiq from Balochistan has been appointed as the Chief of Staff of the CJP. (Jasarat)

• There has been a change in the composition of the Supreme Judicial Council and the Judicial Commission. Justice Ejaz-ul-Ahsan became a member of the Supreme Judicial Council while Justice Sardar Tariq is already a part of the Supreme Judicial Council. The CJP Isa and two senior judges are part of the Supreme Judicial Council. Besides, Justice Muneeb Akhtar has become a part of the Judicial Commission, which appoints judges, while Justice Sardar Tariq, Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan and Justice Mansoor are already a part of the Judicial Commission.  (Jasarat)

• Senior Journalists in Geo TV Program Jirga said that CJP Justice Qazi Faiz Isa’s wife Serena Isa made history standing alongside her husband during his oath ceremony. It was said that Serena Isa stood firm beside her husband CJP Justice Qazi Faiz Isa all along his troubled journey to this designation. She set an example that if a wife supports her husband for his right, no one can stop them from achieving their goals. (Jang)

• Maryam Nawaz, the chief organizer of Muslim League (N), has said that it is hoped that justice will return to the courts of law from today. Addressing the meetings of various wings of the party, she said that Nawaz Sharif has been made victorious by Allah, and now Pakistan has to be made victorious. Nawaz Sharif has become plus again and those who tried to make him minus, have become minus themselves. She further said that the people were punished due to the ruler’s hate for Nawaz Sharif. She said that it is hoped that Nawaz Sharif and his oppressed colleagues will get relief from injustice. Maryam Nawaz said that we want to see satisfaction and economic comfort on the faces of the people, so the people should strengthen Nawaz Sharif with their votes. (Aeen Daily)

• Nawaz Sharif has called his daughter Maryam Nawaz to London. Sources said that Maryam will reach London next week where she is likely to stay for a week. She will meet Nawaz Sharif and finalize the details of his return. According sources, Maryam will brief the former prime minister regarding the reception plan and will also consult on the current political and constitutional issues.  PML-N and Nawaz Sharif himself have announced October 21 as the date for his return to Pakistan. (Nawaiwaqt)

• US Consul General Shante Moore visited the office of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Parliamentarian and discussed the political situation, according to a media report.  Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Parliamentarian Pervez Khan Khattak, Vice Chairman Mehmood Khan and Information Secretary Ziaullah Khan Bangash welcomed Moore on his arrival at the party office. Khattak gave him a detailed briefing about the manifesto, constitution and slogan of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf parliamentarians.   (Jasarat)

• The anti-corruption department has arrested Pervez Elahi again. According to sources, anti-corruption cell arrested him from Adiala jail itself. Sources said he would be moved to anti-corruption headquarters by evening. (Awami,16)

• Former Home Minister Shaikh Rasheed was arrested from a private housing society. According to sources, Islamabad police arrested him along with two other persons.  Shaikh Rasheed’s lawyer Sardar Abdul Razaq has confirmed the arrest. He said that Islamabad police, and plainclothes officials arrested them and shifted them to an unknown location. He said that Shaikh Rasheed was present at his residence in phase 3 of the private housing society. Sardar Raziq Advocate said that the police also arrested Sheikh Rashid’s nephew Shaikh Shakir and his employee Imran. The lawyer said that it is not known in which case the former Home Minister has been arrested. He said that he will take the legal route. On the arrest of Shaikh Rasheed, his nephew, former MNA Shaikh Rasheed Shafiq, said that Shaikh Rasheed was not wanted by the police in any case. He said that if anything happens to Shaikh Rasheed, then the federal and Punjab governments will be responsible for it. (Aeen Daily)

• The Deputy Convener of MQM Mustafa Kamal has said that everyone including Jamaat-e-Islami has deceived Karachi. Addressing the general workers’ meeting in Shah Faisal Colony, Karachi, Mustafa Kamal said that if Jamaat-e-Islami or Tehreek-e-Insaf had done anything for the city, then people would have forgotten MQM. He said that we have also made mistakes, but our mistakes are much less than other parties. Mustafa Kamal further said that if anything bad happens in Karachi, it is blamed on MQM without giving any reason. (Qudrat Daily)

