Review petition asks number of questions including whether SIC should be granted the reserved seats

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Monday filed a review petition in the Supreme Court against reserved seats verdict that declared the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) eligible for the reserved seats for minorities and women.

The ruling party has nominated 11 respondents in the plea including the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) and its chairman Hamid Raza, praying the court to suspend its ruling dated July 12, 2024, on the reserved seats.

The petitioner claimed the apex court’s verdict was silent on some points.

The review petition asked a number of questions including whether the SIC should be granted the reserved seats.

It questioned if reserved seats could be granted to a political party who had not submitted a party list within the prescribed time, whether a political party can be given reserved seats whose candidates have not even filed nomination papers within the time provided by the Election Commission of Pakistan and if independents could even join a political party which did not win a single general seat in parliament.

The plea also raised question if the seats could be left vacant or have to be distributed amongst the political parties contesting for the said seats.

The petition has been filed in response the apex court ruling last week, that declared the PTI eligible for the allocation of reserved seats.

The decision not only paved the way for the PTI’s return to the parliament, which was kicked out of the February 8 polls owing to the ECP’s December 2023 ruling, but has also increased the pressure on the coalition alliance by changing the composition of the National Assembly.

The 8-5 majority verdict declared that the lack or denial of an election symbol does not in any manner affect the constitutional or legal rights of a political party to participate in an election, whether general or by, and to field candidates and that the commission is under a constitutional duty to apply all statutory provisions accordingly.

A timeline of reserved seats saga

The reserved seats issue first emerged after over 80 PTI-backed independent candidates emerged victorious in the February 8 elections and subsequently joined the SIC in a bid to claim seats reserved for minorities and women.

The SIC then approached the ECP on February 21 seeking allocation of reserved seats. However, the PTI suffered a setback after the electoral body, citing the party’s failure to submit its list of candidates, denied allocating the reserved seats to the SIC via its 4-1 majority verdict on March 4.

ISLAMABAD: Upping the ante against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the federal government has decided to ban the former ruling party as well as file references against PTI founder Imran Khan and former president Arif Alvi for treason under Article 6.

“The PTI and Pakistan cannot co-exist,” Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar told a press conference in Islamabad, saying that the matter would go to the federal cabinet and the Supreme Court.

The decisions, as per Tarar, were taken in light of the former ruling party’s involvement in the May 9 events and the PTI’s former or current leaders’ attempts to sabotage Pakistan’s deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The development comes following PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s indictment in cases related to the May 9 riots and Khan’s arrest in cases pertaining to the incidents taking place on the day.

Touching upon the foreign funding issue, the information minister said that the PTI failed to defend itself in the foreign funding case wherein, he claimed, the ex-ruling party received funds from Indian-born United States citizens.

“Why did you [PTI] seek a stay order [in said case] for six years?” he questioned, adding that the Khan-founded party had nothing to say in its defence.

Stressing that whoever provides financial support to a political party, does so with the hopes that the party would serve its interests if it comes to power, Tarar said that the PTI failed to explain and defend itself regarding the funds received by certain lobbies abroad, including Israeli ones.

Reflecting on the May 9 riots, triggered after Khan’s arrest in a graft case wherein party workers and supporters vandalised several military installations, the minister said that the PTI founder targeted national interests for his own personal ones.

“Your whole family was involved in those attacks. Your three sisters were present outside the [Lahore] core commander’s house,” he said.

He also censured the PTI’s government for allegedly providing safe havens to terrorists and resettle them.

“Who gave you the right to re-settle the Taliban […] and attack the institution that is responsible for guaranteeing the country’s sovereignty,” he noted.

FETO a terrorist, espionage organization, says Ambassador

Pakistan is remembered with appreciation for being among the first countries that took swift action against the organization’s affiliates in the aftermath of the treacherous coup attempt in our country

DNA

ISLAMABAD” Ambassador of Türkiye Mehmet Pacaci has said “Victory of the Nation” is the main theme of this year’s commemoration ceremony of the “Democracy and National Unity Day”.

It has been eight years since the July 15 coup attempt orchestrated by members of the Fethullah Gulen Terrorist Organization (FETO) who had infiltrated our army, resulting the martyrdom of 251 of our citizens and the injury of over two thousand others.

He expressed these views while speaking on the occasion of a ceremony held to

Commemorates martyrs of July 15, 2016.

The Ambassador further said FETO is not only a terrorist organization, but also an espionage organization with a “cult” character. FETO was established as a so-called “religious movement”. In the guise of promoting education and inter-religious dialogue, it managed to cover its malign intentions.

