Narendra Modi sworn in as India’s 15th prime minister

NEW DELHI: Narendra Modi took the oath of office as India's 15th prime minister on Monday at the start of a new era hailed by Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif as an opportunity to end decades of regional instability. Ten days after winning the most powerful mandate for 30 years in a landslide election win, Modi signalled his bold intentions by reportedly cutting a swathe through the ranks of government with a radical cabinet revamp. And as stock markets rose at the prospect of a pro-business leader taking the helm of the world's largest democracy, his Pakistani counterpart gave voice to a widespread sense of optimism. “It is a great moment and a great opportunity,” said PM Sharif, who is a guest for the swearing-in of a man with an image of being a hardline Hindu nationalist. “This is a chance to reach out to each other. Both governments have a strong mandate,” Sharif told India's NDTV network, according to a transcript provided by the Pakistan High Commission. “Both countries should rid the region of instability and security that has plagued us for decades.” After a decade of left-leaning Congress party rule, the 63-year-old Modi is expected to steer India firmly to the right in the next five years. Modi, leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), paid a visit to the memorial of India’s independence hero Mahatma Gandhi early Monday, before then stopping to meet Atal Bihari Vajpayee, his party’s only previous premier, who is confined to his home at the age of 89. Modi’s new cabinet was expected to be announced ahead of his inauguration at an evening ceremony and Modi indicated in a statement that the number of ministries would be sharply reduced. Reports said that Modi, son of a tea-stall owner, planned to slash 26 government positions. Close ally Arun Jaitley was widely tipped as finance minister and the BJP’s most senior woman leader, Sushma Swaraj, as foreign minister. “Team Modi” would have 23 full-rank cabinet ministers, down from his predecessor Manmohan Singh’s 28, while the number of junior ministers would be pruned to 22, the reports said. The BJP secured the first majority since 1984 at the election, trouncing the scandal-plagued Congress on a promise of reviving manufacturing and investment to create millions of jobs. Modi’s pledge to overhaul the flagging economy won over voters, along with his rags-to-riches story and reputation as a clean and efficient chief minister of prosperous western Gujarat state During campaigning, opponents and critics said the 63-year-old leader would favour the Hindu majority at the expense of the country's 150 million Muslims and other religious minorities. Many Muslims remain deeply suspicious of Modi, who is tainted by communal riots in Gujarat in 2002 that killed more than 1,000 people, mostly Muslims. He has denied he failed to stop the bloodshed and a court investigation found he had no case to answer.

Five reasons that forced AAP founding member Shazia Ilmi to quit party

New Delhi: Shazia Ilmi, one of the founder members of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), on Saturday resigned from all party posts citing lack of "inner-party democracy". Disapproving of "jail politics" of AAP, Ilmi also claimed that a "crony clique" around its chief Arvind Kejriwal is calling the shots in the party. "After much thought and deliberation I have decided to give up my membership of AAP and resign from all positions within the party," she told reporters at a press conference. However, she clarified that she is not joining any other party. Her resignation comes at a time when the party chief Arvind Kejriwal has been behind bars till June 6 in a criminal defamation case filed by former BJP President Nitin Gadkari. Here are five reasons that forced Ilmi to quit the party: 1. Felt alienated: Shazia Ilmi felt overlooked when the ticket for Delhi was denied to her in favour of Ashutosh and Ashish Khetan. "I was consistently sidelined in the party. I raised questions on ticket distribution in the party but my complaints were not addressed," she said in the press conference. 2. Inner-party democracy: "My decision to leave the party is triggered by the lack of inner-party democracy, especially from a party that constantly talks of Swaraj (self rule)," she said. Attacking some AAP leaders who are considered close to Kejriwal, she said, "We fight against cronyism but we have a crony clique which runs the party and takes impulsive decisions which we learn about later. I find it amazing that we cannot follow the principles of Swaraj within our own party." "When a brilliant person like Arvind who espoused the concept of ‘swaraj’ of collective making is unable to follow it personally within the party," she added. 3. Jail politics: Advising the AAP convener, the journalist-turned-politician said Arvind Kejriwal should pay his bail bond and spend time with the party's workers and candidates. "I am not for jail bharo politics.There's a need to reinvent AAP, go beyond agitation. Fasts and demonstrations were helpful earlier but now, people don't like it," she said. 4. AAP has become directionless: The party's habit of changing goalposts all too often seems to have disappointed Ilmi. "AAP seems to have become directionless. It needs to reinvent itself," Ilmi said. 5. Dissent voices growing in AAP: Ilmi was unhappy with the party leadership on certain issues, including the choice of her Lok Sabha constituency Ghaziabad, where she could not even save her deposits. She had conveyed to the party leadership her desire to contest from one of the seven seats in Delhi in the Lok Sabha Elections. She had lost Delhi Assembly elections last year from the R K Puram constituency by a thin margin.

Modi effect: Rupee best performing Asia-Pacific currency

Mumbai: Boosted by capital inflows and euphoria around the incoming government, rupee's surge to 11-month high levels has made it the best performing currency in Asia-Pacific region against the US dollar so far in 2014. With a gain of about 5.3 per cent since the start of this year, rupee has sprinted ahead of its other Asia-Pacific peers, including Indonesia's rupiah and New Zealand dollar, in terms of year-to-date rise, shows an analysis of various currencies vis-a-vis the Greenback. The rupee, which closed at 58.52 levels against the US dollar on the last trading day on Friday, has incidentally seen a lion's share of 5.3 per cent gain in the past one month. The Indian currency stood at Rs. 61.8 level per US dollar at the start of 2014 and has recorded a gain of 327 paise in less than six months, partly helped by robust foreign fund inflows. This marks a major turnaround since August last year when rupee touched its life-time low of 68.80. "...positive sentiments out of the election results enabled us to upgrade our FII flows estimates by USD 5 billion to USD 20 billion, implying an overall BOP (balance of payment) surplus of USD 29 billion. We expect the USD/INR range to be 57-61 in FY2015," said Indranil Pan, Chief Economist of Kotak Mahindra Bank, in a report. Under the leadership of its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, BJP has recorded an unprecedented victory in the recently held Lok Sabha Elections and the Gujarat strongman will be sworn in as Prime Minister on Monday. The highest-ever tally in the Lok Sabha elections has helped BJP secure a majority on its own, thus raising hopes of big-bang reforms to revive the economy. In Asia-Pacific, the rupee's gains versus the US dollar are followed by the Rupiah (Indonesia) that has appreciated 4.6 per cent, New Zealand dollar's 3.75 per cent rise and Australian currency's 3.5 per cent rise. The Yen (Japan), the Won (South Korea) and the Ringgit (Malaysia) have gained between 2-3 per cent in this calendar year so far. Philippines Peso has appreciated 1.6 per cent against the US dollar, followed by 0.5 per cent uptick in Thailand's Baht and Singaporean dollar. While the Hong Kong dollar is almost unchanged since 2014 started, the Taiwan dollar and Chinese Yuan have lost value. Some analysts, however, feel that the Indian rupee faces risk of some depreciation after its recent strong show. "While Indian rupee is expected to depreciate slightly against the USD from current levels (we pencil USD/INR to hover around 60 for this fiscal year), we expect it to gain against Yen and Swiss Franc," said a report from ICICI Bank Treasury Research Group.

CM Omar Abdullah finally receives invitation for Narendra Modi's swearing-in ceremony

Jammu: The Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir, Omar Abdullah said that Prime Minister designate Narendra Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee has invited him for the swearing-in ceremony to be held on May 26. Omar told reporters "As a CM, I have been sent an invitation card by President. Also, I have received a letter from Narendra Modi regarding invitation." Omar had tweeted on social networking website Twitter that he has not received the invitation for Modi's swearing-in ceremony. He had tweeted "Let me say this here rather than individually to those asking - no, I haven't received THE invitation. Can't consider what hasn't arrived." On being asked if he will attend the ceremony, Abdullah said "If the PM of Pakistan can come all the way from Islamabad then the CM of Jammu & Kashmir should also attend the ceremony as it can turn out to be the start of an important phase for the state." He further said that there might be no time for Modi on Monday during the swearing-in ceremony to exchange words with everyone. He stated "I have no illusions about the fact that any substantive discussions will take place with any of us attending the swearing-in ceremony. There is enough time for the state government to start talking to the people at Centre." He said "Let the Foreign Minister, Defense Minister, Home Minister and other Ministers take charge of their departments and then we will start talks on important issues of Kashmir."

