KWSB takes back notice to Fatima Jinnah’s residence

KARACHI: Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) says no consumer is exempt from payment and that the residence of the late Fatima Jinnah — Flag Staff House Museum — has paid Rs75,000 and assured of clearing the outstanding amount following which the notice has been taken back.It said all national personalities were respectable for the organisation; however, no one was exempt from paying bills.The board further said as per law it was its responsibility to bill the consumers. It said exemption from paying the water bill needed an amendment to the law.

“No officer enjoys the prerogative to excuse someone from paying the bill, as the organisation also regularly receives bills from all the mosques, Imambargahs, churches and other worship places of the city.”

Deputy Managing Director Resource Revenue Generation of Karachi Water and Sewerage Board Muhammad Aslam Khan said under the Act bills for provision of water and sewerage services were received from all the institutions and residential and commercial units.

He said the Management Board of the Quaid’s Mausoleum paid bills regularly in addition to the Governor’s House and the CM House.Khan said the government also allocates amounts in the budget for payment of utility bills. He said Fatima Jinnah House came under the PWD.“They were sent a notice of Rs245,000 out of which Rs75,000 has already been paid. The organisation has been assured of paying the remaining amount in writing.”

SHC takes Musharraf’s name off ECL, allows 15 days for appeal

 

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Thursday struck down former president General (retd) Pervez Musharraf’s name from the Exit Control List (ECL), observing that mere pendency of civil or criminal cases against a citizen was no ground to deny him the fundamental right of travelling within or outside the country.
However, the court suspended the operation of judgment for 15 days observing that since the court order was self-executory, therefore the respondents, if they so desire, may file an appeal with the Supreme Court.

A division bench of the court headed by Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar observed in his detailed judgment on the former president’s petition that it was the fundamental right of a citizen to travel abroad and the abridgement of that right be tested on the touchstone of guaranteed under Article 2-A, 4, 9, 15 and 25 of the Constitution.

The court observed that no reason was communicated to the petitioner as to why his name had been placed on the ECL whereas a plethora of judgments were available in which such type of actions were considered arbitrary, unjust and violative of fundamental rights.

The court observed that it was also a well-settled law that mere pendency of civil or criminal cases against a citizen was no ground to deny him the fundamental right of traveling within or outside Pakistan. And after granting bail by the competent court the custody is regulated by such court of law, it further observed.

“Merely on apprehension that the petitioner will not return to Pakistan is no ground for depriving him of exercising his fundamental right,” the court observed in judgment.“No plea was taken that the reasons were not assigned in the public interest rather we are of the view that in the cases of high treason the public interest at large is involved to know the reasons for prosecuting the accused of high treason,” the court observed.

Brushing aside the apprehension of Attorney General for Pakistan who argued that if Musharraf was allowed to leave the country he will not return like Husain Haqqani, the court observed that the courts of the country were not helpless even in past and there were various examples in which the apex court of the country passed orders to ensure the custody of accused persons so that they may be tried such as the cases of Sharukh Jatoi and Tauqir Sadiq etc.

The court observed that the attorney general although quoted the case of Husain Haqqani, he did not point out any efforts made by the federation to ensure his presence in the country.The court observed that the petitioner was also involved in four other criminal cases in which extradition would not be denied in any treaty with any foreign country.

“If in any case, the accused has absconded, the law is not helpless but a procedure to deal with such situation is already provided under the Criminal Procedure Code and other relevant laws,” the court observed.

Regarding the Supreme Court’s interim order for placement of Musharraf’s name on the ECL, the court observed that the order containing the direction for putting the name of General (R) Pervez Musharraf on the ECL was of an interim nature which was merged in the final order and it does not survive after the final adjudication.

The court observed that the Supreme Court did not extend or continue the placement of Musharraf’s name on the ECL may be for the reasons that the federal government had already placed his name on ECL prior to the court direction on April 5, 2013.

The court observed that it was a well-settled principle that once a final order was passed, all earlier interim orders merge into the final order and the interims orders cease to exist.Attorney General for Pakistan Salman Butt had earlier argued before the court that the government could not take the risk by allowing Musharraf, who is facing high treason charges, to travel abroad unless the Supreme Court’s order regarding embargo on its traveling outside the country was modified or vacated. The AGP submitted that high treason was a political crime and once Musharraf was allowed to travel abroad he could not be brought back due to relaxed extradition laws in the other countries on such crime. He said if Musharraf moved abroad high treason proceedings would come to a standstill for an indefinite period.