‘The well-planned and widespread infiltration by FETO members and converts into the army, law enforcement, judiciary and numerous government institutions was carried out for decades latently for a full-scale plot, of which the final phase was unleashed on July 15, 2016’.

Ambassador Pacaci said the greatest credit for neutralizing the threat posed by FETO on the night of July 15 goes to the Turkish people, who demonstrated that they recognize no power over their own will and are ready to give their lives to protect their state and its democratic achievements.

It was the night when the territorial integrity, demographical integrity and cultural integrity of Türkiye, in other words, in every sense, Türkiye itself was protected by its own citizens under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Thousands of civilians took to the streets to stop this heinous coup attempt.

In this context, we emphasize with concrete examples that FETO poses a security threat to other countries where it operates, aims to create political and economic spheres of influence, does not hesitate to violate the laws of the countries it is present in, and operates like a criminal and intelligence organization.

It is now becoming internationally understood that FETO is not a social movement involved in education and charity as it tries to portray itself, but a dark and insidious terrorist organization with political and economic ambitions.

While talking about Pakistan role, he said Pakistan is remembered with appreciation for being among the first countries that took swift action against the organization’s affiliates in the aftermath of the treacherous coup attempt in our country. The Supreme Court of Pakistan declared FETO a proscribed organization with the verdict rendered on 28 December 2018. Türkiye and the Turkish people are grateful to brother Pakistan.

‘FETO was declared as a terrorist organization by the Council of Foreign Ministers of the OIC held on 19 October 2016; and by on the 12th Conference of the Parliamentary Union of the OIC on 27 January 2017’.

‘The night of July 15 showed us that the spirit of national unity from the Turkish War of Independence remains steadfast. Democracy and the Republic can only be achieved through a spirit of national unity’.

ISLAMABAD: After months of their continuing legal woes, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi’s got much relief as a district and sessions court on Saturday accepted their pleas seeking annulment of their conviction in the the iddat case — also known as the un-Islamic nikah case.

Additional Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka announced short order reserved earlier in the day today.

The PTI founder and Bushra were sentenced to seven years in prison and awarded a fine of Rs500,000 each, in February earlier this year after a trial court found their nikah to be fraudulent as Khawar Maneka, Bushra’s ex-husband, moved the court against the couple’s marriage.

The couple had then challenged their conviction and had even moved the IHC seeking varying relief from the court.

The verdict holds significance for Khan who has been behind bars since August last year after he was sentenced in the Toshakhana case and subsequently sentenced in other cases ahead of the February 8 elections.

Despite securing relief in other cases including £190 million reference and Toshakhana, and acquittal in the cipher case earlier this month, the former premier remains behind bars due to his conviction in the iddat case.

Khan has also been granted bail in several May 9 cases registered in Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Faisalabad.

Last month, the Islamabad High Court, while hearing multiple pleas filed by the former first couple, had directed the district court to decide the pleas seeking the suspension of the sentence in 10 days and the pleas challenging the conviction in one month.

Following the IHC’s orders, Judge Majoka on June 27, rejected Khan and Bushra’s pleas seeking suspension of their sentence in the said case.

In the 10-page order, the court mentioned that there was no reason to suspend the sentence.

“…[there is] no ground for suspension of [the] sentence is available to both the petitioners. Accordingly, both the petitions under section 426 Cr.PC are dismissed,” it said.

The verdict drew strong condemnation from the PTI, which called it “absolutely ridiculous”, and its leaders — who were hoping for Imran’s release — staged a protest outside the Adiala jail, where the court had been set up to ensure the security of the ex-prime minister.

“We will challenge this verdict in the high court at once,” the National Assembly opposition leader had said while lamenting the politicisation and weaponisation of private matters between a husband and a wife.

ISLAMABAD: In a major legal victory for the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the party is eligible for the allocation of reserved seats.

Justice Mansoor Ali Shah announced the 8-5 majority verdict, nullifying the Peshawar High Court’s (PHC) order wherein it had upheld the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision denying the reserved seats to the SIC.

The verdict was supported by Justices Athar Minallah, Shahid Waheed, Muneeb Akhtar, Muhammad Ali Mazhar Ayesha Malik, Syed Hassan Azhar Rizvi, and Irfan Saadat Khan.

The PTI candidates did not contest the polls on a single symbol, forcing them to join hands with the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), but that could not get the party the reserved seats as the ECP ruled against them.

In its decision today, the court declared that the lack or denial of an election symbol does not in any manner affect the Constitutional or legal rights of a political party to participate in an election, whether general or by, and to field candidates and that the commission is under a Constitutional duty to apply all statutory provisions accordingly.

