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ISLAMABAD: The government on Saturday increased prices of petroleum products from 4.8 per cent to 11.8 per cent on the heel of increase in oil prices in the international market. Meanwhile, economic experts and politicians have started questioning price determination formula.

According to the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority, the petrol prices have been increased by Rs 4.85 per litre or 5.8 per cent. The new effective rate from May 1st would be Rs 88.41 per litre. The government increased High Speed Diesel rates 4.8 per cent or Rs 4.42 per litre. The new effective rate is Rs 97.31 per litre.

Last month the government increased the petroleum products prices from 9 per cent to 13 per cent. The political parties like Muttahida Quami Movement and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz faction have been raising the issue of reviewing the petroleum products determination formula. Now the independent economists have also criticized the government for charging tax on petroleum products.

At present, the government is charging four different taxes at various stages, further inflating the base price. They have proposed to the government to collect all the taxes at the landed price. The government collects customs duty at the landed price after adding the customs duty it collects sales tax at import stage.

After adding the sales tax in the already inflated price it collects special excise duties then it adds sales tax at the domestic stage. Over and above it charges petroleum levy on the inflated prices. Though the government refunds the sales tax charged at the import stage on products that the oil refineries sell directly but the consumers are subject to pay the end price at the inflated rates.
Last year the government collected Rs 351 billion on petroleum products, almost a fourth of FBR total collection. This year during the first half July to December the government has collected Rs 163.4 billion in taxes, says a recently released FBR report. According to the rough estimates the figure has crossed Rs 225 billion mark till March. It also contradicts the government claim that it has been paying subsidies on petroleum products.

According to the OGRA, the kerosene oil prices have been increased by Rs 5.60 per litre or 6.7 per cent. The new effective rate is Rs 89.7 per litre. The kerosene oil is largely consumed in the rural areas to cook food as an alternate to natural gas. Ironically, the urban population is enjoying cheap source for cooking food.

The government also increased the High Octane Blended prices by Rs 1.80 per liter or 1.8 per cent. The new HOBC per litre price is Rs 99.92. The government made highest increase in the prices of Light Diesel Oil by raising rates 11.8 per cent or Rs 9.32 per liter. The new rate is Rs 88.30 per litre.

ISLAMABAD/LAHORE: The Pakistan army observed a Youm-e-Shuhada with fervour in recognition of great sacrifices made by the security forces for the country’s defence and sovereignty at the Lahore Garrison on Saturday. Another ceremony was held at the GHQ by the Chief of Army Staff.

COAS Pervez Kayani paid tribute to the martyrs, saying that the army had sacrificed a lot, and had fulfilled its duty by protecting Pakistan from terrorists. He expressed his solidarity with the families of martyrs, and said they had fought for a cause.

A ceremony was organised at the Yadgar-e-Shuhada,Aziz Bhatti Shaheed Road, Cantt, which was presided over by Lahore Corps Commander Lieutenant-General Rashad Mehmood while Brig (Retrd) Abdul Qayyum, a hero of the 1965 War, was the chief guest. Garrison Officer Commandant Major-General Malik ZafarIqbal, GOC Major-General Azim Asif, DG Rangers Punjab Muhammed Nawaz, former Vice Chief of Army Staff General Ahsan Saleem Hayat, former Governor Punjab Lieut-General Khalid Maqbool, serving and retired army officers and families of martyrs also attended the ceremony.

The participants laid a floral wreath at the Yadgar-Shuhada while a smartly turned-out guard presented a salute to honour the Shuhada. Lt-Gen Rashad Mehmood, addressing the participants, paid rich tribute to personnel of Pakistan Army, Air Force, Navy, Rangers, Police and the public for their remarkable sacrifices for safeguarding the sovereignty and integrity of the country in the 1965, 1971 wars and ongoing operations against terrorists, miscreants and militants.

He said that the country was facing various internal and external threats and the Pakistan Army would make every sacrifice to ensure the defence of the national frontiers and integrity at all costs.

Recalling great sacrifices made by Jawans and officers of the security forces, he reiterated Pakistan Army’s firm resolve to fight for the sake of national defence, stability and prosperity.    He said that supreme sacrifices by Shuhada of the Pakistan Army would go down as one of the most glorious chapters in annals of national history.

The corps commander said that it was solely because of joint commitment and resolve of soldiers and the people of Pakistan that the country was fighting successfully against anti-state forces.

