President extends greetings on Sindh Culture Day

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Sun, 4 Dec 2022, 10:06 PM

APP34-041222Karachi — APP34-041222 KARACHI: December 04 - Women performing traditional dance on the sindhi cultural music during the occasion of Sindhi Cultural Day outside the Karachi Press Club. APP/SDQ/TZD/FHA

ISLAMABAD, Dec 4 (APP): President Dr Arif Alvi on Sunday extended greetings as the people from Sindh celebrated their annual cultural day with traditional enthusiasm.

On Twitter, the president said that the land of Sindh was a symbol of peace and love.

He said, “humility and affection for others are the main source of inspiration for us from our Sindhi culture.”

سنڌ جي ثقافتي ڏھاڙي تي منھنجي طرفان دل جي گھرائین سان واڌایون۔ سنڌ ڌرتي امن ۽ پریم جي علامت آھي۔ سنڌي ثقافت اسان لاء انسانیت ۽ محبت جي لازوال علامت ۽ گس آھي۔
سنڌی ثقافت ڏھاڙي جون مبارڪون۔
— Dr. Arif Alvi (@ArifAlvi) December 4, 2022

“My heartiest facilitation on Sindhi Culture Day. The land of Sindh is symbol of peace and love. Humility and affection for others are the main source of inspiration for us from our Sindhi culture. Happy Sindh Day,” the president tweeted in Sindhi language.

Sindh Cultural Day is celebrated to highlight the centuries-old rich culture of Sindh. It is celebrated each year in the first week of December on Sunday, not only in Pakistan but also by the diaspora across the world.

Governor Sindh Kamran Khan Tessori, President Karachi Arts Council Muhammad Ahmed Shad and Commissioner Karachi Muhammad Iqbal Anwer presenting bouquet to Anwar Maqsood by ending of the last session of 15th International Urdu Adab conference organized by Karachi Arts Council

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Zia Ur Rehman

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Sun, 4 Dec 2022, 9:51 PM

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Anwar Maqsood addressing the last session of 15th International Urdu Adab conference organized by Karachi Arts Council.

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Zia Ur Rehman

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Sun, 4 Dec 2022, 9:50 PM

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Governor Sindh Kamran Khan Tessori addressing the last session of 15th International Urdu Adab conference organized by Karachi Arts Council

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Zia Ur Rehman

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Sun, 4 Dec 2022, 9:49 PM

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Governor Sindh Kamran Khan Tessori addressing the last session of 15th International Urdu Adab conference organized by Karachi Arts Council — APP54-041222 KARACHI:

The German Ambassador to Pakistan H.E. Alfred Grannas addressing in Charity Christmas Market organized by the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany at Serena Hotel.

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Zia Ur Rehman

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Sun, 4 Dec 2022, 8:42 PM

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Private Banks should withdraw appeals to annul FSC’s judgment against Riba: Ashrafi

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NNPS Desk

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Sun, 4 Dec 2022, 8:27 PM

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Ashrafi pleads CJP to review the composition of 9-member bench

ISLAMABAD, Dec 04 (APP): Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Interfaith Harmony and the Middle East Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi on Sunday said the private banks should withdraw their appeals to annul the judgment of the Federal Shariat Court (FSC) against the Riba (usury).

He, talking to APP, said the government had taken practical steps by withdrawing appeals of national and state banks from the apex court in a bid to get rid of the interest-based economic system.

Ashrafi, who is also the chairman of Pakistan Ulema Council, assured the government all-out support of Ulema and Mashaykh in the implementation of FSC’s decision in letter and spirit.

He proposed all the financial institutions devise a combined strategy to make the country’s economic system free of interest which was totally against the divine commands.

He also urged the government to take stern action against the people who were allegedly involved in an interest-based system at the local level.

He said Pakistan, currently, was facing a critical financial crisis and its solution was lying in political stability and improved law and order situation in the country.

He urged all the religious and political parties to unite on one platform and help cope with burgeoning polarization, extremism, and the new wave of terrorism with collective efforts.

He also appealed the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chief Imran Khan to come to the table-talk to evolve consensus on the ‘Charter of Pakistan’ as it was the need of the hour and it would help control increasing violence in the society and improve the ailing economy of the country.

He proposed that the way ‘Message of Pakistan’ was designed to promote religious harmony in all sections of the society, there should be long-term policies on the country’s social, economic, and foreign affairs issues in the shape of ‘Charter of Pakistan’ and it should be implemented by all the governments to come and national institutions in the larger national interest.

Ashrafi emphasized that Pakistan had to go out of the box in the matter of its foreign policy as there was a paradigm shift in the external affairs of the Islamic and Arab world.

He also thanked the Saudi leadership for extending the term of deposit in the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) from the Saudi Fund for Development.

Expressing gratitude to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and his Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman, he said the relationship between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia was like two brothers.

He said Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif’s meetings with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman would yield further cooperation in the shape of Saudi investment in the days to come ahead in the country.

“Similarly, other Islamic countries are also increasing trade and economic cooperation with Pakistan,” he said expressing the hope that there would be good news from the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia in the near future.

Ashrafi hinted that there was a big hand of the external forces and anti-state elements behind an organized smear campaign against the national security institutions and armed forces.

“We must counter the concocted propaganda of our arch enemy against our national defense institutions and Pakistan Army with a pragmatic approach instead of becoming part of it,” he maintained.

