LAHORE: As Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Punjab Organiser Chaudhry Sarwar has issued show-cause notices to the two UC-107 candidates for withdrawing nominations without party permission, the beneficiary of the whole episode, PML-N’s potential hopeful for Lahore mayor slot Khwaja Ahmad Hassaan denies coercion.

The PTI had alleged arm-twisting of its local government poll candidates in UC-107 contesting against Mr Hassaan and a brother of chief minister’s adviser Jaffar Hussain. The PTI candidates say they are going to file a writ petition in the Lahore High Court on Monday (today) against their rivals.

Through the party notices the two PTI men -- Nawaz Chaudhry and Rana Asghar -- have been asked to explain their position within three days. The party’s Discipline and Action Committee has also been asked by Mr Sarwar to probe into the matter and report within two days.

Khwaja Ahmad Hassaan has, however, an altogether different story to tell, without denying the sequence of events, including his visit to vice-chairman candidate Rana Asghar’s house and his presence at the MNA’s residence before Chaudhry Nawaz reached there.

Denying use of any pressure tactics, Mr Hassaan told Dawn, “Rana Asghar welcomed me with garlands outside his house and affirmed he would not be contesting against me”. He said the PTI candidate considered him a better candidate for the union council.

Mr Hassan claimed the PTI had no standing in the UC-107.

“The UC-107 is a hub of PML-N votes,” he said, adding that the PTI had tried to field a joint candidate in collaboration with Jamaat-i-Islami against him, but he (Majeed Ghauri) simply did not submit nomination papers.

Mr Hassaan said the two PTI candidates had withdrawn nomination papers simply on his request and he did not want to embarrass them by giving statements against them, while they were trying to “appease” their party leadership.

In order to strengthen his argument, Mr Hassaan said the returning officer had personally asked Rana Asghar whether he was withdrawing his nomination papers voluntarily or under coercion. He claimed Mr Asghar admitted there was no pressure involved and re-wrote his withdrawal papers before the RO.

Explaining his presence at Mehr Ishtiaq’s residence when PTI chairman candidate Chaudhry Nawaz arrived there, Mr Hassaan said he was there just to go to the Town Hall which was adjacent to the MNA’s residence.

When contacted, PTI vice-chairman candidate Rana Asghar insisted he was pressurised to sign the withdrawal papers. “What else could I do but signing the papers when PML-N leaders and plainclothesmen were sitting in my house taking my family hostage,” he asked.

He said PML-N men led by advisor to chief minister Chaudhry Baqir Hussain, brother of Jaffar Hussain, arrived at his house early on Saturday. “They offered me monetary incentives as well as lucrative postings,” he said, and added that upon his refusal the plainclothesmen threatened him and his family.

He, however, admitted that he had met Mr Hassaan outside his residence and garlanded him because “we are residents of the same locality”.

He said that he would be filing a writ petition in the LHC on Monday.

To a question, Mr Asghar said he did try to contact Opposition Leader in Punjab Assembly Mian Mahmoodur Rasheed but the plainclothesmen snatched his cell phone.

PHOTO ROW: Electronic media on Sunday flashed pictures showing top police officials allegedly extracting “a commitment on oath” from the PTI candidates.

However, the PML-N claimed it was an old picture taken at a Panchayat to settle a murder dispute.

Meanwhile, CIA police chief Umer Virk said the pictures shown on the media were old and were taken at a re-conciliatory meeting in connection with a murder case.

Punjab law minister Rana Sanaullah also said the pictures were taken at a Panchayat (local jury) and added that the government would take legal action against the PTI for leveling the allegation. He claimed the PTI would be facing a humiliating defeat in the upcoming local government elections.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2015

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MULTAN: Former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said on Sunday ex-deputy secretary PM House was brutally tortured to make him approver against him (Gilani) in cases related to the Trade and Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP).

