Punjab will introduce stricter laws to curb rape case

Punjab will introduce stricter laws and declare an ‘emergency’ to curb the rising trend of rape cases.

Punjab Home Minister Ataullah Tarar and Law Minister Malik Muhammad Ahmed Khan told a joint press conference here on Sunday that a cabinet committee on law and order met under the chair of Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz Sharif the other day and expressed its concern over the increase in rape cases for the last over three years.

The body decided to introduce a set of legislations to make stricter punishments for rape and set up a dedicated helpline for the victims, they said. An emergency would be declared on rape cases to proceed against the accused on a war footing as a cabinet committee would begin functioning on Monday (today) to overlook all these measures, they said, adding the role of the Punjab Forensic Science Agency would be improved for sampling of DNA on a fast track basis and a meeting with the lab authorities was scheduled later in the evening.

They said the civil society, teachers, lawyers and other segments of society and agencies working for women and children in the province would be consulted on all the issues and the process would be completed within a fortnight. They said the family and society would have to play their respective roles in protecting the children from sexual abuse.

They urged the parents never to leave their children alone as in most cases close relatives and neighbours were found involved in abusing the children. They said a special awareness campaign would be run, while students would also be sensitised in schools about sexual harassment.

Tarar alleged that the law and order situation in the province worsened under the PTI as police officers were posted after accepting bribe worth tens of millions of rupees. He said a list of the officers posted on the recommendation of Farah Gujjar, a friend of Bushra Bibi, had been prepared and they would be replaced with ‘upright’ officers on merit.

He hailed the Punjab inspector-general of police, saying he was a dutiful officer and a good policy-maker.

Responding to a query, he regretted that taking drugs had become a fashion in elite schools and colleges and that’s also contributing to the rise in the crime graph.

Law minister Ahmad Khan told a questioner that Speaker Parvez Elahi was continuing to hold an ‘unconstitutional’ Punjab Assembly session, while the one being conducted on the summoning of the governor was a constitutional one.

About grant of PML-N tickets to the PTI disgruntled leaders in the July 17 by-polls for 20 Punjab Assembly seats, he said only those had been awarded the PML-N ticket who had been de-seated by the Election Commission for voting against party lines in the election for the office of the chief minister on April 16.

He said the government was trying to hold the by-polls in a peaceful manner and would disallow the use of arms by any party.

In the wake of an armed attack on Nazeer Chohan, the PML-N candidate for a Lahore seat, he said private guards would be provided to the candidates in all the constituencies where the by-polls were being conducted, so that none could say that by providing police guards the government was showing its support for specific candidates.

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Punjab will introduce stricter laws to curb rape case

Punjab will introduce stricter laws and declare an ‘emergency’ to curb the rising trend of rape cases.

Punjab Home Minister Ataullah Tarar and Law Minister Malik Muhammad Ahmed Khan told a joint press conference here on Sunday that a cabinet committee on law and order met under the chair of Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz Sharif the other day and expressed its concern over the increase in rape cases for the last over three years.

The body decided to introduce a set of legislations to make stricter punishments for rape and set up a dedicated helpline for the victims, they said. An emergency would be declared on rape cases to proceed against the accused on a war footing as a cabinet committee would begin functioning on Monday (today) to overlook all these measures, they said, adding the role of the Punjab Forensic Science Agency would be improved for sampling of DNA on a fast track basis and a meeting with the lab authorities was scheduled later in the evening.

They said the civil society, teachers, lawyers and other segments of society and agencies working for women and children in the province would be consulted on all the issues and the process would be completed within a fortnight. They said the family and society would have to play their respective roles in protecting the children from sexual abuse.

They urged the parents never to leave their children alone as in most cases close relatives and neighbours were found involved in abusing the children. They said a special awareness campaign would be run, while students would also be sensitised in schools about sexual harassment.

Tarar alleged that the law and order situation in the province worsened under the PTI as police officers were posted after accepting bribe worth tens of millions of rupees. He said a list of the officers posted on the recommendation of Farah Gujjar, a friend of Bushra Bibi, had been prepared and they would be replaced with ‘upright’ officers on merit.

He hailed the Punjab inspector-general of police, saying he was a dutiful officer and a good policy-maker.

