Shehbaz Sharif's wife Nusrat indicted in money laundering case

An accountability court in Lahore on Friday indicted Nusrat Shehbaz, the wife of Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif, in a money laundering reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

In December last year, Nusrat was declared absconder by the accountability court for her persistent non-appearance in the money laundering reference.

During Friday's hearing in the court of accountability judge Naseem Virk, Nusrat was indicted through a pleader as she is currently in London. NAB prosecutor Usman Rashid Cheema was also present on the occasion.

The court also accepted Shehbaz's plea for exemption from appearance in the case. His lawyer, Chaudhry Nawaz, informed the court that his client was unable to appear in person due to ill health. The court subsequently approved his request.

Shehbaz suspended all political activities a day ago as he was advised "complete rest" by doctors after he had slipped on a staircase on Wednesday.

Money laundering case

In August 2020, the NAB had filed before an accountability court a Rs8 billion reference of money laundering against Shehbaz, his wife, his two sons and other family members.

The reference accused Shehbaz of being a beneficiary of assets held in the name of his family members and "benamidars" (ostensible owner), who had no sources to acquire such assets.

It said the family members and "benamidars" of the Shehbaz family received fake foreign remittances of billions in their personal bank accounts. In addition to these remittances, the bureau said billions of rupees were laundered by way of foreign pay orders which were deposited in the personal bank accounts of Hamza and Suleman.

The reference further said that Shehbaz's family had failed to justify the sources of funds used for the acquisition of assets.

It said the suspects committed offences of corruption and corrupt practices as envisaged under the provisions of National Accountability Ordinance 1999 and money laundering as delineated in the Anti-Money Laundering Act 2010. It asked the accountability court to try the suspects and punish them under the law.

With the continuation of case proceedings, the accountability court had in December also issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Nusrat before declaring her absconder for not appearing before the court. In reply, the respondent had challenged the warrants through PML-N deputy secretary-general Attaullah Tarar as a special attorney on Jan 19, 2021 in the Lahore High Court.

The petitioner had pleaded that she was an old and infirm woman of over 66 years of age and was a known chronic patient of a number of serious ailments, including cardiac issues. She had to go abroad in early 2019 for health reasons and since then she was stuck there for medical treatment.

A day later, the LHC had restrained the NAB from taking coercive measures against Nusrat.

In March, the LHC bench headed by Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar had set aside an order of the accountability court wherein Nusrat had been declared an absconder.

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Sirbaz Khan becomes first Pakistani to scale 9 of world's 14 highest peaks

Mountaineer Sirbaz Khan became the first Pakistani on Friday to climb nine of the world's highest 14 peaks — each of which has a height of more than 8,000 metres — after he scaled the 8,167-metre-high Dhaulagiri mountain in Nepal, said Alpine Club of Pakistan Secretary Karrar Haidri.

Sirbaz was part of the 19-member 'SST-Dhaulagiri I Expd. 2021 Autumn' expedition organised by trekking company Seven Summits Trek.

According to Seven Summit Trek officials, the climbers summited the world's seventh highest peak on Friday morning, with Sirbaz raising Pakistan's national flag upon reaching the mountain's top.

In his recent communication with Dawn from Dhaulagiri on Thursday, Sirbaz had said he was determined to summit the peak on Friday morning.

Dhaulagiri, which forms part of the Himalayas mountain range, is widely known as one of the hardest peaks to climb due to its steep sides and bitterly cold climate.

As Sirbaz achieved the feat, congratulations poured in for him.

Sajid Ali Sadpara, the son of legendary mountaineer late Mohammad Ali Sadpara and a climber himself, tweeted: "Lots of congratulations to Sirbaz Khan to climb Dhaulagiri . After climbing Daulaghiri he is first Pakistani to summit nine 8000 mountains."

Sirbaz, 32, hails from the Aliabad area of Hunza in Gilgit-Baltistan and began his climbing career in 2016.

In 2019, he became the first Pakistani to summit Mount Lhotse, the world’s fourth-highest mountain at 8,516m in Nepal, without the use of supplementary oxygen.

Moreover, he summited the 8,125-metre-high Nanga Parbat in 2017, 8,611-metre-high K-2 in 2018 and Broad Peak, which has a height of 8,163 metres in 2019. Earlier this year, he climbed the 8,091-metre-high Anapurna mountain, 8,848-metre-high Everest and 8,035-metre-high Gasherbrum II.

On four of these expeditions, he had been accompanied by late Muhammad Ali Sadpara.

Sirbaz is aiming to become the first Pakistani to climb all 14 of the world's highest peaks.

Before setting on the mission to summit Dhaulagiri earlier this month, he had said: "I am looking forward to his expedition and reaching closer to the dream of my mentor Ali Sadpara, who had the similar dream of scaling the 14 highest peaks, but tragically lost his life earlier this year during a winter expedition on K-2.”