• The prices of petroleum products are increasing rapidly. In one year, the prices of petroleum products have increased by 95 rupees per liter while the caretaker government has increased the price by 41 rupees per liter during one month. And petrol price has reached the record level of 331 rupees and diesel 329 rupees per liter. When Shahbaz Sharif became the Prime Minister on April 11, 2022, the price of petrol was 144.15 rupees per liter, which increased to Rs 272.95 during the PDM regime. Thus, the price of diesel increased from 118 rupees to 273 rupees. During the regime of Shahbaz Sharif, the price of diesel has increased by 154 rupees and the price of petrol by 127 rupees per liter. After the arrival of the caretaker government, the prices have shot up further. In just under one month of  caretaker regime, the price of petrol has increased by 58 rupees per liter while the price of diesel has increased by 56 rupees per liter. (Qudrat Daily)

• The financially troubled Pakistan International Airlines has announced to resume flight operations after securing a loan of 17 billion rupees from banks. It may be noted that this development has come at a time when PIA had reportedly grounded several aircraft because of funds crunch. Some media reports claimed that PIA would cease operations by September 15, prompting strong reaction from the airline’s management and lawmakers alike. This week, PIA spokesperson Abdullah Hafeez Khan dismissed the news of the closure of the operation as baseless.  A statement issued by the airline a day earlier said that it has managed to secure a loan of Rs 17 billion to pay salaries and to run flight operations smoothly. PIA is meeting its national and international obligations and payments will be made to fuel companies while spare parts for aircrafts will be procured for urgent repairs, the statement said. (Dawn Daily)

• Unidentified assailants opened fire on a police van on Hutchison Road in Lakki Marwat. Three police officers were injured in the firing. The accused escaped.  The injured officials have been shifted to the hospital for medical assistance. The injured include Asif Iqbal, Javed Khan, and Habibullah. (Nawaiwaqt)

• Pakistan People’s Party leader Nasir Hussain Shah said that his party has no alliance with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf, PTI, and no alliance is under consideration either. Asked on a TV show about the veracity of speculation about PTI-PPP alliance, he said we cannot have an alliance with someone who does politics against national unity and who has attacked our institutions. He said that the party’s doors are open to all other political units and it will talk to everyone. Many people want to join the People’s Party but “there is a problem of space”. (Dawn Daily)

• Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf has criticized the latest hike in petrol and diesel and said that the price hike appears to be a ‘conspiracy to fuel civil war in the country’ as the purchasing power of the people has already been severely affected due to rising inflation. The PTI spokesman said the hike was a cruel blow to the poverty-stricken masses who were already reeling from rising prices of all essential commodities. In a statement, he opined that the caretaker government is an extension and continuation of the PDM regime in all respects. (Dawn Daily)

• Jamaat e Islami chief Siraj ul Haq has slammed the government for raising the prices of petroleum products. He claimed that the government had increased the prices on the instructions of the IMF. He appealed to the public to come out on the streets and be part of the protests launched by his party to force the government to roll back the price hike. He said that his party plans to stage dharnas in all four provinces. Meanwhile, according to media reports, Sardar Abdul Rahim of the Grand Democratic Alliance has also rejected the increase in the prices of petroleum products. Istehkam e Pakistan Party Secretary Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan also said  increase in prices  is unacceptable. Firdous Ashiq Awan said that the government should have tried to provide relief to the people instead of increasing the burden. (Dawn Daily)

• According to Federal Investigation Agency, (FIA),  303 raids were conducted this year against elements involved in illegal currency exchange,  416 suspects were arrested and currency worth over  three billion rupees was recovered. The recovered currency includes more than 5 lakh US dollars. (Daily Pakistan)

• Foreign cloth and cigarettes worth more than 138 million rupees were recovered by D I Khan Customs Collectorate from Dara Zinda Road. (Daily Pakistan)

• Gulbarg Police Station Peshawar received a tip-off that two warehouses in Noothia have a large quantity of illegal weapons, which are being prepared to be transferred to other cities as soon as the opportunity arises.   SHO Gulbarg Police Station G Abdul Aziz took immediate action and recovered the illegal weapons which include 37, 12-bore, 11 rifles, 62 pistols, several magazines and hundreds of cartridges of different bores. (Daily Pakistan)

