Missing persons’ cases

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday, during the hearing of missing persons cases, remarked that the government must implement the Constitution and if it failed inthis regard, the court knew well how to get it implemented.

While heading the two-member apex court bench, Justice Jawwad S Khawaja remarked, “May be some other issue is involved therein. A strange impression is building up. The federal government has to implement the Constitution. If it will not be done, we know how to implement it and we will implement it. We will not conduct in-camera proceedings as it can give birth to misperceptions.”

The SC accepted the Ministry of Defence’s plea about fixing for hearing all missing persons cases, including the case of 35 missing persons lifted from the Malakand Internment Centre, before one bench and referred the matter to the chief justice for constitution of a larger bench.

The court requested the CJ that four different benches were hearing the cases of missing persons. The legal and constitutional issues and questions in these cases were of identical nature and different decisions, if came, could give rise to difficulties. Certain intelligence agencies were also facing the charges of allegedly picking up these missing persons. Therefore, a larger bench should be constituted to hear all these cases and to give decision.

It is pertinent to mention here that the same bench on May 15 put forth three questions to address the issue and ordered the attorney general for Pakistan and the advocate general, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, to submit replies in this regard.The three questions raised by the apex court included: “When a serving army man commits an offence under the PPC, whether an ordinary or the military court should hold its trial. Whether the ordinary courts are obliged to concede to the request of army authority, or it is its discretion to determine whether or not accept the request of army authorities for transfer of the case and what is the basis to consider/allow or decline such requests?”

The court directed its office to place the order before the chief justice during the course of the day so that he may pass an order on it.Earlier, during the course of the proceedings, Attorney General Salman Aslam Butt submitted the Ministry of Defence’s reply in a sealed enveloped and claimed confidentiality.The court, after examining the information, returned it to the AGP. The attorney general requested the court for an in-camera briefing but the court declined it.

ARY, Ursus Tractors cases: Acquittal plea decision deferred till June 24

ISLAMABAD: The decision on the plea for Asif Ali Zardari’s acquittal in ARY and Ursus Tractors references has been deferred until June 24, as the accountability court judge was on leave today (Wednesday), Geo News reported.

Meanwhile, Asif Ali Zardari has been summoned for indictment in Cotecna reference.

Sources said that the decision on Asif Ali Zardari’s petitions seeking acquittal in ARY and Ursus Tractors references could not be announced today and deferred until June 24 due to Accountability Court Judge Muhammad Basher being on leave.

The court has also summoned Asif Ali Zardari in Cotecna reference for indictment on June 24, while the Accountability Court has summoned the witnesses in SGS reference also on June 24.

It may be recalled that Asif Ali Zardari was acquitted in Polo Ground reference on previous hearing.

Four more cases registered against Geo

 

LAHORE: On the court orders, more cases were registered against the Geo channel on Friday in Vehari, Sarai Alamgir, Peshawar and Aroop (Gujranwala) for the alleged broadcast of blasphemous content in a morning show.
In Lahore, on the application of a local lawyer Azfar Kamal, Additional Sessions Judge Safdar Ali Bhatti ordered the registration of an FIR against the morning show host Shaista Lodhi, actress Veena Malik and her husband Asad Khattak.

However, Awami Justice Party President Mehar Ghulam Mustafa Mankan withdrew his application from a court in Faisalabad he had submitted for the registration of a case against the Geo administration. He said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, some media organisations and individuals were hatching conspiracies against the Geo TV network.

Four more cases registered against Geo

LAHORE: On the court orders, more cases were registered against the Geo channel on Friday in Vehari, Sarai Alamgir, Peshawar and Aroop (Gujranwala) for the alleged broadcast of blasphemous content in a morning show.
In Lahore, on the application of a local lawyer Azfar Kamal, Additional Sessions Judge Safdar Ali Bhatti ordered the registration of an FIR against the morning show host Shaista Lodhi, actress Veena Malik and her husband Asad Khattak.

However, Awami Justice Party President Mehar Ghulam Mustafa Mankan withdrew his application from a court in Faisalabad he had submitted for the registration of a case against the Geo administration. He said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, some media organisations and individuals were hatching conspiracies against the Geo TV network.

More cases against Geo

 

CHAKWAL: The city police, on the orders of District and Sessions Judge, registered a case against the Geo TV morning show under Section 298 (A).
A local resident, Hassan Ashraf, filed a petition with the court and said that the morning show anchor Dr Shaista Lodhi, actress Veena Malik and her husband Asad Khattak participated in the programme and hateful dialogues were spoken against the teachings of Islam and the Holy Quran. The people expressed their resentment over the programme as the religious sentiments of the masses were hurt. Police registered the case against the accused.

Meanwhile, consumers of cable network reacted sharply at the closure of Geo News transmission.