Boko Haram militants kill dozens in latest Nigeria attacks

Suspected Islamist Boko Haram gunmen rampaged through three villages in northern Nigeria, killing 28 people and burning houses to the ground in a pattern of violence that has become almost a daily occurrence, according to police and witnesses. All three attacks happened on Thursday in remote parts of Borno state, the epicentre of Boko Haram’s increasingly bloody struggle for an Islamic kingdom in religiously mixed Nigeria. One took place right next to Chibok, by the Cameroon border, from where more than 200 school girls were abducted last month. The most deadly was in the town of Kerenua, near the Niger border. Scores of militants opened fire on residents, killing 20 of them, and burned houses, a police source said. Since the girls’ abduction on April 14, at least 450 civilians have been killed by the group. A spate of bombings across north and central Nigeria has killed hundreds, including two in the capital Abuja and one in the central city of Jos on Tuesday that killed 118 people. In a sign Jos could be targeted again, a suicide bombing on Saturday that was meant to target an open air viewing of a football match in the central Nigerian city of Jos killed at least eight people before reaching its target, a witness told the media. The bomber approached Jos Viewing Centre while people were watching Real Madrid play Atletico Madrid, but failed to get there before his car exploded, Mohammed Shittu, a local journalist at the scene said. The source said some phone signals to the militants had been tracked to Niger itself, suggesting they may have been directed from there. Dozens had been wounded by bullets, he said. Another attack occurred in a small village of Kubur Viu, a few kilometres away from Chibok, resident Simeon Yhana said. The police source concurred with the attack and toll.

Matar ki khasta potli to rajbhog: Mouth-watering snacks to be served to guests at Narendra Modi’s swearing-in ceremony

New Delhi: Narendra Modi who led Bharatiya Janata Party to a thumping victory in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls will be sworn in as the 15th prime minister on Monday in the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhawan amid ground-to-air security cover. The much-talked about swearing-in ceremony of Modi is expected to see 2,500 guests including Bollywood stalwarts Amitabh Bachchan, Rajinikanth and singer Lata Mangeshkar. According to reports, the menu includes mouth-watering delicacies which have largely been kept vegetarian. Dhokla, rasgulla, rajbhog, imarti, kachauri, matar ki khasta potli, sandwiches, cutlets, vegetarian kebabs, khandvi, cold drinks, tea and coffee will be included in the menu for guests. It is expected that some non vegetarian snacks will be served to foreign invitees. The swearing-in ceremony of the 15th Prime Minister of India would be attended by nearly 3,000 guests, including top leaders from SAARC countries like Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Following in the footsteps of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Modi had expressed his desire to be sworn in at the forecourt so that a large number of visitors can be accommodated for the ceremony. Earlier, Chandrashekar was another Prime Minister who had taken oath at the same venue.

The historic Durbar Hall of the Rashtrapati Bhawan is the usual venue for such ceremonies. But since it can accommodate about 500 people, the forecourt was decided as the suitable venue. Known for his decisiveness and governance skills, Modi will be heading the first government in 30 years where a single party has the absolute majority. It has been a remarkable journey to the top during which he has been pilloried by his critics and adored by his supporters who believe he will pull India out of the rut in which it is stuck.

"I believe God has chosen me," Modi had said in the course of his relentless and focused election campaign that got BJP its highest-ever tally of 282 seats, 10 more than the required majority number in the 543-member Lok Sabha, and catapulted the former Gujarat Chief Minister to the pinnacle of power. The BJP leader himself saw a combination of a very strong anti-Congress wave "together with an equally strong wave for BJP and its NDA partners" during the marathon campaign and seized upon these to decimate the UPA.

A ground-to-air security cover on par with the Republic Day parade is being put in place for the swearing-in. Delhi Police said a multi-layered security ring is being thrown around Raisina Hills and all offices around it will be closed five hours before the event takes place. "The offices around Rashtrapati Bhavan will be shut at 1pm following which they will be sanitised by security agencies. The security will be on par with R-Day parade," said a senior police official. Sources said that IAF will put in place an air defence system to secure the skies and snipers will be deployed on all high-rise buildings around the high-security area. Police said all roads around Raisina Hills that lead to Rashtrapati Bhawan will be barricaded as part of the security measures. Mobile hit teams, anti-aircraft guns and sharpshooters of NSG will also be deployed besides paramilitary personnel and Delhi Police commandos to secure the area. Arrangements are being made at Rashtrapati Bhawan for all the visiting VVIPs who will also be accompanied by their diplomatic teams, official sources said. Rashtrapati Bhawan is giving the final shape to the preparations, which have been underway for the past few days. The sprawling forecourt lawns of Rashtrapati Bhawan are ready for the gala swearing-in ceremony. The lawns have been filled with chairs and arrangements are being made for visitors to brave the summer heat in the national capital.

Sharif's daughter's persuasion a strong reason behind his visit, know all about Maryam Nawaz

New Delhi: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's daughter, Maryam on Saturday hoped for a new start of peaceful Indo-Pak relations, saying both the countries should bury the enmity & start afresh. Maryam wrote on micro-blogging website Twitter - “Why India and Pakistan have to be the prisoners of the past? Should bury the enmity & start afresh.” Pakistani Prime Minister’s daughter Maryam is not just a pretty face but she also happens to be very close confidante of her father. Among those who pressed Sharif to accept the invitation to attend the swearing-in ceremony was Sharif's daughter Maryam Nawaz Sharif, a politician of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz).

"I personally think cordial relations with new Indian government should be cultivated. It will help remove psychological barriers, fear and misgivings," Maryam Sharif tweeted a day ago. After her father accepted the invite, she tweeted today: "Aggression is easy to start but difficult to end... Brutality and force are tools of the immoral ... " on the hashtag pakindiarelations, PTI reported. Former Pakistan envoy to the US Sherry Rehman had tweeted on May 21: "It won't change the game, not yet, but PM Sharif may start an important journey for India and Pakistan by accepting Modi's invite for oath-taking. Speaking to an English news channel, Maryam today said, “Both Prime Ministers will have to rise to people's aspirations.” “Heartening to see paradigm shift in thought process,” she added on being getting a invitation from Narendra Modi. Maryam added, “The real test of visionary leadership & true statesmanship lies not in picking fights & imperiling innocent lives, but to prevent them.”

Maryam had been preparing for a political role all her life. She has a Ph.D. on post-9/11 radicalization in Pakistan, she’s fluent in four languages (including Arabic), chairs the family’s charity organizations, and devours post-colonial literature. As part of her political rollout, Maryam propagates the cause of education and women’s rights. Her back story is familiar, and fascinating. Fourteen months after her father’s government was ousted by Gen. Pervez Musharraf on Oct. 12, 1999, Maryam and 22 members of her family were packed off to Saudi Arabia. Exile lasted seven years. Musharraf wrote in his autobiography, In the Line of Fire, that the military courts only spared Nawaz Sharif’s life because of pressure from the Saudi monarch.

Maryam had earlier said, ‘The man who once said Nawaz Sharif and his party were history, and would never be allowed to return, himself had to leave the country. Let’s call it divine retribution.’ Musharraf’s coup had thrust Maryam and especially her mother, Kalsoom, into the spotlight. With almost all the Sharif men in jail, the former first lady took over the reins of the PMLN, leading defiant, lonely protests against the Musharraf regime. Soon enough, both mother and daughter were placed under house arrest. When they gained their freedom four months later, they were running from prison to prison, hearing haplessly the charges of corruption, terrorism, and tax evasion against Nawaz Sharif.

The PMLN came back as a political force in the 2008 elections and has been roundly criticized for appearing to be soft on terrorists and sectarian groups and for failing to revive the Punjab’s economy. But Maryam champions minorities’ rights, disapproves of politicians fraternizing with banned militant organizations and she wants any organization that violates the law to be “strictly dealt with.”

Like her father, Maryam speaks passionately about the sins of military dictators. She has spoken against Musharraf for drafting Pakistan in the U.S.-led war on terror. Maraim in an interviews to Pakistani media had said, “Since General Musharraf enjoyed no legitimacy at home and no credibility abroad, he was desperate to make up for these shortcomings by handing over the country to the Americans, in the process he gained a lot, but where did it leave the country? Thousands of Pakistanis have lost their lives, entire villages have been laid to waste, and the scourge of militancy and terrorism are deeply afflicting the country.”