Musharraf’s counsel Farogh Naseem submitted that the Special Court had not placed any restriction on the petitioner’s traveling abroad and his client should be allowed to travel abroad on medical grounds as the federal law officer had not filed any rebuttal on the medical report of the petitioner in which it stated that the petitioner had fracture in the vertebra and recommended that either surgery be performed in Dubai, North America or in Europe.

He said the attorney general himself admitted that high treason was a political crime and thus mala fide on part of the government could not be ruled out. He submitted that equal treatment may be given to every citizen either he is a petitioner or any other person while deciding the cases pertaining to restriction on traveling abroad.

Musharraf through his attorney Brigadier (R) Akhtar Zamin submitted in the petition that the federal government imposed ban on his traveling abroad on April 5, 2013 without giving any justified reason for placement of his name on the ECL.

Shahbaz Sharif takes notice of 10-year old girl’s murder after rape

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister, Mian Shahbaz Sharif on Saturday taking notice of rape and murder of a 10-year-old girl in Muzaffar Garh, ordered the District Police Officer (DPO) to submit report in the case.

The Chief Minister also ordered for the immediate arrest of the culprits.

Earlier, a girl, aged only 10, was raped and strangled to death this morning in Muzaffar Garh.

Entire wedding party takes the plunge

CROSSLAKE: It wasn't just the bride and groom taking the plunge at this central Minnesota wedding.

Dan and Jackie Anderson lined up on a dock with all their groomsmen and bridesmaids for a photo shoot about an hour before the wedding was due to begin in Crosslake last weekend. But the weight of the 22 people was too much for the dock and it collapsed beneath them into the lake.

A couple of bridesmaids were able to dash off the dock, but the rest ended up in waist- or chest-deep water.

The bride, groom and their entire wedding party were still drying off as the guests arrived for the wedding.

KMSP-TV says despite the lake plunge, the ceremony started just 10 minutes late.

 

CJ takes notice of woman’s murder outside LHC

ISLAMABAD: The Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, on Friday took notice of the murder outside the Lahore High Court and called a report from the Punjab IGP within 48 hours.

The chief justice took notice after the incident was reported in a section of the media on May 29 containing details about the murder of a young woman, who was beaten to death with bricks

by her family, close to the Lahore High Court for marrying without their consent.It was requested that the killers be brought to justice and police officers who were silent bystanders be punished for aiding and abetting the crime through their inaction to dispense justice to the victim.

Taking cognizance, the chief justice of Pakistan directed the Punjab inspector general of police (IGP) to submit a report in the matter within 48 hours.Similarly, the chief justice also took notice on press clippings of different newspapers dated May 30, containing details of the death of an overseas Pakistani in a Malaysian jail and non-cooperation of the Embassy of Pakistan in Malaysia.

It was appealed to the chief justice of Pakistan to take action into the matter to dispense justice. Taking cognizance, the chief justice of Pakistan called a report from the secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Pakistan, within three days.

Woman stoned to death: PM takes notice

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has taken notice of a woman being stoned to death outside the Lahore High Court (LHC).

The prime minister has directed Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif to take submit a report of the attack. Meanwhile, the Punjab chief minister has directed the top police officer of the province to arrest those involved in the attack and charge them under the anti-terrorism act.

25-year-old Farzana was attacked by her father, brothers and other family members for marrying out of choice. Farzana was on her way to the LHC to contest an abduction case her family had filed against her husband when she was brutally attacked. Fazana’s father surrendered to the police after the attack and termed it an honour killing.

The attack was the subject of international headlines and highlighted the issue of honour killings in Pakistan. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, a private group, said in a report last month that some 869 women were murdered in honor killings in 2013.

Army tells Nawaz no more talks with Taliban, takes matter in its own hands

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Army chief General Raheel has told Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that the time for talks with Taliban was over.
“We will avenge the blood of every last soldier. Talks or no talks, the army will retaliate,” one military official told the influential Reuters news agency in Islamabad.The Reuters report, filed by reporter Mehreen Z Malik and edited by Mike Collett-White and Maria Golovnina, gave a revealing picture of civil-military relations in the Nawaz government.

