Eid ul-Adha: The Feast of Sacrifice in Islam; Who should you donate your charities or the animal hide (qurbani ki khaal) to?

Please do not donate your charities or animal hide to a potentially militant, terrorist or sectarian organization. Do not offer your charities to political, ethnic, religio-political, sectarian organizations or jihadi madrassahs of any sect.

The best organizations worthy of your donations include Edhi Foundation and other similar organizations.

http://www.edhifoundation.com/

Do not consider donating to Sunni, Shia, Deobandi or Ahl-e-Hadith organizations because they will use that money for sectarian purposes. Do not donate to Jamaat Islami, Imran Khan, Lashkar Toiba etc because they may be passing your money on to support the Taliban movement. We do not want to fund suicide bombing against our own country and our own people.







(Abbas Ather)
Read more...

The Mumbai Attacks: Pakistan-India ties: time to tread carefully; time to jointly confront extremism and terrorism in the region...

Pak-India ties: time to tread carefully

The Mumbai standoff with the terrorists went into its third day on Friday with remnants of the attackers ensconced in the buildings they had occupied along with hostages, including symbolically the Nariman House Jewish centre. The death tally had gone up to 125 with 9 foreigners killed too. India is jolted and commentators are calling it India’s 9/11, the same way Pakistan called the attack on the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad Pakistan’s 9/11. In the middle of this the Indian prime minister, in a nation-wide address, said that “neighbouring nations would have to face a cost if they allowed their territory to be used to launch attacks on India”, a thinly veiled reference to Pakistan. This shows the domestic pressure he has to face, especially from the BJP and other rightwing groups who have already accused his government of being soft on the Muslims. But the statement does threaten to throw a spanner in the works of the normalisation process. For its part Pakistan has already condemned the attacks and warned that “jumping to a conclusion” won’t help either side.

It is clear that Pakistan has not “allowed” its territory to be used by Al Qaeda. In fact, it is under attack from Al Qaeda and its many affiliate groups. The last time Al Qaeda attacked inside Pakistan was when an Arab suicide-bomber blew up the Danish embassy in June this year. In September, another suicide attack destroyed the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad amid comment that it could have also targeted the Americans staying there. In Pakistan speculation was widespread about the involvement of “foreign” elements, but finally the case was cracked when on November 22, 2008 an arrested Pakistani confessed in a court that the plan to attack the Marriott had been hatched inside Afghanistan in a province used earlier by Al Qaeda for the Danish embassy blast.

The Indian prime minister’s phrase “allowed their territory to be used” brings India into the category where the US leads by holding Pakistan accountable for its lack of sovereign hold over its own territory. Pakistan’s territory was used for the 9/11 action, and today the main bone of contention are the cross-border raids being carried out from Pakistani territory against the NATO forces in Afghanistan. But India should be careful about joining this club as it would take away the option of “cooperating” with the present government in Islamabad on the rising tide of terror in the two countries.

Very thin evidence linking speed boats — and at least two “captured” Pakistani cargo ships going to Karachi off the coast of Indian Gujarat — to the terrorists positioned in the hotels in Mumbai threatens to produce a new bilateral crisis. Pakistan has issued statements from the president and the prime minister in a tone that clearly indicates sympathy and collaboration. President Zardari who took the risk of crossing the traditional nuclear “red line” by offering not to exercise its “first use” option will be put on the backfoot if hostile rhetoric now rising in India takes over. As Indian commentators speculated about Lashkar-e-Tayba and Jaish-e-Muhammad, Karachi in Pakistan was experiencing a deadly standoff between the police and what is known as Afghani Gang in Sohrab Goth, the latter liberally using hand grenades. There are reports of Talibanisation in Karachi that have divided instead of uniting the political forces there.

Pakistan faces the spread of Taliban and Al Qaeda elements southwards into the settled areas as CIA drones operate in the Tribal Areas. There is insurgency in Balochistan which is steadily killing persons suspected of being against Baloch nationalism. Equally there is the calamity of an earthquake in the province which Pakistan is finding it difficult to tackle. Relations with the US are tense over the drone attacks and Pakistan needs cooperation with its regional neighbours to avoid becoming isolated while its economy needs to be helped out of its current trough of depression. Above all, it needs understanding from India while it stands ready to share intelligence with it on the latest Mumbai bombing.

Recent events have not helped. India has been accusing Pakistan’s intelligence of having attacked the Indian embassy in Kabul with a suicide-bomber while Pakistan has alleged Indian hand in the Balochistan insurgency and even terrorism emanating from the Tribal Areas. This has been a blind continuation of allegations that began in 2001 when the Indian parliament was attacked, triggering Indian troop deployment along the border with Pakistan. This kind of “jurisprudence” is being pulled out again to explain the latest attack. “Analysis” emanating from the West about the Mumbai attack having the signature of Al Qaeda in combination with some Pakistani Islamic group has not helped either.

Pakistan needs to activate friendly diplomacy instead of “replying” to the allegations being made by upset Indians over the media. The past may have been problematic but the present clearly shows both countries afflicted by the same disease. Both need to cooperate and must stop their “proxy” war in Afghanistan. The cue for this must come from the friendly statements made earlier by President Zardari, expressing Pakistan’s willingness to move rapidly on a course of normalisation with India. (Daily Times, 29 Nov 2008)
Read more...

Indian Muslims condemn Gustakh Dr. Zakir Naik

This site has moved to http://criticalppp.com/archives/509, click this link if you are not redirected
Read more...

Mayhem in Mumbai and Pakistan's responsibility

Mayhem in Mumbai
Friday, November 28, 2008 (The News)

No words can ever be enough to condemn the horror of what has happened and continues to happen in Mumbai. Fear walks down every street in the stricken city and lurks in every building. The costs of what is being termed India's worst-ever terrorist attack will be many; the burden a fearfully heavy one to bear. A day after young terrorists, who struck almost simultaneously in at least seven places including the city's top restaurant and its two best-known hotels, wreaked havoc across the city of 15 million, killing at least 101, wounding some 300 others and taking hostage hundreds at top hotels where rescue efforts were continuing at the time of writing, fingers are already being pointed towards Pakistan. The accusations come not only from within India but from international media channels too. They may well be inaccurate, but the suspicion has been raised and Pakistan's past track record on terrorism mean they may well stick. This is especially true as a previously unknown group, the Deccan Mujahideen, has claimed responsibility, according to a section of the Indian media. This may well be jumping to conclusions as there could be any number of identities of the perpetrators of the atrocity, given the complex make-up of India's society and politics. But reports from India insinuate the guns and bombs used by the terrorists reached India aboard a ship that set sail from Karachi. Other similar accusations are too coming in only hours after Pakistani and Indian officials agreed in Islamabad that there would be no finger-pointing without evidence. Parallels are being drawn with the bombing at the Marriot Hotel. Indian intelligence, under fire for failing to pick up on the threat, is anxious to lay blame elsewhere. The awful reality of our time is that Pakistan has become the world's centre of terrorism; attacks staged around the world – whether in the US, or Europe or India – seem to link up with players within the country. Our northern areas have become a favourite refuge for men such as Rashid Rauf, recently killed in a drone strike, and for others who favour violence. From our cities, from our towns, we are accused of exporting terror around the world, acting as a source of weapons, knowhow and moral support.

This reality is a curse for Pakistan. Whereas we may only be a convenient scapegoat, it is not mere accident that has cast us in this damning role. Already, we are a nation regarded as the most dangerous in the world by some assessors. Foreign missions and agencies have deemed Islamabad too unsafe a place to station the spouses and children of staff; businessmen hesitate to come to our shores. Sportsmen now rarely visit. Condemnation from around the world is pouring in for what happened in Mumbai. Our leaders too have added their voice strongly to this – but this cannot disguise the fact that in the aftermath of what has happened Pakistan may be cast as the key culprit. The assault on the unsuspecting city of Mumbai, India's business centre and of course the focal point of its film industry comes as the peace process between the two sides was warming up. Just days before Pakistan's president had made a daring set of offers to India. But the terrorist scourge goes beyond this effort at reaching greater accord. It is today the biggest threat to the security and sovereignty of Pakistan itself. While terrorists still lurk in our hills, they will indeed be drone attacks by the US; when it is alleged ships carrying loads of ammunition for militants set sail from our shores there will be attributions of blame. There is no escape from this.

The question is what we, as a nation, can do to alter this situation and save ourselves. Too much time has already been lost. The costs -- to reputation, to investment, to the welfare of the country have been immense. Pakistanis struggle to obtain visas; colleges overseas hesitate to admit students for fear that they are terrorists. People who are entirely innocent suffer. So, what is to be done? In the first place Pakistan must remind its western allies that, once upon a time, it played an active part in building the extremist networks that have now established deep roots in our country. Powerful elements inside Pakistan of course assisted them and backed their cause through the decades, for reasons both strategic and ideological. Today, we must find the strength to beat them back. For this we must urge the US and other powers to help us. We must show true zeal, commitment and purpose. There is no alternative. For otherwise, the anger directed against in the aftermath of what happened at Mumbai will grow stronger and assume the form of a ferocious storm we may not be able to withstand.

.......