LEAs tightening noose against blasphemers on social media

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NNPS Desk

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Sun, 4 Dec 2022, 7:58 PM

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ISLAMABAD, Dec 04 (APP): The law enforcement agencies (LEAs) was consistently tightening the noose against blasphemers on social media and netting the people who are allegedly involved in this criminal activity with every passing day.

According to a tentative statistic, 62 blasphemers have been putted behind the bars so far, nine of them have been awarded the capital punishment by the trial courts while two of them have been awarded death penalty by the high courts.

In addition, the accused under trial in blasphemous cases had never been granted bail by any court of law yet.
To curb the menace of blasphemous material on social media, a number of faith-based organizations have got into momentum including Legal Commission on Blasphemy Pakistan, Namoos-e-Risalat Lawyers Forum Pakistan, Legal Thinkers Forum, Tehreek Tehfuz Namoos-e-Risalat Pakistan, World Khatm-e-Nabuwat Council, Anjuman Ashqaan-e-Muhammad, Tehfuz Khatm-e-Nabuwat Forum, Tehfuz Khatm-e-Nabuwat Wukla Forum, Legal and Cyber Experts Forum, Razakaran-e-Khatm-e-Nabuwat and Islamabad Bar Association.

These religious organizations are pursuing the blasphemous cases till their logical conclusions.

In an exclusive talk with APP, Legal Commission on Blasphemy Pakistan Secretary General Sheraz Ahmad Farooqui informed that utilizing its Cyber Crime Wing’s expertise, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had booked an accused allegedly involved in publication of indecent content against the sacred books Quran and Bible on social media on Tuesday.

However, it had also arrested two miscreants allegedly involved in proliferation of desecration stuff on social media on Wednesday, he added.

He said a blasphemer namely Sana Ullah had been awarded death sentence twice by the Anti-Terrorist Court, Peshawar-I.

Farooqui said ATC Judge Fazl Sattar Khan reserved the verdict in the following case on November 24, adding that the convict used to share desecration content on the WhatsApp group against the sanctity and prestige of Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), Mothers of believers (Ummahaat-ul-Momineen) and the religion of Islam.

He further informed that a woman known as Rabia Peerni had been arrested after the First Information (FIR) registration at the Data Darbar Police Station, Lahore on Saturday. He said the accused was involved in desecration of Islamic values and injunctions publicly and making viral number of videos on social media.

Meanwhile, the National Assembly (NA) had passed a unanimous resolution to withdraw appeals of the government from the Supreme Court to annul the decision of Lahore High Court (LHC) against the publication of blasphemous content on the social media.

The resolution’s mover PML-N Member of National Assembly Chaudhary Faqir Ahmad told APP that the then government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf challenged the decision in the apex court instead of implementing it in letter and spirit.

He urged the incumbent government to withdraw the appeals against the LHC’s decision filed by the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority in the tenure of so called Riyasat-e-Madinah.

In addition, the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony had reactivated its Web Evaluation Cell to control the increasing incidents of blasphemy on social media.

The Ministry’s spokesperson Muhammad Umar Butt, talking to APP, informed that the people could report blasphemous material if found on social media on the official email address: reportblasphemy@mora.gov.pk, Facebook page: @mora.official or WhatsApp number: 0306 3332555.

He made it clear that hate material against the religion or sacred figures was completely banned as per law and the Constitution. “Those allegedly involved in this illegitimate activity would be taken to task as per law of the land,” he added.

He said that Ulema and Mashaykh of various schools of thought were making unflinching efforts to promote religious harmony among all sections of the society. They always discouraged non-state actors fueling propaganda against the religion and state at all public forums, he maintained.

PTI leads in 2nd phase of AJK LG polls followed by independents

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NNPS Desk

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Sun, 4 Dec 2022, 7:57 PM

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MUZAFFARABAD, Dec 04 (APP): Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI) held the lead by securing 229 local council seats followed by independent candidates securing 199 seats in the second phase of local government (LG) elections in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) held on Saturday.

According to official results announced by the AJK Election Commission on Sunday evening, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) managed to take the third position by securing 129 seats, while Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) got 104 seats in the Poonch division of AJK.

Jammu Kashmir Peoples’ Party (JKPP) got 28 seats, All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference (MC) 22, Tehreek-e-Labaik (TLP) seven, while Jamiat Ulma-e-Islam (JUI) and Jamat-e-Islami (JI) won four seats each in the LG elections.

Out of 29 district council seats in Poonch district, PML-N won 10, followed by PTI which bagged seven, and six each by PPP and JKPP, while PML-N and PPP secured five seats each in district council Haveli and PTI won only two seats.

PTI managed to secure a majority in Bagh district council by securing 12 seats followed by PPP and MC by securing five seats each; PML-N got two seats while four seats were won by independent candidates.

PTI held lead in district Sudhanoti (Palandri) by securing nine seats out of 16, PML-N got four seats, JUI one while three seats were won by independent candidates. PPP could not win any district council seat from the district.

The majority seats in Municipal Corporation Rawalakot were won by JKPP while in Municipal Corporation Palandri, PTI won first place. PTI also held lead in municipal committee Bagh while PML-N won a majority in Haveli.

Independent candidates will play important role in elections on special seats in these bodies and elections of their heads and deputies like chairman, vice chairman, mayor, and deputy mayor.