He said that families of Shuhada were the most valued asset to the nation and commended their resilience and sacrifice for a better future of the country. He said that the nation held them in high esteem and would stand behind their families in the time of need.    He urged the officers and soldiers to follow in the footsteps of their valiant predecessors and spare no effort whatsoever to ensure impregnable defence of their motherland.    The Pakistan Army, on the Youm-e-Shuhada, decorated roads in the cantonment area with portraits of martyrsto pay homage to their supreme sacrifices.

RAWALPINDI: The Rawalpindi Magistrate on Saturday testified in court that Mumtaz Qadri had confessed to the murder of Governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer.

During the hearing of the case, which resumed at the Anti-Terrorism Court, the city magistrate said that Qadri had not been forced to confessing the crime and that his handcuffs had been removed when he had given the statement.

The hearing of the case has been adjourned till May 14.

The self-confessed assassin of former Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer had been formally indicted by an anti-terrorism court (ATC) on February 14. During the course of hearing, which was held behind closed doors, Malik Mumtaz Qadri confessed to killing the former governor before Justice Raja Ikhlaq Ahmed.

According to the three-page charge-sheet submitted before the court, Qadri has been booked under sections 7 of the Anti Terrorism Act and 302/109 of the Pakistan Penal Code on the complaint of Taseer’s son Shehryar Taseer in an FIR registered at the Kohsar police station.

WASHINGTON: Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States Hussain Haqqani said on Saturday that Afghanistan and the US will hold trilateral talks on May 3 to resolve the Afghan conflict while denying media reports about Pakistan advising Afghanistan against cooperation with the US.

“We will have a lot of such stories as we move forward. The key thing is that all three players — the United States, Afghanistan and Pakistan — understand that the way forward is: we have to defeat some people in Afghanistan and we have to engage certain people,” Haqqani said while talking to CNN on the programme called Situation Room.

The Wall Street Journal’s report cited Pakistan Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani as saying that the US has failed both the countries and China is a better partner which is Pakistan’s “all weather” friend.

However, Haqqani, in response to this citation, said, “China is definitely an all-weather friend of Pakistan. We have been friends of China since 1949. We were the country that helped the United States and China come close together… We have never looked upon the United States and China as rivals for our friendship.”

Haqqani also made it clear that Pakistan does not want to fully depend on American assistance, but it cannot be totally cut. “The 9/11 incident happened because America turned its back on Pakistan and Afghanistan, ignored what was happening there.”

Referring to the media report, he said that it was clear that internal Afghan politics is being played out in American newspapers.

The Ministry of Petroleum on Friday decided to increase the price of petroleum products and sent the summary of the proposal Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani for approval.

According to sources, OGRA officials will make an official announcement of the price hike once the Petroleum Ministry’s summary has been approved.

The ministry of petroleum has proposed an increase of Rs4.85 in the cost of petrol, Rs4 in high speed diesel, Rs5.60 in kerosene oil, Rs9.32 in LDO and Rs1.80 in HOBC per litre.

KARACHI: Sindh nationalist parties observed a strike across the province on Saturday against alleged irregularities in the collection for data for upcoming census 2011.

Pakistan Muslim League -Nawaz (PML-N) pledged to support the strike call, as PML-N leader Zulfiqar Khosa announced the support after a meeting with chief of Sindh Bachao Tehreek on Friday.

Khosa said that the party workers would play a positive role against the alleged fraud.

The nationalist leaders also met Sunni Tehreek leader Shakeel Qadri to discuss their reservations regarding the house-count process.

After the meeting, the Sunni Tehreek leader demanded the government conduct population and house census under the supervision of army.

Earlier in a press conference, the nationalist leaders demanded that the federal government officially annul the ongoing census or they would boycott the upcoming population census.

They said that the house count must be started anew and that teachers of the education department should do it in order to ensure transparency.

They also demanded that there should be separate registration of illegal immigrants and those who migrated to the province for financial reasons.

With growing complaints of irregularities in the census, the census chief announced on Friday that anyone using pencils, registers, photocopies and any other paper not authorised by the government during the census can face up to six months in jail and a fine of Rs20,000.

KARACHI: Rangers arrested more than 300 suspects during a search operation in various areas of the Mangho Pir area in Karachi on Saturday.

A Rangers spokesman said they had been tipped about presence of criminals residing in the area and had subsequently launched a door-to-door operation.