Terrorism in Mumbai and its fallout (Daily Times)

Even as India was facing the unfolding saga of Hindu terrorism whose tentacles seem to go into its armed forces, the country has been struck by another terrorist attack in Mumbai. The Wednesday mayhem will change the political paradigm in India and therefore also in South Asia. Heavily armed terrorists calling themselves the Deccan Mujahideen, a group unknown thus far, stormed luxury hotels, a popular tourist attraction and a crowded train station in at least seven attacks in India’s financial capital, killing over 100 people by latest count including the Mumbai Anti-Terror Squad chief. Analysts have cautioned against jumping to any conclusion but say the group might have some linkage with Al Qaeda or its ideology — even though until now investigators have not found an Al Qaeda spoor in the many terrorist attacks in India since 2003.

It is significant that the terrorists have targeted British and American visitors too and were holding foreigners hostage, including some European parliamentarians. Reports indicate 9 foreigners are among those killed. The grievance on the basis of which the Indian Muslim terrorists usually own up their acts has thus expanded to include a global agenda. The Deccan Mujahideen — whoever they are — while talking about atrocities in Kashmir have also thrown in references to places other than India where the Muslims are said to be suffering at the hands of America and Britain. The hidden reference is to Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan.

In the past, the reference was clearly inferred. Everything went back to the Muslim carnage in Gujarat in 2002 in which 1,100 men, women and children were killed and over 150,000 ousted from homes. At the local level, every time an act of terrorism was committed in India, Pakistan was somehow named. Ongoing investigations into some terrorist attacks that were alternately blamed on Indian Muslims and Pakistan have shown that they were actually carried out by a Hindu terrorist network. But facts aside, this is how the collective psyche of fear works. One credible event is remembered and then myths are attached to it. The same sort of thing happens on the Pakistani side. Taken together, this trend forms the brick-wall against which all efforts at normalising Indo-Pak relations come to a halt.

Luckily, when the Mumbai mayhem occurred, the two countries were engaged in a dialogue at two levels. The foreign ministers were meeting in New Delhi and the interior secretaries were meeting in Islamabad, trying to resolve disputes and raising the level of cooperation against terrorism. Pakistan was among the first countries that sent messages of solidarity to New Delhi after the Mumbai outrage by the Deccan Mujahideen. The message from Islamabad is entirely credible but will it be convincing too? There is no doubt that Pakistan is under attack from the same kind of “mujahideen”. The latest message emanating from South Waziristan is that the Taliban will now be targeting President Zardari “and his political allies”. The reason for this threat is America whose supplies through Pakistan will be disrupted, according to a deputy of Baitullah Mehsud.

The need is to work out cooperative strategies because all states are under threat from the scourge of terrorism. Unfortunately this is made nearly impossible by domestic political oppositions and their desire for point scoring. In India, the Mumbai attacks will give the rightwing parties the stick to beat the government with. The BJP was already getting jittery over investigations that were spreading into the underground labyrinth of the Parivar’s terrorism. It will now get the opportunity to accuse the UPA government of being soft on terrorism (read: Muslims). Somewhere along the line it may also throw in the reference to Pakistan. The speech by Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh and his assertion that New Delhi will “take up strongly” the use of neighbours’ territory to launch attacks on India could be a reference to Pakistan or Bangladesh or both. At the minimum it seems to be an attempt by Dr Singh to pre-empt criticism from the Hindu rightwing.

At home, reactions are rendering the credibility of the PPP government doubtful. In fact, Prime Minister Gilani is under attack from the opposition in parliament which says that President Zardari has more powers than the prime minister and that the system under the PPP government is an extension of the Musharraf presidential regime. However, what is eschewed are constitutional and conceptual nuances. Pakistan has seen two extremes, all-powerful prime ministers that render presidents useless and all-powerful presidents that make prime ministers look like puppets. The debate should have focused on how to work out the correct balance but, predictably, has been informed by petty politicking rather than any intellectual effort. The animus is fired further by allegations and counter-allegations about promises made and broken.

These internal imbalances are not good for Pakistan and India. Pakistan is in dire economic straits and needs assistance from its friends abroad; Indian markets are already down 56 percent on back of the global downturn. Both countries need to cooperate in the new environment of terrorism; neither is ideally placed to do so.
Read more...

New demands of Ex-Servicemen's Association: An analysis - By Nazir Naji

Read more...

The Mumbai attacks, Who could be behind terrorism? The role of Dr. Zakir Naik in supporting Islamic terrorism and spreading communal hatred...

Mumbai attacks kill at least 101
Western hostages taken in coordinated strikes
By Rama Lakshmi
Washington Post / November 27, 2008

NEW DELHI -Teams of gunmen attacked three luxury hotels, a hospital, a train station, a movie theater, and other buildings in Mumbai late last night, killing at least 101 people and wounding 280 in a rampage through the heart of India's financial capital, police said. The attackers took dozens of people hostage, and witnesses said they were seeking out Americans and Britons.

Read the article in The Washington Post.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/27/AR2008112701128.html?hpid=topnews

.......


Deccan Mujahideen claims it behind Mumbai attacks-TV
26 Nov 2008 21:17:28 GMT
Source: Reuters

NEW DELHI, Nov 27 (Reuters) - An organisation calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen has claimed it was behind attacks in India's financial capital Mumbai that have left at least 80 people dead, television channels reported on Thursday.

The previously unknown or little known group sent an email to news organisations claiming responsibility.

India has suffered a wave of bomb attacks in recent years. Most have been blamed on Islamist militants, although police have also arrested suspected Hindu extremists thought to be behind some of the attacks. (Reporting by Simon Denyer; Editing by Alistair Scrutton)

........

Who are the master minds?

The most controversial voice, spreading hate speech and communal hatred in India and the region, is that of Dr. Zakir Naik, a sugar-coated religious scholar who is, through his speeches, lectures and TV talks, spreading hatred against Hindus, Christians and Jews alike.

Storm over fatwa against scholar Zakir Naik
Deepak Gidwani
Saturday, November 08, 2008

LUCKNOW: A fatwa (edict) against well-known Islamic scholar Zakir Naik by a respected cleric here has divided the community.

The scholar has been charged with supporting al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden. The fatwa says his teachings are un-Islamic and contradict the Koran.

Naik, however, says he has been misquoted. “My speeches are being quoted out of context… I am being targeted by people with vested interests,” he told reporters.

Lucknow’s shahar qazi Mufti Abul Irfan Mian Firangi Mahali described Naik as a kafir (agnostic) in his fatwa, which states he should be ex-communicated from Islam.

“Zakir Naik is not an Islamic scholar. His teachings are against the Koran. In his speeches, he insults Allah and glorifies Yazeed, the killer of Imam Hussain,” Irfan told reporters. He said Naik had supported Laden and called upon all Muslims to become terrorists. “Naik is bringing a bad name to Muslims. Such people should be condemned and socially boycotted.” He said Naik was being financed by the Wahabi sect that allegedly perpetrates violence in the name of religion.

“There should be an inquiry into how he is running a TV channel on his own. Where is he getting the funds from?”

“Naik has just mugged up some verses from the Koran and pretends to be an Islamic scholar,” Lucknow’s Naib Imam Maulana Khalid Rasheed Firangi Mahali said.

g_deepak@dnaindia.net

......

"I am with Osama. Every Muslim should be a terrorist." - says Zakir Naik



Spreading hatred, Dr. Zakir Naik. Refused to condemn Al-Qaeda. Says that that 9/11 was an insider conspiracy by the USA:



Non-Muslims must not have equal human rights in Muslim countries - Zakir Naik says:



Zakir Naik supports terrorism; his sermons of hate brainwash Muslim youth inciting them to acts of violence:



......

Dr. Zakir Naik's sessions promote terrorist activities

Has hunt for 2006 serial bombing architect ended?

Praveen Swami

Arrest raises hopes of full justice for terror victims

NEW DELHI: Ever since a botched Delhi Police raid allowed Rahil Abdul Rehman Sheikh to escape his home on Mumbai’s Grant Road, there has been little word on the man the Maharashtra Police believes was among the key commanders of the 2006 serial train bombings in Mumbai.

Indian intelligence assets had reported seeing Sheikh, still hobbling from injuries to his leg sustained when he jumped two floors out of his apartment window, at a Lashkar safehouse in Bangladesh soon after the bombings. Later, there were other sightings at the offices of the Lashkar’s top military commander, Mohammad Azam Cheema.

Recruited after riots

Most of Mr. Sheikh’s operatives were recruited in the wake of the 2002 communal pogrom — and several of his operations targeted Gujarat.

For example, Feroze Ghaswala, a Mumbai-based automobile engineer who was recruited by Mr. Sheikh at a gathering addressed by controversial evangelist Zakir Naik at Srinagar in 2003, volunteered for military training after witnessing the communal violence first-hand. Both Mr. Ghaswala and his associate, Mohammad Ali Chippa were arrested in the course of an abortive attempt to stage a revenge bombing in Gujarat.

Like most of the core members of the 2006 serial bombings cell, Mr. Sheikh spent much of his time at Mr. Naik’s Mumbai-based Islamic Research Foundation. While there is no suggestion that either Mr. Naik or the IRF were in any way connected to the terror strikes, cell member Irfan Deshmukh worked there as a librarian, providing perfect cover for meetings. Interestingly, the IRF is the sole South Asian centre listed as a religious learning resource on the website of the Jamaat-ud-Dawa, the Lashkar’s parent religious organisation.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/11/26/stories/2008112660051200.htm

.........