Speaking to the media, he alleged that Zubair Ahmed was tortured to extract allegations against him a couple of weeks ago and still “there is nothing in the challan submitted to court.” The allegations were baseless and had no legal validity as a statement recorded before a magistrate or any judge had legal value, he argued.

He said his name was not mentioned in the challan submitted to court and when these cases were lodged there was no nominated accused. “I remained imprisoned for 10 years in the cases lodged by Saifur Rehman but I was acquitted by courts,” he said.

He said besides pursuing cases against him, the government should also take steps for the recovery of his son Ali Haider Gilani as “protecting the lives of the citizens is the responsibility of the government.”

“They can lodge as many cases as they want but should also fulfill their responsibility for the safe recovery of my son,” he demanded.

He said the Law and Justice Division had rejected the idea of creating two provinces of Bahawalpur and Seraiki when the recommendation of the commission constituted by the federal government was submitted there. “After the Punjab Assembly approved the resolution of creating two provinces, the commission was constituted and the case was sent to the Law and Justice Division that said creation of two provinces was not viable,” he said.

He said as per Constitution each federating unit should have representation in the Senate and each unit has 22 senators while it’s not possible for Bahawalpur province to meet the requirement. “At least 44 MPAs are required to nominate a senator and creation of seats for Bahawalpur is not possible,” he said.

He said the Punjab Assembly passed a resolution in favour of two provinces and now the ruling party should come forward to fulfill its promise (of creating two provinces) and the PPP would support the move.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2015

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GILGIT: A multi-party conference held here on Sunday said that Gilgit-Baltistan, being a disputed region under resolutions of the United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan, should be given rights and protections under the Constitution of Pakistan, on the pattern of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The conference also declared that the China-Pakistan Econ­omic Corridor (CPEC) agreements, in the absence of determination of the status of GB, were a violation of its people’s rights.

The conference titled “The unresolved Status of Gilgit-Baltistan” was organised by PPP at a hotel here.

The conference was attended, among others, by PPP leader Amjad Hussain, JUI-F leader Rahmat Khaliq, BNF leader Nawaz Naji, APML leader Karim Khan, Awami Action Committee leader Ehsan advocate, PTI leader Javed Ali Manwa and leaders and representatives of the MQM, Jamaat-i-Islami, Islami Tehreek and Lawyers Movement for Constitutional Rights.

The conference issued a joint declaration saying that local people, with the help of the GB Scouts, had revolted against the Maharaja of Kashmir and formed an independent government on Nov 1, 1947.

After Nov 16, 1947, the Pakistani government took over the administrative control of the GB on the basis of accession by the Mirs of the princely states in the region.

Despite the accession, the GB has been kept as a disputed territory since then by the Pakistani government in order to win any future UN plebiscite. The GB has been incorporated into the UNCIP Resolution which resolved that till the resolution of the Kashmir dispute, the governments of India and Pakistan will administer the areas with local authority.

The conference declared that the government of India incorporated the Jammu and Kashmir into the Indian constitution and provided a system of governance to its people and gave them representation in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The government of Pakistan provided a separate political set-up to the AJK without incorporating it into the Constitution of Pakistan, but kept the status of GB unclear.

The GB neither has representation in Pakistan’s National Assembly, Senate and other institutions nor has it got representation in the AJK Assembly and the AJK’s other institutions.

The resolution said the AJK had its own constitution, president, premier, flag, an independent judiciary and its fundamental rights had been guaranteed under the AJK constitution. But the GB has nothing of the sort.

The conference demanded that the GB should be given a system of governance on the pattern of the Jammu and Kashmir, adding that it was an internationally accepted principle that without representation there should be no taxation.

The resolution said that Pakistan’s taxes could not be imposed in disputed territories and on their population unless these had been imposed by their chosen and elected representatives and unless they had representation in Pakistan’s elected institutions.

The declaration said that while imposing and collecting federal taxes — Customs duty, GST, Central Excise Tax, Income Tax, and Withholding tax — the people of GB had been treated by the Pakistani government as if they were the citizens of Pakistan, but when it came to resolving the unclear status of the GB and representation of its people in elected institutions of Pakistan, the region’s status had been kept unclear and ambiguous.

