News4u-News Desk-ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s electronic media watchdog has sought the people’s cooperation to black out Indian television channels on domestic cable networks, conceding that some of them had resurfaced after recently being taken off the airwaves.
Acting on an order of the Supreme Court, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) recently barred cable operators from relaying Indian channels that do not have landing rights for the country.
Among the channels taken off cable networks were highly popular ones like Star Plus, Star Movies, Star One, Sahara One, SET Max, B4U Music, Zee Music, Zee Cinema, Peace TV and Quran TV.
The move irked viewers across Pakistan, especially the numerous fans of Indian soaps and Bollywood movies.
“There are as many as 2,500 cable operators working throughout Pakistan. To monitor what all of them are airing is, at the moment, not possible for us. That is why we request the public to come forward and approach us if they see any cable operator going against the apex court’s orders,” PEMRA chairman Mushtaq Malik said.
PEMRA has 150 staff members to ensure the implementation of its rules and orders.
The public will have to approach the body in case there is any violation of the court’s orders, Malik said. “We will dispatch raiding teams to ensure the ban and legal proceedings could be started for this violation.”
Malik said after the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr festival, PEMRA will boost its monitoring ability from 15 to 50 channels.
The standing committee on media of the Senate or upper house of parliament has consistently demanded a ban on Indian content aired by cable operators. Through resolutions, the panel has urged local television channels to stop showing . pti
News4u-News Desk-Lahore, (PTI)All 28 people detained as suspects in connection with the lynching of two young brothers in the Pakistani city of Sialkot have been arrested following the detention of three policemen, including the head of a police station who had tried to evade the authorities.
Police presented police station chief Rana Ilyas, who was absconding since the incident occurred on August 15, and two constables before an anti-terrorism court that is hearing the case and obtained physical remand for three days yesterday.
The other accused, including former Sialkot police chief Waqar Chohan, have already been remanded to judicial or police custody by the same court.
Dozens of suspected robbers and dacoits have been lynched by the police or mobs since Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s PML-N came to power in Punjab over two years ago.
News4u-News Desk–Peshawar, (PTI) The Vice Chancellor of a university in this restive city in northwest Pakistan was today kidnapped by unidentified men, police said.
Islamia College University Vice-Chancellor Muhammad Ajmal Khan was abducted as he came out of his residence in Professors Colony on Jamrud Road to go to office.
A group of armed men forcibly took control of his car and sped with Khan to an unknown location.
The restive tribal belt is located a short distance from the Professors Colony.
Lutfullah Kakakhel, the Vice Chancellor of Kohat University of Science and Technology, was recently abducted at gun-point in the country?s northwest recently.
He was released after being held for over six months when his family paid a huge ransom.
News4u-Sports Desk-The recent spot fixing scandal which has engulfed the Pakistan cricket has prompted a concerned Pakistan government to launch investigations into the assets of national cricketers.
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) moved in quickly and issued a directive to its regional offices to prepare details of players’ vehicles, plots, agricultural farms, bungalows, national as well as international bank accounts and all the movable and non-movable assets.
It also asked its regional income tax offices to ascertain details of income of Pakistan captains, coaches, managers, commentators, selectors and other office-holders for the last five years and provide their national tax numbers as well.
Israr Rauf, a senior FBR official in Lahore, said that the regional income tax offices have been directed to submit details of the national cricket team members’ income sources and check whether the players or officials are submitting their income tax returns or not.
He said that all the players and officials will also be asked to submit wealth returns by 30th September.
Rauf said details have also been sought from the Pakistan Cricket Board regarding the amounts paid to its Chairman Ijaz Butt, other office-holders, selectors, players, coaches, managers and journalists during the last five years.
Meanwhile, former opener Yasir Hameed claimed he was tricked into giving the statements which accused his teammates of fixing “almost every match”.
Hameed backtracked on the allegations against his teammates and claimed he was blackmailed to stand by them by the British tabloid ‘News of the World’.
Hameed was summoned to the Pakistan High Commission in England for a meeting with High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hasan in London on Sunday.
After the meeting, the Pakistan Cricket Board’s legal advisor Tafazzul Rizvi released a statement on behalf of Hameed.
In the statement, Hameed said that he was offered money and even blackmailed to stand by the remarks attributed to him in the video which he claims was shot without his knowledge.
“I would like to respond to comments attributed to me by the News of the World today. I wish to stress I have never been approached by the NOTW and neither did I approach anyone connected with the News of the World to disclose any allegations concerning the Pakistan cricket team or any other players,” Hameed had said in his statement.
News4u-News Desk-A suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden vehicle into a police station in northwest Pakistan Monday, killing at least 20 people, including 11 policemen and four schoolchildren.