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Govt in talks with TTP groups for reconciliation process: PM Imran

Prime Minister Imran Khan has said the government is in talks with some groups of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), seeking a reconciliation.

"There are different groups which form the TTP and some of them want to talk to our government for peace. So, we are in talks with them. It’s a reconciliation process," he said during an interview with the TRT World.

When asked if the government was asking them to lay down arms, the PM responded: "Yes, we forgive them and they become normal citizens".

The interviewer then asked why the TTP was conducting attacks on Pakistan's security forces when they were in talks with the government. To this, the premier said it was just a "spate of attacks".

"We might not reach some sort of conclusion or settlement in the end but we are talking," he added.

Responding to another query on whether the Afghan Taliban were acting as mediators between the TTP and Pakistan, the premier said: "Since the talks were taking place in Afghanistan, so in that sense, yes."

PM Imran reiterated he didn’t believe in military solutions. “I am anti-military solution, and as a politician, I believe political dialogue is the way ahead.”

He said dialogue was the only way out in the case of Afghanistan also.

Earlier in September, President Arif Alvi had suggested that the Pakistani government could consider giving an amnesty to those members of the TTP who had not remained involved in "criminal activities" and who laid down their weapons and agreed to adhere to the Pakistani Constitution.

Such an amnesty could be one of the ways to "establish peace", the president had said.

His remarks were followed by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi expressing similar sentiments in an interview on Sept 15. He said the government would be "open to giving" a pardon to members of the TTP if they promised not to get involved in terrorist activities and submit to the Pakistani Constitution.

"But as long as they do not come and start undertaking terrorist activities [in Pakistan]. That is our concern," the minister had emphasised.

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Shehbaz Sharif's wife Nusrat indicted in money laundering case

An accountability court in Lahore on Friday indicted Nusrat Shehbaz, the wife of Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif, in a money laundering reference filed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

In December last year, Nusrat was declared absconder by the accountability court for her persistent non-appearance in the money laundering reference.

During Friday's hearing in the court of accountability judge Naseem Virk, Nusrat was indicted through a pleader as she is currently in London. NAB prosecutor Usman Rashid Cheema was also present on the occasion.

The court also accepted Shehbaz's plea for exemption from appearance in the case. His lawyer, Chaudhry Nawaz, informed the court that his client was unable to appear in person due to ill health. The court subsequently approved his request.

Shehbaz suspended all political activities a day ago as he was advised "complete rest" by doctors after he had slipped on a staircase on Wednesday.

Money laundering case

In August 2020, the NAB had filed before an accountability court a Rs8 billion reference of money laundering against Shehbaz, his wife, his two sons and other family members.

The reference accused Shehbaz of being a beneficiary of assets held in the name of his family members and "benamidars" (ostensible owner), who had no sources to acquire such assets.

It said the family members and "benamidars" of the Shehbaz family received fake foreign remittances of billions in their personal bank accounts. In addition to these remittances, the bureau said billions of rupees were laundered by way of foreign pay orders which were deposited in the personal bank accounts of Hamza and Suleman.

The reference further said that Shehbaz's family had failed to justify the sources of funds used for the acquisition of assets.

It said the suspects committed offences of corruption and corrupt practices as envisaged under the provisions of National Accountability Ordinance 1999 and money laundering as delineated in the Anti-Money Laundering Act 2010. It asked the accountability court to try the suspects and punish them under the law.

With the continuation of case proceedings, the accountability court had in December also issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Nusrat before declaring her absconder for not appearing before the court. In reply, the respondent had challenged the warrants through PML-N deputy secretary-general Attaullah Tarar as a special attorney on Jan 19, 2021 in the Lahore High Court.

The petitioner had pleaded that she was an old and infirm woman of over 66 years of age and was a known chronic patient of a number of serious ailments, including cardiac issues. She had to go abroad in early 2019 for health reasons and since then she was stuck there for medical treatment.

A day later, the LHC had restrained the NAB from taking coercive measures against Nusrat.

In March, the LHC bench headed by Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar had set aside an order of the accountability court wherein Nusrat had been declared an absconder.

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Sirbaz Khan becomes first Pakistani to scale 9 of world's 14 highest peaks

Mountaineer Sirbaz Khan became the first Pakistani on Friday to climb nine of the world's highest 14 peaks — each of which has a height of more than 8,000 metres — after he scaled the 8,167-metre-high Dhaulagiri mountain in Nepal, said Alpine Club of Pakistan Secretary Karrar Haidri.

Sirbaz was part of the 19-member 'SST-Dhaulagiri I Expd. 2021 Autumn' expedition organised by trekking company Seven Summits Trek.

According to Seven Summit Trek officials, the climbers summited the world's seventh highest peak on Friday morning, with Sirbaz raising Pakistan's national flag upon reaching the mountain's top.

In his recent communication with Dawn from Dhaulagiri on Thursday, Sirbaz had said he was determined to summit the peak on Friday morning.

Dhaulagiri, which forms part of the Himalayas mountain range, is widely known as one of the hardest peaks to climb due to its steep sides and bitterly cold climate.