The conference demanded that till the resolution of the status of the GB, the Customs checkpost in Sost should be relocated to the constitutional territories of Pakistan and the GB should be declared a duty-free territory.

The conference further said that collection of federal taxes from the people of GB was illegal and unlawful because the region and its people had no representation in the Senate, NA and other political institutions of Pakistan.

The conference announced that a joint struggle would be launched for achieving the constitutional rights of the people of Gilgit-Baltistan.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2015

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LAHORE: The Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) has issued a ‘fact sheet’ on “seven-year corruption and misuse of public funds by the Punjab government”.

While releasing the report, a PAT spokesman claimed billions of rupees had been misappropriated in 10 projects in the seven-year rule of the PML-N, while the Punjab government had played the role of a silent spectator.

The report, he claimed, was just “food for thought” for probe agencies and suggested the investigation of a former director general of the Lahore Development Authority and close aide of the prime minister could lead to even bigger scandals of the PML-N government.

The report states that when an adviser of the Transparency International objected to the misappropriations, he was silenced by being appointed adviser to the prime minister. It also stated that prolonged boycott of provincial assembly proceedings by the opposition encouraged the Shahbaz Sharif government to indulge in corruption without any hindrance and spend the money of the national exchequer at will.

Referring to Punjab Education Minister Rana Mashhood being allegedly caught in CCTV footage, the report stated the masses had watched the minister accepting bribe and the chief minister patronised him instead of holding an inquiry against him. Similarly, it recalled, the provincial government halted its campaign of demolishing illegal plazas when it learnt that former law minister Rana Sanaullah had also built a plaza illegally. Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had ordered an inquiry into the issue but its findings were never made public, it added.

Referring to Justice Mansoor Ali Shah commission’s report on flawed repairs of barrages and spurs involving multi-billion-rupee funds in the wake of devastating floods, it claimed the commission found the then irrigation secretary responsible for losses but the report was never released despite passage of five and a half years, while the secretary concerned was promoted by the CM to a more lucrative post.

The report also recalled the Rs30 billion Sasti Roti project and lamented its report was being kept secret even after four years as ‘mechanical tandoors’ for those ‘Sasti rotis’ were nowhere to be seen now.

It also alleged that billions of rupees of taxpayers’ money had been spent on “flop” Daanish schools and youth festivals. The government was also reluctant to hold audit of Rs150 billion local government funds since 2009, when the local body system put in place by former president retired Gen Musharraf was wrapped up and local bodies’ affairs were run through government-appointed administrators.

Talking about power projects, the report stated that delay in Nandipur project had caused a loss of billions of rupees to the national exchequer and no guilty person had been penalised despite responsibility being claimed for the delay.

Likewise, for the 100MW Quaid-i-Azam solar park, the government acquired Rs150 billion loan from the Bank of Punjab while the chief minister had said in his press conference recently that only Rs13 billion were consumed to produce 18MW electricity from the facility.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2015

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ISLAMABAD: Questioning the legality of the business of liquefied natural gas (LNG), the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) has asked three key oil and gas companies to secure a legal cover from the government for provisional pricing of the commodity to avoid legal and financial complications.

In a letter to key stakeholders in the LNG supply chain — Pakistan State Oil, Sui Southern Gas Company and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited and ministries of finance and petroleum — Ogra said that since the pricing, sale and invoicing of LNG business in its existing form and documentation were not legal in the eyes of the law, the regulator could not legalise or approve them.

Take a look: Doubts about LNG supply in winter

Ogra has pointed out seven major legal shortcomings in finalisation of sale price of re-gasified LNG (RLNG) for end-consumers.

“Determination with respect to RLNG price can only be done once the desired information/documents complete in all respect are submitted,” Ogra said in the letter, referring to a series of meetings held with oil and gas companies and the petroleum ministry in recent weeks.