The attacker targeted the main police station in Lakki Marwat, a key city in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, shattering the premises with the blast leaving 40 others wounded.
The police station, a nearby mosque and a government office collapsed while portions of two other government buildings were damaged.
The bomber struck at 7 am, when most of the 45 policemen at the station were asleep following ’sehri’, the pre-dawn meal partaken ahead of a day-long fast during the Islamic holy month of Ramzan. A school bus was passing the area when the blast occurred.
A live electric wire fell on the vehicle, killing four children and injuring several others. At least 10 policemen were among the injured.
Several of the injured were in a critical condition, officials in local hospitals said. Local residents joined rescue operations and rushed the injured to hospital in private vehicles.
The bomber targeted the police station from the rear as its front side and entrance were barricaded with cement blocks, officials said. Experts of the bomb disposal squad said over 40 kg of explosives were used in the attack.
Officials said they feared the death toll could rise as rescuers were still clearing the rubble of collapsed buildings.
Police cordoned off the area and launched a search operation. No group claimed responsibility for the attack. Lakki Marwat has witnessed several deadly terrorist attacks that targeted members of anti-Taliban militias and policemen.
In January, a Taliban bomber blew himself up at a football ground on the outskirts of city and had killed nearly 100 people. The people were targeted as they had resisted the Taliban’s efforts to infiltrate the area.
News4u-News Desk-PTI-ISLAMABAD: A handful of Pakistani Muslim youths are beginning to question the existence of God and in the process giving up Islam to become atheists.
Still a small number, the trend seems to be telling of pressures that the image of militant Islam has had on them. A Facebook group has been floated for Pakistan’s agnostics and atheists by Hazrat NaKhuda, a former Pakistani Muslim.
At last count, the group had over a 100 members. In a thread started on the discussion board on “How did you become an atheist”, Hazrat writes, “I used to be a practicing Muslim. I used to live in Saudi Arabia. I have done two Hajs and countless Umrahs. Used to pray five times a day. When I turned 17-18, I realized that the only reason I was a Muslim was because my parents were Muslims”.
Hazrat is a young computer programmer from Lahore. Ahmed Zaidi (name changed), another member, posted on the discussion board: “I’m an agnostic simply because I see little or no evidence for the existence of God. Some time ago I decided that I’d never believe anything unless it has a firm basis in reason and as far as I know (and I admit I know very little and there’s much to be learnt), there’s little or no evidence for the existence of God.”
The group, open strictly to members, has young Pakistani students studying in New York University to Oxford University to the prestigious Lahore University of Management Sciences as members.
Nawab Zia (name changed) wrote that the moot question is not “how did you become an atheist” but “how did you become a believer”. Every child is born free and pure” Ali Rana (name changed), who loved Islamic preacher Zakir Nair and hated author Salman Rushdie, has had a change of heart too. He now thinks Nair is an “idiot” and Rushdie a genius. There are other threads on how the members “wasted” their years as theists.
More serious issues, like whether there should a column marked “no religion” while applying for passports, have also been discussed. “Last time I went to get my passport renewed, I found there is no option called “no religion”. Next time I go to make my passport I don’t want to put in Islam as my religion,” said one member.
What connects members, who range from students to computer professionals to architects, is their urgent need to question religion.
News4u-Sports Desk-London/Karachi, Yasir Hameed, who has made damning revelations about match fixing involving Pakistan cricket players, today said that he was offered money and even blackmailed to stand by the remarks attributed to him.
Hameed has come up with a detailed explanation to his side of the story about how the ‘News of the World’ newspaper released a video of him in which he accuses Pakistani players of fixing matches and losing deliberately.
Tafazzul Rizvi, the legal advisor of the board released a statement on behalf of Yasir after the test batsman was called to the Pakistan High Commission for a meeting by the High Commissioner, Wajid Shamsul Hasan with PCB chief, Ijaz Butt and Tafazzul also attending the meeting in London.
News4u-Sports Desk-England129 for 5 (Morgan 38*, Yardy 35*) beatPakistan126 for 4 (Umar 35*, Swann 2-14) by five wickets
Eoin Morgan and Michael Yardy steadied England’s nerves with a game-breaking stand of 67 in 7.1 overs, as Pakistan succumbed to a five-wicket defeat in the first Twenty20 at Cardiff. Chasing a meagre total of 127 after Graeme Swann had bossed the contest with a sharp-turning and incisive spell of 2 for 14 in four overs, England were at one stage in some strife at 62 for 5 at the halfway mark of their innings. However, Shoaib Akhtar undermined a feisty bowling spell with a dreadful fielding performance, as Pakistan’s bid for on-field redemption after a week of grim allegations floundered at the first attempt.
