ISLAMABAD: The chief of a leading Pakistani religio-political party said on Friday he had suggested that the government undertake judicial reforms instead of passing an elaborate constitutional amendments package, posing a new challenge to the ruling coalition of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, which is pushing for the changes.
The government last week sought to get a package of 52 constitutional amendments passed in parliament but postponed the move after it was unable to gather the two-thirds majority parliamentary votes required, most importantly as it did not get support from Fazl-ur-Rehman, the president of the Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-Islam (JUI-F) party.
The amendments propose increasing the retirement age of superior judges by three years, revisiting the seniority principle in the appointment of the country’s top judge and establishing a federal constitutional court, among other changes.
Opposition parties, mainly the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party of jailed former premier Imran Khan, have criticized the package, calling it an “attack” on the independence of the judiciary. The PTI says the amendments are being done solely to grant an extension to incumbent Supreme Court Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, widely believed to be aligned with the ruling coalition and in opposition to its chief rival, the PTI.
The government has repeatedly said the amendments are not “individual specific.”
“We [Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-Islam] adopted a stance that instead of amending the constitution with individuals in mind, why not head toward judicial reforms?” Rehman said at a televised news conference in Multan.
He said that his party had sought a draft of the constitutional amendment package from the government, saying the government was initially not willing to share it but when it managed to get hold of a copy, it reflected a lack of preparation.
“When we received the copy [of the proposed constitutional amendments] and our lawyers reviewed it, we were deeply saddened by the fact that the constitution, which protects the fundamental rights of every citizen, but over here, human and fundamental rights had been restricted, and the role of [Pakistan’s] military had been significantly expanded.
“Additionally, matters relating to the appointment and transfer of judges, even in the high courts, were alarming. If a judge is not trusted or cannot deliver a favorable decision, they could be immediately transferred, or the case could be reassigned to another judge.”
He said he had met with a key coalition partner, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, chairman of the Pakistan People’s Party, about the amendments package.
“We agreed that we could also make a draft [of amendments] and he could also create a draft before sharing them with each other,” Rehman said.
“We want consensus. The job of parliament is to legislate, bring constitutional legislation, make amendments, and pass laws. This is our job. And we are not ready to accept any restriction on this.”
The issue of the constitutional amendments has raised widespread concerns among opposition parties and independent experts who say the moves are aimed at increasing the government’s power in making key judicial appointments and dealing with the defection of lawmakers during house votes.
Constitutional Amendments: In new challenge to government, key Pakistani politician urges judicial reforms
https://arab.news/6cc3b
Constitutional Amendments: In new challenge to government, key Pakistani politician urges judicial reforms
- Government reached out to Maulana Fazlur Rehman to push the constitutional amendment package in parliament
- Rehman says the package limited the scope of human rights, expanded the role of Pakistan’s powerful military
Over 8,800 Pakistani pilgrims in Madinah with 3,300 more expected today — state media
- The first groups of Pakistani pilgrims are scheduled to depart for Makkah on May 7
- Pilgrims going directly to Makkah will visit Madinah after performing Hajj rituals
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Hajj mission in Saudi Arabia has received nearly 8,890 pilgrims in Madinah, state media reported on Saturday, adding that 3,300 more were expected to arrive by the end of the day.
Pakistan launched its Hajj flights on April 29. For the first 15 days of the operation, pilgrims will continue to arrive in Madinah. Afterward, incoming pilgrims will land in Jeddah and travel directly to Makkah.
“The Pakistan Hajj Mission has so far received approximately 8,890 intending Pakistani pilgrims in Madinah by Saturday, who arrived through 35 flights operated by various airlines from major cities of Pakistan to perform their religious obligation under the government scheme,” the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported.
“As many as 12 flights, carrying 3,300 more pilgrims, are scheduled to arrive in the holy City Madinah on Saturday,” it added.
Pilgrims from across the world are converging in Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj, which begins on the 8th of Dhu Al-Hijjah, the final month of the Islamic calendar.
The first groups of Pakistani pilgrims are scheduled to depart for Makkah on May 7 after completing their eight-day stay in Madinah. Departures will follow the sequence of their arrival in the city, according to the religious affairs ministry.