Pakistan, Sri Lanka to release Indian fishermen as goodwill gesture ahead of Modi's swearing-in

New Delhi: The President of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksa and Pakistan has ordered the release of Indian fishermen a day ahead of Modi's swearing-in ceremony. The Sri Lankan President ordered the release of all Indian fishermen on Monday as a goodwill gesture to mark Narendra Modi's swearing-in ceremony on May 26. According to the presidential spokesperson, Rajapaksa ordered the release on Sunday, a day ahead of his visit to New Delhi. It is notable that India was one of the 12 nations that abstained from voting on the UNHRC resolution, which prescribed an international probe into Sri Lanka’s alleged rights abuses. Rajapaksa tweeted on Twitter "As a goodwill measure on the occasion of Narendra Modi's swearing-in, President instructs officials to release Indian fishermen in custody." Also, Pakistan has decided to release 151 fishermen, who were arrested for allegedly entering into their territorial waters by Pakistan's marine authorities, on the same day as well. Pakistan's Nawaz Sharif and Sri Lanka President Rajapaksa are invited for swearing-in ceremony of PM designate Narendra Modi. A team from Gujarat has been sent to receive the fishermen to be released by Pakistan at Wagah border on Monday. A state government official said that the Indian fishermen will be brought to Veraval in Gir Somnath district. Thereafter, they will leave for their residence.

Terror outfits oppose Sharif's decision to accept Modi's invite

New Delhi: Prime Minister-elect Narendra Modi's invitation to Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif to attend his oath-taking ceremony and his acceptance has got varied reactions ranging from caution to commendation. Pakistan's jihadis and religious hardliners are up in arms over Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's decision to accept Narendra Modi's invitation to attend his swearing-in ceremony, with Lashkar-e-Tayyeba founder Hafiz Saeed linking the visit to the Kashmir dispute and describing it as a move to appease India. Even before Pakistan's Foreign Office announced Sharif's decision to go ahead with the visit after prolonged discussions with political parties and the powerful military, Saeed told a gathering of extremist groups in Lahore: "Listen Nawaz Sharif sahab, if you go, what answer will you give to the Kashmiris?" On Saturday, Saeed, accused of masterminding the 2008 Mumbai attacks, went a step further and asked Sharif to review his decision. "Instead of appeasing India, Nawaz Sharif should represent nation's aspiration by reviewing his decision to visit Modi's oath-taking ceremony," he tweeted. Addressing the gathering of hardline groups in Lahore, Jamaat-e-Islami secretary general Liaqat Baloch warned Sharif against any hasty step and said: "These Hindus are not anyone's friends." Sharif set aside pressure from jihadis and the army when he decided to attend Modi's swearingin ceremony on May 26. The Pakistan government took three days to respond to the invitation issued on Wednesday - an indication of the pressures associated with the issue. "Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will be flying to India on May 26 to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi. Both leaders will meet on May 27 to discuss bilateral issues," Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesperson Tasneem Aslam said. Sharif has spoken of a "new beginning" with India since he was elected as PM for a third term last year and insiders said it was his daughter Maryam Nawaz who pushed him to accept Modi's invitation. "I personally think cordial relations with new Indian govt should be cultivated. Will help remove psychological barriers, fear & misgivings (sic)," she tweeted.

But Sharif's attempts to reach out to India have not gone down well with the Pakistan military, which still calls the shots in deciding foreign policy, especially relations with India. The army has also been angered by Sharif's decision to put former military ruler Pervez Musharraf on trial for treason. Sharif's younger brother, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, met Army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif in Lahore on Friday and took him into confidence about the decision to attend Modi's swearing-in. Shahbaz told the general about the importance of the visit for maintaining good relations with India and for regional peace. The decision to visit India is also sensitive as Sharif's government is engaged in a faceoff with the military over the Geo TV network's allegation that the ISI was involved in an attempt on the life of popular anchor Hamid Mir. The government has sided with the media group, annoying security agencies. There was no reaction from the Pakistan Army to Sharif's decision, but sources said the high command didn't appreciate the move. The premier will be accompanied by a high-power delegation that includes Sartaj Aziz, his advisor of foreign policy, Special Assistant Tariq Fatemi and Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry - an indication that Pakistan wants to take up substantive issues at the meeting with Modi.

Lashkar-e-Tayyeba founder Hafiz Muhammad Saeed Hafiz Saeed continues to move freely across Pakistan and spew hatred against India and the US despite a $ 10 million bounty announced for him by the American administration in 2012. On hearing that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had accepted the invitation to participate in Narendra Modi's swearing-in, Saeed said: "If you visit India to attend Modi's swearing-in ceremony, how will you be answerable to the Kashmiris?" Though the UN Security Council declared Saeed's Jamaat- ud- Dawah a front for the LeT for its role in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, the group has not been banned by Pakistan. The government of Pakistan's Punjab province, ruled by Sharif's PML-N party, has even allocated funds in its annual budget for JuD's main centre. Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin Syed Salahuddin has personally participated in recruitment and fund-raising activities in the Pakistani garrison city of Rawalpindi in recent years. Though no longer as powerful as he was about a decade ago, he continues to control both the Hizb and the United Jihad Council, a grouping of militant organisations with deep roots in Kashmir. While continuing to oppose the normalisation of ties with India, Salahuddin would play a key role in effort by the Pakistani military to revive militancy in Jammu and Kashmir.

Roadwork all around: Haze of dust causing breathing problems

ISLAMABAD: Health experts have expressed concern over the rising dust pollution due to the ongoing construction work on various roads in the twin cities. Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) senior chest physician Dr Asadullah Nemati said that on average, he receives 30 patients with nose and eye allergies and frequent asthma attacks. “Even asthma patients, who usually get better by this time of the year, have not recovered and the condition of some of asthma and bronchitis patients is getting worse instead of improving,” he said while addressing dust-related health problems. He said that he was also regularly treating patients from areas of Rawalpindi, where roadwork is underway. “They are suffering from severe coughs, flu and eye irritation,” he said. Dr Nemati said that although people cannot outright-avoid dust and air pollution due to the ongoing work, they should use alternate routes where possible and wear masks and glasses while passing through areas where work is in progress. Polyclinic Hospital spokesperson and head of the hospital’s emergency department Dr Tanveer Malik said that over 100 people suffering asthma attacks, eye and flu allergies visited the hospital during the last 24 hours. He said the number is unusually high for this time of the year, while adding that many are of the patients are labourers working on the road projects. A senior pulmonologist at Holy Family Hospital in Rawalpindi who wished not to be named said due to the rising dust in the air, an increase of 20 to 25 per cent in the number of asthma and allergy patients has been witnessed. He was of the few that due to high temperature, motorists without air-conditioned cars roll down windows and get exposed to the dust in the air. “Even masks cannot help them avoid inhaling dust particles,” he said. He said that labourers engaged in the construction work were highly vulnerable to dust particles and allergies as they rarely wear face masks. Ayesha Fiaz, an asthmatic resident of Satellite Town, said it has become “terribly difficult” for her to breathe. “Every day it is a challenge for me to go out of my house to pick-and-drop my children at school because of this dust. In the last month I have had three severe asthma attacks,” she said. Former Pak-EPA director-general Asif Shuja said that the metro bus project is one example of a project being started without prior approval from the Pak-EPA. “The moment they submitted the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report, they started construction work without waiting for the standard 90-day period to get feedback from Pak-EPA,” he said. Shuja said air pollution in Islamabad was 72 micrograms per cubic metre against the national standard level of 40 micrograms per cubic metre. “After this construction work, it is estimated that it has increased from 72 to around 100 micrograms, which is worrisome for the capital’s residents,” he said. He said that the wind coming from Rawalpindi was further accentuating air pollution in Islamabad, as dust particles coming from that direction begin hovering over the capital due to the catchment area created by the Margalla hills. On reducing dust levels, Shuja said rains would provide temporary respite, but also suggested increasing watering of areas where construction work is ongoing so that fewer dust particles rise and the airborne levels do not get to the point where they create problems for residents. Published in The Express Tribune, May 25th, 2014.

Sugar mill tragedy: CM distributes Diyat money to affected families

Chief Minister (CM) Pervez Khattak at a ceremony held on Saturday distributed cheques amounting to Rs28 million to those affected by the poisoning incident in Ramak village, DI Khan earlier this month. According to a handout, the amount was given as Diyat, or blood money, to compensate the families of the 10 people who died, and the nine others who fell severely ill from toxic fumes produced by Chashma Sugar Mill. During a reconciliation jirga on May 21, a Diyat agreement was signed by all parties involved in the incident including the mill’s management. As per the jirga’s decision, the latter was to compensate the families of those killed with Rs2.5 million each, and Rs0.5 million for others impacted. The mill will also build a bridge at the place where the incident occurred and will set up a treatment plant at the site to prevent the release of poisonous gases and waste in the future. At the occasion, Khattak told the DI Khan administration to submit an enquiry report of the incident so as to fix responsibility and punishment. According to DI Khan Commissioner Mushtaq Jadoon, who was also present at the ceremony, they have already given compensation on behalf of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority and the district administration amounting to Rs100,000 each of those killed and Rs50, 000 for others affected. The CM further asked that Rs2 million be released on behalf of the provincial government as well. Published in The Express Tribune, May 25th, 2014.

