Category: 1. Pakistan

ISLAMABAD:

After a break of almost seven months, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi has summoned a meeting of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) on July 12.

The SJC is a constitutional body empowered to proceed against judges of the superior courts on charges of misconduct.

Currently, CJP Afridi serves as its chairman. Other members include Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Lahore High Court Chief Justice Alia Neelum and Sindh High Court Chief Justice Junaid Ghaffar.

The council is presently examining various complaints of misconduct against superior court judges.

During its previous meeting in December last year, the Council discussed proposed amendments to the Code of Conduct for Judges under Article 209(8) of the Constitution, as well as revisions to the Supreme Judicial Council Procedure of Enquiry, 2005.

A committee headed by Justice Munib Akhtar was constituted to prepare the proposed amendments to both the Code of Conduct and the enquiry procedure.

It is expected that the committee will present its proposals at the upcoming meeting.

Last year, six Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges had sought guidance from the SJC regarding interference by executive agencies in judicial functions.

However, instead of taking up the matter within the SJC, then Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa initiated suo motu proceedings on the issue.

PESHAWAR:

The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government has removed top officials of Rescue department and Upper Swat Development Authority following the recent drowning of tourists in the Swat River, said officials on Tuesday.

The provincial inspection team submitted a report blaming the Swat Development Authority for administrative delays, reported Express News.

The report also raised concerns over the DG Rescue’s lack of technical expertise in handling such emergencies.

The incident, in which several tourists drowned due to a delayed rescue operation, had already led the provincial government to suspend six officers earlier.

As part of the latest action, K-P Rescue DG’s services have been handed over to the Peshawar Development Authority (PDA), while the Swat Development Authority DG has been removed from his seat and assigned a non-operational role, effectively removing him from active administrative duties.

Commissioner’s findings

The decisions follow a detailed report submitted by the Malakand commissioner to an inquiry committee investigating the mishandling of the rescue operation.

The Swat tragedy has sparked criticism over lack of emergency preparedness in the region, especially during peak tourist seasons.

The provincial government’s disciplinary action underscores growing concerns over tourism safety and crisis response mechanisms in the area.

According to official reports, 17 tourists — 10 from Sialkot, six from Mardan, and one resident — were caught in floodwaters after entering the river in Khwazakhela despite visible risks.

Four tourists were rescued, while 12 bodies were recovered. Rescue efforts for one missing person are ongoing.

The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) described the flood level as “very high”. The sudden surge raised the Swat River’s flow from 6,738 to 77,782 cusecs within hours, leaving little chance for those trapped to return to safety.

An investigation revealed that nearby construction along the river had altered its natural flow, causing deceptively low water levels at the site.

This misled the tourists and they entered the river. A hotel security guard reportedly tried to stop them, but they bypassed the main entrance and accessed the river through the back. Within 14 minutes of entering, rising water levels prompted a distress call at 9.45am.

Rescue teams arrived at 10.05am — 20 minutes after the call. Before the incident, early flood alerts had been issued by the irrigation department at 8.41am.

Formal warnings were sent to the deputy commissioners of Swat, Charsadda and Nowshera, as well as PDMA and other relevant authorities. A formal flood alert followed at 10.30am.

The report noted that Section 144, prohibiting swimming and boating in the Swat River, had been imposed from 24 June, but enforcement remained lax

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding chairman Imran Khan intends to lead a protest movement from jail against the 26th Constitutional Amendment, while his sons Sulaiman and Qasim will join the campaign after returning from the United States, his sister Aleema Khan said on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters outside Adiala Jail, Aleema conveyed the jailed former prime minister’s message to supporters, claiming he remained resolute despite solitary confinement and harsh prison conditions.

“He [Imran Khan] said he is free inside jail, while those outside are imprisoned,” she said, adding, “People must come out for themselves, for democracy, for the rule of law, and against the 26th Amendment. Anyone who cannot bear the weight of this movement should step aside now.”

Imran, she said, had asked that the protest movement should reach its peak on August 5 — the date that will mark two years since his imprisonment.

“After the 26th Amendment, all public rights have been effectively taken away,” she added, noting that their entire family would participate in the campaign while former prime minister sons will join the campaign after returning from the United States.

“Imran Khan’s sons, Qasim and Sulaiman, will first go to the United States to raise awareness about the injustices faced by their father, and then they will take part in the movement being launched in Pakistan. Imran Khan has been informed of this,” he said.