The report said: “At Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s palatial offices in Islamabad this week, the army chief sat down to deliver the head of government a message he did not want to hear: The time for talks with the troublesome Pakistani Taliban was over.”

Nawaz Sharif came to power a year ago promising to find a peaceful settlement with the Islamist militant group, but as round after round of talks failed, the powerful armed forces favoured a military solution.

Their patience finally ran out and, late on Tuesday afternoon, during a tense meeting, the army effectively declared it would override a crucial plank of the government’s strategy and take matters into its own hands.

“The army chief and other military officers in the room were clear on the military’s policy: the last man, the last bullet,” a government insider with first-hand knowledge of the meeting told Reuters.

Asked to sum up the message General Raheel Sharif wanted to convey at the gathering, he added: “The time for talk is over.”The next day, Pakistani forces launched rare air strikes against the militants holed up in the remote, lawless tribal belt near the Afghan border. It is not clear whether Sharif authorised the operation.

On Thursday, they backed that up with the first major ground offensive against the Taliban there, undermining Nawaz Sharif’s year-long attempt to end a bloody insurgency across the country through peaceful means.

Disagreement over the militant threat is the latest row to flare up between the government and military, and relations between the two branches of power are at their lowest ebb for years, according to government officials.

The government did say talks with the Taliban would go on. “We will talk with those who are ready for it and the (military) operation is being launched against those who are not ready to come to the negotiating table,” spokesman Pervaiz Rashid told local media on Thursday.But the operations put the military, which has a long record of intervening in civilian rule through plots and coups, firmly back at the centre of Pakistan’s security policy.

The balance of power is shifting at a time when foreign troops are preparing to withdraw from Afghanistan and arch-rival India has just elected a Hindu nationalist leader promising to be more assertive on the international stage.“This is the clearest signal yet that the army will dictate its terms now,” a member of Nawaz Sharif’s cabinet said.

The Pakistani Taliban, as distinct from the Afghan Taliban which is actively targeting the Nato forces in Afghanistan, is believed to be behind attacks on Pakistani soldiers and civilians that have killed thousands in recent years.

The Pakistan Army has distinguished between “good” Taliban like the feared Haqqani network — who do not attack Pakistani security forces but fight in Afghanistan — and “bad” Taliban, indigenous Pakistani militants who are seeking to create an Islamic state.

While Pakistan’s military wants to go after the “bad” Taliban, it has, despite pressure from Washington, largely avoided taking on groups who launch attacks against coalition forces in Afghanistan from Pakistan’s North Waziristan region.

Prompting the latest intervention, the Pakistani Taliban have become increasingly bold, striking the army in tribal areas including a recent battle in which an army major died. Earlier this month, nine soldiers were killed in an explosion near the Afghan border.“We will avenge the blood of every last soldier. Talks or no talks, the army will retaliate,” said one military official, who, like most others interviewed for this article, spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject.

The army has ruled Pakistan for more than half of its history.Nawaz Sharif himself was toppled by the army in 1999 during his previous tenure as prime minister.But, humiliated after a secret 2011 US raid that killed Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil, the army stood back from politics and supported the last year’s first democratic transition of power which brought Nawaz Sharif back to office.

Sharif manoeuvred carefully, hand picking a new army chief and trying to forge a partnership with the military in the early days of his tenure, but the overtures had little lasting impact.

There are other signs of civil-military discord.Sharif came to power promising to rebuild relations with India, but has been under pressure to toughen his stance from hardliners at home, particularly within the army.The nuclear-armed neighbours have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947, two of them over the still-disputed Himalayan territory of Kashmir.

Nawaz Sharif’s policies towards India have been heavily scrutinised; some in the army justify its hefty budget by pointing to — and, critics say, playing up — the potential threat from India.

And despite signs the military has become more amenable to overtures from its old foe than in the past, a trade deal pushed by the prime minister and aimed at improving ties with India was cancelled at the last minute after pressure from the army, top government officials said.

Sharif now faces a dilemma over whether to accept an invitation by Indian Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi to attend his inauguration next week.The army is also bitter about the trial of former military ruler Pervez Musharraf, who ousted Sharif from power in 1999 and was arrested after he returned to Pakistan to take part in last year’s election.

Ties with Afghanistan have never been easy, but some officials believe the army wants to torpedo the government’s relationship with a future Kabul administration, risking deterioration in regional security as Nato troops prepare to leave this year.