Some jurists, during the proceedings, had noted that the apex court had not ruled that the PTI could not participate in the general elections as a political party, and that the commission had misinterpreted the top court’s verdict.

“PTI was and is a political party, which secured general seats in the national and provincial assemblies in the general elections of 2024,” read the verdict.

According to the verdict, the PHC’s judgment dated March 25 is set aside. “The order of the ECP dated March 1 is declared to be ultra vires to the Constitution, without lawful authority, and of no legal effect,” it said. 

The top court remarked that PTI, as a political party, has a legal and constitutional right to reserved seats. 

Rejecting the appeals filed by the SIC, the apex court said that the party cannot take reserved seats as per the Constitution.

The ruling said that the PTI should present a list of eligible candidates for the reserved seats to the electoral body within 15 days after the verdict.

It added that the ECP should then publish the list of reserved seats of the candidates on its website within seven days.

“The seats allocated to the PTI after this stage will be considered as their seats. [Once the PTI gets its seats in parliament], it will be eligible for the reserved seats,” said the ruling.

The full bench, led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa, also comprises Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Mazhar, Justice Minallah, Justice Syed Rizvi, Justice Malik, Justice Waheed, Justice Saadat, and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan.

A timeline of reserved seats saga

The reserved seats issue first emerged after over 80 Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) backed independent candidates emerged victorious in the February 8 elections and subsequently joined the SIC in a bid to claim seats reserved for minorities and women.

The SIC then approached the ECP on February 21 seeking allocation of reserved seats. However, the PTI suffered a setback after the electoral body, citing the party’s failure to submit its list of candidates, denied allocating the reserved seats to the SIC via its 4-1 majority verdict on March 4.

In the verdict, the ECP said it extended the deadline to submit a priority list for the reserved seats of women, and the SIC, before the February 8 polls, did not submit the required list which was “mandatory”.

The electoral body’s verdict cited Article 51(6), saying the article clearly stated the reserved seats would be allocated to the political parties who contested elections and won general seats based on a “proportional representation system”.

MULTAN, Jul 11 (dna):Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is set to improve sewerage services with sustainable sanitation across the local region here.
Following the cause, a team of expert from JICA called on MD WASA, Chaudhary Muhammad Danish his office here.   
Members of delegation assured MD WASA of providing complete training to run machinery provided by Japan to enhance sewerage services in the city.
Moreover, Mr Kono and Mr Dyer, the officials of JICA -  the development and aid implementing agency of Japan for technical cooperation projects -  pledged to extend every cooperation for repairing of the old equipment for cleaning sewer pipes and relocating reusable equipment to where most it be needed.
Chaudhary Muhammad Danish said WASA was facing a challenge due to the decay of sewage and water supply systems in Multan city.
"And it's very important to replace the old lines to deal with these challenges" he maintained. 
He said there have been many incidents of crown failure and water supply mixing reported in different areas of the city almost everyday in the past.
He said more than 100 km of sewerage network with approximately 1000 km of water supply lines were decayed and adding that it was an urgent need for mega projects of replacement of water supply lines.
He said they're grateful for cooperation of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in the project of supplying modern machinery to Wasa Multan.  The project is a milestone for Wasa Multan, he remarked.
He pinned hope that the modern machinery offered by Japan would lead to improve delivery of public services in parts of the city.

ISLAMABAD, JUL 8 /DNA/ – Nicolas Galey, Ambassador of France to Pakistan, hosted a reception at the French Embassy in Islamabad to honor the Pakistani Olympic Community participating in the upcoming Paris Olympics 2024.

The event brought together Pakistani athletes who have qualified for the Olympic Games, along with coaches and officials from the Pakistan Olympic Association.

QUETTA: Lamenting that the burden of debt has mortgaged the future of nation’s generations, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said it will be a matter of great shame if Pakistan has to once again return to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for another loan after three years.

“To free ourselves from this cycle of debt, the federal and provincial governments, along with the relevant institutions, must work together,” the premier said while addressing a signing ceremony to launch a significant initiative aimed at the solarisation of agricultural tube wells in Balochistan on Monday.

“If we make this collective effort, future generations will be grateful. However, if we fail to make tough decisions, we will find ourselves seeking assistance from the IMF once again,” the PM, who was on a daylong visit to Quetta, said.

Pakistan is looking to strike a staff-level deal on an IMF bailout of more than $6 billion this month after addressing all of the Washington-based lender’s requirements in its annual budget.