Some Comments:

Abdullah shukur:

http://globalvoicesonline.org/2008/11/26/india-terror-attacks-continue-in-mumbai/

At this moment, we have to be one. We should not be divided. Its a new wave of foriegn influence on muslim youths that is affecting young muslims. When Sufi Muslims requested Ban on Wahabi Muslim events like zakir naik. Indian Government ignored it. Muslims in India who are good are sufi muslims. They have promoted brotherhood. Now, these Wahabi sect promoted by people like Zakir Naik is causing these misguidance among youths. India which was before, when we together faught british and we together built the indian culture was so good. I am a Sufi Muslim and I love everyone and I am very close to God. I studied Quran and I cannot relate anywhere killing of innocent like this. Please promote and listen to Sufi Muslims, who add colour to India’s diversity. At this time, we Hindus and Muslims should be together and avoid extremism of any kind.

Also read:

Indian Muslims condemn Gustakh Dr. Zakir Naik

How we lost Swat — Nasir Abbas Mirza

The beginning of the Talibanization of Lahore? Hall road traders burn CDs after being threatened by terrorists of Sipah-e-Sahaba/Taliban

The Saudi-isation of Pakistan - By Pervez Hoodbhoy

Farhat Hashmi: The other side - The subtle rooting of extremism (Saudi version of Islam) in Muslim women...Facts, Fatwas and Videos...

Read more...

Death of intellect in Pakistan: Dr Khalid Masud and the other members of the CII are being pilloried today by extremists /Ziaists...

In a recent article, a scholar has advised the intellectual in the Pashtun region of Pakistan to take the lead in the country’s search for solutions to Talibanisation. Earlier, Pakistan’s martyred leader Benazir Bhutto in her book Reconciliation: Islam, Democracy and the West wrote, “And the living reformers like Muhammad Arkoun, Abdur Rahman Wahid, Wahidudin Khan and Khalid Masud would be able to preach and teach their modernising theology without facing repression or marginalisation by the state” (p. 284).

The last named (Dr) Khalid Masud is the current chairman of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) in Islamabad. Muhammad Arkoun is an Algerian genius who is recognised in the West as the most gifted exponent of Islam who may not be able to live in Algeria. Abdur Rahman Wahid, an Indonesian religious and political leader, served as the President of Indonesia from 1999 to 2001. Maulana Wahidudin Khan is the Indian moderate scholar whose message is appreciated all over the world but is rejected by extremist Muslims because of the dominance of moderation in his thinking.

Benazir Bhutto mentioned our CII chairman Dr Khalid Masud because of his scholarly contribution to our fundamental understanding of Islam, including the Sixth Lecture of Allama Iqbal where the national philosopher had bravely “reinterpreted” the concept of hudood in Islam, recommending that punishments such as cutting of hands should not be imposed in our times.

General Zia ul Haq who ruled Pakistan after hanging prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto rejected Allama Iqbal’s ijtihad and not only imposed the cutting of hands for theft but also fired the then chairman of the CII who had opposed stoning to death which is not specifically mentioned in the Quran. It is not surprising that Bhutto’s daughter too was killed in Pakistan because she possessed a level of intellect that Pakistanis usually reject as being heretical. The people who killed her will not allow innovative thinking in Pakistan. They will allow the dissenting intellectual least of all. And the foremost task of the organic intellectual is to disagree with the status quo and formulate new ways of seeing and doing in conformity with changing times.

Dr Khalid Masud and the other members of the CII are being pilloried today by extremists for proposing to the sitting government that the rights of women should be restored to them in regard to the institution of “khula” (demand for dissolution of marriage). Some heads of the religious parties — with hardly a notable book to their name — have rejected the proposal and said unsavoury things about the CII members who supported the proposal. Muftis, who are supposed to be learned in Islam, have gone back to their schools of jurisprudence (fiqh) to reject the CII.

There is nothing anyone can do, not even the PPP, whose leader mentioned the CII chairman in her book, because it would be politically embarrassing to support him even if the government cannot formalise the concept of khula as interpreted by the CII. The reason is that the PMLN and PMLQ opposition will join the religious parties and the muftis in accusing the CII and its members of being a part of the “baaqiyat” (remains) of General Pervez Musharraf and his American patrons. No newspaper has presented an objective analysis of what has been argued by the CII. Therefore readers at large have more or less accepted the view that the CII has gone crazy or is serving America. But nothing could be further from the truth.

The CII, which the Constitution says may contain any number of members between eight and twenty, was much loved in the past under General Zia when it passed down outlandish edicts. It had banned co-education, all lotteries like the prize bonds and recycling of paper used for Holy Quran. It had criticised the Supreme Court for postponing the abolition of bank interest. Its old chairman had said that it was not an economic issue. It had earlier endorsed the destruction of Afghanistan’s archaeological heritage by the Taliban. It repeated the recommendation that “kalima tayyaba” be inscribed on the Pakistan national flag along with Allahu Akbar. It declared that it was wrong to label jihad as a defensive war alone. It had also outlawed the picture of the Quaid on banknotes.

The death of intellect is a pan-Islamic phenomenon and has coincided with the rise and empowerment of the cleric, and, in the case of Pakistan, through state-funded jihad. All over the world, as noted by Ms Bhutto, the Muslim intellectual is in retreat and has had to survive through self-exile. In Pakistan today the uniformity of mediocre thought is most disturbing. It stares one in the face during any discussion. From the IMF to the UN Security Council and the IAEA, no institution is properly understood but is used to do the rival down.

The intellectual culture of the Pashtun, which is the legacy of the ANP, is being decimated on a daily basis. Yet, it is the ANP which is being criticised by sections of the media and those who go around killing the thinking section of the population. No one cares that the ANP has been chosen by the voters in the 2008 elections who clearly rejected the clerics. (Daily Times)
Read more...

Director Colleges Sialkot Kidnapped by PML-N MNA Khawaja Muhammad Asif and his goondas of PML-N.... by Taufiq Butt

Shame on Khadim-e-Aala Punjab

1. Shahbaz Sharif increases house rent of his advisers by 200 percent against the advice of the Treasury Department.

2. PML-N's leader (Khawaja Muhammad Asif) along with his workers kidnapped the Director of Colleges in Sialkot, tortured him, and forced him to appoint 5 persons of PML-N's choice as lecturers, assistants and clerks.

Shame on you Shahbaz Sharif, the so called Khadim-e-Aala Punjab.

Food for thought

Z.A. Bhutto said: I drink liquor, not poor man's blood.

It seems that Governor Salman Taseer may be alleged of drinking liquor, but Shahabz Sharif indeed drinks poor man's blood.

Shame on you right wingers whose Islam is based on "Zahir" while their "Batin" is deprived of any light.



Read more...

Spectre of sectarian war in Pakistan

The eight persons who were wounded in a bomb-attack inside a Peshawar imambargah on Monday testify to the sectarian philosophy of certain elements in the “Taliban” movement and Al Qaeda. The bombers penetrated one of the oldest quarters of the city, Hasht Nagri, and blew up the building. This is not the first time the Shia have been targeted in Peshawar, but so far lame excuses have been invented by certain elements in the media and in the political parties to avoid naming those who are responsible. In the NWFP, other cities have been more ferociously punished. Dera Ismail Khan has seen repeated massacres of the Shia community, and the scourge has swept across the nearby Bhakkar in Punjab too.

The Tribal Areas have not been spared either. Kurram Agency has been a seat of sectarian rivalry since Pakistan began indulging in jihad. The Sunni-Shia violence was revived there by the militias that fought the state’s proxy war. The sectarian war that was relocated from the Gulf to Pakistan after 1979, simmered in Parachinar, the headquarters of Kurram, and has become full-blown in 2008. The communities there are stranded. No supplies are allowed to pass to them, some essentials reaching there mostly through Afghanistan. Hundreds of people have died there and the Pakistani state, despite pledges, has not stirred to defend its citizens against violence.

Now sectarian mayhem is always round the corner in Pakistan. But it is the NWFP which is today the most endangered province because of the loss of the Tribal Areas to the Taliban and the “foreigners” of Al Qaeda. The road that goes from Peshawar to Kurram is studded with training camps of anti-Shia elements. Kohat, an important air force base and a cantonment, is the most endangered, along with Hangu where there are small Shia communities. These elements have a free run there, picking up funds through coercion and abducting people they don’t like. Along Darra Adam Khel, some anti-Shia militias have gravitated to their old patrons in the Punjab.

During the civil war in Afghanistan, the militias produced by Pakistan shifted their loyalties. They killed Shias in Pakistan, then absconded into Afghanistan. The Taliban government, recognised by Pakistan when the world abominated it, refused two requests from Pakistan: it refused to recognise the Durand Line and it refused to surrender the sectarian killers in their protection. Thus Pakistan could never properly deal with the rise of sectarian violence; and Iran, greatly disturbed by the killings, never really believed that the Pakistani state was uninvolved. Nor will it now, no matter how we try to dissuade them. The fact is that we are not greatly moved by the killings.