He said the search teams had to face resistance from criminals, adding that three people were injured in the exchange of fire during the five-hour operation.

The spokesman said the Rangers have gathered all information about the criminals, and that the suspects are being interrogated.

The area had been cordoned off before the operation, according to Express 24/7 correspondent Shehryar Mirza. Mirza reported that sources have said that the raids and arrests were linked to the bomb blasts that have taken place in Karachi over the past week and security forces are searching any areas where they think militants may be able to find a safe haven.

The Rangers also escorted matric students from the area so that they could take their exams.

On Friday, Rangers had detained over 100 suspects during separate raids in Baldi and Landi towns.

WASHINGTON: Western powers must be firm with Pakistan about its need to crack down on extremists, but there is no alternative to continuing to work directly with Islamabad, British lawmaker David Miliband said Friday.

Miliband, foreign secretary from 2007 until Britain’s Labour Party lost power last year, voiced alarm at what he called the influence inside Pakistani society of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a militant group blamed for the deadly 2008 siege of Mumbai.

“We should be engaging with Pakistan; on the other hand, I feel very comfortable speaking very plainly about the responsibilities that they have,” Miliband said at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington.

Pakistan needs to do more to hold assailants for the Mumbai attack accountable and if Lashkar-e-Taiba is expanding its reach, “then we need to be even more insistent on the need to roll up that infrastructure,” he said.

But Miliband, who said he would soon travel to Pakistan, called on the United States along with the South Asian nation’s neighbours to keep trying to engage both politically and economically.

“One of the most chilling things I’ve heard and read over the last few months is that America has a choice about whether or not to sever its links with Pakistan,” Miliband said.

“Because if you think it difficult, frustrating, enervating, dangerous dealing with Pakistan at the moment as a partner, try fulfilling your own interests in South Asia without Pakistan as a partner,” he said.

Miliband welcomed a letter sent by President Barack Obama to his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari in late 2009, in which the US leader offered expanded cooperation but demanded Islamabad do more against militants in India and Afghanistan.

“It was a very important step, proposing a strategic relationship for the US and Pakistan to replace the unbalanced – essentially military-only relationship, individual leader-based relationship – of the past,” he said.

“I have criticised the Pakistani government for the way in which it failed adequately to respond to the significance of the outreach,” he said.

“He had promised me to come back on leave after one year with lots of things to make her happy,” said his wife Naheed. “But he did not come. Maybe he will never come back.”

Saudi authorities sentenced Rahman to death after he was convicted of murder. He could be executed as early as May 1. His family says that they have already paid blood money, even as they continue to insist that he is innocent.

“Rehman is innocent, but anyhow, diyat was paid and the necessary documents have been forwarded to the Saudi authorities,” said Naheed. She asked the government to intervene immediately to save his life.

Rehman had been arrested on murder charges in Mecca after one of his roommates was found dead at the apartment in which he was living. Two of Rehman’s other roommates were also arrested.

A Saudi court had sentenced them for life imprisonment (14 years) but a couple of months ago, the Saudi authorities had reopened the case and this time they awarded them the death sentence.

Rehman’s brother Abdullah Khan said that, on the advice of Saudi authorities, he had contacted an influential leader of the Leghari tribe in Dera Ghazi Khan. A jirga was then held and Rs4 million in blood money was agreed upon, which was paid. He said that he had submitted proof of the Diyat payment but Rehman has still not been released.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

Speaking during the National Assembly question hour on Friday, Khar said the prisoners had not paid the diyat imposed on them by Saudi authorities. The fines, she said, range between 17,000 and 3.9 million Saudi riyals.

The Pakistanis are jailed mostly on offences like theft, drug trafficking, road accidents and at least one murder count. Muhammad Saeed, whose residence in Pakistan was not known, had murdered his Bangladeshi colleague in 2001. He was fined blood money of 110,000 riyals which was later brought down to 50,000. “The Pakistani consulate in Saudi Arabia had arranged for payment of diyat to the legal heirs of deceased and for shifting him to a deportation camp in Jeddah,” Khar said. She said that proper access is being secured and requests are being made to the Saudi government for fine waivers.

Deportation

Khar said that more than 73,000 Pakistanis had been deported from various countries during 2009-2010. The main reasons for deportation are illegal stay, fake travel documents and invalid work permits, violation of immigration laws and involvement in criminal or immoral activities.