Moreover, the country’s debt has soared since the mid-2000s, as authorities failed to invest a gusher of loans from international bondholders and countries including China and Gulf nations into productive, export-oriented sectors.

Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb warned on Sunday that Pakistan would continue to seek the IMF bailouts “if it fails to boost tax revenue”.

The finance czar said that he was “relatively confident” of reaching a staff-level agreement with the global lender this month for an estimated loan of $6 to $8 billion.

“But it will not be our last Fund programme if we don’t bring our tax revenues up,” said the finance minister while speaking during an interview with the Financial Times.

The federal government presented the tax-loaded Rs18.877 trillion budget for the fiscal year 2024-25 (FY25) last month, aimed at shoring up public revenue and satisfying the IMF, which has repeatedly demanded improved tax collection.

The budget aims to raise Rs13 trillion by next July, a roughly 40% increase from the current financial year, to bring down a ruinous debt burden that has caused 57% of government revenue to be swallowed by interest payments.

Maintaining that turning to the IMF was a necessity, the PM Shehbaz said Pakistan had to finalise a deal with the IMF this month.

“Tomorrow in Islamabad, I will discuss measures to provide relief to the poor. The federal government stands with Balochistan in its development and prosperity. We will embrace anyone who genuinely cares for the well-being of Balochistan and Pakistan.”

PM Shehbaz further said that security and maintenance of law and order were imperative for investment to flow into Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Regarding Gwadar, he said: “I am not complaining, but the Safe City project there has been halted. Gwadar, by the grace of God, will prove to be more beneficial than the Reko Diq mines. We are committed to transforming Gwadar into a magnificent port. Together, we will eradicate the scourge of terrorism.”

Solarisation of tube wells in Balochistan
The solarisation of agricultural tube wells in Balochistan, the premier said, was part of the broader government efforts to address the economic challenges facing Pakistan and to promote sustainable development in the region.

“The government is commitment to economic reforms, security, and development, particularly in the underserved regions of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” the PM added.

During the ceremony, the prime minister oversaw the signing of the agreement between the federal and the Balochistan governments in Quetta. Federal ministers, the governor and the chief minister of Balochistan, and members of the provincial cabinet were also present on the occasion.

Speaking on the occasion, PM Shehbaz said the federal government in cooperation with the Balochistan government would shift around 28,000 agricultural tube wells of the province from electricity to solar energy.

He said the total cost of “this project is Rs55 billion and its 70% will be provided by the federal government”, while the rest by the Balochistan government.

Premier Shehbaz said that Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfaraz Bugti had assured that the solarisation of tube wells would be completed in three months and it would help save around Rs90 billion annually.

“In the next phase, we are going for the solarisation of 1 million agricultural tube wells across the country, saving $3.5 billion, being spent on imported fuel every year,” the PM added.

He also said a 10% quota had been earmarked for the students of Balochistan, who would be sent to China at government expense for the latest professional training in the agriculture sector.

Similarly, a 10% quota has been reserved for the students of Balochistan to get training in the field of Information Technology under the Chinese company Huawei, the premier said adding that funds had been allocated in the federal budget for the establishment of Danish Schools in Balochistan.

He expressed the hope that Balochistan Governor Sheikh Jaffar Khan Mandokhail, CM Bugti, and the entire provincial cabinet would continue playing their due role for the development and prosperity of the province.

Meanwhile, Governor Mandokhail met with the Prime Minister, discussing the conversion of the province’s tube wells to solar power, party matters, and other mutual interests.

The governor expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for his special interest in the province’s development and prosperity. Both leaders agreed to further strengthen and enhance the relationship between the federal and provincial governments.

ISLAMABAD, JUL 08 (DNA) —The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Monday briefed the Federal Minster for Interior Mohsin Naqvi on over-billing after in reply to the notice taken by the minister.  Mohsin Naqvi had expressed serious concern over inclusion of protected users in the non-protected category and asked for the data of all distribution companies (Discos) providing relief to protected consumers.

He directed all FIA directors to check the data of discos and submit report while giving the task to collect all the evidence in 3 days. The minister ordered the directors of FIA across Pakistan to collect the records and a comprehensive report of all the evidence will be submitted to the Prime Minister.

He ordered to Additional DG FIA North Peshawar, Lahore to go to Gujranwala and Faisalabad to assess the situation and collect data. “Abuse of protected users must be addressed” he said, adding that the responsible persons should be determined by examining the evidence one by one.

Secretary Interior, Additional DG FIA HQ, Additional Home Secretary, and Additional DGFIA North attended the meeting along with all FIA directors participated in the meeting through video link. — DNA