The consumers were of the view that the matter of Geo TV network was pending before Pemra and cable operators had no right to off-air the Geo News transmission.

The consumers demanded of Pemra that cable operators must be directed to start the transmission of Geo Network immediately.

PPI adds: Meanwhile, on the orders of the Additional District and Sessions Judge, Sambrial, Rai Muhamamd Nawaz, police registered a case against Geo TV.

The ADSJ ordered the Sambrial police to register the case, while announcing a verdict on a writ petition filed by a local lawyer, Muhamamd Imran Cheema.

The case has been registered under sections 295-A and 298-A. The court also ordered the police to ensure the early arrest of the accused.

As per the FIR, the accused had aired some contents in the Geo TV morning show, ‘Utho, Jago Pakistan’, which badly hurt the religious sentiments of Muslims.

Three more polio cases in NWA on World Health Day

PESHAWAR: As World Health Day was being marked on Monday, three new polio cases were reported from North Waziristan Agency (NWA) that took the number of detected polio cases in Pakistan to 43 this year.

According to sources in the Prime Minister’s Polio Monitoring and Coordination Cell, laboratory confirmed wild poliovirus (type-1) in the tribal agency wracked by Taliban-led militancy. Poliovirus has turned endemic in North Waziristan Agency as this year alone 33 cases of polio (76.7percent of total) were detected in the agency. Three cases this year have already been reported from the neighbouring Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This situation has been hobbling government efforts to purge the country of the disease.

The sources said that a 34-month-old Bushra, daughter of Noor Ali Khan, was confirmed with the poliovirus. Belonging to Mami Rogha village Manzarkhel in tehsil Miranshah, she got her leg paralysed on March 20 and laboratory test confirmed her with poliovirus.

Ashiqullah, son of Noor Badshah, who ages 12 months, had onset of paralysis on March 14. The child’s family comes from Spalgai, village Borakhel Sir Kot in tehsil Miranshah. Another 11-month-old Abuless son of Allah Dar Khan, whose paralysis started on March 19, was also confirmed to have afflicted by the poliovirus. He belongs to Saidgai, village Dewagor Saidgai in tehsil Miranshah.

Two of the victims are boys and one girl. The new polio detections increased the number of polio cases in Pakistan to 43 in 2014. It’s alarming that 42 out of the 43 cases were reported from Fata and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the regions affected by years of militancy. Attacks on polio workers have also aggravated situation and posed serious challenge to the government to deal with poliovirus and attacks at the same time. A whooping 36 cases were detected in Fata and six from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Only one case this year was reported from Baldia Town Karachi.

In the same time period last year, only six cases were detected in the country against 43 this year. Also, seven districts/agencies were infected by poliovirus this year against the six last year for the same time period.Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has launched the “Sehat Ka Insaf” programme to accelerate and ensure polio vaccination in Peshawar, the provincial capital that was described by the WHO the “world’s largest reservoir” of polio. Last Sunday, the programme was extended to three other districts, Mardan, Charsadda and Swabi.

However, in the tribal areas polio vaccination to children has become almost impossible due to militants’ opposition. According to the Prime Minister’s Polio Monitoring and Coordination Cell sources none of the victims in North Waziristan Agency or South Waziristan had received polio drops in 2014. The region remains vulnerable to poliovirus attacks as preventive measures could not be undertaken.

According to the sources, no supplementary immunisation activities (SIAs) could be carried out in North and South Waziristan agencies since June 2012, causing the current outbreak of poliovirus. In 2013, 37 cases of wild polio were reported while this year the number rose to 33. In addition to it, 41 Sabin-2 like virus cases in 2013 and five in 2014 were reported from North Waziristan.

US company working on iPhone 5s, Samsung Galaxy S4 cases that improve audio quality

AudioCase will work with iPhone 5s, 5c

To put it mildly, smartphone audio quality is horrible. Even as companies bring in Full HD screens and start thinking about 4K, they have not really been able to improve sound quality.
There seems to be a solution in sight. US-based Prescient Audio is planning to launch an audio-enhancing smartphone case through Kickstarter. The Illinois-based company is the developer of the ThinDriver TD-12, the world’s thinnest, lightest, coolest-running 12″ subwoofer. Its Prescient AudioCase will be a sleek new audio-enhanced smartphone case for iPhone 5/5s and Samsung Galaxy S4.
“Crowdfunding is the perfect way for a cutting-edge company like ours to launch this newest product,” said Prescient founder and CEO Paul Niedermann in a release. He said the AudioCase will bring the highest quality audio possible to “people who care about smartphone sound – without awkward external speakers”.
A $99 Kickstarter Campaign pledge allows individuals to be among the first to own the AudioCase, a smartphone case featuring both TrueVoice and ThinDriver technology to enable high quality, high-volume, two-way audio. Kickstarter backing affords a significant discount to the planned retail price of $149.