Nawaz, Maryam and Capt. Safdar plead ‘not guilty’ when indicted in NAB references
Ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and her husband retired Captain Safdar pleaded not guilty when indicted by an accountability court in Islamabad on Thursday regarding a reference pertaining to the Avenfield flats filed against them by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
Following the indictment, the pleader of the accused read out the following statement:
“I do not plead guilty. Charges are not only groundless, baseless and unfounded but also frivolous, and on top of that, we are being denied our right to fair trial. The charges are being framed on a report that is incomplete and controversial. It will go down in history as [a] mockery of justice and travesty of justice. Moreover, the charges are being framed without awaiting the detailed order of the Supreme Court in the review petitions.”
Former women’s hockey team goalkeeper accuses head coach of assaulting her
Former goalkeeper for the women’s national hockey team Syeda Sadia has accused Saeed Khan, the team’s head coach, of assaulting her. Sadia, who is also captain of the Railways hockey team, says that Khan harassed and assaulted her on the night of October 8 after an argument.
Sadia claims to have stayed back in Lahore after not making it to the national side in trials held on October 6 because her manager had asked her to stay till her dues were cleared.
On 8 Oct, Sadia said the coach asked her to leave the hockey stadium immediately. She further added that Khan abused her verbally and then forcefully tried to enter her room, gagged her and held her hand but was forced to release her after she tried to scream and run. She claims other players who witnessed the assault and rushed to help her were told to turn back by the coach.
Read here, for more information on the incident.
Jamaat-ul-Ahrar chief, 9 associates killed in US drone strike
Chief of banned Taliban-linked militant outfit Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA), Umar Khalid Khorasani and nine of his associates were killed in a United States drone strike in Afghanistan’s Paktia province with the news being confirmed in a telephone call by JuA spokesman Asad Mansoor to AFP from an undisclosed location.
Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA) had claimed responsibility for many deadly attacks in the country, including a suicide bombing in a park in Lahore on Easter Sunday last year that killed 75 people including many children.
The recent unprecedented increase in drone strikes in the Pak-Afghan border region appears to be reflective of a change in policy in Washington after a North American family was rescued after being held in captivity by the terrorist Haqqani network since 2012.
Jacinda Ardern to become New Zealand’s youngest prime minister since 1856
Centre-left opposition leader Jacinda Ardern, is set to become New-Zealand’s youngest leader since 1856 and will be the third female prime minister of the nation with 4.6 million people as its population.
Her campaign for the elections consisted important issues such as housing affordability, free tertiary education, environmental action and improved healthcare.
“It is an absolute honor and a privilege to have the ability as Labour Party leader to form a government for all New Zealanders,” – Ardern told reporters.
Pakistan’s youth could decide the outcome of 2018 polls: Election Commission Paksitan
According to statistics released by Election Commission of Pakistan, the youth of the country may decide the outcome of 2018 polls since 42.4 million out of nearly 97 million registered voters are aged between 18 and 35.
The statistics that were recently released with updated figures from all the provinces of Pakistan suggest that active participation in the election by the youth could heavily impact the results of the electoral process. To know more, click here.