Taxing the bourse: Government likely to fix capital gains tax at 12.5%

ISLAMABAD: In a likely breakthrough over capital gains tax (CGT) rate on income from shares trading, the federal government may reduce the tax burden by over 28% and fix the CGT rate at 12.5% for next fiscal year 5% lower than the rate that has to be applied from July. In return, the government may amend the definition of short-term period for capturing longer periods to make for the losses that it will incur due to the reduction in rates. It could increase the holding period from six months to one year for charging taxes on short-term holdings, official sources in the Ministry of Finance told The Express Tribune. The likely scenario is emerging following an informal compromise between the bigwigs of the stock exchanges and the federal government, they added. As per the compromise, the government may reduce the tax rates but it will increase the tenure from six months to one year for short-term selling and from one year to two years for long-term holding period, they added. Likely, under the new arrangement, the shares sold after two years will be exempted from CGT instead of one year. The proposal to enhance the period is being considered to avert any criticism for giving concessions to a sector that’s taxed far below its potential, according to tax experts. But independent tax experts say the losers will be small retail traders of the shares who will pay higher rates than the prevailing rates. According to the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, CGT on shares sold within six months of purchase will go up from existing 10% to 17.5% from fiscal year 2014-15, beginning from July. Under the same law, the CGT on shares sold after six months but within the same year has to go up from existing 8% to 9.5%. The selling of shares after one year are currently exempted from the CGT. The new scenario is emerging following an assurance given by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar to the brokers’ representatives during a meeting of the Tax Advisory Council (TAC) held last week. Budget proposal According to the proposal that the government may submit to the parliament as part of next year’s budget, the tax rate on shares sold within a year may be 12.5%, which will reduce the tax liabilities of the sellers by 28.5%. According to the original plan, which has already been amended twice by the previous government, the CGT rate for the outgoing fiscal year should have been 15%. However, the previous government struck a compromise with the brokers and agreed to freeze the tax at 10% while postponing its gradual rise to 12.5%, 15% and eventually to 17.5% on holding period of less than six months. The rate of CGT on shares sold after one year but within two years could be 10%, which is 5.3% higher than the previously agreed rate of 9.5% for the next fiscal year. Currently, the gains made on shares sold after six months but within one year are charged at the rate of 8%. According to FBR officials, the CGT collection from the stock market in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year stood at Rs1.5 billion. Last year, the FBR had received Rs1.25 billion. Taxes collected from the stock market do not match the strong performance of the Karachi bourse, experts say. Karachi Stock Exchange’s (KSE) market capitalisation rose to Rs6.9 trillion by May 8 this year, a phenomenal growth of 37% compared to the corresponding period of previous year, according to figures presented to the federal cabinet by Dar. Abdul Qadir Memon, a Karachi-based tax expert who raised the CGT issue during last week’s TAC meeting, had warned that any increase in tax burden over the prevailing rates will be a setback for the capital market. He had suggested that it was not the right time for the tax increase, which may also damage government’s privatisation programme. Published in The Express Tribune, May 25th, 2014.

OGRA scam: ‘NAB charges against former SSGC heads questionable’

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has implicated top officials of Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) in the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) scam, but the charges framed against them appear to be questionable. In the reference prepared by NAB, it was alleged that Zuhair Siddiqui and Azeem Iqbal Siddiqui as managing directors of SSGC had acted illegally by curtailing gas supply to private power and captive power plants from 2008 to 2010. However, evidences presented before the Accountability Court revealed an interesting fact that neither Zuhair nor Azeem were managing directors of SSGC between 2008 and 2010. Azeem was appointed managing director in 2011 whereas Zuhair took over in November 2012. The officials who had been managing directors of the company between 2008 and 2010 were not questioned at all by NAB and they were actually responsible for the illegal steps. Developments over the past two hearings revealed that the reference filed by NAB pointed to certain steps taken by the accused over the past several years, but the documents submitted as evidence along with the reference contradicted the allegations. The counsel for the accused argued that given the fact that neither of the two were managing directors during the period mentioned by NAB, the court could not frame charges against them. Another allegation against them was that as managing directors of SSGC, they granted compressed natural gas (CNG) licences, though there were restrictions placed by the government. Their counsel argued that this was perhaps the most absurd statement in the case since CNG licences could only be granted by the industry regulator, Ogra. “No employee of SSGC, whether he be the MD or not, has any authority to issue CNG licences,” he said. The counsel also pointed out that NAB had accused SSGC Secretary Yusuf Ansari of holding a power-of-attorney on behalf of the company and termed illegal such an act of delegating powers. However, he said high courts had entertained those petitions and there was no illegality in the company secretary holding the power-of-attorney on behalf of the board. Lastly, the counsel for the accused, SSGC Director and Supreme Court Advocate Mirza Mahmood Ahmad, submitted that NAB had accused him of appearing as counsel for the company in “sheer conflict of interest”. He said Ahmad represented Minto & Mirza law firm for SSGC before the Sindh High Court and quoted the law and memorandum and articles of association of SSGC, which expressly allows a director, or a firm in which the director is a partner, to render services for the company in which he is a director. The counsel also said payments were made to Ahmad’s law firm and not in his name. NAB was depending on key witness Anwar Ali Sahto, a former employee of SSGC who was fired in 2012 for threatening his colleagues, misusing SSGC’s resources, false payment receipts to the company and extorting money by blackmailing fellow colleagues. Published in The Express Tribune, May 25th, 2014.

Surgical strikes: Dozens of families flee N Waziristan

MIRAMSHAH / BANNU: Dozens of families packed their bags in Mirali tehsil and made a beeline for Bannu city and other parts of the country following Saturday’s curfew break in North Waziristan Agency on Saturday. At the same time, a few traders also opened shops and started business activities in the troubled tribal agency. However, many tribesmen in Mirali and Machis Camp in Miramshah, headquarters of the agency, rushed to the market to dig out valuables from the rubble of their homes that were flattened by shelling. Independent sources from the area said more than 80 people, mostly militants, were killed in the targeted operation in the agency while around 100 were injured and many arrested by security forces backed by helicopter gunships, tanks and heavy artillery. They said many suspected militants hideouts were also destroyed. Another source said important militant commanders – including Uzbek Commander Abu Ahmad, Commander Qanoni, suicide bombers’ commander Sabir, Commander Gilamand, and Commander Jihad Yaar – were also killed in Wednesday’s shelling. A tribesmen from Machis Camp, Gul Daraz Khan, who was sitting and crying on the rubble of his house, said he was out of the area when the bombing started, adding that everything was destroyed. “However, I am only worried about my father who is buried deep in the rubble of my house, upon which I am sitting right now,” he said. Gul Daraz later on joined other tribesmen in pulling out the body of his dead father from the debris. Haji Pir Muhammad Khan, who has a poultry farm in Mirali, said every building including his own house was destroyed except for the poultry farm. “I don’t know how the farm remained safe in the shelling,” he said, adding that four members of his family were killed in the heavy bombing on Mirali Bazaar. Miramshah Government Degree College’s principal Sultan Khan, using the loudspeakers of a local mosque, informed all the students in the area to come to the college on Monday for their chemistry paper and two practical exams, which were suspended due to ongoing curfew in the area. On Saturday afternoon, the district government officials in Bannu imposed curfew on the main routes of the district leading to DI Khan, Peshawar and North Waziristan. A district government official said curfew was imposed due to the movement of security convoys to North Waziristan Agency, adding that they would lift the curfew at night once the troops reached their destination. Published in The Express Tribune, May 25th, 2014.