It asked the stakeholders to provide “approval of the federal government regarding a master sale-purchase agreement signed between PSO and Qatar Gas and the rate of LNG in respect of the cargo purchased uptill now”.

Secondly, Ogra has sought the agreement and term sheet agreed upon with the Port Qasim Authority given the fact that PQA charges have been included on a provisional basis in the RLNG price demanded for approval without any rationale. Thirdly, the regulator is also not at ease with the absence of certified copies of tripartite agreement (among Pakistan State Oil, Sui Southern Gas Company and SNGPL) and the swap arrangement to connect LNG received at port and transported to the end-consumers, for example, in Punjab.

The fourth requirement relates to SNGPL’s agreements with RLNG consumer. As the fifth, Ogra says, “Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited cost of service has been wrongly calculated as it did not encompass the RLNG volume in total gas volume to determine unit rate and did not segregate the network to the extent of RLNG transmission and distribution segment only”.

Ogra has also pointed out that no rationale has been provided to calculate the retainage (LNG quantities not transferrable out of gasification unit or gas pipeline system) for working out total cost of RLNG.

The seventh shortcoming, Ogra says, it has not been provided any report by Engro Terminal or SGS certification firm in respect of LNG quantities received and RLNG delivered.

Ogra has also noted that a number of summaries have been moved by the stakeholders involved in the supply chain, but the record of basic requirements for pricing mechanism was not presented to the federal government.

It said PSO claimed to have imported 9-10 cargoes with the concurrence of the petroleum ministry, but “no evidence/document has been provided to this effect”.

The regulator said LNG could not be compared with other petroleum products which had an established and approved mechanism being practised for decades.

It said oil pricing had almost completely been deregulated and its rates verification mechanism provided by the federal government while involvement of the Oil Companies Advisory Committee and assurances by oil marketing companies of its transparency and long-term contracts at the government level were already available on record, but such transparency was not available in case of LNG imports so far.

Even after the arrival of first LNG cargo at Port Qasim on March 27, LNG is being supplied to fertiliser plants, mostly Pak-Arab Fertilisers, and to compress natural gas (CNG) stations on provisional orders of the petroleum ministry.

The main issue is that while the government has given an end-price inclusive of all transportation and gasification charges to CNG at around $14-15 per MMBTU depending on the purchase price, LNG supply to fertiliser plants is being charged at the rate of domestic gas prices or about $4 per MMBTU lower than imported product.

Resultantly, Pakistan State Oil has developed a new circular debt of around Rs20 billion on its account. Who will pick up this Rs420 per MMBTU price differential and how this will be adjusted at a later stage when Ogra concludes pricing mechanism is unknown.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2015

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KUALA LUMPUR: A Pakistani and two Malaysians have been detained in connection with last month's bombing of a shrine in Bangkok that killed 20 people, the national police chief said Monday.

Inspector General Khalid Abu Bakar told reporters that the three were detained a few days ago following a tip-off by Thai authorities. He said one of the Malaysians is a woman.

The August 17 blast at the Erawan Shrine in the Thai capital killed 20 people, including five Malaysians from one family, and injured more than 120.

Many of the victims were foreigners as the shrine is a popular destination for tourists and Thais alike.

Read: Bomb explodes at Bangkok shrine, killing at least 18

Khalid did not give details or say where in Malaysia the three were detained, when they will be formally charged, or what the charges would be.

He said Malaysian police will investigate and work with Thai authorities on the detainees.

Also read: Thai police seek ‘Chinese’ man over Bangkok bomb

Thai police say the man who may have actually planted the bomb may have fled across Thailand's southern border to Malaysia, but Khalid refused to speculate on that.

In Bangkok, Thai Police Chief Somyot Poompanmoung said he has not received any information from the Malaysian police on the arrest of the three suspects.

Two key suspects are also in custody in Thailand, charged with possession of illegal explosives.