The Serbs in the Balkans used the state to expel its rubbish periodically through ethnic-cleansing. All states to some extent do this, but the danger in Pakistan is that this is a trend that might finally undo Pakistan. The minorities are already quaking in their shoes, but there are others like Ismailis, Zikris and Bahais who are potential victims of this “ethnic-cleansing”. Unfortunately, there is a modicum of public acceptance of this function of the state on the basis of the Second Amendment of 1974 which apostatised the Ahmedi community. Take the example of the politicisation of the threat of Talibanisation in Karachi. The MQM says the Taliban are moving their terrorist hierarchies into Karachi where Shias and Barelvis have been targeted in the past. The Sindh government thinks the MQM exaggerates the threat even though the Taliban in South Waziristan have publicly declared their intent to take over the city. The ANP is caught in the middle. It is threatened by the Taliban in Peshawar but its vote bank in Karachi — where there are more Pakhtuns than in Peshawar, Kabul or Kandahar — prevents it from closing ranks with the MQM and facing up to the challenge with the help of the Sindh government. Apart from ethnic-cleansing these elements will bring to Karachi their agenda of finishing off the sects they don’t like.

The Sindh government is reluctant even after a word of advice from President Zardari. The federal Interior Ministry, after receiving information from intelligence agencies, has informed Sindh that terrorists have planned to carry out suicide attacks on a number of prominent locations. This means that the coming war is not America’s war. We should stop thinking of “taking action” against America and concentrate more on what is coming at us from the inside. The Shia community, instead of listening to the anti-American propaganda emanating from Iran, should learn to protect itself against the sectarian mayhem that has made its latest appearance in Peshawar. The state is too weak to come to their help. (Daily Times)
Read more...

A confusing policy on drone attacks - by Nasim Zehra

Wednesday, November 26, 2008 (The News)

The gap is too obvious between what Pakistani government representatives state and what appears to be the reality. For example, the recent statements by the president and prime minister hoping that the Obama administration will end drone attacks on Pakistan's territory are in direct contrast with reliable reports that come in from Washington. According to a report the Wall Street Journal on Nov 18, "the US Army is preparing to deploy a network of drones and other surveillance aircraft to Afghanistan in an expanding effort to defeat the resurgent Taliban and reverse a downward spiral in the country."

The report (titled "US to expand drone use, other surveillance in Afghanistan"), further states that "the effort, known as Task Force ODIN-A, is set to begin early next year and will coincide with the planned deployments of thousands of American troop reinforcements to Afghanistan."

Quoting "senior US military officials" and "official sources," the report elaborates that drones and manned surveillance aircraft "will be deployed to identify insurgent targets inside Afghanistan, including on the Afghan side of the border with Pakistan. The military will use the information to launch airstrikes and ground attacks on militants." Hence, drone attacks, for now according to US plans, are here to stay.

Similarly, on the one hand the president and prime minister both complain that drone attacks are responsible for the deteriorating security situation within Pakistan and yet there are no signs of any strain in Pakistan-US relations on any front. The official press note stated after a recent meeting the president and the prime minister that the two men agreed that the US drone attacks have been undermining Pakistan's efforts to fight terrorism within Pakistan and have also increased the number of suicide bombings within Pakistan. But US and NATO commanders claim that their relations with their Pakistani counterparts have never been better.

Clearly, all is not known to the people of Pakistan on the understanding that exists between the US administration and the Pakistani government on the drone attacks. Based on reliable information available in the public sphere, Pakistani officials issue anti-drone statements but such statements often lack any substantive and sober reference to Washington's violation of international law and Pakistan's sovereignty in these attacks. These weak statements are also never backed by either the threat of action or in fact the taking of any real action to deter Washington from launching further drone attacks.

The civilian government has raised its mildly stated objection to the drone attacks. In his pre-Sharm el Shiekh meeting with the US president the Pakistani prime minister has flagged the issue of drone attacks with the US ambassador in Pakistan. Ambassador Anne Patterson was as candid about the US policy of pursuing militants inside Pakistan as was General Mullen during his September visit to Pakistan. Both US officials were unable to guarantee that there would be no repeats of either the drone attacks or, even worse, the first-ever ground attack on Pakistani territory on Sept from Pakistan's western borders by a foreign force.

The public statements following meetings between the US president and the Pakistani president and prime minister have never once included a clear-cut articulation by Pakistani officials that US drone attacks are unacceptable because they undermine Pakistan's sovereignty.

This is anything but plausible deniability. This flimsy policy, where words and actions do not match, has created endless public cynicism vis-a-vis the government. There are few Pakistanis who believe that the government is serious about wanting the US to stop the drone attacks. Some believe the understanding of the Musharraf days, where the US would inform the Pakistanis just minutes before launching drone attacks, was a slippery slope policy. In fact while Gen Musharraf was still in power, the US conducted two attacks without pre-warning and seeking permission from the Pakistani government.

With the civilian government in power, the US has continued on the same track. Some in Pakistan believe that the civilian government, with the army's support, has given US the clearance to carry out these attacks. Others believe the army is not pleased with this policy of the US conducting drone attacks without Pakistan's permission. The divide in public opinion perhaps is based on logical inferences, conjecture and people's own political preferences. It cannot be different. Pakistan's position on the drone factor is a flimsy and confused position drained of credibility.

Military cooperation between Pakistan and the US seems to be at an all-time high. This, too, at an operational level covering Afghanistan and Pakistan's own tribal areas. The institutional cooperation on multiple fronts also continues. So, what is the cost to the US of violating the sovereignty of Pakistan and of killing its innocent citizens, even if as "collateral damage?" None at all.

It does not earn the government plausible deniability, nor does it earn people's confidence, nor even US trust. The loss of innocent Pakistani lives is a major issue for which the government of Pakistan seems unable to take an action, other than calling in the US ambassador to complain occasionally or to issue rhetorical statements. The respect and protection of the life and dignity is a primary constitutional responsibility of the state and the government.

Instead, on the drone issue the government seems to be a loser on many fronts. The government of Pakistan appears to hunt with the hound and run with the hare. It doesn't walk the talk. It protests so loudly and acts so meekly. Is it because there is a plan whereby Pakistan believes that the drone attacks are helping Pakistan to get Al Qaeda "high value" targets who are also harming Pakistan? This too is unclear. One, because the claim of the eight high-value targets from the Al Qaeda leaders having been killed is still doubtful. Secondly, because the killing of innocent Pakistanis by US drone attacks is adding to radicalism in Pakistan.

The government of Pakistan, as well as the army leadership, has to be clear on what is at stake. This incoherent and questionable policy on the drone attacks is also putting Pakistan's future security at stake. If the US has arrogated to itself the right to hit at Pakistan's territory based on its own intelligence and without any UN mandate, which other country would follow suit tomorrow?

Pakistan needs a coherent policy on the drones. But that must include the US as partners. Such a possibility will come only when the US recognises that without the trust factor between Pakistan and the US no counter-insurgency efforts is likely to succeed. For Pakistan a made-in-Pakistan policy factoring in external concerns is crucial. But the onus of that is on Pakistan, not the US. (The News)

The writer is an Islamabad-based security analyst. Email: nasimzehra@hotmail.com
Read more...

APDM Convener Mehmood Khan Achakzai is opposed to any move to trigger political instability - Shame on you Qazi and Imran...

APDM awakes from slumber

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

By Mumtaz Alvi

ISLAMABAD: The All Parties Democratic Movement (APDM), which is in hibernation for months now, is likely to hold a party heads’ meeting some time this week, The News learnt here on Tuesday.

“Yes, there is a growing pressure from some APDM component parties’ chiefs that either the conglomeration should be disbanded or reactivated,” a senior leader of the alliance said while talking to this correspondent.

However, at this critical juncture, but leaders such as Qazi Hussain Ahmad and Imran Khan have other ideasAPDM Convener Mehmood Khan Achakzai is opposed to any move to trigger political instability, he revealed. “Achakzai fears that if the state of affairs is pushed further towards instability, Pakistan’s future can be at stake as a state,” the movement leader maintained.

At one stage, Achakzai had to telephone Imran to avoid personal attacks on President Zardari and also requested Qazi to show restraint, whom he called his uncle, the source said.

He said that Jamaat-e-Islami chief Qazi and Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan were not happy over the APDM’s silence on the key national matters -- be it the US strikes in Fata or apparently controllable price-hike despite a massive plunge in the POL prices.

The movement had its previous meeting in Islamabad more than three months back, which had ended at giving a strike call on September 1 for the reinstatement of sacked judges. However, the decision to observe shutter down strike was reversed, a few days before the August 31 deadline.

On their part, Qazi and Imran have been active in the media throughout and even held some programmes against the government. Qazi recently had a train march against the ongoing military operation in the tribal areas, while Imran led a few rallies -- one against the election of Asif Ali Zardari and the other major show was to agitate the US strikes in In the wake of growing anxiety in the ranks and files of the APDM, a meeting is being organised shortly, most probably in Islamabad, to review the prevailing national scene. (The News)
Read more...

UN to confer top human rights award on Benazir

Wednesday, November 26, 2008
By our correspondent

WASHINGTON: The United Nations has decided to confer its top human rights award posthumously on former prime minister Benazir Bhutto for promoting democracy and fundamental freedoms in Pakistan, informed sources at the UN Headquarters said on Tuesday.