Read More: Imran, Bushra seek expedited hearing to suspend convictions in £190m case

Aleema, accompanied by her sisters Noreen and Uzma, said she had been denied access to her brother, although other family members were eventually allowed to meet him. She expressed concern over his treatment in custody, describing it as unprecedented.

“What is being done to him is unlike the treatment of any other prisoner. He has been denied access to television, newspapers, and reading material for a week. His books are lying in the deputy superintendent’s room,” she said.

She added that PTI founder has been held in solitary confinement and has not been allowed to see his doctor for the past ten months. “They think they can break him. But they cannot,” she said, adding that she herself had also been barred from meeting him.

Earlier in the day, dozens of PTI supporters gathered at the Gorakhpur checkpoint as Khan’s sisters attempted to walk toward the prison. Police contingents were deployed, and party workers raised slogans. PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja was also present at the scene.

While Aleema was stopped near a local hotel and not allowed to proceed, other family members were eventually granted access. Former First Lady Bushra Bibi was also allowed to meet her sister-in-law Mehrunnisa.

Also Read: K-P govt dismisses senior officials after Swat river incident

Separately, PTI focal person Niazullah Niazi Advocate and MNA Munawra Baloch were stopped by police at the Dahgal checkpoint. Senator Faisal Javed and Advocate Zahoor Abbas Chaudhry were also denied entry at Gorakhpur.

However, according to party sources, Barrister Gohar, Salman Safdar, and Zahoor Abbas Chaudhry were later allowed to meet the former premier.

Speaking to reporters before the jail meeting, Safdar said the visit was as significant as any earlier one. When asked why the legal team had not been able to secure relief despite over 700 days of Imran’s detention, he said, “We are fighting the cases in courts and doing our best.”

KARACHI: Pakistan has prequalified four investors for the sale of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), while its Cabinet Committee on Privatization (CCOP) has approved the transaction structure for the denationalization of the Roosevelt Hotel in New York under a joint venture, the ministry of privatization said on Tuesday.

Pakistan has been seeking to sell a 51-100 percent stake in the struggling national airline to raise funds and reform cash-draining, state-owned enterprises as envisaged under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund program. It would be the country’s first major privatization in nearly two decades.

Among the bidding groups, one is a consortium of major industrial firms Lucky Cement, Hub Power Holdings, Kohat Cement and Metro Ventures. Another is led by investment firm Arif Habib Corp. and includes fertilizer producer Fatima Fertilizer, private education operator The City School, and real estate firm Lake City Holdings. Additionally, Fauji Fertilizer Company, a military-backed conglomerate, and Pakistani airline Airblue, have been approved to bid for PIA.

“The prequalified parties will now proceed to the buy-side due diligence phase — a critical next step in the transparent and competitive privatization process of PIACL,” the privatization commission’s statement said.

PIA, once a respected carrier in Asia, has been propped up by taxpayers for decades due to political interference, corruption and inefficiencies. The airline’s privatization has repeatedly collapsed amid union resistance, legal hurdles and low investor appetite.

Pakistani state-owned enterprises post annual losses of more than Rs800 billion ($2.87 billion), and when subsidies, grants and other support are included, the burden swells beyond Rs1 trillion ($3.59 billion), Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb told parliament while presenting the budget for fiscal year 2025–26 earlier this month.

PIA has been one of the government’s most costly liabilities, which has accumulated over $2.5 billion in losses in roughly a decade and been surviving on repeated bailouts that have weighed heavily on Pakistan’s strained budget.

Last month, five consortiums submitted expressions of interest for a 51–100 percent stake in PIA after the government restructured its balance sheet to make the deal more attractive. It also scrapped the sales tax on leased aircraft and is providing limited protection from legal and tax claims. Around 80 percent of the airline’s debt has been transferred to the state.

ROOSEVELT HOTEL

Separately, the CCOP approved the transaction structure for Roosevelt Hotel under a “Joint Venture model with multiple options.”

“This option is aimed at maximizing long-term value for the country, while ensuring flexibility, multiple exit opportunities, and minimizing future fiscal exposure,” the privatization commission said.

How much money the hotel ultimately brings in, and its overall valuation, depends on the type of transaction structure adopted, Privatization Commission Chairman Muhammad Ali told Arab News in an interview last month. If the government formed a joint venture with a private investor, sharing both the risks and future profits, the hotel could be worth four to five times more than its as-is valuation, he said at the time.

“So, depending on what sort of structure you have, how much risk you take, how much effort the government puts in, we can make a lot of money from this asset,” the privatization chief had said.