One of them was captured from an apartment on the outskirts of Bangkok where police also discovered bomb-making material. The other was caught near the border between Thailand and Cambodia, and police said his fingerprints were found on a container with explosive material confiscated from the apartment.

Also read: Turkish man charged over Bangkok bombing

After weeks of demurring, Thailand has suggested that those behind the blast may have been from a gang involved in smuggling Uighurs from the Chinese region of Xinjiang, while others speculate they may be separatists or Islamist extremists angry that Thailand repatriated more than 100 Uighurs to China in July.

Uighurs complain of oppression by the Chinese government, and some advocate turning Xinjiang into a separate Uighur state.

Thai police say the mastermind of the plot is a 27-year-old ethnic Uighur from China. They said they think the man may have fled to China.

Also read: Bangkok bomb plotter "flew to China", Malaysia lead goes nowhere

PESHAWAR / DERA ISMAIL KHAN: At least 17 suspected militants were killed in air strikes in North Waziristan on Sunday and two security personnel lost their lives in an attack in South Waziristan.

Sources said that military planes pounded suspected militant hideouts at Gorbaz and Zoi in Shawal tehsil of North Waziristan near the Afghan border. Seventeen `militants’ were killed and several others injured. Four hideouts were destroyed.

Know more: US drone strike kills four suspected terrorists in Afghanistan

In South Waziristan, two security personnel were fetching water from a spring in Khaisoor area of Tiarza tehsil when Mehsud Taliban attacked them. Iqbal and Bukhtiar were both killed.

Meanwhile, clashes between security forces and suspected militants which erupted in Shawal area on Saturday night continued till Sunday noon.

Both sides claimed to have inflicted heavy losses on each other, but casualties could not be confirmed through independent sources.

Our correspondent in Khar adds: A security picket was attacked by militants in Damadola area of Bajaur tribal region’s Mamond tehsil on Saturday evening.

According to officials, no casualty was reported.

A group of militants attacked Adil Post, about 12km from Khar, the headquarters of Bajaur Agency, they said. Security personnel deployed at the post returned fire and forced the attackers to retreat.

After a search operation, it was announced that the attackers had fled the area.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2015

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QUETTA: Chief Minister Balochistan, Dr. Malik Baloch administered polio drops to children as an anti-polio campaign was launched in Quetta and other 31 districts of the province amid tight security on Monday morning.

Dr Baloch kicked off the drive by administering drops to some children at Chief Minister's Secretariat in Quetta.

"We are determined to eradicate polio virus from the province," Chief Minister Dr. Malik Baloch told reporters.

During the three-day immunisation drive, vaccine drops would be administered to more than 2.4 million children in all 32 districts of Balochistan.

Heightened security arrangements

In Quetta, police personnel were guarding the polio volunteers to ensure their security. Security of polio teams have been tightened in Quetta and other troubled districts of Balochistan in the aftermath of attacks at teams.

In view of security threats, the provincial government has already imposed ban on pillion riding in Quetta during the three-day campaign.

District Administration Quetta imposed section 144 to avoid occurrence of any untoward incident during the drive.

"Government has provided security to polio teams across the province," Dr. Baloch said.

Related Balochistan's fifth polio case of the year confirmed in Quetta

Health Department and Emergency Operation Cell (EOC) established for eradication of polio formed more than 7,000 teams to ensure provision of polio drops to all children below the age of five years.

More than 4,000 refuse to be vaccinated

Dr. Saif ur Rehman thus revealed that the Emergency Cell has documented the data of more than 4000 parents refusing polio drops to their children. "All would be convinced through our committees to administer polio drops to their children", he expressed the hope.

"For the first time, a massive anti polio campaign has been launched in Balochistan", Dr. Rehman, the told DawnNews.

Also read: 4,000 parents in northern Balochistan refuse polio vaccination

He said there was close coordination among all government departments to make the campaign a success.

"We are committed to eradicate the crippling virus at all costs," Dr. Saif ur Rehman said. Hitherto, five polio cases have been reported from Balochistan during the year 2015.