The largest number of people deported was from Saudi Arabia, from where 18,093 people were sent back, followed by the United Arab Emirates from where 17,168 people were deported. Over 13,000 people each were deported from Iran and Oman. In Europe, 1,316 people were deported from Greece while over 2,000 were deported from the UK.

Tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS

Minister for Housing and Works Makhdoom Shahabuddin told the house that over a thousand centres for diagnosis and treatment of Tuberculosis were operational across the country.

He claimed that free of cost facilities were being provided to patients at these centres and there was no need to create more centres.

Speaking about HIV/AIDS treatment, Shahabuddin said that besides the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences in Islamabad, there were 13 more hospitals and treatment centres for patients throughout the country.

Railways

Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmed Bilour clarified that no goods train had been discontinued over the past three years.

He said that the marriage coach, which was started in January 2008, was discontinued as it failed to attract public attention.

Talking about railway land leasing, he said land worth Rs1.89 billion was leased on short- and long-term basis during 2007-08. He said that an open auction was held publicly and 50 per cent of bid money was recovered at the time of auction.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

According to PPP Member of National Assembly (MNA) and the president’s media adviser Farahnaz Ispahani, while Bilawal is already familiar with the party structure and leadership, the new move will see him being involved with the party in an organised manner.

Ispahani said that PPP General Secretary Jahangir Badar will take Bilawal under his wing and he will be working with senior provincial leaders, such as current Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah.

“Bilawal has specifically expressed interest in the party’s youth wing, which was very dear to Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto,” she said. “He will be looking into modernising the Peoples Youth Organisation, and bringing in new ideas, media technology etc through intellectual and practical exercises.”

Bilawal, who turns 23 this September, is two years away from being eligible to run for a provincial or national assembly seat. However, the PPP believes that the idea is not for Bilawal to jump into politics by contesting elections, but to spend time learning about the party.

“He is a keen learner,” said Ispahani. “He has spent time travelling here and meeting party leaders and members. He listens and he takes his time with making comments on issues.”

While Bilawal has attracted criticism for being the newest symbol of dynasty politics in the subcontinent, he garnered praise for his stance on the assassinations of former Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer and former Minority Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti.

Bilawal, who graduated from Oxford University last year, could emerge as PPP’s much-needed progressive voice, given what appears to be his interest in social issues and stance on minorities.

The timing of the announcement is worth noting. The PPP, like all other political parties, is looking at the 2013 elections. While it managed to win a large number of seats in the 2008 elections, observers noted that the party also won the sympathy vote in the wake of Benazir Bhutto’s assassination. By working with the youth wing, Bilawal could possibly galvanise young voters and Bhutto family loyalists.

“He seems to have a natural talent for public speaking. It’s impossible to not have goose bumps when hearing him. In terms of sustaining the family legacy in Sindh, Bilawal has that natural appeal as Benazir’s son which Zardari can never have,” remarked analyst Mosharraf Zaidi.

While his late mother, former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, faced opposition from the party’s old guard when she returned to Pakistan, Ispahani said this would not be an issue for Bilawal. “There is a great deal of love for the children,” she said. “Benazir’s house in Dubai always had PPP leaders visiting and the children know most of them very well. When he was voted as chairperson by the Central Executive Committee, it was done with the understanding that he would lead the party but would spend time learning and working for it.”

Bilawal’s sisters, Bakhtawar and Asifa, have also taken on public roles, but there appears to be no move yet to assign them political responsibilities. The three have met key foreign leaders with President Zardari. Bilawal will be leading a PPP delegation to China this summer before he starts working with the party in the fall.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

In a closed-door session of the committee in Islamabad, the committee is reported to have spent much of its time questioning State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Hina Rabbani Khar on the country’s foreign policy with respect to the United States, Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan.

Khar, however, said that the government is focused on expanding its ties with China, India, Iran and Afghanistan in what is likely to be a break from the past when the country’s alliance structures often led to tensions with one or more of its neighbours.

However, sources close to the committee’s discussions suggest that Pakistan’s policy may be focused on assisting China in expanding its role in the region.

Committee members are reported to have been dissatisfied with current policy though most were unwilling to comment on the record as to what their reservations were about Pakistan’s foreign policy. Of the 17 members of the committee, only nine were in attendance in Friday’s session.

One subject that did come under discussion was that of US drone strikes on Pakistani territory, which are almost uniformly opposed across the Pakistani political spectrum. The ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has been trying to play a balancing act between those pubic concerns and maintaining a relationship with the United States.