Generals have jealously guarded the right to dictate policy on Afghanistan, seeing friendly guerrilla groups as “assets” to blunt the influence of India there.

Though simmering under the surface, tensions between the government and the army spilled into the open last month when a popular journalist was shot by unknown gunmen and his channel, Geo News, blamed the army’s powerful spy agency, the Directorate of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

Public criticism of the shadowy ISI is almost unheard of in Pakistan. In a rare public response, the army demanded that Geo News, the country’s most-watched news channel, be shut down.The government’s media regulator has since resisted the army’s demands to cancel the channel’s license, which the military sees as a direct sign of defiance.

“Everyone was looking out to see how the government would treat the army in this crisis — as a friend or foe?” said a senior military official. “But the government allowed this to become a free-for-all, army-hunting season.”

For Sharif, buckling under military pressure is a major risk. “This is not about one TV channel but about freedom of expression and about living in a democracy,” Rashid said. “We should live and let live.”But despite putting on a brave front, officials say the government is feeling under siege.

“Never in the last year has the government felt weaker or more vulnerable,” one of Sharif’s key economic advisers said. “Now every time we have to take a major decision, on India, on Afghanistan, we will have to think ‘How will the army react?’”

A serving general said the army chief would always pick the “institution over the Constitution if push comes to shove,” adding: “As a society and a state, we have to avoid a context in which the army is pushed to do something it doesn’t want to.”

With vampires, Jim Jarmusch takes the long view

NEW YORK: It's tempting to think of Jim Jarmusch's high-standing white hair as the mark of a lightning bolt that struck him long ago, leaving him forever an eager receiver for the electricity of inspiration.

"My antennae are always up. If something moves me, I want it to be part of me," he says, wringing the middle of his shirt. "I want it to be mine, whether it's 17th century English music or if it is punk rock or if it is Outside jazz or if it is Flaubert and Balzac or if it is David Foster Wallace or even if it is (crime novelist) Richard Stark."

He goes on, adding silent movies, cartoons of the Fleischer brothers, Dante. It's merely a tiny sampling. "I just collect and collect," he says, gesturing to his scribble-filled notebook, which he left open to occasionally reference during a recent midtown interview.

It's the same spirit - the nourishment of art and culture - that pervades Jarmusch's latest film, "Only Lovers Left Alive," a deadpan tale of the undead. Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston star as chic, long-living vampires who, though deeply in love, are currently living separately, in Detroit and Tangier.

The film bears none of the usual genre conventions. They drink blood from sherry glasses, blissfully dropping out as if from a heroin high. But mostly, Jarmusch's languorous vampires (who were inspired by Mark Twain's "The Diaries of Adam and Eve") are vessels for taking a broad look at humanity. They're first-hand witnesses to history, reveling in all its accomplishments (from Christopher Marlowe to Motown) and despairing at its failings (the low stature of science).

Adam, morose and clad in black, collects instruments and makes music with analog equipment (supplied by Jarmusch's band, Squrl). Eve, creamy and white, fills her suitcase with books, from "Don Quixote" to the drawings of Basquiat. They may be undead, but Adam and Eve - you might call them hipsters - are pulsing with excitement for the glories of literature, music, philosophy, architecture and science - much like Jarmusch.

"I have really tried to chart my life to have as much time as I could to investigate interesting things because I feel it's my job," he says. "When I was young and had the great chance to spend some time with Nicholas Ray, he said to me several times: 'Making films is not just about studying cinema. It's about everything.'"

Jarmusch, 61, a New York icon and a godfather to the independent cinema of the 1980s and 1990s, might seem a cool, austere figure, often hidden behind shades. But in conversation, he's eager to connect, sweetly sincere in his baritone voice about the things that move him. He strives to watch a film a day, but laments that he's only up to about 50 so far this year.

He became such a sponge, he says, growing up in the suburbs of Akron, Ohio, thanks to his mother (a film critic before he was born) and his grandmother (who gave him Proust when he was 16). They were "open to many things," he says.