Almost 32 polio cases were reported across Pakistan with five of them only coming from Balochistan.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world which have not been able to eradicate the polio-virus while no case of polio virus was reported in Nigeria over a year.

In Balochistan, 84 per cent children are not immunised and are prone to various preventable and fatal diseases, data from the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) revealed.

However, refusal on the part of some parents and attacks at polio workers and volunteers remain to be the main reasons behind the virus.

The polio campaign has a history of being postponed and suspended owing to security reasons in Quetta.

http://images.dawn.com/news/1173830/everything-you-need-to-know-about-pfdc-loreal-paris-bridal-week-part-i

PESHAWAR: A three-day polio immunisation drive kicked off in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province on Monday amid tight security.

A total of 5,422 children under the age of five years will be administered polio drops in 25 districts of the province during the immunisation campaign.

According to the National Immunisation Database (NID) 14,705 mobile, 1,586 fixed, 737 transit and 107 roaming teams comprising of 17,135 workers are taking part in three-day drive.

Vitamin capsules will also be provided to the children- Photo by author

Read: WHO declares Peshawar world's 'largest reservoir' of polio

Apart from vaccines, vitamin capsules will also be provided to the children.

According to NID, 568,103 Vitamin-A (Blue) capsules and 4,507,954 Vitamin-A (Red) capsules will also be provided to the children, aged under five years.

Stringent security measures were adopted for the much needed immunisation drive as militant groups often attack polio teams as they see vaccination campaigns as a cover for espionage.

Stringent security measures were adopted for the much needed immunisation drive as militant groups often attack polio teams -Photo by author

The total number of cases registered in Pakistan this year are 32 with the last two reported in Khyber Agency.

According to a report published in Dawn Newspaper on September 8, Fata recorded 179 polio case and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 68 cases of the 306 countrywide cases in 2014 while they reported 65 and 11 cases respectively of the total 93 cases registered at national level in 2013.

Police is guarding the campaign teams- Photo by author

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa registered 27 and Fata 20 polio cases in the nationwide tally of 58 cases in 2012.

Fata along with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was declared hub of polio virus, which poses risk to children in the countries that had long been declared polio-free.

Pakistan is one of only three countries in the world where polio remains endemic but efforts to eradicate the disease have been severely hindered in recent years as militants continue to attack immunisation teams and polio workers.

http://images.dawn.com/news/1173834/out-of-sight-this-is-what-its-like-to-dine-out-in-complete-darkness

BADIN: Former two-time Sindh minister and central leader of Pakistan Muslim League- Functional (PML-F) Syed Ali Bux aka Pappu Shah announced to join Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) today.

Speaking to Dawn, Mr Shah — who is considered to be an arch rival of PPP since 1988 in Badin district — confirmed that he and his ex- senator wife, Bibi Yasmin Shah, have decided, in principle, to join PPP later today during a press conference at his residence in Karachi's Defence Housing Authority (DHA) area along with the party's top leadership.

Shah said that he took the decision in the best interests of the people of Badin district, adding that he had finalised the talks with PPP's top leadership, including co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali and MNA Faryal Talpur, Shah said, would take all possible measures to further strengthen PPP in Badin and other parts of Sindh with the help of his supporters and well wishers.

Shah has been contesting general elections since 1998 in Badin. He was initially elected a member of the Sindh Assembly in 1985 and later in 2002 on a ticket of Pakistan Muslim League Quaid (PML-Q) defeating late Haji Abdul Karim Bhurgri of PPP. He later also served as a provincial minister.

Few days ago, he had gone to the house of his arch rival and disgruntled PPP leader Dr Zulfiqar Mirza to offer condolences on the death of latter' s father Justice (retd) Zafar Hussain Mirza, where both leaders promised to end a three-decade old political enmity for good and vowed to work together.

Speaking to Dawn, PPP MNA from Badin, Sardar Khan Chang and an official in CM House in Karachi also confirmed Shah's decision to join PPP.