The award will be announced on December 10, the UN human Rights Day. The occasion also marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.The sources said President of the UN General Assembly Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann would officially communicate the decision to President Asif Ali Zardari in the next few days.

Instituted in 1968, the United Nations human rights awards are intended to “honour and commend people and organisations which have made an outstanding contribution to the promotion and protection of the human rights embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in other United Nations human rights instruments”.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon will present the award — a metal plaque bearing the

UN seal and an artistic design, and engraved with an appropriate citation — at a headquarter ceremony in New York on Dec 10.

The recipients are selected by a special committee comprising the presidents of the General

Assembly and the Economic and Social Council and the chairs of the Commission on Human Rights, the Commission on the Status of Women, and the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights. (The News)
Read more...

Ansar Abbasi's dirty propaganda against Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar - fake report about the marksheet of Justice Dogar's daughter...

Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar: An unsung hero

Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar played a historical role in the removal of Musharraf when he refused to cooperate with Musharraf's intention to dissolve the parliament by using 58-2-B.

......

According to Hamid Mir (writing in Daily Star, 20 Aug 2008):

"Musharraf was happy on his “safe exit”, but he shared his disappointment about some “ungrateful” people who left him in the last days of his presidency. One of them was the sitting Chief Justice, Abdul Hameed Dogar. He became chief justice on Nov 3, 2007 after the imposition of emergency by Musharraf. Dogar also validated the extra-constitutional acts of Musharraf after Nov 3. Musharraf contacted Dogar through a very prominent lawyer in the first week of August 2008. Musharraf wanted a stay order from the Supreme Court against the impeachment motion announced by the ruling coalition to oust him. Dogar disappointed Musharraf. "

http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=51127

2008-08-20
First day of Musharraf without office
Hamid Mir, From Pakistan

.......

Musharraf contacted Dogar through a prominent lawyer in the first week of August 2008. He wanted a stay order from the Supreme Court against the impeachment motion announced by the ruling coalition to oust him. Dogar regretted and disappointed Musharraf.

http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.info/search_index.php?page=detail_news&news_id=43766

According to one of the visitors, Musharraf said: "You know some PML-Q leaders suggested to me to cancel the National Reconciliation Ordinance and restore the deposed judges before tendering my resignation as they were sure that deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry will become a big problem for Zardari.

I decided not to do that. I know Zardari will not restore Justice Iftikhar and Nawaz Sharif will fight him on this issue. Even if Iftikhar is restored, he will not spare Zardari. Let the enemies fight with each other."

Musharraf was also hopeful that a situation would be created in the coming weeks when he would "get a chance to play a political role."

He indicated that he wanted to prove that he could play a role even without a uniform.

And while he was happy on his "safe exit", Musharraf shared his disappointment about some "ungrateful" people who left him in the last days of his presidency. One of them was Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, who was appointed to the post by Musharraf during last year's emergency.

Musharraf reportedly contacted Dogar as he wanted a stay order from the Supreme Court against the impeachment motion, but Dogar declined.
http://www.rediff.com/news/2008/aug/20mush4.htm

......

Ansar Abbasi with his venom against Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar....

It is interesting to note that in November 2008, conscience of the Editorial Board of the Jang Group made them to publish a concocted, maligning story against Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar, however, in 2006, the same Editorial Board of the Jang Group decided to censor a story against the then Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry.

Read details here by clicking on the following link:

Ansar Abbasi's story against Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry's corruption in 2006:

There are a few questions:

1. Why double standards by the Jang Group to publish one story while censoring another story (of a corruption case of a higher order) filed by the same correspondent.

2. It seems that Ansar Abbasi, the notorious Jamaat-e-Islami stooge, yellow journalist, could not find any substantial case of corruption against Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar. Therefore, in breach of all moral and ethical principles, he used an ordinary application of rechecking of papers by a school girl for mud-slinging against Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar.

3. Is the Jang Group being blackmailed by enemies of democracy, the supporters of Mullah, the Jamaat-e-Islami lobby? Or have they been bribed to be selective and biased in their reporting of events?

4. Whose payroll is Ansar Abbasi on? He is a notorious right-winger, a supporter of Taliban and Al Qaeda. It is not hard to believe that his sources of funding lie outside Pakistan.

Shame on you Ansar Abbasi. Shame on you Jang Group.

Our special daughters

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

WHEN the Editorial Board of the Jang Group decided after long and very intense discussions that we should publish the story of the special daughter, it was a difficult decision as there was immense pressure coming from all sides, including the movers and shakers of the God-gifted Republic of Pakistan and even some elements within our own house. That the people, at all levels, got involved in an otherwise straight story exposing blatant misuse of authority and position, was surprising. It was argued at senior and powerful levels that this story should not be published because it involved the career of a daughter, a young student who was trying to improve her chances of making her life more meaningful and productive. It was hammered on us that publication of one such case would not change the destiny or the prevalent system in the country. We were repeatedly reminded that authority is always used in the developing and the Third World countries in a similar manner and not much would change with this one episode, even if it is splashed on the pages of the print media. Attempts were made to emotionally blackmail us as it would ruin the life and career of a young and innocent lady.

We considered all these arguments before we decided to go ahead with the story. Our Editorial Board did not agree with most of these arguments, except the one that such misuse of authority is common in Banana Republics. We weighed the pros and cons and when it was clear to us that by unduly favouring the career of one young Pakistani, we would, by design, be ruining the careers of thousands of other similarly placed young boys and girls, not linked to powerful and mighty high-ups in our political or judicial systems, the verdict was unanimous: we must do our best to stop this injustice, we must throw the first stone and we must show the mirror to those who sit in judgment, deciding life and death matters every day, but when it comes to the future and careers of their own kith and kin, they behave like men of straw.

We believe that this one case of extraordinary favour to the special daughter of a top judicial person will make the rest of us feel belittled and slighted. We believe that the injustice done to hundreds and thousands of others who could not get such special treatment will be undone. We believe that someone somewhere will feel the guilt and come clean with the nation. We hope someone somewhere will resign and reinforce our belief that we can become a nation of honest people where justice can prevail. We hope all our daughters will become special.

.....

CJ’s daughter has a head start over thousands

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

By Ansar Abbasi

ISLAMABAD: In what could become a mass denial of rights of thousands of students throughout the country, the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE) Islamabad has illegally awarded extra marks and upgraded the examination results of the daughter of the country’s top judge.

In indecent haste and under direct written orders of the chairman FBISE, relaxing and violating all rules and even some judgments of the Supreme Court, the FSc result of student Farah Hameed Dogar was jacked up from 640 marks in Grade ‘C’ to 661 marks in Grade ‘B’, thus making her eligible to apply for admission into any medical college in the country.

Documentary evidence available with The News, background interviews and on the record discussions with concerned officials of the FBISE establish that the Islamabad Board went out of its way in the case of Farah Hameed Dogar by fast forwarding the entire process of re-checking, re-assessing and even re-marking her examination papers to her advantage and superceding thousands of other candidates who had obtained marks between 642 and 660.

Sources close to the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, however, insisted that no influence was used by the chief justice in his daughter’s case and if the Board had taken some action, they must have done it under the rules or under powers vested with the Board’s chairman....

......

FBISE refutes Ansar Abbasi's false allegations

Wednesday, November 26, 2008 (The News)

News Desk

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education on Tuesday clarified that the marks of Farah Hameed Dogar, the daughter of the chief justice of Pakistan, were revised along with 200 other candidates.

In a brief press release issued by the controller of examinations after the case exploded in the media, the board said: “The application of rechecking of result is covered by the rules of the board. After declaration of the HSSC Part-II annual examination 2008 result, 1,093 candidates applied for rechecking of their papers. Resultantly, there was no discrepancy in cases of 892 candidates and whereas certain discrepancies were found in the cases of 201 candidates. The case of Miss Farah Hameed Dogar, d/o Abdul Hameed Dogar, was also one of the 201 cases where the results were revised, and revised marks sheets were issued to all students.”

Ansar Abbasi (the notorious right wing journalist) is still adamant about the 'truthfulness' of his story. Shame on you Ghaddar Abbasi.

.....

Jamaat Islami demands resignation of CJ Dogar
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
By Our Correspondent (The News)

LAHORE

JAMAAT-I-ISLAMI secretary general Syed Munawar Hasan has expressed strong concerns over the reported violations of rules and regulations to award extra marks and change examination results of the daughter of Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar by federal board of intermediate education.

In a statement on Tuesday, Munawar Hasan said the chief justice had lost moral justifications to hold his office and he must resign. Munawar called the chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar as a controversial chief justice of Pakistan, saying he held this office unconstitutionally and illegally by taking oath under PCO of military dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf in lieu of issuing orders to legitimise the unconstitutional measures of Nov 3, 2007 and his unconstitutional candidature for the presidency for the second time.

Munawar Hasan also said that the chief justice was also allegedly involved in financial corruption since he was given financial privileges in return for legitimising the unconstitutional measures of Gen Musharraf. He said after emerging of the latest scandal, the chief justice should resign immediately.

Meanwhile, JI Deputy Secretary General Dr Farid Paracha also demanded that Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar should immediately resign and his case should be referred to supreme judicial council.

He said the nation has been demanding independent judiciary so that the practice of protecting the crimes and corruption of the elite should be stopped and rule of law should be established indiscriminately.

......