“Islamabad attaches immense importance to promoting relations with Washington and would like to resolve this issue through diplomatic channels,” said Senator Raza Rabbani of the PPP. “We summoned [US Ambassador] Cameron Munter and recorded our protest about the drone attacks.”

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

A four-member bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary was seemingly provoked by the transfers of key officials spearheading the investigations of irregularities committed in arrangements for Hajj last year. “How come the officials were transferred when the issue is before the court?” the chief justice remarked. He questioned why investigation officers of corruption cases pursued by the court were transferred. “A judicial order cannot be overruled by an executive order,” observed Justice Raja Fayyaz. “It is a violation of the constitution.”

The chief justice rebuked Director General (DG) Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Malik Iqbal over the transfers of investigation officers while the cases are pending before the court. Secretary Establishment Chaudhary Abdul Rauf informed the bench that the government had appointed Hussain Asghar as the Inspector General of Police Gilgit-Baltistan. Additional DG Zafar Qureshi, investigation officer of National Insurance Company scam was transferred after DG FIA wrote to the establishment that he had completed his assignment. Iqbal requested the court to give him time to seek directions from the Prime Minister on the officers’ postings. The Establishment Division had notified the transfers.

The court however refused his request. “How dare you transfer the officers? Tell the prime minister that you will be reappointing them as investigation officers on the Supreme Court’s order,” the chief justice observed. “Irrespective of whether you award them promotions, don’t dare to disengage them from the investigation.” Attorney-General Maulvi Anwarul Haq submitted that Javed Bukhari who was supervising the Hajj scam has also been promoted. Secretary Establishment Abdul Rauf said that Bukhari requested a transfer because the court was not satisfied with his performance. “They should be sent home if they are not interested in (doing their) jobs. Why is the director-general reluctant to take action against them?” the chief justice remarked. Justice Raja Fayyaz observed that investigation officer Chaudhary Manzoor is not familiar with the case unlike previous officials who were fully onboard.

Counsel for Hamid Saeed Kazmi requested the bench to initiate proceedings against the ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Umer Khan Alisherazi, and former minister Azam Khan Swati for not being able to substantiate allegations levelled against his client. Justice Javed Iqbal observed that it was up to the trial court. The court adjourned the hearing till May 6.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

Dr Ashraf Ghani Ahmedzai, chief coordinator of the Afghan transition process, is here discussing the implementation of the agreements arrived at between the two countries during Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani’s recent visit to Kabul.

Dr Ghani, a renowned economist who served as finance minister in the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan until December 2004, had comprehensive talks with the officials of the ministry of foreign affairs on Thursday and Friday, the source said.

Dr Ghani was expected to meet President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani on Friday, the source said, adding that he will continue to engage with Islamabad on sensitive issues including the US’s announced troop pullout plan that begins July 2011.

Sidelining the US

President Karzai has faced serious criticism by his political opponents, including 2009 presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah, for the agreement he had reached with Gilani in April.

The criticism was compounded following reports by the Wall Street Journal that Gilani “bluntly told the Afghan President that the Americans had failed them both,” and that Karzai “should forget about allowing a long-term US military presence in his country.”

The US is seeking a long term accord with Afghanistan that would allow for US troop presence in the country after 2014, the deadline set by Washington for complete transition to Afghan security forces.

Both Kabul and Islamabad have officially denied the Wall Street Journal report.

“The US is in fact worried about Pakistan’s opposition to the setting up of permanent military bases in Afghanistan,” a senior Pakistani official told The Express Tribune, requesting anonymity.

“Pakistan is against any “new great game” in Afghanistan as it will undermine peace and stability in the entire region, US Vice President Joseph Biden was told, during a meeting between him and Gilani earlier this year,” the source added.

Gilani also opposed the idea of an American-orchestrated ‘Great Game’ in Afghanistan during his talks with Karzai, the Chinese news agency Xinhua reported.

“What really disturbed Washington was the new Pak-Afghan resolve to settle their issues bilaterally without the mediation of US,” said a Pakistani official from the ministry of foreign affairs.

“Washington considered this agreement as an attempt on the part of Pakistan to sideline the US on the Afghan issue,” he added.

Meanwhile, Karzai, who initially opposed the idea of a long-term accord with the US, has repeatedly said he would take up the US demand to the Afghan parliament for a final decision.