Sources revealed that Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Syed Khursheed Ahmed Shah had also played a crucial role in convincing Mr Shah to join PPP.

QUETTA: More than two dozen 'militants' laid down their weapons in Balochistan's Noshki district on Monday as part of the present government's reconciliation policy.

A security official who declined to be named since he was not authorised to speak to the media told DawnNews that all the 'militants' belonged to banned outfits.

"Most of them belonged to the banned Baloch Republican Army (BRA)," he said, adding that the 'militants' had targeted security personnel and vital national installations for a long time.

The suspected militants, who laid down their weapons announced their intent to rejoin society and live peaceful lives while assuring officials that they would work for development and prosperity of the country. They handed their weapons over to Frontier Corps personnel and other officers at a ceremony held in Noshki.

Three suspected militants arrested in Gawadar

Security forces on Monday arrested three suspected militants from Gawadar. Acting on intelligence information, a raid was conducted by security forces which led to the arrests.

"The terrorists were involved in grenade attacks and target killings in the city of Gawadar," confirmed an official from the Frontier Corps (FC).

On August 14, 2015, 400 militants laid down their weapons during a ceremony to celebrate Pakistan's Independence Day.

The government of Balochistan had announced a reconciliation policy earlier this year to pave the way for solutions on issues relating to the province which has been under the grip of violence for over a decade.

Pakistan's largest province — which borders Iran and Afghanistan — is riven by sectarian strife and Islamist violence.

Its roughly seven million inhabitants have long complained they do not receive a fair share of its gas and mineral wealth.

Baloch separatists demanding more autonomy and control over gas and mineral resources have frequently targeted security forces and police for years.

Also read: 400 militants in Balochistan lay down weapons on Independence Day

QUETTA: Unknown gunmen kidnapped the general manager of Balochistan Development Authority (BDA), Bacha Khan, along with five other officers from Killa Saifullah district of Balochistan on Monday.

Security sources told Dawn.com that unknown militants stopped the vehicle of BDA officials in Nasai area of Killa Saifullah and abducted them. The kidnapped officials were inspecting an under construction road in the area when they were picked up by miscreants.

A search operation has been launched in the area to recover the abducted officers but so far neither any official is recovered nor any suspect apprehended.

Explore Balochistan unrest

Pakistan's largest province — which borders Iran and Afghanistan — is riven by sectarian strife and violence.

Its roughly seven million inhabitants have long complained they do not receive a fair share of its gas and mineral wealth.

Baloch separatists demanding more autonomy and control over gas and mineral resources have frequently targeted security forces and police for years.

The government and law-enforcement agencies have time and again alleged involvement of a foreign hand in the Balochistan unrest.

By alluding to external involvement in the unrest, the law-enforcement agencies (LEAs) generally mean to be referring to Indian intelligence agency RAW.

Other intelligence agencies suspected of contributing to the Balochistan unrest are Afghanistan’s NDS and those of certain countries in the Gulf and West.

Recent Two dozen Baloch militants lay down their weapons

PESHAWAR: A major-ranked officer of the Pakistan Army and five militants were killed late during an attack on a checkpost in Spin Wam area of North Waziristan tribal region's Mirali tehsil, security sources told DawnNews on Monday.

Militants attacked Dandi Kuch checkpost situated in Kaka Ziarat area of Spin Wam near the Pak-Afghan border killing an officer of the Pakistan Army identified as Major Ismail. The area lies adjacent to Afghanistan's Khost province.

Security personnel resorted to retaliatory firing killing five militants.

Security sources added that the attackers, who had used light and heavy weapons, managed to escape from the site taking advantage of darkness and also took away the bodies of the colleagues.

North Waziristan is one of the seven regions in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) governed by tribal laws which is situated along the Pak-Afghan border and is rife with Taliban militant activity.

The Pakistan Army launched Zarb-i-Azb, a comprehensive operation in North Waziristan tribal region last summer to drive out Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other extremist militants who launch attacks on government and civilian targets, a week after the brazen insurgent attack on the country's busiest airport in Karachi.