When he arrived in New York in the 1970s to study poetry at Columbia, further awakenings followed: riffling through used vinyl at record stores, rummaging at the Stand bookstore, spending nights at East Village music clubs. He became part of the same New York as Lou Reed, Andy Warhol and Patti Smith

From his first, micro-budget film, "Permanent Vacation," to his more recent "The Limits of Control," his films have always had their own distinct, laconic rhythm and raw minimalism. Travel is often a stimulating force of drama. Nighttime (like the nocturnal cab-ride vignettes of "Night on Earth") feels like the natural habitat for the usually black-clad Jarmusch.

He hopes that "Only Lovers Left Alive" serves as a kind of epitaph to the beauty of life: "I'm not an end-of-the-world guy, but I do think we don't have much time left," he says.

Though Jarmusch remains continually enthralled by cinema, the increasing hardships of film financing and distribution, he says, "sucks big time." It took him seven years to get "Only Lovers" made. He was also coerced into shooting on digital for the first time and, to save money, filming partly on a soundstage in Germany. "I felt like a wolf being domesticated," he says.

"I can't just play their game anymore," says Jarmusch. "I've had it, really. And I don't want to make another film under the circumstances I made 'Lovers Left Alive.'"

Instead, Jarmusch has been making music more lately, which, he says, "allow expression to come out of me." Among the many projects he's juggling is a musical theater piece about the inventor Nikola Tesla.

And though Jarmusch will always be firmly identified with New York's once-gritty Lower East Side, he now spends much of his time amid nature at his remote house in the Catskills. He calls himself an amateur mycologist and an aspiring bird-watcher.

"I had chipmunks that I fed for a while that - I never touched them - but they would walk on me," says Jarmusch. "They were so familiar. I'd come outside and they would sit right next to me. Just hanging out. Not afraid of me. They know I'm that white-haired guy that brings them food."

Shehzad ton takes Pakistan to 190-5 vs Bangladesh

MIRPUR: Opener Ahmed Shehzad produced a superb maiden century Sunday to help Pakistan score an imposing 190-5 against Bangladesh in a World Twenty20 Group 2 match.

Shehzad, who had a previous highest of 98 not out in Twenty20 internationals, scored an unbeaten 111 off 62 balls with 10 fours and five sixes.

He added 83 runs for the fourth wicket with Shoaib Malik (26) as Pakistan utilized the good conditions after electing to bat.

Bangladesh left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak justified his selection for this game in place of Sohag Gazi as he finished with 2-20.

Pakistan needs to win this match as well as its last game against the West Indies to qualify for the semifinals.

India has already ensured a semifinal berth from the group with three consecutive wins.

Aamir Khan takes a dig at Bombay Velvet

Bollywood actor Aamir Khan, who is gearing up for his next film P.K., has reportedly shifted the release date of the film from June to December (Christmas week). Well, it is the same time when Anurga Kashyap's Bombay Velvet is suppose to hit the screens.  

Recently a leading tabloid reported that Aamir took a dig at one of the makers of Bombay Velvet, Madhu Mantena, at Kangana Ranaut's birthday bash.

The tabloid quoted a source as saying, "Aamir was indirectly taking a potshot at Madhu. He sounded really ticked off, Madhu didn't know which way to look."

However, when contacted Mantena, he said "Aamir and I did chat up at Kangana's party but only about his TV show, Satyamev Jayate."

Only time will tell whether Aamir or Anurag, who will act and react on the release date issue first.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/aamir-khan-bombay-velvet-anurag-kashyap-ranbir-kapoor/1/351530.html

Nawaz takes pride in Pak democracy

LONDON: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said that Pakistan’s prestige in the world has increased because of the continuation of democracy in the country.

Speaking to the Pakistani media after reaching London from The Hague, where he met several world leaders, Nawaz said Pakistan’s relations with the world powers had improved tremendously because the world now knows that Pakistan is firmly entrenched on the course to democracy.

“The world can see that democracy has been strengthened in Pakistan. Pakistan’s economic indicators are getting better day by day and the state of the overall economy has improved since we came to power. Pakistanis have made a lot of sacrifices for strengthening democracy and for the restoration of judiciary and the rule of law. These sacrifices are acknowledged,” he said.

The PM said his government was trying its best to resolve the problems Pakistan was facing. “The dollar has weakened in comparison to the Pak Rupees, foreign investment is coming to Pakistan, loadshedding is gradually decreasing and in the coming days, this issue will be overcome completely,” he said.