Faisalabad power show: PTI prepares for massive muscle-flex rally

FAISALABAD: As the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf gears up for its power show at Dhobi Ghat on Sunday (today), several impediments and distractions, ascribed to the district administration, have propped up throughout the city. PTI officials claim that the government has “gone all out in creating hurdles”. From permit restrictions and road constructions to lack of security and threatening transporters, the party leaders claim that they have had to fight tooth and nail to make the demonstration possible. They allege that the government had initially refused them permission to host the demonstration at the historic Dhobi Ghat but gave in when they threatened to demonstrate in front of the district coordination officer’s house. PTI chief Imran Khan and other party leaders are scheduled to address the gathering. More than 20,000 chairs have been set up at Dhobi Ghatt. The ground has also been decorated with flexes and large posters emblazoned with Khan’s pictures. PTI Central Executive Committee member Dr Asad Muazzam told The Express Tribune that the demonstration will be a historic event which will “jolt the castles of rulers who have fooled the nation for decades”. He said the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz had promised to provide people basic amenities after coming to power. “It seems that they have forgotten their promises and have left the people to deal with the worst crises in Pakistan’s history which keep aggravating by the day.” Security arrangements Police personnel supervised by Madina Town Superintendent Nasir Ahmad Sial flag-marched in the city on Saturday in connection with the demonstration. More than 40 police vans traversed from Liaquat Road to Chiniot Bazaar Chowk, Kotwali Chowk to Imam Bargah Chowk, from behind the GC University to Nishat Cinema, Narowala Road to Katchery Bazaar, Rajbah Road to Jhang Bazaar Chowk, Novelty Bridge to Samundri Road, D-Type Colony to Satiana Road and D-Ground to Koh-i-Noor Chowk to ensure security at the demonstration. City Police Officer Dr Haider Asrif said women’s police force had also been summoned to check and ensure security for women at the event. He said eight superintendents, 12 deputy superintendents, 40 inspectors and 2,860 policemen have been deputed to ensure security at the protest venue. He said sniffer dogs would be used to clear the stage area. Plain-clothed and uniformed police commandos will be posted around the stage and at all entrances to Dhobi Ghat. No one will be allowed to enter the venue except via the walk-through security gates, he said.Special police commandos have been deployed at buildings around the venue. PTI Central Media Coordinator Rizwan Chaudhry said, “We requested security for Sunday’s demonstration but were told to post our volunteers.” He said the government was employing “cheap tactics” to hinder the demonstration. “We have been told that there are security concerns while they are arranging a public concert on the same day. How do they plan to arrange security for that?” As many as 500 PTI members have volunteered to ensure security at the venue, Chaudhry said.“Ensuring security is the government’s responsibility. This is a peaceful protest in which citizens will be participating. The government cannot be absolved of its responsibility.” He said the government had also threatened transporters with cancellation of their permits if they facilitated crowds to the demonstration. The office of the Faisalabad district coordination officer (DCO) says all security arrangements and administrative matters have been taken up with the PTI leadership. Riaz Anjum, PSO to the DCO, told The Express Tribune that the DCO had held a meeting with PTI leaders and they had seemed satisfied with the arrangements. Rejecting claims of any compromise regarding security arrangements for the demonstration, Anjum said as many as 3,000 police constables had been deputed. “The arrangements have been made while keeping our standard security precautions in mind.” Wooing the crowd The administration has also announced a free musical night at Bohranwala Ground on Sunday evening. PTI members say this is a bid to distract crowds from their demonstration. Famous Indian and Pakistani singers have been invited to perform at the concert. Lucky Irani Circus has been invited to set up the big top on Sunday to coincide with the PTI’s show. Tickets will be sold at discounted rates. Several roads, including Jail Road, Jhang Road, Susan Road and Radio Pakistan Road, leading to Dhobi Ghat have been dug up for re-carpeting. Asad Muazzam of the PTI criticised the administration for arranging the musical night on the same day and time and said “such tactics cannot save the rulers from the wrath of the nation”. He said people were aware of the government’s ill-conceived and anti-people policies. PSO Anjum rejected the PTI officials’ claims regarding the recent re-carpeting of all major arteries leading to the venue. “All road constructions have been in progress since March,” he said. “Our deadline for these roads is June 30 and such constructions are taking place with the deadline in mind.” He said the government was not trying to affect the turnout at the PTI rally. The permit for holding the rally, he said, was granted under conditions which are standard for any such activity. Published in The Express Tribune, May 25th, 2014.

Pope makes West Bank plea for protection of children

JERUSALEM: Pope Francis made an impassioned plea Sunday for the protection of children at a mass in Bethlehem’s Manager Square in the West Bank, where rights groups say minors are mistreated by Israel. “Children are crying, they are crying a lot, and their crying challenges us,” the Argentine pontiff told thousands of Roman Catholic pilgrims in Bethlehem, revered as the birthplace of Jesus, on the second day of his Middle East pilgrimage. “All too many children continue to be exploited, maltreated, enslaved, prey to violence and illicit trafficking. Still too many children live in exile, as refugees,” said the pontiff, famed for defending the sick, poor and downtrodden. Francis was speaking ahead of a meeting with children in the Dheisheh refugee camp and a lunch with refugee families in a huge morale boost for Palestinians, who have called on him to help end Israeli occupation. The pope made an unscheduled stop at the West Bank barrier after calling for an end to the “increasingly unacceptable” Israeli-Palestinian conflict before dedicating his mass to the theme of children. He lambasted those who abandon children to sickness and hunger, a weapons trade that funnels arms into the hands of child-soldiers and those who use the slave labour of minors to produce their goods. “Their cry is stifled: they must fight, they must work, they cannot cry! But their mothers cry for them. They weep for their children, and they refuse to be consoled,” he said. Children are “a marker indicating the health of families, society and the whole world,” Francis said, speaking in front of a giant tableau of the birth of Jesus. International rights groups have heavily criticised the treatment of Palestinian youngsters by Israel’s military, with a report this month finding increasing numbers of arrested minors are placed in solitary confinement. Under international pressure to introduce reforms, the Israeli army agreed last year to try alternative treatment of children detained in the West Bank, but the UN Children’s Fund has warned of ongoing physical violence and verbal abuse. A 2013 Unicef report found Israel was the only country in the world to systematically try children in military courts, often after being aggressively awakened in the night by armed soldiers, blindfolded and deprived of sleep. The vast majority of arrests are for throwing stones.

Delhi meet-up: Will it be more than just a courtesy call?

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s meeting with Narendra Modi on May 27 will be more than a courtesy call, which Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) officials are – surprisingly – not resisting. On Friday, S Akbaruddin, the spokesperson for India’s external affairs ministry, was quite cut and dry about Nawaz’s visit: “It is normal practice that when a senior leader comes to your country as a gracious host you also have short meetings as courtesy and as a gesture to the incoming guest.” But BJP officials maintain that the meetup will be more than just a courtesy call, extending over half an hour. The party is also aware that the bilateral talks could touch a raw nerve in its core constituency, and has taken to insisting that Modi’s bilateral talks with Nawaz and others would be more in the spirit of familiarisation meetings than something with any substantive diplomatic agenda. BJP leader Arun Jaitley tweeted that courtesy calls should not be treated as diplomatic meetings.

Shooting at Brussels Jewish Museum leaves three dead

BRUSSELS: Two women and a man were killed and one person seriously injured during a shooting at the Jewish Museum in central Brussels on Saturday, with Belgian officials saying anti-Semitic motives could not be ruled out. A spokeswoman for Brussels prosecutors office said there was no clear information about the perpetrator, although a fire brigade official said earlier that the shooter had driven up to the museum, gone inside and fired shots. “Regarding the motive, we have little information. Everything is possible,” Ine Van Wymersch told a news conference. “We know that the location, the Jewish Museum in Brussels, makes one think of it being an anti-Semitic attack, but we do not have enough to confirm this is the case.” Belgium's interior minister, Jolle Milquet, was quoted by the RTBF Belgian television station, saying: “It's a shooting ... at the Jewish Museum ... All of this can lead to suspicions of an act of anti-Semitism.” Police cordoned off the area around the museum in central Brussels, a busy tourist district packed with cafes, restaurants and antique furniture shops. An annual outdoor jazz concert due to be held in a popular square near the museum was called off. A man seen by witnesses driving away from the scene was questioned in connection with the shooting, but officials were not certain if there had been one or more perpetrators, or whether the man had been involved. “The link between this person and the incident is not clear. The person does admit being present,” Van Wymersch said. No information was released about the nationality of the victims or whether they were tourists or museum staff. They had been shot in the face and neck, and the injured person's condition was life-threatening, the spokeswoman said. Officials said earlier the victims were two men and one woman. High Alert Security around all Jewish institutions in the country has been raised to the highest level, and Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo met with police and senior officials to discuss the situation. About half of Belgium's 42,000-strong Jewish community lives in Brussels. Jewish community officials drew parallels between the shooting and the 2012 killing of four Jews in a school in France by an al Qaeda-inspired gunman, Mohamed Merah. “This really reminds of what you experienced in France with Mr. Merah attacking a Jewish school,” Maurice Sosnowski, president of the Coordinating Committee of Belgian Jewish Organizations, was quoted saying by BFM TV. “This is appalling. I would never have imagined something like that happening in Brussels.” He said no threats have been issued to the Jewish community. World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder urged Belgian authorities to protect Jewish sites in the country. “Two years after Toulouse...this despicable attack is yet another terrible reminder of the kind of threats Europe's Jews are currently facing.” On Sunday, Belgium holds a general election and throughout Europe, voters will choose the next European Parliament. Foreign Minister Didier Reynders, who was in the area at the time of the shooting, said witnesses had told him the suspected shooter was carrying bags when he entered the museum. “I was in the neighbourhood. I saw two people on the ground and with other people, we called the emergency services,” he told French BFM TV. “Witnesses told me that the suspected shooter was carrying bags when he entered the museum so it was urgent for the police to check that nothing had been left inside the museum.”