Case of CJP’s daughter

The media has taken note of the investigative report by a paper that the daughter of the current Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Mr Abdul Hameed Dogar, has obtained admission in a medical college through unfair means. It is alleged that she was short of some marks needed to gain admission on merit under a special “judges’ quota”, after which the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education was approached for scrutiny of her answer books. The Board scrutinised them and gave her additional marks enabling her to gain admission. The “judges’ quota” in the said medical college is supposed to have materialised after it rented a building — in which it is housed — belonging to the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

Be that as it may, the case has become front page news after it was ascertained that the additional marks were unfairly awarded by the Board. The Chief Justice has said that he is unaware of the incident, but the political fallout of this case will be lethal. He is not accepted as legal by an entire lawyers’ community and the leaders of the mainstream party dominant in Punjab, the PMLN. There are “rejectionist” parties whose leaders have staked their careers on pulling down his Court. The case is not “normal” given the full glare of media publicity and amnesia of the past. Earlier judges too had scandals worse than this one to hide even after they were revealed. Two chief justices had their unfairly promoted sons to protect and an earlier chief justice had got an official plot in Karachi for his own residence but had sold it on getting possession of it against terms earlier agreed. The political fallout of the case for the ruling government will be more lethal than it would have been in the past. The charges in this case are credible. Favouritism has been shown and strings were pulled. (Daily Times, 28 Nov 2008)


.......

Some Comments:

diceman Says:
November 25th, 2008


Don’t get too excited, there is not going to be a press release from Dogar as my dear friends are naively expecting. This kind of nepotism is not new is it? And we have somewhat have become to accept it….

No disrespect to Iftikhar Ch but he did the same thing for his son as well…


Samad Khurram Says:
November 25th, 2008


Dogar’s daughter’s marksheet is here:

http://fbise.edu.pk/result/hssc/hssc2/hssc08fin/dynamic/rno.asp?rollno=545207

At diceman:

1) The allegation was sifarish, and not tampering with education system of Pakistan in case of Iftikhar Chaudhry.

2) The government’s prosecution team dropped the charges before the SC because they could not substantiate this. However the news did detailed analysis of this before publishing it.


ady Says:
November 25th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
comment-top

@samad: In the case of AH Dogar also, Charges are the same i.e. Sifarish. As, under law, one can apply for the re-checking of his/her papers, and the checking authority can increase the marks if he/she considers so. And here in this case, the undersigned authority is the Controller of Exams, which is a lawful authority. Therefore it is not the case of tampering.

It is very difficult to prove the allegations of Sifarish in the court of law, as mostly sifarish is done through verbal means.

CJ Iftikhar’s son later requested to send him back to his original department, which means that he accepted there was something ‘unsual’ in his case.

P.S. I fully support independence of judiciary movement.

Re-checking means re-assessment (& everything that chairman FBISE orders) under relaxation of rules (vol II).

Supreme Court verdict means the interpretation of law in view of specific parameters.

In July 20 historic judgment, SC verdict was against the article 209, but that doesn’t mean article 209 is out of the constitution.

...

Nabeel Khan Says:
November 25th, 2008


i was sure that u must have this issue here…just wanna add something in this story….the same reporter…..the same post…the very same issue…..but u never post that particular story on this site, u wan t me u disclose the name of the person…..HIS EXCELLENCY JUSTICE IFTIKHAR CHODHRY, u post his USA story in bold words…u better tell the truth abt him….the same reporter ansar abbasi wrote the same kind of report for his SON too….so wat u guys think of it ?


dictate111 Says:
November 25th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
comment-top

Justice Iftikhar Chaudary alloted his son POlice Group ion Pakistan civil services without his son ever appearring in competetive examinations!

This showcase of influnce by Justice Dogar is a very miniscule one. There is hundreds and thousands of such cases every year where favors are exchanged at the behest of influencial people (generals, civil servants, politicians, business tycoons) in educational institutes and professional spheres and extra marks, favors and job oppertunities are doled out to the kith and kin of all such.

Iftikhar Choudary flunated his power and Doger did also. Mostly every judge, civil servant, politician and judge do.

The fools who are protesting here which are (>40) as per posts, are either innocent fools or biased bigots who are part and prcel of this very system, but for others like to see principles ruling mighty.

This biased story is hilarious and the fools who are reacting are understandably bigot charlatans.

smiley Says:
November 25th, 2008 at 10:09 pm
comment-top

“0″ Zero 2 Hero…..Its NOT a Big Deal 4 Our Media, they just want to fill the GAP.
One day they prove someone Zero, and the other day Title page Hero.
they were backing the story of Chief Justice Iftikhar Ch. son matter,and after that, they were running behind his rally.Now they are proving “DOG”ar as corrupt, tomorrow maybe they gave them a medal of honesty.We are simply “FOLLOWERS” with No Hope.as these media BOSSEs have their own interests.

Dr.Shahid Masood was agent of agencies,intruder ,Today WATCH again “MERAY MUTABIK”
WHY? ? Meray Mutabik…who you are ?
why we listen these Bhashans.


affendi Says:
November 26th, 2008 at 5:26 am
comment-top

“Don’t get too excited, there is not going to be a press release from Dogar as my dear friends are naively expecting. This kind of nepotism is not new is it? And we have somewhat have become to accept it….

No disrespect to Iftikhar Ch but he did the same thing for his son as well…”

Hey! How dare you say anything bad about Chaudhry ‘One Eyed’ Iftikhar (recently honored for being ‘Mosssht Shuper Duper CJ’). Lets face it, the Pakistani superior courts system is dysfunctional, and the people here who believe the idiot before CJ Dogar was any better need immediate psychological help. Time will reveal all about what has happened in our courts. Thank God Iftikhar was sent packing before he was able to completely ruin the country with his idiotic sentimental activist BS. If Dogar is to go as well, let it be so. No one is above the law. Except me. :)
Read more...

Uzbeks, Arabs and other Muslims in the Tribal Areas are our brothers, and Al Qaeda and Taliban are not against Pakistan - says Qazi Hussain Ahmed

Qazi Sahib gets the limelight

Just as President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani were conferring about what to do about CIA drones attacking inside Pakistan, Qazi Hussain Ahmad, chief of the Jama’at-e Islami, addressed a jirga in Peshawar saying his party will block all supplies going to the NATO forces through Pakistan. He said his men will block all routes from Karachi to Torkham to prevent the 800 or so trucks that pass through to Afghanistan daily.

Qazi Sahib has upped the ante and can no longer wait for the PMLN to move forward on the judges’ issue to bring about the change he wants. He told the audience in Peshawar that “Uzbeks, Arabs and other Muslims in the Tribal Areas are our brothers, and Al Qaeda and Taliban are not against Pakistan and its nuclear programme”. By saying so he has placed himself at the head of the political elements that oppose military operations against the terrorists and has thus once again raised the profile of his party after breaking away from the JUI in the clerical alliance of 2002. It is a part of his “revolutionary” personality that he doesn’t allow his party to leave the political limelight. (Daily Times)
Read more...

Benefits of Pakistan-India frienship. Nawaz Sharif must support Zardari's friendly approach to India. By Asadullah Ghalib

Read more...

Dr. Babar Awan and Ishq-e-Rasool (SAWW) - by Dr. Ajmal Niazi

Read more...

Zardari's PPP and Nawaz Sharif's PML-N are an asset for democratic Pakistan. They must stand united against Mullah-Military Intruders of Democracy....

(Aftab Iqbal)
Read more...

Islamic Ideology Council and our religous scholars - By Khurshid Nadeem

Read more...

Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto versus Nawaz Sharif: A comparison - By Dr. Safdar Mehmood

Read more...

Aligning regional security policies - By Khalid Aziz

Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Khalid Aziz

What was projected to occur within the next few weeks in my last article has come to pass already; the drones for the first time attacked a target inside the district of Bannu and there are reports of more flights now over Kohat. Soon Robocop (as I call the drones) will be seen over Jamrud in Khyber Agency and Peshawar. The war is entering the Pakistani mainland with bewildering speed. The Pakistani leadership has been so deluged with constant bad news that it has become somnolent, instead of dealing with the situation with alertness.

Both Ahmed Rashid and Barnett R Rubin think that the US is trying to pressure Pakistan to change its policies. Is the new pattern of drone attacks yet another move to shift Pakistan's policy into some other direction? Secondly, experts on counter-insurgency claim that without legitimacy the war against the militancy cannot be won. In this context the drone attacks by the US challenge Pakistan's authority to deal with its own people and thus damages its image. Thirdly, and more seriously, the drone attacks shift the tactical centre of gravity of security operations into the districts. Once this happens it will attract the insurgents into the districts and open new fronts; the military will have to be pulled back from FATA to deal with the problem. In a very Dr Strangelove sense it will lead to the withdrawal of troops from the tribal areas, confirming the statement by Ahmed Rashid and Rubin that "Many in Pakistan believe that (Washington) has deceived (Islamabad) into conniving with it to bring about (Pakistan's) own destruction…" However, to my mind this is not the case; there is a simpler explanation.