He said in the next 7-8 years, around 21,000MW electricity will be produced in comparison to today’s production of about 17,000MW a day. “We have both short and long term strategies in place. We are focusing on making Pakistan a progressive country in the long term. Our strategy is already working as Pakistan’s stock market is showing great strength. Overall, our manufacturing power has increased and clearly our growth has gone up. These are all good indicators.”

Speaking about the operation against the criminal elements in Karachi, Nawaz said his government had decided to start the operation soon after coming to power. “You can see the results today. It will take time but things will get better and we will continue the operation,” he said.

When asked if the US administration had listened to Pakistan’s pleas of stopping the drone attacks, Nawaz said Pakistan had always maintained that drones were against its independence and territorial integrity. “Our opposition to drones is known to the whole world and we have always said that using drones was a wrong policy and counter-productive. There have been no strikes in the last 90 days or so and there should be no strikes again,” he said.

Nawaz said it was the first time that direct talks were being held with the Taliban to bring an end to militancy in the country and there were signs of progress. He said talks were postponed due to bad weather but would be held again. He said the government had started talks after the Taliban offered ceasefire first.

When asked about the fate of the two men who are in Pakistan’s custody and sought by the Scotland Yard in relation to an investigation into the murder of Dr Imran Farooq, the PM said he didn’t have much knowledge about the request sent to Pakistan by the Crown Prosecution Service. He said Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar was aware of the details of the case and only he could give an informed answer about this matter.

CJP takes suo moto notice of possible damage to Karachi temple

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice, Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani has taken suo moto notice of possible damage to a Hindu temple due to construction of underpass in Clifton area of Karachi, Geo News reported.

The Chief Justice has sought reply from Chief Secretary Sindh in two weeks pertaining to the matter.

Concerns of HRCP


A few days back, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) had sought the intervention of the chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) to protect an old Hindu temple in Karachi that is threatened by the construction of underpasses and flyovers at Clifton.

In a letter sent to the chief justice, the HRCP chairperson noted that business interests in complicity with officials of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) had started construction of multiple flyovers and underpasses around the Clifton seafront without any prior notice.

The chairperson highlighted HRCP’s concern over the adverse impact that this project could have on more than 150 years old Sri Ratneswar Mahadev temple located within a few metres of one of the underpasses.

Rishi Takes Revenge on Sonam Kapoor?

Sonam Kapoor was once known to have miffed Rishi Kapoor for allegedly making remarks about his son Ranbir Kapoor. Sonam and Deepika had appeared on Koffee With Karan and the duo took digs at Ranbir throughout the episode. This did not go down well with Ranbir's family and the yesteryear actor Rishi showed his displeasure evidently. However, there has been a lot of talk recently that Sonam and Rishi have patched up on the sets of Bewakoofiyaan.

Yet, during the shoot of the film, Rishi gave Sonam an earful when she requested him for a retake. He snubbed her saying, "Sonam tu prove kar rahi hain ke tu Anil Kapoor ki beti hain (by repeating the scenes, you prove that you are indeed the daughter of Anil Kapoor)." Apparently, the veteran actor is known for his mood swings too. Many a time, he had lost his cool and even had yelled. We wonder if Rishi Kapoor is still holding his grudge against Sonam Kapoor. Sonam, however, feels that there has never been a cold vibe between them.

Ayan Takes a Dig at Katrina

Director Ayan Mukerji has always shared a better equation with Ranbir's ex-girlfriend Deepika than his current alleged girlfriend Katrina Kaif. On Koffee With Karan, when he was asked what rumour had he heard lately, he responded that he had heard Katrina was in Dhoom 3. This seems to be a dig at her blink-and-you miss it appearance in the film.

PM takes serious notice of incidents of children’s death in Thar

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif has taken serious notice of the incidents of death of children in Thar, Sindh.

The Prime Minister directed National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to immediately get in touch with authorities in Sindh and provide all possible aid and assistance.

CJP takes suo moto notice of F-8 Kachehri firing

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani has taken suo moto notice of the F-8 Kachehri attack, Geo News reported.

The chief justice, while taking notice of the incident, sought reports from Chief Commissioner and IG Islamabad on Tuesday.

The hearing of the case would be held on Tuesday in open court.

It may be noted here that at least 11 people including Additional Session Judge Rafaqat Awan were killed in firing and hand grenade attacks in the Kachehri (local court) located in F-8 area in the federal capital on Monday morning.