The Roosevelt, a 1,015-room historic hotel in Midtown Manhattan, has long been one of Pakistan’s most prominent but politically sensitive overseas assets. Acquired by Pakistan International Airlines Investment Limited (PIAIL) in 1979, the hotel occupies a full city block on Madison Avenue and 45th Street. Over the past two decades, successive Pakistani governments have floated plans to sell, lease, or redevelop the property, but no proposal has advanced beyond early-stage planning.

Operations at the Roosevelt were suspended in 2020 following steep financial losses during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, Pakistan entered a short-term lease with the City of New York to use the property as a temporary shelter for asylum seekers, generating more than $220 million in projected rental income. That agreement ended in 2024 and no new revenue stream has since been announced.

The Roosevelt Hotel is one of several state assets the government hopes will contribute to its target of raising Rs86 billion ($306 million) in privatization proceeds during the fiscal year starting July 1, alongside the sale of PIA and three electricity distribution companies.

ISLAMABAD:

The Chief of Staff of China’s People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF), Lt General Wang Gang, praised the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) leadership for its professional acumen and strategic foresight while paying tribute to the exemplary performance of the PAF during the recent conflict with India.

A high-level defence delegation, led by Lt General Gang, visited Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu at Air Headquarters in Islamabad on Tuesday, the military’s media wing reported.

According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), matters of mutual interest, regional security dynamics, and avenues for enhanced bilateral cooperation, particularly in airpower and operational synergy, were discussed during the meeting.

Also Read: Chinese envoy praises PAF for ‘commendable utilisation of Chinese-origin equipment’

Lt General Gang praised PAF pilots for delivering a decisive and measured response under the resolute leadership of Air Chief Marshal Sidhu, describing it as a textbook example of precision, discipline, and courage in the face of unprovoked aggression, the ISPR said.

“He expressed deep appreciation for the high state of operational readiness and the cutting-edge capabilities of the Pakistan Air Force,” it added.

The Chinese air chief was particularly impressed by the PAF’s seamless integration of Multi-Domain Operations, calling it a hallmark of modern air warfare. He conveyed the PLAAF’s keen interest in learning from the PAF’s battle-proven experience in Multi-Domain Operations, the statement read.

On the occasion, Air Chief Marshal Sidhu warmly welcomed the distinguished guests and reiterated that Pakistan and China enjoy historic, time-tested ties rooted in mutual trust, strategic convergence, and shared aspirations for regional peace and stability, it added.

Read More: South African Air Force chief visits Pakistan

According to the ISPR, Lt General Gang was given a comprehensive briefing on the PAF’s modern force structure, strategic initiatives, and the evolution of its operational doctrine.

Air Chief Marshal Sidhu also reaffirmed the strong bond of friendship between the two air forces and reiterated the PAF’s commitment to expanding cooperation in training, technology, and operational domains.

“The meeting stands as a testament to the shared resolve of Pakistan and China to advance their time-tested strategic partnership through deepened cooperation and innovation-driven collaboration,” the statement concluded.

KARACHI: Actor Humaira Asghar Ali was found dead in a flat in Defence Phase 6’s Ittehad Commercial area on Tuesday, according to police.

Law enforcement personnel said they had arrived at the premises around 3:15pm to vacate the flat on court orders. When no one answered, the police broke open the door and discovered the actor’s body lying on the floor.

Police officials said the actor had been living alone in the flat for the past seven years. 

Forensic evidence was collected from the scene, and the body was shifted to the hospital for post-mortem examination.

The flat’s owner had filed a case over unpaid rent, officials added. The body was discovered when a court-appointed bailiff arrived to execute the eviction order.

Police said the cause of death will be determined after the post-mortem. However, authorities revealed that the actor’s body is likely “15 to 20 days old”.

Police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed said that the body brought to the hospital was “decomposed.

One of the actor’s neighbours told Geo News the flat owner had said that Humaira had been delaying rent payments. The neighbour also confirmed that police broke open the door of her flat earlier today and discovered her body inside.

The neighbour further shared that Humaira did not interact much with other residents of the building and noted that she did not own a car.

Ali famously appeared on a reality show, “Tamasha Ghar”, and in a film named “Jalaibee”.

The actor-cum-model’s death comes less than three weeks after renowned actress Ayesha Khan was found dead in her flat in Karachi’s Gulshan-e-Iqbal area.

84-year-old Ayesha’s death came to light when her neighbours informed her family about a foul smell emitting from her apartment.