Responding to a query, he regretted that taking drugs had become a fashion in elite schools and colleges and that’s also contributing to the rise in the crime graph.

Law minister Ahmad Khan told a questioner that Speaker Parvez Elahi was continuing to hold an ‘unconstitutional’ Punjab Assembly session, while the one being conducted on the summoning of the governor was a constitutional one.

About grant of PML-N tickets to the PTI disgruntled leaders in the July 17 by-polls for 20 Punjab Assembly seats, he said only those had been awarded the PML-N ticket who had been de-seated by the Election Commission for voting against party lines in the election for the office of the chief minister on April 16.

He said the government was trying to hold the by-polls in a peaceful manner and would disallow the use of arms by any party.

In the wake of an armed attack on Nazeer Chohan, the PML-N candidate for a Lahore seat, he said private guards would be provided to the candidates in all the constituencies where the by-polls were being conducted, so that none could say that by providing police guards the government was showing its support for specific candidates.

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United States agreed to help Pakistan negotiate with IMF

The United States has agreed to help Pakistan negotiate a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Earlier, media reports had claimed that Islamabad was “seeking Washington’s support” for renewing its Extended Fund Facility (EFF) with the IMF.

As the largest shareholder, the US has considerable influence over the IMF’s decision-making.

Pakistan signed a 39-month, $6bn EFF in July 2019, but the Fund stopped the disbursement of about $3bn when the previous government reneged on its commitments.

Currently, Islamabad wants the IMF to not only resume disbursements, but to also expand the size and duration of the programme.

On Saturday, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States Masood Khan met Assistant US Trade Representative (USTR) for South and Central Asia Christopher Wilson to discuss expanding trade relations between the two countries and encouraging US investments in Pakistan, a statement said.

The office of the USTR is responsible for developing and coordinating US international trade, commodity, and for directing investment policy. It also oversees trade negotiations with other countries.

On Saturday, Ambassador Khan also met a delegation of the Wabtec company, which is the world’s leading rail company.

A statement issued after the meeting said that the Wabtec showed “keen interest in furthering its existing partnership with Pakistan and in assisting the Pakistan Railways in meeting its locomotive requirements.”

Wabtec is a global provider of equipment, systems, digital solutions, and value-added services for the freight and transit rail sectors.

“While we greatly appreciate the existing level of cooperation between Wabtec and Pakistan Railways, particularly in engineering and rail services, we look forward to benefiting from the company’s expertise in the modernisation of railway networks and indigenisation of locomotive manufacturing in Pakistan,” Ambassador Khan said.

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United States agreed to help Pakistan negotiate with IMF

The United States has agreed to help Pakistan negotiate a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Earlier, media reports had claimed that Islamabad was “seeking Washington’s support” for renewing its Extended Fund Facility (EFF) with the IMF.

As the largest shareholder, the US has considerable influence over the IMF’s decision-making.

Pakistan signed a 39-month, $6bn EFF in July 2019, but the Fund stopped the disbursement of about $3bn when the previous government reneged on its commitments.

Currently, Islamabad wants the IMF to not only resume disbursements, but to also expand the size and duration of the programme.

On Saturday, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States Masood Khan met Assistant US Trade Representative (USTR) for South and Central Asia Christopher Wilson to discuss expanding trade relations between the two countries and encouraging US investments in Pakistan, a statement said.

The office of the USTR is responsible for developing and coordinating US international trade, commodity, and for directing investment policy. It also oversees trade negotiations with other countries.

On Saturday, Ambassador Khan also met a delegation of the Wabtec company, which is the world’s leading rail company.

A statement issued after the meeting said that the Wabtec showed “keen interest in furthering its existing partnership with Pakistan and in assisting the Pakistan Railways in meeting its locomotive requirements.”

Wabtec is a global provider of equipment, systems, digital solutions, and value-added services for the freight and transit rail sectors.

“While we greatly appreciate the existing level of cooperation between Wabtec and Pakistan Railways, particularly in engineering and rail services, we look forward to benefiting from the company’s expertise in the modernisation of railway networks and indigenisation of locomotive manufacturing in Pakistan,” Ambassador Khan said.