The Bush administration has never reviewed its goals in Pakistan and Afghanistan since the November 2001 operations in Afghanistan. Thus, it has been following separate policies in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and there is a lack of policy convergence. Furthermore, I think that the US policy as seen in Pakistan shows that it is based more on anti-terrorism than a counter-insurgency approach. Anti-terrorism places reliance upon military action and depends on force, while counter-insurgency provides a larger framework and is aimed at winning the population though different means. The drones are the foremost weapon in the arsenal of anti-terrorism and thus cannot help win an insurgency war.

However, as pointed out earlier, the US wants a shift in Pakistan's policy which is to stop it from helping the Taliban in Balochistan, an accusation which appears with frequent regularity in the literature printed by US think tanks. This is a difficult shift and one which is linked to finding a regional solution for addressing Pakistan's security concerns with India. As long as Pakistan continues to fear an Indian encirclement through Afghanistan, it will continue to maintain some form of links to the Taliban. In a manner, Pakistan is buying insurance. Thus, it will not be possible to achieve peace and stabilisation in Afghanistan unless the Pakistan-India dispute on Kashmir is out of the way. Furthermore, the growing friendship between the US and India creates further suspicion against the real US design in Pakistan.

Every four years the Asia Foundation, an independent international think tank, publishes a set of recommendations for the incoming US administration. In its 2008 publication regarding "America's Role in Asia," it has offered some thoughtful recommendations, many of which deserve consideration by policymakers in the US, Afghanistan and Pakistan. I discuss here one of these.

According to it, if the US wishes to solve the problems facing it, it must engage the Pushtun people who number about 42 million. There are about 27 million living in Pakistan and about 15 million in Afghanistan. Without cooperation of the Pushtun tribes, it concludes, the US will not have peace. Secondly, most US anti-terrorism operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan are in Pushtun areas. The drone attacks create more Pushtun enemies because of the collateral deaths. Unless the US wins the friendship of these people there will never be complete peace. Furthermore, the Pushtuns have integrated into the trans-national Al Qaeda network and have thus become a formidable mass of warriors who follow a religious flag of convenience.

Many Pushtun intellectuals believe, wrongly, I think, that the Pushtun has been a peaceful rustic who has been transformed into a fighting machine by the Afghan jihad. They fail to understand the basic cultural and religious drivers within Pushtun society. The US has no problems with the Tajik or Uzbek or other ethnic groups inside Afghanistan. However, with the Pushtuns the US faces a unique cultural difficulty. The problem is that the Pushtun is prone to religious extremism and readily accepts membership into millenarian movements to resist reform of a centralising state which externalises Pushtun governance and politics; he cannot live with the transfer of his management to a larger entity like a modernising state. This is because he fears that his social conduct, "Pushtunwali," will be endangered and he will lose his identity. For a Pushtun, whether he is supporting Mulla Umar in Afghanistan, Fazalullah in Swat, Maulvi Faqir in Bajaur or Baithullah in Waziristan – he is fighting a war to preserve his identity.

On the other hand, the US believes deeply in civic values of freedom and democracy almost like religion; to the US, Pushtun resistance doesn't make sense! However, this Gordian knot of social misunderstanding between America and the Pushtun cannot be cut by drone attacks or "kinetic operations" alone. A fundamental shift of approach is needed which is based on befriending the Pushtun. The killing of Pashtuns must stop. If one examines history there have been many Pushtun revolts in the past and they have arisen when the Pushtun felt that his identity was under attack – and whenever that happened he has looked for a religious leader to lead him because his own social setup is so affected by jealousies that he would not follow a secular leader who might rule him tomorrow.

Therefore, the US must forge a policy which focuses on strengthening the Pushtun social structure. However, while doing so the US must realise how deeply the Pushtun issue divides both Afghanistan and Pakistan. In an effort to prevent Pushtun ethnic nationalism from undermining the Pakistani state, US leaders have promoted religious radicalism in the tribal areas. On the other hand, US interest lies in reducing the support of the Pushtuns for religious extremism reflected in the presence of Al Qaeda safe havens in FATA. It is thus clear that the interests of the US and Pakistan will not converge without a solution of the Durand Line issue with Afghanistan.

Three recommendations arise out of this discussion. Firstly, the US must adopt a counter-insurgency approach based on winning the friendship of the Pushtuns. Secondly, it must assist in the solution of the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan and, thirdly, it should help in resolving the Durand Line dispute between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The writer is a former chief secretary of NWFP and heads the Regional Institute of Policy Research. Email: azizkhalid@gmail.com (The News)
Read more...

Dr. Shahid Masood exposed in Jawabdeh, story of lifafah journalists, and Salman Taseer's letters to Shahbaz Sharif.....

This site has moved to http://criticalppp.com/archives/491, click this link if you are not redirected
Read more...

ISI's political wing closed down? Good news at last...

‘Political wing of ISI not yet terminated’

* Senior security official says department made ‘inactive’, but staff not moved
* Says ISI going through transformation

Daily Times Monitor

ISLAMABAD: A senior security official has contradicted Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi’s statement that the political wing of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has been closed, BBC reported on Monday.

Qureshi had told reporters in Multan on Sunday that the ISI political wing had been disbanded. “The ISI is a precious national institution and wants to focus on counterterrorism activities,” APP quoted him as saying.

Without identifying the senior official, BBC said the ISI political wing exists, but has been made ‘inactive’. The official said the staff of the department had not been given new assignments.

ISI chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha had focused on counterterrorism during his previous assignment as the director general of Military Operations, the BBC said, and is expected to keep terrorism his top priority in his new office.

The ISI has been accused of several questionable political activities in the past, including the creation of an anti-Pakistan People’s Party alliance in the 1988 general elections and uniting several factions of the Pakistan Muslim League to form a pro-Pervez Musharraf party in 2002. BBC said ISI officials admit that interfering with the political process had cost the agency the trust of the people.

Transformation: The security official said the ISI was going through a transformation.

“The agency wants to stay away from political issues,” he said. “It wants to quit its past activities such as keeping an eye on politicians.”

Quoting other sources in the ISI, the BBC said politicians hoping to become senators still knock at the ISI’s door, and that the agency has complained people pose to have links with them to seek personal favours.

The unidentified sources also told the BBC that the ISI did not select or approve government ministers. Without naming anyone, the BBC said analysts had warned that governments might use the agency for political purposes in future because its political wing had not been closed down.

Only July 26, the Cabinet Division had issued a memorandum under Rule 3(3) of the Rules of Business of 1973, placing the ISI under the direct control of the Interior Division, but later decided to hold it ‘in abeyance till further deliberations’.

“The prime minister is pleased to direct that the federal government will carry out further deliberations on co-ordinating the intelligence efforts. Till the completion of these deliberations, the Cabinet Division’s memorandum of even number, dated July 26, 2008, is held in abeyance,” says an official announcement called ‘Memorandum’ issued by the Cabinet Secretariat on July 29. (Daily Times, 25 Nov 2008)

.........

Redirecting the ISI?

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told reporters in Multan on Sunday that the “political wing” of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has been disbanded. He then added the stock sentence: “The ISI is a precious national institution and wants to focus on counterterrorism activities”. There is hardly any leading politician in the country who will mourn the alleged demise of the so-called internal political wing of the ISI. And the PPP has the most reason not to mourn it because it was the most targeted party under the “wing” since it was ousted from power by General Zia in 1977.

The last time the PPP tried to make changes in the ISI was some months ago when orders subordinating it to the Interior Ministry had to be hurriedly rescinded on the ground of some “misunderstanding” in drafting the relevant notification. Presumably, the abolishment of the internal political wing of the ISI would be the next best thing if it could get it in the circumstances. But has this really happened? Is Mr Qureshi levelling with us? We are not convinced.

Intelligence regarding terrorist attacks is bad. Even after it was let known that a certain number of suicide-bombers had left for the big cities, further action could not be taken because of lack of follow-through. The political wing was another name for “dirty tricks” which the rulers used. But there is no reason here to blame the ISI for having the “wing”. It was created by a civilian politician to keep tabs on what opposition politicians were doing. There was no “analysis” to speak of: there was intimidation and some “incidents” that the victims openly attributed to the ISI. When some politicians of high political ranking had their cars burned mysteriously, they lost no time in blaming the ISI for it. One “political wing” gang was caught trying to overthrow the reigning PPP government in a covert operation in 1989 ominously named Midnight Jackals.

After General Zia had given the ISI its orientation, it became difficult for succeeding civilian governments to control its officers. The PPP in 1988 tried to appoint its own choice of a general to the top job but found that its director general was hardly acceptable to the rank and file. That has continued since then. Fired ISI chiefs have boasted their lingering hold on the organisation while appointed chiefs keep swearing that the organisation is obedient to them. After leaving the top job some generals don’t mind dabbling in politics, clearly showing their bias in retrospect. One ISI chief actually created a political alliance against the PPP and today inspires the jihadi-religious elements. Another chief is informally leading the mammoth congregation of Deobandi Islam from where most of the banned jihadi organisations are drawn. Another has a case pending at the Supreme Court for handing out cash to politicians to affect the results of the 1990 elections. The “political wing” was also busy preparing grounds for victories in elections held by General Musharraf in 2002. Those who lost complained bitterly of “pre-poll” manipulations and clearly named the ISI. Yet, those who compelled the ISI to dabble in politics were finally punished by fate and the ISI could not save them.