FBR proposes audit of tax returns before submission

ISLAMABAD: The government is expected to introduce fresh regulations in the next finance bill to rein in sales tax evasion by outsourcing the task of verifying the authenticity of filed returns to chartered accountants. This is one of the main proposals sent by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to the finance ministry for inclusion in next month’s budget. Under the new rules, returns filed by commercial entities will have to be verified by a chartered accountant, so that any irregularities are weeded out. The government hopes this will curtail sales tax evasion which costs the exchequer an estimated Rs500 billion every year. Sources tell Dawn this proposal is inspired by the United Kingdom’s model, which has been using this practice to minimise tax fraud and ensure a better tax-to-GDP ratio. Move aimed at stemming tax evasion But according to former FBR chairman Abdullah Yousuf – who is also a chartered accountant – the proposal is not likely to capture the imagination of the top leadership, adding that such measures are more effective in documented economies where all expenditure of tax payers’ money is a matter of public record. Mr Yousuf said the quantum of tax evasion is higher in Pakistan because the economy mostly operates on cash transactions, which are undocumented. He recommends that the FBR would be far more successful if it were to focus on enforcement. However, the FBR holds that problems such as input or output adjustment of sales tax and the issue of flying and fake invoices can be addressed by incorporating accountants into the process. There is an impression within the tax department that certain ‘unscrupulous tax advisers’ are helping taxpayers evade their liabilities. However, this claim cannot be substantiated through documentary evidence. According to the fresh proposal, the filing of 12 monthly sales tax returns should be replaced by four quarterly filings. As a test case, quarterly filings may be made mandatory for certain select sectors. This move will also make things easier for commercial entities, which won’t have to file monthly returns. In order to be submitted, these returns must be certified by a chartered accountant who will vouch for the authenticity of the information that has been declared. In case fraud is detected, the accountant concerned will also be held accountable and penalised accordingly. The tax department will not accept returns that are not duly endorsed and bear the certificate of a chartered accountant. A tax official told Dawn the chartered accountant certifying returns would be held personally accountable for their actions and omissions. Therefore, the accountant will have to ensure that no tax fraud has been committed in the sales tax returns filed. Moreover, the chartered accountant would be carrying out an audit of the company every quarter, which would ensure timely depositing of tax in the national exchequer. “The onus of substantiating the declared returns would be on the chartered accountant,” the official added. But Dr Ikramul Haq, an accomplished tax lawyer, went one step further and recommended that tax officials also be held responsible for massive instances of tax evasion. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

Obama puts drone strikes in Pakistan on hold: CNN

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama has put drone attacks in Pakistan on hold, CNN reported on Saturday, noting that Islamabad’s decision to step up its military actions in Fata contributed to the decision. The report pointed to a combination of factors which contributed to the cessation of dro­ne strikes in Pakistan since the beginning of the year. These included President Obama pushing for a more calibrated use of drone strikes, decimation of “high value” targets in the tribal areas and a strong “pushback” from the Pakistani public and governm­ent who saw the drone strikes as a violation of their sovereignty. “And the fact that the Pakistani government is stepping up its own military operations” also encouraged the US to reduce strikes, the report added.—Correspondent Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

Bikes’ import thrives, used car arrivals plunge

KARACHI: Import of motorcycles, new and used, registered a sharp increase while arrivals of second-hand cars tumbled during the first 10 months of this fiscal year. Rising interest of young generation towards used heavy bikes propelled imports thus pushing the two leading bike assemblers to introduce brand new bikes. In contrast, imports of used cars have been falling due to cut in age limit to three from five years and reduction in depreciation limit by the government. Figures released by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) showed 374 per cent jump in bike imports to $4.6 million in July-April 2013-2014 as compared to $971,000 in same period last fiscal year. The trend of imports of heavy bikes has shown positive growth in 2012-2013 as it went up by 90pc to $1.5m as compared to $785,000 in 2011-2012. On the contrary, imports of cars (over 90pc used cars), plunged by 43.6pc in July-April 2013-2014 to $159.6m from $283m in the corresponding period last fiscal. Total imports of complete built unit (CBU) cars fell by 16pc in 2012-2013 to $313.6m from $375m in 2011-2012. The PBS figures did not mention number of bikes and cars in the above importing periods. Local assemblers have been active in bringing brand new costly cars, SUVs and bikes which are definitely not aimed for local assembly in Pakistan in future due to their higher engine power and meteoric prices. However, the assemblers, while trumpeting of achieving higher localisation for more job creation and vendor development in every forum, have been actively importing these vehicles. They have already marketed cars like Toyota Hybrid Prius, Toyota Land Cruiser, Toyota Prado, Toyota Camry, Toyota Avanza, Daihatsu Terios, Honda Accord ad Honda CR-V to lure a selected class. Atlas Honda introduced brand new imported 150cc and 500cc bikes at Rs660,000 and Rs1.25m respectively. Pak Suzuki Motor Company’s imported Inazuma 250cc, Intruder 800cc and Hayabusa 1,300cc bikes, which were priced Rs675,000, Rs1.5m and Rs2.4m respectively in four to five months back, now carry price tags of Rs725,000, Rs1.6m and Rs2.5m. Out of two leading assemblers, one of them had also raised prices despite rupee appreciation against the dollar. Chairman Association of Pakistan Motorcycle Assemblers (APMA) Mohammad Sabir Shaikh said that heavy bikes are more popular in some big cities of Punjab as compared to Karachi where sales volume is slow. Due to rising number of imports many people have opened service outlets in Punjab and in Karachi dealing only in heavy bikes. “Arriving under various government schemes, the prices of bikes of two to three years old start from Rs500,000 to Rs2.5m to Rs3m and this price is certainly not a problem for the young elites of Pakistan,” he added. He claimed that in total imports, the share of used bikes of Japanese, European and American brands is higher than the brand new heavy bikes. A Japanese bike assembler had sold over 60 units of heavy bikes in the country in the last eight months, he added. Sabir said the government is also getting good revenue from the import of heavy bikes and even in some cases cumulative taxes and duties cross Rs1m per bike. He said assemblers are not importing these heavy bikes for any future local assembly in Pakistan due to their very limited customers and exorbitant prices. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

Investors’ protection in case of broker default

KARACHI: The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) proposes to set up ‘Securities Investor Protection Corporation’ (SIPC). The purported objective is “to address investors’ complaints in case of default by a brokerage house”. As the stocks continue to climb on a vertical limit with the KSE-100 index nearing the 30,000-level, the inevitable blizzards have forced regulators to beef up the protective measure, lest the roof comes crashing down. Zafar Abdullah, Commissioner Securities Market Division at the SECP, told Dawn that the purpose of SIPC - to be established on the models of those in US, China and Malaysia - was to “protect investors against unfair trade practices and misappropriation of clients’ assets by a broker”. India was also in the process of introducing the SIPC in near future. The SECP Commissioner pointed out that following the stock market crisis of 2008, the securities markets were seized with two new phenomenons, not seen before: Misappropriation of clients’ money/securities by the stock brokers and their tendency to take the money and run. The latest in the link is the recent Highlink Capital (Pvt) Ltd brokerage, a Lahore-based broker firm, against which clients’ have already filed complaints to the tune of Rs200m. While the proprietor of the Highlink was nabbed by NAB, several defaulters had managed to flee in the chaos of the 2008 crisis, one big absconder broker, Munir Ladha of Eastern Capital brokerage is believed to be enjoying lavish lifestyle in Canada funded by the stolen money of hundreds of ruined account holders in his firm. Zafar Abdullah stated that the SIPC would be a statutory set-up under the second generation reform fully supported by the government. All stakeholders were expected to chip in seed money in the SIPC, but the structure was not yet quite clear. A senior KSE official claimed that currently, the KSE holds a comfortable sum of over Rs4bn under two funds: “The Clearing House Protection Fund” and the “Investor Protection Fund”. The first relates to payment by the Exchange in case of ‘default’ by a broker while the second relates to compensate losses of investors in case of broker ‘suspension’. Every broker can avail up to Rs50m from each of the two funds. In the crisis of 2008, almost 10 brokers went broke and all were ‘suspended’; none however turned ‘defaulter’, according to a broker familiar with the affair. Following the demutualisation of the exchange, the older methods of recovery from distressed broker through the sales of his membership card was no more, which was replaced by the Basic Minimum Capital (BMC) to compensate clients. Where the recovered sum was not enough to satisfy claims of all clients against a broker in 2008, the distribution was made pro-rata. “The then managing director of KSE sat across the table of the grumbling investor and gave him the Hobson’s choice: accept what is offered or nothing at all”, a small investor who had to forego substantial sum in claim says. However, a senior official of the exchange pointed out that investors’ claims to the tune of Rs1.5bn had been cleared, by settling clients’ claims to 100pc where amount under Rs0.5m was involved; 70-80pc on claims of sums between Rs0.5 to Rs1m and 30-40pc for claims above Rs1m. The KSE official could not give the aggregate sum in claims against all brokers, but the senior official at SECP thought it was in the range of Rs4bn. The SIPC, when in place, would take away the right now enjoyed by the exchange to be the jury, judge and executioner in case of losses suffered by investors at the hands of brokers. “SIPC will be a sovereign institution to be run by carrier professionals, senior judges, bureaucrats and professionals,” the SECP official explained. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

