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Punjab Assembly approves Rs5.33tr tax-free budget

• 41 demands for grants okayed; eight cut motions presented by opposition rejected • Bill to set up autism centre tabled, among others • Treasury MPA slams ‘illegal raid’ by police LAHORE: The Punjab Asse­mbly on Thursday passed a tax-free budget worth Rs5.33tr for the fiscal year 2025-26 with a majority vote. It also passed the Finance Bill 2025-26. No new taxes have been imposed in the budget, and the existing tax structure also remains unchanged. There are no changes to provincial revenues, property tax, or transport tax. No additional taxes have been levied on any sector, including industry, agriculture, health, or education. The focus of the budget, in the words of Finance Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman, was on development, with 18 new projects allocated funds across various sectors as the government aimed to stay the course by encouraging economic activity without further tightening the tax net. Prior to this, 41 demands for grants totaling over Rs4,31bn for various depart...
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Israeli PM seeks to delay corruption trial after Trump backs him

• Court asked to postpone testimony in light of ‘regional and global developments’ • US president’s support for PM draws criticism from Israeli politicians JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked a court on Thursday to postpone his testimony in his long-running corruption trial, after US President Donald Trump called for the case to be cancelled altogether. Trump’s move in support of Netanyahu over the case drew criticism from some Israeli politicians, including a member of the Israeli leader’s own coalition and the leader of the opposition. It came days after Trump and Netanyahu declared victory over Iran in a 12-day conflict that saw Israel bombard the Islamic republic and US planes also drop powerful missiles on its nuclear installations. In a filing to the tribunal, Netanyahu’s lawyer Amit Hadad said the premier’s testimony should be delayed in light of “regional and global developments”. “The court is respectfully requested to order the cancellation of t...
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Anna Wintour steps down as editor of US Vogue after nearly 40 years

Magazine legend Anna Wintour is stepping down as editor of fashion bible US Vogue after 37 years in the post, US media reported on Thursday. British-born Wintour, 75, has been one of the most influential and formidable figures in fashion and magazine journalism for decades, famous for her ever-present sunglasses and unchanging bob haircut. She was widely seen as the inspiration behind The Devil Wears Prada , a hit 2003 novel and 2006 movie, in which the role of a tyrannical magazine editor was played by Meryl Streep. Wintour, who took the helm at US Vogue in 1988, announced her departure at a staff meeting, but she will stay on as group owner Conde Nast’s global chief content officer and as editorial director at Vogue , People magazine reported. Several other publications also reported this news. Wintour, who held the title of Vogue’s editor-in-chief, was made a British dame in 2017 and in February this year was made a companion of honour, joining a select group never numbering...
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Gaza ceasefire now

THE ceasefire between Iran and Israel may have stopped the conflict from spiralling into a catastrophic regional war. Now, similar diplomatic efforts are needed to end Israel’s brutal slaughter in Gaza. For 12 days, ever since Israel attacked Iran, the world was glued to the battle , as any expansion in hostilities would have had seismic effects on the global geopolitical and economic order. Yet, despite its aggression against Iran, the regime in Tel Aviv continued the bloodshed in Gaza without pause. Between late May and now, over 500 people have been killed in the occupied Palestinian territory, with many of the victims cruelly mowed down as they jostled for food in a Strip that is on the verge of starvation. As the spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights put it: “The Israeli military must stop shooting at people trying to get food.” While speaking at the Nato summit in The Hague on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump said there was “great progress” on a Gaza...
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Imran sidelined by his party and family, claims Azma

LAHORE: Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari has claimed that rifts within the PTI ranks have become so deep that the former prime minister Imran Khan has now been sidelined by both his party and the family. “It is divine justice that the man who wanted to sideline PML-N head Nawaz Sharif has himself been abandoned by his party,” the minister said in a statement here on Wednesday. A day earlier, Imran’s sister Aleema Khan told media persons that it seemed that “ minus-Imran ” formula was now in effect. She was referring to the passing of provincial budget by the Khyber Pakht­unkhwa government without the approval of the PTI founder who has been in jail for nearly two years in multiple cases. “Aleema Khan has been continuously conspiring against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, and today, Ali Amin himself openly acknowledged these conspiracies against him,” Ms Bokhari said and added that had Gandapur failed to get the provincial budget passed as the provinc...
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Punjab Assembly approves Rs636.65bn in budget demands for grant

LAHORE: The Punjab Assembly on Wednesday approved over Rs636.65 billion in budget demands for grant for the fiscal year 2025-26, covering crucial sectors like police, health, and education. Finance Minister Mian Mujtaba Shuja lauded the budget as “people-friendly” and dismissed all objections from the opposition. The session, presided over by Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmed Khan, began with a three-hour and 33-minute delay. The opposition continued their vocal protests, prompting the Speaker to humorously inquire if they were chanting against “Modi” or “Yahoodi” (Jews), which drew laughter from the treasury benches. Summing up the five-day budget debate, the minister emphasised that it was a “progressive and balanced budget” aligning with public aspirations. He highlighted a significant increase in the development budget to Rs1,240bn for the current fiscal year, compared to Rs840bn previously. He also noted substantial reductions in non-development expenditures and the circular debt. ...
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Uneasy calm

AFTER several days of dangerous escalation in the Middle East, matters seem to be cooling off. The US-Israeli hostilities against Iran have subsided. It appeared that a larger clash was brewing when Iran hit a major US airbase in Qatar on Monday night in retaliation against America’s bombing of the Islamic Republic’s nuclear facilities on Sunday. But this turned out to be a largely symbolic and telegraphed attack, as only a few hours after the Iranian salvo, US President Donald Trump announced that a ceasefire had taken effect. Doubts about the truce dissipated when both Iran and Israel confirmed that the ceasefire had taken effect on Tuesday. However, the fragility of this arrangement was clear to all as Israel claimed Iran had violated the truce, and threatened to hit Tehran. The Iranians denied the violation, and claimed their attacks had been launched before the truce took effect. Later in the day, Mr Trump would return to social media to tell the world that the ceasefire...
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