If we want it, we can have a professional ISI. The wrong has been committed by giving the ISI — which is supposed to guard against external threats to security — a charter which undermines its professionalism. In the past, personnel were selected according to an ideological yardstick that may not be relevant any more. Many of the men who serve the ISI are still more fired by faith than intellect, which makes them vulnerable to the attraction of jihad and those who operate it. When the time comes to choose between the state and the people they have been handling, they tend to reveal clear signs of “reverse-indoctrination”. There are also retired ISI officials denouncing the state in public under the pretext of “human rights”.

We are at a crossroads as far as the task of intelligence is concerned. The old parameters are all gone, as was revealed by the incident of Lal Masjid which was partly responsible for bringing down the rule of General Musharraf. He kept on swearing that he had purged the ISI and brought it in line with his new objectives, but as the incident unfolded, it was revealed that there were divisions within that undermined the operation when it was finally ordered by him. Later on, once again, his assurances were belied when Ms Benazir Bhutto started receiving “inside” information on his real intent after her “reconciliation” with him.

If one uses an intelligence agency for political purposes, this is what one gets. So, if the news as given out by Shah Mahmood Qureshi is true, ISI professionals themselves must be relieved that they will no longer be required to use “dirty tricks” for politicians and will have the time and energy to serve the nation by securing it against external threats. The big challenge is terrorism. It has to be tracked objectively without political bogeys attached as an interpretive tool. (Daily Times, 25 Nov 2008)

........

Munno Bhai, Jang, 22 Nov 2008



Munno Bhai, Jang, 21 Nov 2008






A new order
Tuesday, November 25, 2008 (The News)

The disengagement of the military from the political life of the nation has taken another step in the right direction with the announcement of the disbanding of the political wing of the ISI. The military have been drawing back from the political arena almost since the appointment of General Kayani in October 2007 – his previous position having been none other than director-general of the ISI from October 2004 until his appointment as the COAS. Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has announced that henceforward the ISI will concentrate on counter-terrorism operations and no longer take a close interest in the private lives of political figures or in the manipulation of elections and political parties. The political wing of the ISI was a key player both during the Musharraf years and in the decades before that; and there were those that said – indeed many who still believe – that the ISI had become ungovernable and was a state within a state, accountable neither to the president not the prime minister. Of course, the argument that intelligence agencies of even strongly democratic countries such as the CIA or MI6 can sometimes act in a manner that is rogue-ish is not entirely untenable when history is examined more closely – however, the point remains that the intelligence agency of any democracy must firmly operate under the reins of the civilian leadership and be held accountable to parliament.

Few will have forgotten the butcher's shop that was Karachi throughout much of the 90s when it was alleged that the ISI tried to counter the growing influence of the MQM, fomenting a split in its ranks with bloody consequences that have echoes in the political life of the city even today. There were allegations of involvement of the agencies in the assassination in 1985 of Shahnawaz Bhutto, brother of Benazir Bhutto, in an attempt to intimidate her into not returning to Pakistan. America has long suspected the ISI of having a political inclination towards the religious parties; and of its own ranks being liberally sprinkled with men who were far from liberal and were covert supporters of extremist elements within the country. We will never know how many 'disappeared' have vanished into the 'safe houses' of the ISI, nor if intelligence shared by other countries is passed on to terrorist targets – facilitating their escape.

Whilst there is much that we will not ever know and much that we might question or deplore, we have to acknowledge that we have never needed an effective counter-terrorism and intelligence agency more than we do today. An agency distanced from the world of politics. The disbandment of the ISI's political wing and the reassigning of its staff to 'other duties' may be seen as a normalizing process, a realigning of priorities and a more appropriate use of resources – but we would be wrong to assume that the ISI is ever going to take its eye off the political ball.
Read more...

Why did The News & Jang choose to publish story against Chief Justice Dogar but censored story against Cheif Justice Chaudhry? Right wing blackmail?

For, updated report, click here:

Ansar Abbasi with his venom against Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar....

It is interesting to note that in November 2008, conscience of the Editorial Board of the Jang Group made them to publish a concocted, maligning story against Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar, however, in 2006, the same Editorial Board of the Jang Group decided to censor a story against the then Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry.

Read details here by clicking on the following link:

Ansar Abbasi's story against Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry's corruption in 2006:

There are a few questions:

1. Why double standards by the Jang Group to publish one story while censoring another story (of a corruption case of a higher order) filed by the same correspondent.

2. It seems that Ansar Abbasi, the notorious Jamaat-e-Islami stooge, yellow journalist, could not find any substantial case of corruption against Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar. Therefore, in breach of all moral and ethical principles, he used an ordinary application of rechecking of papers by a school girl for mud-slinging against Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar.

3. Is the Jang Group being blackmailed by enemies of democracy, the supporters of Mullah, the Jamaat-e-Islami lobby? Or have they been bribed to be selective and biased in their reporting of events?

4. Whose payroll is Ansar Abbasi on? He is a notorious right-winger, a supporter of Taliban and Al Qaeda. It is not hard to believe that his sources of funding lie outside Pakistan.

Shame on you Ansar Abbasi. Shame on you Jang Group.

Our special daughters

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

WHEN the Editorial Board of the Jang Group decided after long and very intense discussions that we should publish the story of the special daughter, it was a difficult decision as there was immense pressure coming from all sides, including the movers and shakers of the God-gifted Republic of Pakistan and even some elements within our own house. That the people, at all levels, got involved in an otherwise straight story exposing blatant misuse of authority and position, was surprising. It was argued at senior and powerful levels that this story should not be published because it involved the career of a daughter, a young student who was trying to improve her chances of making her life more meaningful and productive. It was hammered on us that publication of one such case would not change the destiny or the prevalent system in the country. We were repeatedly reminded that authority is always used in the developing and the Third World countries in a similar manner and not much would change with this one episode, even if it is splashed on the pages of the print media. Attempts were made to emotionally blackmail us as it would ruin the life and career of a young and innocent lady.

We considered all these arguments before we decided to go ahead with the story. Our Editorial Board did not agree with most of these arguments, except the one that such misuse of authority is common in Banana Republics. We weighed the pros and cons and when it was clear to us that by unduly favouring the career of one young Pakistani, we would, by design, be ruining the careers of thousands of other similarly placed young boys and girls, not linked to powerful and mighty high-ups in our political or judicial systems, the verdict was unanimous: we must do our best to stop this injustice, we must throw the first stone and we must show the mirror to those who sit in judgment, deciding life and death matters every day, but when it comes to the future and careers of their own kith and kin, they behave like men of straw.

We believe that this one case of extraordinary favour to the special daughter of a top judicial person will make the rest of us feel belittled and slighted. We believe that the injustice done to hundreds and thousands of others who could not get such special treatment will be undone. We believe that someone somewhere will feel the guilt and come clean with the nation. We hope someone somewhere will resign and reinforce our belief that we can become a nation of honest people where justice can prevail. We hope all our daughters will become special.

.....

CJ’s daughter has a head start over thousands

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

By Ansar Abbasi

ISLAMABAD: In what could become a mass denial of rights of thousands of students throughout the country, the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE) Islamabad has illegally awarded extra marks and upgraded the examination results of the daughter of the country’s top judge.

In indecent haste and under direct written orders of the chairman FBISE, relaxing and violating all rules and even some judgments of the Supreme Court, the FSc result of student Farah Hameed Dogar was jacked up from 640 marks in Grade ‘C’ to 661 marks in Grade ‘B’, thus making her eligible to apply for admission into any medical college in the country.

Documentary evidence available with The News, background interviews and on the record discussions with concerned officials of the FBISE establish that the Islamabad Board went out of its way in the case of Farah Hameed Dogar by fast forwarding the entire process of re-checking, re-assessing and even re-marking her examination papers to her advantage and superceding thousands of other candidates who had obtained marks between 642 and 660.

Sources close to the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, however, insisted that no influence was used by the chief justice in his daughter’s case and if the Board had taken some action, they must have done it under the rules or under powers vested with the Board’s chairman....

......

Some Comments:

diceman Says:
November 25th, 2008


Don’t get too excited, there is not going to be a press release from Dogar as my dear friends are naively expecting. This kind of nepotism is not new is it? And we have somewhat have become to accept it….

No disrespect to Iftikhar Ch but he did the same thing for his son as well…


Samad Khurram Says:
November 25th, 2008


Dogar’s daughter’s marksheet is here:

http://fbise.edu.pk/result/hssc/hssc2/hssc08fin/dynamic/rno.asp?rollno=545207

At diceman:

1) The allegation was sifarish, and not tampering with education system of Pakistan in case of Iftikhar Chaudhry.

2) The government’s prosecution team dropped the charges before the SC because they could not substantiate this. However the news did detailed analysis of this before publishing it.


ady Says:
November 25th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
comment-top

@samad: In the case of AH Dogar also, Charges are the same i.e. Sifarish. As, under law, one can apply for the re-checking of his/her papers, and the checking authority can increase the marks if he/she considers so. And here in this case, the undersigned authority is the Controller of Exams, which is a lawful authority. Therefore it is not the case of tampering.

It is very difficult to prove the allegations of Sifarish in the court of law, as mostly sifarish is done through verbal means.

CJ Iftikhar’s son later requested to send him back to his original department, which means that he accepted there was something ‘unsual’ in his case.

P.S. I fully support independence of judiciary movement.
Read more...