Dollar back to Rs100 on higher demand

KARACHI: The US dollar crossed the Rs100-benchmark in the open market towards the end of this week, after almost one and half months stability, said currency traders. The sudden jump in the greenback’s value came as rich Pakistanis are set to fly abroad with their families to enjoy summer vacations. “The dollar crossed Rs100 by mid of the day but returned back to Rs99.85 by the close,” said Anwar Jamal, a currency expert and money changer. The greenback remained below Rs100 for more than six weeks but it breached the limit on Thursday as it was traded at Rs100.20. It again traded above Rs100 on Saturday but slipped back to Rs100. “The dollar demand has increased substantially because of buying by individuals ahead of summer holidays,” said Jamal. Money changers said the buying trend is not new since hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis travel abroad in summer, either to enjoy the tour or to join their families living abroad. Many out of millions of Pakistanis living all around the globe also invite their families in their respective countries. However, other buyers were the people leaving for Umrah close to Ramazan and those preparing for Hajj. According to money changers, the balance of demand and supply has changed as the demand rose to 60 per cent while supply is not more than 40 per cent. They said buying pressure will continue. The inter-bank market did not reflect the change in the exchange rate but currency experts said the pressure was mounting in the open market, not in the inter-bank. Foreign exchange reserves of the country have increased to over $13bn, including $4.8bn of private banks. The fairly large size of the reserves has kept the exchange rate unchanged in the banking market. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

PM approves two IPP-based coal power plants in Gadani

LAHORE: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has given approval for two additional coal-fired power plants in Gadani under independent power producer (IPP) mode. The prime minister was presiding over a meeting to review the pace of work on Gadani power project here on Saturday. He said sufficient funds would be allocated for the projects. He also appreciated Chinese investment in energy sector and especially Gadani Power Park. Sharif said attractive tariff had drawn foreign investors in coal-fired power projects. Earlier, the premier was given a briefing on the status of the project. He was informed that the feasibility study of the infrastructure installation would be completed by the end of next month which included geo-technical investigation, water resource survey, jetty break water and cooling water intake system. The environment impact system study will be completed by June 30. The work on land levelling and grading on the site would start within three weeks and completed in as many months. The prime minister was also briefed about the coal handling and conveying system infrastructure would be installed in 22 months. Similarly, jetty breakwater and allied infrastructure would be completed in 32 months. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

More than 200 Sikhs booked

ISLAMABAD: Over 200 Sikhs were booked for attacking, assaulting and rioting at the Parliament House, police said on Saturday. The case was registered in response to a complaint lodged by the SHO of the secretariat police station, stating that over 225 Sikhs staged a protest and put up resistance at Radio Pakistan Chowk, when the police tried to intercept them. Later, they entered the Parliament House after breaking its gates. Fifteen Sikhs were nominated in the FIR, along with 225 unknown protesters. However, no arrests were made and the 12 Sikhs arrested from the spot at the time of the incident were released on the directions of a legislator, the police said. The police officials said the incident took place as there was no clear policy. The officers deployed at the spot sent wireless messages, seeking instructions, but got no response. As a result, the protesters first thrashed the police at Dhokri Chowk and later at Radio Pakistan Chowk and moved towards the Parliament House, the police said, adding that they tried to baton charge the protesters and fired tear gas shells but failed to intercept them. Later, the policemen deployed at the Parliament House surrendered their posts to save themselves from being manhandled by the protesters. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

3G, 4G licences’ auction challenged in IHC

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) will take up a petition filed against the auction of 3G and 4G licences on Monday. The petitioner Chaudhry Mohammad Akram Sajid in his petition alleged that the federal government had auctioned 3G and 4G licences at a throwaway price giving huge loss to the national exchequer. Besides, he alleged that the auction of 3G and 4G spectrum was made in violation of Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) rules. Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) initiated the process of 3G and 4G licence on March 17 when it published the final Information Memorandum. Pakistan raised $903 million through auction of 3G and US$210 million through the auction of 4G spectrum. The petitioner contended that the PTA chairman had violated the provisions of Information Memorandum, PEPRA and alleged that it reduced the 3G and 4G spectrum price in collusion with the existing telecom operators (bidders), causing major loss to national exchequer. He said in India 3G spectrum auction fetched $22 billion whereas in Pakistan it brought less than $1 billion to the exchequer. The petitioner cited Federation of Pakistan through Secretary Ministry of information technology, chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Pakistan Mobile Communication Limited (Mobilink), Telenor Pakistan, s Pakistan Telecom Mobile Limited (Ufone), CM Pak Limited (Zong) and Warid Telecom as respondents. It said that there are rumours that Warid was purposely kept out of the bidding process but even then the said telecom company is going to launch 4G service, which was evident from the recent text messages to its customers. He contended that since Warid had not participated in the bidding process, it should not be allowed to use 3G and 4G spectrum. The petitioner said the entire auction process, including fixing the reserve price and last minute change in number of 3G spectrum lots, lacked transparency. The petitioner requested the court to declare the bidding process as illegal and unlawful and restrained the telecom operating companies from using 3G and 4G spectrum. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

Foreigners’ security to be stepped up

RAWALPINDI: After recent target killings in the city, the Punjab Home Secretary Azam Suleman on Saturday alerted police and all the security agencies. He also directed that a special security plan be prepared for Ramazanul Mubarak and steps be taken to promote religious harmony and discourage and eliminate sectarianism. He was speaking at a high level meeting which was attended among others by the Punjab Inspector General Police, Khan Baig and Commissioner Zahid Saeed. The Punjab chief minister took serious notice of the target killings in Rawalpindi and asked the home department and police to maintain law and order and improve the security of foreign investors in the district. The home secretary said that the Punjab government has initiated various mega projects in energy and transport sectors and foreign engineers and experts were also working on these projects and for this reason, special attention be given to the security of foreigners. No negligence or slackness would be tolerated in this respect, he said. He said the officers of security agencies should work hard for strengthening and improving security measures as without peace and security, development was not possible in any country. IG Police Khan Baig underlined the need of using all security equipments including high quality cameras and other detecting equipments to keep a check on anti-state elements. He said that police should maintain coordinated liaison with security agencies and supervision be ensured specially in border areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He also directed foolproof security at airport, important installations, sensitive and public places. Commissioner Zahid Saeed said that close cooperation was being ensured with all security agencies for maintaining peace in the division. He said foolproof security would be provided to foreigners working on various developmental projects in the division. RPO Akhtar Hayat Lalika gave an update of law and order situation in the division and informed the meeting that police was utilising all available resources to maintain law and order and ensure security. He said that a comprehensive security plan would be prepared for Ramazan. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