Under the single-route system, all Pakistani pilgrims arriving in Madinah will proceed to Makkah for Hajj before returning to Pakistan via Jeddah.
Pilgrims flying directly to Makkah will later visit Madinah before departing for home.
Upon reaching Makkah, pilgrims will perform their first obligatory Umrah, according to the ministry.
India bans imports from Pakistan amid tension over tourist killings
- New Delhi has issued a notification barring goods coming from or transiting through Pakistan
- Pakistani-flagged ships and Indian-flagged ships are barred from entering each other’s ports
NEW DELHI: India said on Saturday it had banned the import of goods coming from or transiting via Pakistan and barred Pakistani ships as tensions rise between the nuclear-armed neighbors in the wake of a deadly attack on tourists in the disputed Kashmir region.
India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade said in a notification that the ban would take effect immediately.
“This restriction is imposed in the interest of national security and public policy,” it said.
Suspected militants killed at least 26 people in last week’s attack on a mountain tourist destination in the Pahalgam area of the Kashmir valley.
The Muslim-majority Himalayan region is claimed by both India and Pakistan, and has been the focus of several wars, an insurgency and diplomatic standoffs.
India has accused Pakistan of involvement in the attack, which Islamabad denies. Pakistan has said it has “credible intelligence” that India intends to launch military action.
Pakistan’s retaliatory measures have included halting all border trade, closing its airspace to Indian carriers and expelling Indian diplomats.
It has also warned that any attempt to prevent the flow of river water promised under a decades-old treaty would be considered an act of war.
On Saturday, India said Pakistani-flagged ships would not be allowed to visit any Indian port, and Indian flagged-ships would not visit any ports in Pakistan.
“This order is issued to ensure safety of Indian assets, cargo and connected infrastructure, in public interest and for interest of Indian shipping,” the Directorate General of Shipping said in an statement.
Trade between the two nations has dwindled over the last few years.
Türkiye reaffirms solidarity with Pakistan after Kashmir attack, urges restraint amid regional tensions
- The Turkish envoy in Islamabad meets PM Sharif, says Ankara appreciates Pakistan’s position
- Sharif says Pakistan’s focus remains on economic recovery, which requires regional peace
ISLAMABAD: Türkiye has reaffirmed its solidarity with Pakistan following the April 22 attack at a tourist hotspot in Indian-administered Kashmir while calling for de-escalation and restraint to preserve peace in South Asia, the Prime Minister’s Office in Islamabad said on Saturday.
The assault in Pahalgam, a popular destination in the disputed Himalayan region, killed 26 tourists last month. India accused Pakistan of orchestrating the attack, an allegation Islamabad has since denied repeatedly.
The Pakistani administration has also called for an international investigation into the incident, warning that India’s claims risk further inflaming tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
With Islamabad engaged in active diplomacy to project its stance over the issue, Turkish Ambassador Dr. Irfan Neziroglu met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and conveyed Ankara’s appreciation for Pakistan’s response earlier today.
“The Turkish Ambassador informed the Prime Minister that Türkiye appreciated Pakistan’s position and expressed its solidarity with Pakistan while calling for de-escalation and urging restraint in the current crisis to maintain peace and security in South Asia,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.
During the meeting, Sharif reiterated Pakistan’s offer for a credible, transparent and neutral international probe into the Pahalgam attack and welcomed Türkiye’s potential participation in such an inquiry.
Last month, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had urged both India and Pakistan to exercise restraint after the attack.
Pakistan and Türkiye share close diplomatic, economic and defense ties.
Turkish defense firms have helped modernize Pakistan’s Agosta 90B-class submarines and supplied military equipment including drones and targeting systems.
The two countries also hold regular joint military exercises, most recently the Ataturk-XIII drills aimed at enhancing interoperability.
Sharif also told the Turkish envoy that Pakistan’s focus remained on economic recovery and growth, which required peace and stability in the region.
He highlighted Pakistan’s longstanding struggle against militant violence, pointing out the country had sacrificed 90,000 lives and incurred $152 billion of losses.