Islamabad is not the only one opposed to a long-term strategic partnership agreement between Kabul and Washington. Other regional heavyweights, Tehran, Beijing and Moscow, have also opposed the prospect of a long-term American presence in the region.

“It’s true that many other countries — including China, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia — are also discussing the endgame in Afghanistan with the Pakistani government, but Pakistan does not believe that the crucial role played by the United States can be replaced by another power,” the Foreign Policy magazine quoted a Pakistani official as saying.

“As long as the Americans play straight with Pakistan and take into account Pakistani concerns, Pakistan would rather work with the US,” the official added.

Fundamental differences between Pakistan and US, however, will ensure that the Afghan transition process is not entirely a smooth one.

“Some level of discord is to be expected as Pakistan looks out for its own interests in a post-war Afghanistan,” the magazine quoted the official.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

“This is the highest turnout – 66 per cent – in Pakistan’s history,” said Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rahim Nawaz Durrani.

According to the CEC, BNF founder Nawaz Khan Naji outvoted his rival candidates of the PPP and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), obtaining over 8,299 votes. PML-N candidate Col (retd) Karim Khan bagged 5,043 votes while PPP candidate Engineer Jawahir Ali Khan got 4,526 votes. “We have contested elections in the past but it is our first win in the legislative assembly,” Naji told The Express Tribune, adding that he had formed the BNF in 1989.

Naji said the federal government should declare Gilgit-Baltistan a province of Pakistan, give its people representation in the National Assembly and Senate, and extend the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to the region. He said nationalism is not a curse, and that his party supports a secular worldview where there is no space for sectarianism. The defeat of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) in the election has stunned party leaders because they had pumped all resources to secure the seat which they never lost before. The seat was vacated by Pir Karam Ali Shah after he was elevated to the post of governor.

Shah had to face criticism from within the party after the PPP candidate was defeated.

“The reason behind PPP’s debacle is that Pir sahib has been developing his own personality (cult) instead of (popularising) the party,” said Engineer Islamil, a PPP sitting minister who looks after the affairs of local government.

While Chief Minister Mehdi Shah congratulated the winning candidate, he too seemed upset over the defeat. “If ‘certain leaders’ had upheld the party’s cause, the situation would have been different today,” Mehdi Shah said in a press release.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

Would-be suicide bomber Umer Fidai and mastermind Behram Khan are insiders of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), according to the report, and know about training camps in Waziristan as well as important commanders, trainers and handlers of the network. Fidai, in an interview on April 8, had said that as many as 350 bombers were being trained in Mir Ali, North Waziristan.

Failed attackers have been targeted by their networks in the past. The surviving terrorist of the May 2010 attacks on Ahmadi places of worship in Lahore was attacked in Jinnah Hospital, Lahore.

The report states that the TTP plans to kidnap or assassinate Fidai and Khan inside their jails or when they are on their way to or returning from court. Fidai will now be presented on May 10 before an anti-terrorism court in Dera Ghazi Khan.

Meanwhile, another report stated that the TTP has prepared two suicide bombers who have been assigned to mount attacks in Punjab. According to information received by intelligence agencies, their names are Habibullah and Shah Faisal.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

A power-sharing deal between the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid has reportedly triggered unease within the PML-N, prompting the party to seek a parallel electoral alliance with some other groups.

PML-N officials told The Express Tribune on Friday that their party would soon initiate negotiations with the religious and nationalists’ parties in Balochistan and Sindh.

Nawaz Sharif, one of his associates said, had already set up a ‘core group’ of the party’s top leaders including Raja Zafarul Haq, Ishaq Dar, Mehtab Abbasi and Iqbal Zafar Jhagrha for this purpose.

And more significantly the party had also decided to hit the roads with a demand for snap parliamentary polls before the provincial assemblies could re-elect half of the Senate members next March.

The PML-N would almost be reduced to ground if the polls for the upper house of the parliament are held under the current equation in the provincial legislatures. The party doesn’t have any representations whatsoever in Sindh and Balochistan.

Both Islamic parties and nationalists have in the past been allied to the PML-N when the party remained in power for a couple of times in the 1990s.

“Our alliance is natural…we are going to revive it ahead of the next elections,” a top party leader said referring to 90s affiliation with parties like Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) of slain Baloch chieftain Nawab Akbar Bugti.