• According to the Islamabad Police, a bag full of hand grenades and a 9mm pistol and 50 bullets was found on the trial-5 in Margalla Hills, Islamabad. The bomb disposal squad (BDS) defused the grenades, and police seized the bag and the belongings.  (Roznama Intekhab, Daily Khabrain)

• During the meeting with Christian Catholic Cardinal Dr. Joseph Coates in Karachi, the caretaker Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Aneeq Ahmed said that we have to be wary of the enemies who are spreading religious hatred in the country and we have to thwart their plans together. He said that the policies and attitude of the government of Pakistan regarding the welfare of minorities are responsible. He said that the steps taken by the government after the Jaranwala tragedy are commendable. The Christian people are active for the development and prosperity of the country alongside their government and the people of Pakistan. (Roznama Intekhab)

EDITORIALS

• Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar has said that the caretaker government is not the civilian face of GHQ. This is not a new perception. PTI’s government was also accused of this, and PDM was also faced the same charge. Kakar said that the caretaker government was formed on the advice of the outgoing Prime Minister and the opposition leader in the dissolved Parliament. well, then, can the caretaker prime minister, for that matter any former prime minister, prove that his government was the face of the people? (Edit Jasarat)

• Interim Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar gave an important interview to the American broadcasting agency prior to leaving for New York to address the UN General Assembly. He spoke about Kashmir, forthcoming general elections, role of the establishment in the government affairs, Af-Pak relations, freedom of speech, and about perceived diplomatic isolation of Pakistan. It is good that the interim prime minister made it clear that elections would be held on time despite all problems on the eastern and western borders and that the interim government is providing all support to the Election Commission of Pakistan for conducting elections on time. Regarding freedom of expression, the Caretaker PM lauded Pakistan’s situation as better than many other regional countries. He added that the media in Pakistan is free to raise any question. The PM also rebuffed the impression that the caretaker government is a face of the establishment by giving some concrete arguments. On the question of diplomatic isolation also, Anwarul Haq Kakar rejected this perception and proved through facts that Pakistan has strong relations with China, Arab nations, and other regional countries besides strong relations with the west over the past seven decades. Whatever the Caretaker PM expressed during his interview is very important; it will have impact as it is expected that Anwarul Haq Kakar would address the UNGA in the same spirit. There is no doubt that Pakistan is in real trouble with regard to the economy and the government and all its departments will have to work with understanding. (Edits – Jang, Express Daily)    

• Two days ago, some leaders of Pakistan Muslim League-N said that Bhutto is dead not alive, and in a sharp reaction, Pakistan People’s Party’s workers have targeted the leadership of the ML-N. The whole nation was surprised since both parties were together till recently in PDM.  The blame game shows a wide split. In our view, the ideologies of PPP and PML-N are different. For power compulsion, they forgot the ideological differences and enjoyed power. Both parties are antagonistic to each other. Some thought that the PDM would make common platform or seat adjustments. But that will never happen. Rather, these two parties will be each other’s biggest rivals in the upcoming election. (Edit, Daily Khabrain)

• Our paralyzed system has become hollow and rotten that any government brings more problems for the people. Some of them are inherited from the previous government, but most of them are created by the ruling clique. The 2 percent elite and privileged class don’t have any policy for providing relief to the masses. Roti, Kapda, and Makan is not a slogan; these are the basic necessities that can’t be denied. But during the last 75 years, the country could not get rulers who could solve the problems of the people and provide some relief to them. Nobody was able to eradicate poverty. The country has defaulted.  People are bankrupt. They are unable to buy even the basic necessities of life. The PDM government had broken all records of inflation and now the Caretaker Government is breaking the record of the PDM. (Edit-Himalya Today Daily)  

• With Justice Qazi taking charge as new chief justice yesterday, several changes have automatically befallen at Judicial Commission and also at Supreme Judicial Council. He is taking over as CJP at a time when a key bill, passed in joint parliament session on Practices and Procedure Bill is rejected by the outgoing chief justice. But now the full bench will hear this matter again.   Country looks up to new chief justice with high hopes as the economy is in doldrums and inflation, lawlessness, corruption, smuggling, and food shortage have made peoples’ lives a big misery. If Justice Isa comes true to peoples’ expectations, country’s poor will remember him for ever.” (Ibrat, Edit, Sept.18, Daily Pakistan)  #####