The critical moment of England’s innings came in the 12th over, with the game still in the balance at 77 for 5. Morgan, on 13, unfurled his trademark reverse sweep against the legspin of Shahid Afridi, and chipped a facile chance to Shoaib at short third man. The chance, however, slipped straight through his fingers and down to the turf, and with it – there and then – went the match. Morgan shifted effortlessly into one-day finishing mode, clipping and dabbing six fours in an unbeaten 38 from 24 balls, while Yardy, also dropped on 11 by Kamran Akmal, followed up an invaluable bowling performance with a Man-of-the-Match-winning 35 from 26.
After winning the toss after a half-hour rain delay, in overcast conditions that matched the prevailing mood after a week of damaging and distracting off-field issues, Paul Collingwood chose to bowl first to keep his team on the right side of any potential Duckworth-Lewis calculations. He was rewarded with a diligent display that kept Pakistan’s big-hitters very much in check throughout, and though England themselves dropped three catches of varying degrees of difficulty, they conceded just eight fours in the innings, no sixes (for the first time inPakistan’s T20 history), and a solitary extra in the 19th over.
Ryan Sidebottom, one of the key components of England’s World Twenty20 triumph back in May, opened the innings with a loose over that was biffed for 12, but that was arguably the only moment that Pakistan were in command of their innings. Two balls later, Kamran heaved across the line for Tim Bresnan to make England’s first breakthrough, and Pakistan struggled to regain the upper hand thereafter.
Playing in his second Twenty20 and his first for four years, Mohammad Yousuf played some extravagant lofted drives in a carefree 26 from 18 balls, but Swann made his now-habitual early impact, striking with his fifth delivery as Morgan pouched a lofted pull at midwicket. Two overs later, Shahzaib Hasan was dragged down the track and smartly stumped by Steve Davies, who took over from Michael Lumb at the top of the order, and claimed the gloves off Craig Kieswetter to boot.
With extravagant turn on offer right from the start of the spinners’ spell, Yardy once again put in an admirable spell, and was rewarded with a sharp caught-and-bowled to end a frenetic but uneffective innings from Fawad Alam, who groped and prodded to 20 from 29 balls, but never looked likely to dominate the bowling. Afridi was much more effective in his 16 from 14 balls, even though he benefitted from two lives in a single over from Stuart Broad – the second of which was a dolly to Luke Wright, running in from the long-on boundary. Abdul Razzaq, with 49 sixes in his Twenty20 international career, didn’t make it to the middle.
In reply, England made an awkward start with Kieswetter’s struggle for form continuing. He made 6 from seven balls before wafting at Shoaib and scuffing a thin edge to Kamran , while Ravi Bopara, slotting in at No. 3 in place of the out-of-form Kevin Pietersen, made 11 from 13 balls before Mohammad Yousuf – not renowned as the finest fielder in the world game – backpedalled admirably on the long-on boundary to cling onto a steepling thwack, again off Shoaib.
Davies looked lively for his 33 from 27, before whipping Umar Gul off his hip and straight to Wahab Riaz at square leg, while Afridi – with typical flamboyance, struck twice in two overs to remove Collingwood for 4, as he inside-edged onto his stumps, and Luke Wright for a second-ball duck, as he lined up a sweep and was bowled round his legs. But then came Shoaib’s clanger, and England didn’t look back. cricinfo
News4u-News Desk-Another batch of nearly 100 fishermen, who were captured by Pakistan and released couple of days ago, reached Rajkot on Sunday from where they departed for their respective towns, officials said.
A batch of 100 fishermen had come on Saturday and now another batch of 100 fishermen have reached Rajkot, Senior fisheries official V S Mali said on Sunday.
Pakistan has decided to release 442 Indian fishermen out of which 200 have already been released, while remaining 241 would be gradually set free next week in two batches, the official said.
“I am the only bread earner in my family and I cannot afford to be in jail and now I have decided to give up my fishing profession,” one of the fishermen released by Pakistan, Babu Rana said.
While another fisherman Shamji Koli said he would choose any other business but never go for fishing in future.
Most of the fishermen denied being tortured by the Pakistanjail authority.
News4u-News Desk-London, (PTI)A former Pakistani Test cricketer has alleged that a national player had hidden a mobile phone inside the right earpiece of his helmet while waiting to bat during an international match.
Under ICC’s regulations, players are not allowed to use cell phones on the ground during international matches, a move designed to prevent communication between match-fixers and players during matches.
The annonymous player has passed on the information to the International Cricket Council’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit.
“My reaction was one of disbelief,” said the former Test player said.
“I had reason to suspect things were going on in international cricket, and you never had total confidence in certain games because of the rumours about match fixing and spot fixing.
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