The alliance, another official said, was going to be on the same lines Sharif was able to establish ahead of the general elections in 1990 that ultimately inflicted defeat on the PPP led by slain former premier Benazir Bhutto then.

The alliance was known as Islami Jamhoori Ittehad.

“It is going to be bigger and more vigorous this time,” the official said of the new alliance.

Already there have been enough evidence that the alliance being finalised by President Asif Zardari and Chaudhrys of Gujrat is aimed at depriving Sharif’s PML-N of what was a comfortable majority the party won in 2008 general polls at least in the central Punjab, its stronghold.

The PML-N chief has also signalled at accepting back in the party some of the leaders who betrayed him to join Pervez Musharraf after the 1999 coup.

According to officials, Ejazul Haq and Humayun Akhtar are among those who might be accepted in the PML-N.

Those leaders of the PML-Q who are opposed to its deal with the PPP would also be accepted in the party, according to the officials.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

Initial reports say Qureshi was driving down the Abul Hassan Isphani Road in his official vehicle when unidentified armed men sprayed his car with bullets near Maskan Chowrangi. He sustained one bullet and succumbed to his injuries shortly after arriving at the hospital.

Confirming the incident while talking to The Express Tribune, MQM leader Abdul Qudoos said details about the incident were being gathered. He demanded the arrest of culprits.

The deceased was a resident of Gulzare Hijri and was on his way home when the incident occurred. Following the killing, tension prevailed in parts of city and heavy contingent of law enforcers
were called to avoid any untoward incident.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

In a letter written to the establishment division, the headquarters of the federal government’s bureaucracy, FIA director-general Malik Iqbal claimed that all of the money embezzled from the NICL had been recovered and thus there was no need to retain Qureshi as lead investigator in the  case. The recovery process is still ongoing.

During the investigation, the team led by Qureshi had uncovered evidence against former FIA head Waseem Ahmad, former NICL chairman Ayaz Niazi and Punjab Assembly member Moonis Elahi before Qureshi was summarily removed from the case.

Before his dismissal, Qureshi had written letters to the Supreme Court and the Establishment Division alleging that the FIA director-general was concealing facts and impeding the investigation. He also said that Rs420 million of the embezzled amounts had yet to be recovered.

After Waseem Ahmed resigned, Qureshi wrote a letter to his replacement, detailing the manner in which his predecessor had been hindering progress in the NICL case.

Iqbal wrote back on April 12, directing Qureshi to transfer all of his investigation documentation to FIA headquarters in Islamabad.

On April 16, Qureshi wrote back, asking for the orders to be withdrawn since the investigation was being carried out on the orders of the Supreme Court. Two days later, Qureshi was removed from his position on the investigation team.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.

PML-Q chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain took Faisal Saleh Hayat, hitherto one of the most vocal critics of the emerging alliance, to a meeting with the president to seek some more assurances from him.

The most significant among the guarantees by the president was a promise that Hayat’s electoral rival, Syeda Abida Hussain, would not be  given the PPP nomination to contest the 2013 elections from their shared constituency in the Jhang district of Punjab.

Though little details of the meeting emerged, officials privy to the interaction after an overnight meeting between Zardari and Shujaat said the offer was good enough to get Hayat to agree to the deal.

“After this last hindrance is removed, it is a done deal and both sides may sign a written agreement in a couple of days,” said an official familiar with the matter, eliminating whatever doubts were still there after Thursday’s meeting.

Besides Hayat’s opposition, the PML-Q had also sought the president’s assurances on some other key national issues in what appeared to be an attempt to make the deal look like something acceptable to the party’s voters.

Carving a new province out of Punjab was amongst the things agreed between the top leaders from both sides. The division of Punjab might hurt the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), the political opponent of both PPP and PML-Q.

According to officials from both sides, a commission of prominent politicians would be established to evolve a mechanism for the creation of new provinces including one of Hazara region in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

The president, according to reports by some private television channels, had also promised the PML-Q leadership that the Higher Education Commission (HEC) would not be devolved to the provinces as per initial plans to implement the 18th amendment.

Insiders said a draft agreement spelling out the details of political cooperation between the two parties had already been finalised and might be signed by Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and Shujaat in the next 36 to 72 hours.

The PML-Q would then be joining the federal cabinet, possibly next week.

It was, however, not clear whether the two new allies would also push for stealing the government from the PML-N in Punjab. Gilani said in Multan earlier in the day that there were no such plans but sources close to the president said ‘anything is possible’.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2011.