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PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari took more digs at former ally PML-N on Thursday and questioned its agenda in the absence of a manifesto despite the general elections being just two weeks away. Bilawal, who has criticised the PML-N on the regular during his election trail, was addressing a campaign rally in Gujrat today when he made the remarks. “What kind of democracy and election is this where one party has a manifesto and another — which is pitting its nominee for the prime minister for the fourth time — says their [old] manifesto is [still] valid. They can’t even tell you that if they somehow get the chance again [to rule] for the fourth time, what they’ll do,” the PPP scion said. In contrast, he said, he had presented his 10-point agenda on the nation’s most important issues. Bilawal said he wanted to serve the women of Punjab as a dutiful son of his mother. “Those who said PPP is not present in Punjab and they have no competition with us are chanting ‘PPP PPP’ day and ni...

NEW DELHI: A mosque and a church were assaulted as Hindutva mobs staged victory marches in BJP-ruled states a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a controversial temple in Ayodhya. A group of Hindu activists unfurled saffron flags in a mosque in Agra in Uttar Pradesh amid reports of a similar attack on a church in Madhya Pradesh. In BJP-ruled Assam on Tuesday police booked Rahul Gandhi for “wanton acts of violence”, as the political confrontation between the Congress leader and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma escalated on the 10th day of east-to-west peace march. Mr Gandhi asserted that he does not get “intimidated” by such tactics. “With reference to wanton acts of violence, provocation, damage to public property and assault on police personnel today by Congress members, an FIR has been registered against Rahul Gandhi, K.C. Venugopal, Kanhaiya Kumar and other individuals…,” the chief minister posted on X. Communal clashes reported in several states Mr Sar...

With the February 8 general election roughly two weeks away, the PTI will be contesting the polls without a common electoral symbol after being stripped of its iconic ‘bat’. Despite the party’s best efforts, its candidates will be competing in the polls as independents, each having a separate symbol, and that’s because the Supreme Court upheld the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to revoke their long-held symbol, which held additional value due to party founder Imran Khan’s cricketing roots. The verdict has also resulted in the party losing out on reserved seats for women and minorities. Resultantly, the PTI has alleged that revoking its ‘bat’ will cast a shadow on the freeness and fairness of the election, as its candidates would be vulnerable to horse-trading. Let’s take a look at the significance of electoral symbols and the challenges which the PTI faces in the Feb 8 polls. What is an electoral symbol? Electoral symbols — unique pictorial identifiers — are...

ISLAMABAD: The relationship between the state and media deteriorated during the past two years due to growing instances of censorship, violence against journalists and government disdain for critism, according to a report. The report titled Under Siege: Legislative, Judicial and Executive Actions Stifling Freedom of Expression and Right to Information was published by the Institute of Research, Advocacy and Development (IRADA) as part of its annual state of digital journalism series. “This year’s report examines key legislative developments in Pakistan during the critical year of 2023, shedding light on recent acts impacting freedom of expression, access to information and the digital media landscape,” Muhammad Aftab Alam, the executive director of IRADA said. The report investigated the effects of judicial decisions on the overall freedom of expression, indicating nuances in court decisions that both protect and impose restrictions. Journalists’ arrests raise concerns over pre...

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday overturned the notifications of returning officers postponing elections in two National Assembly constituencies of Sargodha district following death of an independent candidate for both the seats. The notifications to terminate proceedings of elections in in NA-83 and NA-85 (Sargodha) were issued by respective returning officers on January 19 after the death of Sadiq Ali, who they said according to death certificate and information provided by his son, died on Jan 15. A video that took rounds on social media, however, showed that the death certificate was fake and the man had passed away on Jan 2 and not on Jan 15. The Section 73 (1) of the Elections Act, 2017, says “If a contesting candidate dies before commencement of the poll or during the polling hours, the Returning Officer shall, by public notice, terminate the proceedings relating to that election”. An ECP official explained that a person filing nomination papers...

Once dubbed the establishment’s “blue-eyed boy”, former prime minister Imran Khan finds himself on the sidelines, with his nomination papers for 2024 elections rejected, and his party in tatters. Born in Lahore in 1952, Imran first rose to fame as a cricketer, leading the national side to its only ODI World Cup victory in 1992. Following his retirement from the sport, in addition to ramping up his philanthropic activities, he founded the PTI in 1996 but only saw limited political success till 2011, when he started gaining the attention of youth disillusioned by massive corruption and an unemployment crisis. Following the 2013 elections, Imran alleged widespread rigging, leading a months-long sit-in in Islamabad in protest, but called it off after the deadly attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar. Imran’s popularity continued to rise ahead of the 2018 elections, so much so that he was dubbed the “prime minister in waiting” albeit with some help from powerful quarters. Followin...

The National Press Club (NPC) penned a letter to the Islamabad police on Monday requesting the removal of a Baloch rights camp in the federal capital near the club’s premises. Baloch protesters are currently demonstrating in a sit-in organised in front of the NPC by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) against enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. The BYC camp has been established since December 22 and continues to attract more participants despite harsh weather and pressure from law enforcement agencies. Organisers of the Islamabad sit-in have accused the police of harassing their supporters and profiling them as well as registering first information reports against them. The NPC sent a letter today to the Kohsar police station house officer requesting that a plan be drawn up to relocate the protesters to a different location so “the difficulties for the press club and all residents and the business community can be reduced”. The letter explained that the press club’...