Five militants killed, two apprehended in separate operations in Pakistan’s northwest
- A paramilitary troop was killed in Balochistan amid reports of attacks on a passenger bus and government buildings in the province
- Pakistan has been battling twin insurgencies in its western provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan that border Afghanistan
ISLAMABAD: Five militants, belonging to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), were killed and two others were apprehended in three separate operations in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the Pakistani military said on Saturday.
Pakistani security forces killed three militants, including a high-value target, in an intelligence-based operation in KP’s Bajaur district, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing.
Two TTP militants were killed in the second operation in the North Waziristan district, while security forces busted a TTP hideout in the Mohmand district and arrested two members of the outlawed group.
“Weapons, ammunition and explosives were also recovered from these khwarij (TTP militants), who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities,” the ISPR said in a statement.
“Sanitization operations are being conducted to eliminate any other kharji found in the area.”
Pakistan has struggled to contain surging militancy in KP in recent years, where the Pakistani Taliban, or the TTP, have mounted their attacks against security forces and police since their fragile, months-long truce with Islamabad broke down in late 2022.
Late last month, the Pakistani military said it had killed 71 militants in three days of operations in the North Waziristan district that borders Afghanistan.
The number was usually high in Pakistan’s battle against militancy and instability along its border with Afghanistan during the nearly four years since the United States withdrew its military support from the country and the Taliban took over Kabul.
Islamabad has frequently accused Afghanistan of supporting the Pakistani Taliban and other militant groups, an allegation denied by Kabul.
Pakistan is also facing an intensifying separatist insurgency in the southwestern Balochistan province.
On Friday, a Levies paramilitary troop was killed in an attack on a check-post in Balochistan’s Kalat district, while there were reports of militant attacks on government buildings in Mangochar city, according to a Levies official.
“One Levies soldier was killed after gunmen targeted a Levies check-post in Kot Langove, an area of Kalat district,” Levies official Muhammad Ramzan told Arab News.
“Many armed militants obstructed the Quetta-Karachi highway in Mangochar and there are reports that many government buildings were torched in Mangochar Bazaar.”
The official said they were gathering more details about the incidents.
In another attack, armed men targeted a passenger bus heading to Karachi from Quetta in Khad Kocha area near Mastung.
“Six passengers were injured in the attack who were later shifted to Nawab Ghosh Bukhsh Memorial Hospital,” Mastung Deputy Commissioner Raja Atthar Abbas told Arab News.
“They were the same militants who attempted to take control of the highway in Kalat, but couldn’t succeed in blocking the road.”
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks, but suspicions are likely to fall on Baloch separatists.
In March, fighters from the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) separatist group hijacked the Jaffar Express train in Balochistan’s Bolan region, holding hundreds of passengers hostage.
The military launched a rescue operation in which 354 passengers were freed and 33 militants were killed. Officials said the hijacking killed 31 soldiers, railway staff and civilians.
Pakistani kickboxer Abdullah Chandio defeats Jordanian opponent in Karate Combat-54 event in Dubai
- The 24-year-old defeated Jordan’s Ali Alqaisi via unanimous decision after three rounds
- Chandio, who hails from Karachi, made an impressive international debut in October 2022
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani kickboxer Abdullah Chandio on Friday defeated his Jordanian opponent Ali Alqaisi in the Karate Combat-54 event in Dubai.
Chandio has been competing in the ongoing KC-54 championship in Dubai along with another Pakistani fighter Shahzaib Rind.
The 24-year-old defeated his Jordanian opponent via a unanimous decision after three rounds.
“The heat from multiple days all got unleashed tonight, and bother[ed] fighters gave it all they had,” Karate Combat wrote on their Instagram account.
“Abdullah Chandio takes the win after 3 intense rounds with Alqaisi.”
Karate Combat is a brand which promotes the first professional full-contact karate league. It has been hosting worldwide events since April 2018.
Chandio, 24, who hails from Karachi, made an impressive international debut in 2022 by knocking out his Indian opponent Muhammad Shuhaib in the BKK Kickboxing Championship in Dubai.