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday inaugurated the Pakistan-China Friendship Tunnels, which have been constructed by China over the Attabad Lake in Gilgit-Baltistan's Hunza valley.

Nawaz said Gilgit-Baltistan is a vital link in the China Pakistan Economic Corridor and would benefit most from this mega project which would particularly increase the tourist influx.

The seven kilometre long five tunnels are part of the 24km long portion of the Karakorum Highway (KKH) which was damaged in 2010 due to land sliding at Attabad.

Also read: Death toll of Hunza landslide rises to 13

Two bridges and 78 small bridges have also been constructed on the rebuilt section of the highway, Radio Pakistan reported.

The tunnels have been constructed by the National Highway Authority (NHA) in collaboration with the China Road and Bridge Corporation to restore part of the road which had submerged under the Attabad Lake.

The project has been completed in a span of three years and two months.

Know more: Three phases of Hunza disaster

NHA officials briefed the prime minister on the details of the project and status of upgradation of other parts of KKH.

Nawaz urged the Gilgit Baltistan government to maintain high level of transparency and integrity in the expenditure of public money. The premier also stressed to rectify the mistakes of the past and make corrections where necessary.

The GB chief minister informed the prime minister that this summer more than 600,000 tourists visited Gilgit-Baltistan which shows upward economic activity in the region.

Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Governor GB Barjees Tahir, Chief Minister GB Hafeezur Rehman and China's Ambassador to Pakistan Sun Weidong were also present on the occasion.

Earlier, the premier was received at Gilgit Airport by chief minister GB. The chief minister briefed the prime minister about progress of other developmental projects in the area and performance of GB government.

ISLAMABAD: The Senate on Monday unanimously adopted a resolution, moved by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Senator Farhatullah Babar, to enact laws providing the right to revise decisions taken by the Supreme Court in suo moto cases.

There was no objection to the resolution from the treasury benches when Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani put it before the House, and it was thus unanimously adopted.

Senator Babar termed the unanimous adoption of the resolution a “landmark development because it placed an obligation on the government to adopt appropriate legislation to streamline the suo moto procedure.”

“A great potential harm in readily taking too many suo moto notices is that when the Supreme Court takes up cases, the parties involved are denied the right to appeal since SC verdicts cannot be appealed,” he said, sharing his concern.

The PPP legislator said some suo moto notices provided “great relief” and are welcome without doubt. But he stressed it also placed “vast powers” in the hands of the judiciary.

“The greater the power in the hands of an individual or an institution, the greater is the need and responsibility to exercise it with abundant caution. Any power that is not regulated by law or exercised excessively can result in very serious consequences,” he said, while talking to media.

Farhatullah Babar recalled a question raised two years ago by Senator Karim Khwaja regarding details of suo moto action taken by each High Court since 2009.

“Three high courts did not furnish replies at the time, while the Sindh High Court said it had not taken any suo moto notice since 2009.”

The Islamabad Hight Court, in response, said seeking such information amounted to having a “check on the judiciary” which militates against its independence, Babar recalled.

He said some earlier suo moto cases such as granting bail in the case of “two wine bottles” and the case of Hussain Haqqani's Memogate controversy had raised questions in legal circles.

The parliamentarian informed reporters that the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) delegation after visiting Pakistan said courts exceeded the “limits of a reasonable use” of this procedure.

The report said this could lead to a corrosion of the rule of law and a blurring of the constitutional separation of powers, added Babar.

No one is authorised to use the vast powers vested in their hands at their own whim and pleasure nor should its use appear as a “favour to one and a punishment to another,” he said.

“Questions are bound to be raised when suo moto powers are excercised in a manner that seems to be treading into the domain of other institutions. The exercise of suo moto powers must make a citizen feel that he is being provided his right and not a bounty from the court.”

“Its exercise must be guided by law and not by populism. This calls for regulating the use of suo moto powers purely under legislation,” Babar said.