As Sirbaz achieved the feat, congratulations poured in for him.

Sajid Ali Sadpara, the son of legendary mountaineer late Mohammad Ali Sadpara and a climber himself, tweeted: "Lots of congratulations to Sirbaz Khan to climb Dhaulagiri . After climbing Daulaghiri he is first Pakistani to summit nine 8000 mountains."

Sirbaz, 32, hails from the Aliabad area of Hunza in Gilgit-Baltistan and began his climbing career in 2016.

In 2019, he became the first Pakistani to summit Mount Lhotse, the world’s fourth-highest mountain at 8,516m in Nepal, without the use of supplementary oxygen.

Moreover, he summited the 8,125-metre-high Nanga Parbat in 2017, 8,611-metre-high K-2 in 2018 and Broad Peak, which has a height of 8,163 metres in 2019. Earlier this year, he climbed the 8,091-metre-high Anapurna mountain, 8,848-metre-high Everest and 8,035-metre-high Gasherbrum II.

On four of these expeditions, he had been accompanied by late Muhammad Ali Sadpara.

Sirbaz is aiming to become the first Pakistani to climb all 14 of the world's highest peaks.

Before setting on the mission to summit Dhaulagiri earlier this month, he had said: "I am looking forward to his expedition and reaching closer to the dream of my mentor Ali Sadpara, who had the similar dream of scaling the 14 highest peaks, but tragically lost his life earlier this year during a winter expedition on K-2.”

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Govt in talks with TTP groups for reconciliation process: PM Imran

Prime Minister Imran Khan has said the government is in talks with some groups of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), seeking a reconciliation.

"There are different groups which form the TTP and some of them want to talk to our government for peace. So, we are in talks with them. It’s a reconciliation process," he said during an interview with the TRT World.

When asked if the government was asking them to lay down arms, the PM responded: "Yes, we forgive them and they become normal citizens".

The interviewer then asked why the TTP was conducting attacks on Pakistan's security forces when they were in talks with the government. To this, the premier said it was just a "spate of attacks".

"We might not reach some sort of conclusion or settlement in the end but we are talking," he added.

Responding to another query on whether the Afghan Taliban were acting as mediators between the TTP and Pakistan, the premier said: "Since the talks were taking place in Afghanistan, so in that sense, yes."

PM Imran reiterated he didn’t believe in military solutions. “I am anti-military solution, and as a politician, I believe political dialogue is the way ahead.”

He said dialogue was the only way out in the case of Afghanistan also.

Earlier in September, President Arif Alvi had suggested that the Pakistani government could consider giving an amnesty to those members of the TTP who had not remained involved in "criminal activities" and who laid down their weapons and agreed to adhere to the Pakistani Constitution.

Such an amnesty could be one of the ways to "establish peace", the president had said.

His remarks were followed by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi expressing similar sentiments in an interview on Sept 15. He said the government would be "open to giving" a pardon to members of the TTP if they promised not to get involved in terrorist activities and submit to the Pakistani Constitution.

"But as long as they do not come and start undertaking terrorist activities [in Pakistan]. That is our concern," the minister had emphasised.

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Price of LPG cylinders increased by Rs343.4 per 11.8kg cylinder

The price of an LPG cylinder for domestic use has increased by a whopping Rs343, Geo News reported Friday. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) issued a notification in which the price of an 11.8kg LPG cylinder for domestic use has been set at Rs2,403.55.

The new prices came into effect today, October 1. The notification disclosed that the price of an LPG cylinder has increased by Rs29.11 per kg, which means that the new price of an LPG cylinder for domestic use is Rs203.69.

Since LPG is considered the “poor man’s fuel” and is also used in majority of the areas where gas is not available, it might hit the household budgets of a large part of the population. The price of LPG has been on the rise for the last several months.

Propane and butane are two major components of LPG, which Middle Eastern oil producers sell to Asian countries.

The price of a commercial cylinder weighing 45.4kg also increased by Rs1,321/cylinder and will be sold for Rs9,247. According to a notification, the LPG price has increased by Rs29.1/kg to Rs203.7/kg from the September price of Rs174.6/kg

Ogra also announced an increase in the prices of petroleum products, which also came into effect today.

The petrol price has been jacked up "due to increase in the petroleum prices in the international market", said a Finance division notification.

"Ogra has worked out the higher petroleum prices but the prime minister has decided against the recommendation and passed the minimum increase in prices on to the consumers," it said.

The government has absorbed the higher international pressure of prices through a reduction in the petroleum levy and sales tax, it added. "Petroleum prices in Pakistan are the cheapest in the region," the notification claimed.

Meanwhile, kerosene costs Rs7.05 more and is priced at Rs99.31 per liter, while light diesel oil became Rs8.82 dearer to cost Rs99.51 per liter. The price of LPG has been increased by a whopping 16.67% to Rs2,403.5 per cylinder for October.

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