Imran promises ‘change’ in three months

ABBOTTABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan has said that the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will witness a real change in their lives in the next three months. He made these remarks while addressing a public gathering at Pattan Kalan on Saturday in connection with the by-elections for PK-45 Abbottabad, which are scheduled to be held on June 5. The provincial assembly seat was vacated by Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan after assuming charge as governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Six candidates are in the run for the PK-45 seat. However, tough contest is expected between Sardar Mehtab’s cousin Mohammad Farid contesting the elections on PML-N ticket and Ali Asghar Khan, divisional president and central vice-president of PTI. Imran Khan said that after the local government elections in the province the development work would be geared up and it would be the start of fulfilling the PTI’s promise to empower people at local level. He said that PTI wanted to devolve power to masses to free them from the clutches of the elite class, who were interested only in increasing their bank balances. The PTI chief said that currently more and more people were going below the poverty line while the ruling class, which had shifted their wealth to foreign countries, was getting richer and richer. He asked the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leaders to bring their own wealth back to Pakistan instead of asking other people to invest in the country. “The rulers should lead by example,” he said. Regarding the transparency of by-elections, Mr Khan made it clear that they would hold free and fair elections and that win or loss was part of the process. The PTI chief said that two parties were playing the game of musical chairs in the country from the last 30 years, but now the people had realised that the country should get rid of all those who had plundered the national exchequer. He said that the loot and plunder of national wealth was still continuing and poor people’s funds were being spent by the rulers lavishly on their security and other things like the recent purchase of two vehicles at a cost of Rs220 million. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

Eight Levies personnel shot dead near Wadh

QUETTA: At least eight levies personnel were killed and one levies personnel was injured on Sunday when unidentified gunmen open fired at a checkpost near Wadh tehsil on the Quetta-Karachi Highway. The attack occurred at the Johar checkpost. Police personnel and rescue teams immediately reached the site of the incident and shifted the injured to Khuzdar Civil Hospital. Secretary Home and Tribal Affairs Balochistan, Akbar Hussain Durrani claimed that the area has been cordoned off as a search operation is underway. —

Political ownership sought for military action in Fata

ISLAMABAD: Imran Khan, the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), has asked Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to “immediately take the national political leadership into confidence on the state of dialogue with the militants and the nature of the ongoing military operation in North Waziristan and its authorisation”. “It is equally important to give political ownership to any military action being contemplated as our brave soldiers continue to be martyred while the government maintains an inexplicable distance and silence on the prevailing state of affairs,” he said in a statement on Saturday. Mr Khan expressed his “serious concerns” over recent military strikes in the region and termed it “a clear beginning of a full-fledged military operation in the NWA”. The core committee of the PTI, after receiving a briefing from the party’s nominee in the talks with militants, had urged the government to resume the peace process and make efforts to end a deadlock. The PTI chairman said it was the prime minister’s responsibility to ensure that civilians were evacuated as had been done in Swat before a military operation. Instead, he alleged, reports were already coming in from North Waziristan about civilian casualties as people were caught in the middle of aerial bombings and helicopter gunship attacks. The prime minister, he said, had a “unanimous national political mandate” to carry out dialogue for peace and he had failed to inform the nation and its leaders about the status of the dialogue and authorisation of the operation. Mr Khan said this showed callousness on the part of the government towards the people of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas who were citizens of the country. He said that already there were almost two million displaced people who were living in bad conditions and had almost been forgotten by the state. The PPP and other parties have also urged the prime minister to inform the nation and the parliament as to why the government had to resort to aerial bombings in North Waziristan when the talks process had not been officially suspended. The Awami National Party and the Balochistan National Party have urged the government to convene an in-camera session of parliament to brief the legislators on the status of the talks and the reasons for launching the military operation. The PTI chief said the dialogue with the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) had resulted in a sharp decline in terrorism, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He said the main tribes in Waziristan had also fully supported the talks and the ceasefire. “That is why it is incomprehensible why the talks would be undermined at this stage or why the political leadership would be kept in the dark by the government on the actual status of the talks and the operations.” Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

Twin blasts a warning from militants against Waziristan operation

SLAMABAD: The two explosions in the capital city early Saturday were described as a warning from militant outfits against the military operation in North Waziristan. A senior police official on the condition of anonymity told Dawn that the explosions were carried out to create panic and terrorise the citizens. “It was a warning from the militants affiliated with terrorist outfits,” he added. “The terrorists wanted to warn the government to get ready for more brutal acts of terrorism in the city against the killing in North Waziristan by security forces,” the official said, adding warning in such a way was never given in the past. Police say booby-trapped IED used in capital for the first time Besides, evidence collected from one of the blast sites showed that it was a booby trap which was never used in the capital before. “It is difficult to defuse a booby trap as it goes off when someone touches it.” The official said the modus operandi used in carrying out the two blasts suggested that they were prepared by a same group. One person was killed and another injured in one of the blasts. In both the incidents, improvise explosive devices carrying low density materials weighing one to two kilogrammes were used, the police said, adding there were no pellets, ball bearings or shrapnels attached with the IED. The bombs exploded at Super Market and G-9 Markaz at round 2:15am and 3:40am respectively. The first blast took place in a parking area in the Super Market in which a man was killed and another injured. The police said the watchman of a jewellery shop found an abandoned shopper in the parking lot. When the watchman touched the shopper with his foot, the device concealed inside it went off ripping his leg part.

Scenes from the blast sites in G-9 sector (L) and Super Market in F-6 (R). — Photos by Tanveer Shahzad The police said after the blast shrapnel falling from the nearby shops hit another watchman and injured him. “It seems that the device was made on the pattern of a booby trap,” the police said. The casualties would have been more had the device remained unattended till the morning rush hours, they added. The second blast took place in a car parked at the parking lot of a showroom at Karachi Company (G-9 Markaz) when the police were busy collecting evidence at the Super Market blast site. However, no one was injured or killed in the explosion, the police added. The Cultus was brought to the showroom for sale two days back. The device used in the blast resembled with the one that went off in the Super Market. However, it is yet to be established how it was detonated.Meanwhile, security in the capital city has been further tightened with the deployment of more policemen at various points to avert any untoward incident. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Mohammad Ali Nekukara ordered combing and search operations in the slum areas, forests and greenbelts of the city. Extra vigilance at entry and exit points of the city has also been ordered. The SSP directed for extra deployment of police personnel and security measures at important locations. He said police commandoes would be deputed around sensitive locations and important buildings. Special police teams would be constituted by each police station for effective patrolling in their respective jurisdictions, he said, adding that Rescue-15 should keep in touch with the heads of police stations to respond to any emergency situation. Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2014

Clash leaves eight militants, two soldiers dead in Landikotal

PESHAWAR: At least eight militants including a commander and two security personnel were killed on Saturday evening in a clash in Landikotal Tehsil of Khyber Agency after a security vehicle was ambushed by the militants. “Two soldiers embraced shahadat (martyrdom) and three others injured this evening in an exchange of fire with terrorists in Landikotal, Khyber,” said an ISPR statement issued to journalists. “Eight terrorists including one of their commanders were killed in exchange of fire,” it added. Pakistani military sources told Dawn.com that the Frontier Corps (FC) vehicle was targeted near Hamza Baba Chowk by militants, killing two personnel and injuring the third. The security forces repulsed the attack killing eight attackers including a commander. A militant was arrested in wounded condition also. The clash took place the same day when at least six security officials were killed and one injured as an improvised explosive device (IED) targeted a security forces' convoy in Mohmand Agency. Security forces have pounded militant hideouts in different parts of North Waziristan during the past couple of days, stepping up pressure on militants in the tribal region. The operation began a day after military planes and helicopter gunships attacked suspected militants’ hideouts in Miramshah and Mirali sub-districts. Officials put the death toll at 71 which, they say, include local and foreign militants. Residents, however, put the casualty figure at 80, including women and children.

Pakistan, China air forces begin joint drills “Shaheen-III”

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China have begun their third joint air exercises, code named “Shaheen-III” at an operational base in Pakistan, a PAF spokesman told Dawn.com on Saturday. “A contingent of People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF), comprises combat pilots, air defence controllers and technical ground crew besides a Pakistan Air force (PAF) contingent are participating in the exercises,” said Air commodore Tariq Mehmood. He said the PLAAF contingent is comprised of J-10 and J-7 combat aircraft where as JF-17 Thunder, Mirage and F7 PG combat aircraft of PAF are participating in the exercise. Shaheen-III is the third in a series of multidimensional joint air exercises with PLAAF conducted annually on alternate basis in both the countries. Shaheen-II was conducted in China last year. “The Air Exercises between the two professional Air Forces would not only cement the already existing friendly bonds but would also give an opportunity to learn from each other’s combat experience,” the PAF spokerem quoted Air Chief Marshal Tahir Rafique Butt as saying while witnessing the exercises. The air exercise is being conducted in “near real scenario” and will provide an opportunity to combat crew of both the air forces to accustom themselves with the latest concepts and practices, Butt commented. The air chief expressed his satisfaction on the professional acumen of the participating combat pilots and technicians of the air exercise. Air Commodore Mehmood said the Pakistan Air Force has been regularly participating in a number of international air exercises with some of the best air forces across the globe, including United States Air Force (USAF), Italian Air Force, Turkish Air Force (TuAF) and other allied countries.