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Six BLF terrorists killed in Balochistan IBO: ISPR

Security forces on Sunday killed six terrorists belonging to Baloch Liberation Front (BLF) during a search operation in Paroom area in district Panjgur of Balochistan, the military's public affairs wing said in a statement.

According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the forces conducted an operation on a tip-off regarding the presence of terrorists in Zamran Range near Paroom.

"Once the troops started a clearance operation in the area, terrorists tried to escape from their hideout and opened fire on security forces," the statement said.

The BLF terrorists were killed during an exchange of fire, it added.

The ISPR said the slain terrorists were involved in attacks on check-posts of security forces as well as improvised explosives device attacks on security convoys in Paroom and surrounding areas of Panjgur.

The forces also recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunition which, according to the ISPR, were to be used by terrorists for disrupting peace in the area.

"Security forces, in step with the nation, remain determined to thwart attempts at sabotaging peace, stability, and progress of Balochistan," the military statement said.

On June 7, security forces had killed four terrorists during operations in North Waziristan tribal district and Balochistan’s Noshki district.

Two terrorists were killed during an exchange of fire with the security forces in the Hassankhel area of Mirali tehsil in North Waziristan, while the other two were gunned down during an operation in the Parodh area of Noshki .

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After Sindh and Punjab, Islamabad also opts for 9pm business hours

Following in the footsteps of Sindh and Punjab, Islamabad has also decided to limit the operational hours of markets, shopping malls, wedding halls and restaurants in an effort to tackle the current energy crisis.

Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Nawaz Memon shared the notification on Twitter early on Sunday.

The order stated that all shops, shopping malls, bakeries and confectionaries, offices, storerooms, godowns, warehouses and cattle markets would close at 9pm. Further, the timings of marriage halls, marquees and exhibition halls would be limited to 10:00pm.

Islamabad Administration has implemented closure of business timing regime with in revenue limits of Islamabad. All stake holders are requested to note?? pic.twitter.com/eey9vx20Sl

— Office of Deputy Commissioner Islamabad (@dcislamabad) June 18, 2022

All establishments (commercial or industrial), restaurants, clubs, tandoors, eateries, cafes, cinemas, theatres or other places of public amusement and public parks would close at 11:30pm, it added.

However, hospitals and laboratories, clinics, pharmacies and medical stores, petrol pumps, milk shops and other essential businesses were exempt from following the timings.

The notification, which also detailed the reasons for the move, stated that the order would come into force "with immediate effect" and would remain in place for two months.

The DC noted that the electricity demand had increased as a result of the current hot weather the country was experiencing which was subjecting critical infrastructure to extended loadshedding.

The notification stated that it was "necessary to enforce certain restrictions on non-essential businesses so that this prevalent emergency of the energy shortfall may be controlled in Islamabad Capital Territory".

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After Sindh and Punjab, Islamabad also opts for 9pm business hours

Following in the footsteps of Sindh and Punjab, Islamabad has also decided to limit the operational hours of markets, shopping malls, wedding halls and restaurants in an effort to tackle the current energy crisis.

Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Nawaz Memon shared the notification on Twitter early on Sunday.

The order stated that all shops, shopping malls, bakeries and confectionaries, offices, storerooms, godowns, warehouses and cattle markets would close at 9pm. Further, the timings of marriage halls, marquees and exhibition halls would be limited to 10:00pm.

Islamabad Administration has implemented closure of business timing regime with in revenue limits of Islamabad. All stake holders are requested to note?? pic.twitter.com/eey9vx20Sl

— Office of Deputy Commissioner Islamabad (@dcislamabad) June 18, 2022

All establishments (commercial or industrial), restaurants, clubs, tandoors, eateries, cafes, cinemas, theatres or other places of public amusement and public parks would close at 11:30pm, it added.

However, hospitals and laboratories, clinics, pharmacies and medical stores, petrol pumps, milk shops and other essential businesses were exempt from following the timings.

The notification, which also detailed the reasons for the move, stated that the order would come into force "with immediate effect" and would remain in place for two months.

The DC noted that the electricity demand had increased as a result of the current hot weather the country was experiencing which was subjecting critical infrastructure to extended loadshedding.

The notification stated that it was "necessary to enforce certain restrictions on non-essential businesses so that this prevalent emergency of the energy shortfall may be controlled in Islamabad Capital Territory".

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