Putin takes on West over Ukraine

MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin has taken a gamble on Ukraine and is betting that US President Barack Obama will blink first.

Wounded by a personal political defeat in a battle for influence over Russia's Slavic neighbour, Putin is fighting back, and presenting the crisis as a question of symmetry.

In his view, the West "stood by" and allowed armed men to direct events in the capital Kiev now he is "standing by" as armed men extended their control over the Crimea region.

The former KGB spy blames the West for stirring passions in Kiev, encouraging an opposition to break agreements to restore peace and allowing what Moscow calls "extremists" and "fascists" to dictate political developments in Ukraine.

Now authorised by parliament to deploy Russia's military in Ukraine to protect national interests and those of Russian citizens.

Putin is taking on a West he feels has cut Moscow out of talks on the future of Russia's Orthodox Christian brothers. How far he will go is the big question.

While Moscow has put 150,000 troops on high alert near Ukraine's border, it has shown no signs, yet, of sending them and denies Ukrainian allegations it sent the protesters who have hoisted Russian flags in some eastern towns.

Putin is saying nothing in public on Ukraine and has not done so since Moscow-backed President Viktor Yanukovich was deposed more than a week ago.

At the centre of attention as one Western leader after another calls to urge him not to use force, he is betting the West's response will be weak.

His calculation is that Obama has few levers at his disposal and no appetite for war over a remote Black Sea peninsula with symbolic and strategic value to Russia as home to a Russian naval base, but little economic significance.

The two presidents spoke by phone for 90 minutes on Saturday. The call appeared to have ended in a stalemate. R

ECLAIMING "LOST" TERRITORY:

Putin is banking on salvaging something out of a battle over Ukraine that he appeared to have won when Yanukovich spurned trade and political deals with the European Union in November, but then seemed to lose when Yanukovich was ousted after three months of protests.

"The West told Putin to get lost over Ukraine," said Sergei Markov, a pro-Putin political analyst and director of the Institute for Political Studies in Moscow, underlining the depth of hurt Putin felt over Ukraine.

Accusing Western powers and international organisations of trying to ignore Moscow in talks on financial assistance for Kiev, Markov said: "What we are saying is that if there are any UN, IMF, G8 agreements without consultations with us, then we will see them as illegitimate."

Reclaiming Crimea, a former Russian territory handed to Ukraine by Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in 1954, would win Putin kudos among core voters and especially nationalists.

If the status quo established in the last few days holds, with Russian forces already in charge in Crimea, he can hope to have won back Crimea without a shot being fired in anger or the necessity of taking on another drain to the state coffers.

Even if a pullback is forced on him, Putin will still portray himself as the defender of national interests and those of Russians abroad. In the eyes of many voters, he hopes, he will not have given up Ukraine without a fight.

While he has been busy defending national interests, his lieutenants have been lambasting the West over Ukraine, accusing it of manipulating events and working with a government chosen by gun-toting "extremists".

Combined with an orchestrated wave of nationalist indignation over attempts to limit use of the Russian language and persecute Russians in a country many consider an extension of their own, Putin's stance plays well at home.

His insistence that Ukraine's new leaders stick to the terms of a European Union-brokered political agreement last month with Yanukovich goes down well.

This month, his popularity ratings have bounced back to almost 70 percent, according to an opinion poll by independent pollster Levada.

"Putin has not forgiven the fact that the agreement was not fulfilled and that is one of his greatest motivations.

He considers he is acting in a symmetrical way," said Gleb Pavlovsky, a former Kremlin spin doctor. "I think that the authorities think it's very helpful that people are getting themselves worked up about this.

And the majority feel in a patriotic mood about Crimea and Ukraine. I think it's positive for the Kremlin. They won't refuse action."

ACTION?

Whether he takes action may still depend on the West. Military intervention in Ukraine has higher stakes than the war Russia fought with Georgia in 2008 invading Ukraine's southeast could transform Putin, a man who wanted the Sochi Winter Olympics to show Russia's modern face, into a pariah.

If Western powers decide to try to punish Russia with sanctions, Putin will be likely again to pursue a "symmetrical" policy and hit back with similar moves.

This would go down well with core supporters, but might risk unsettling the wealthy businessmen whose support helps cement Putin's grip on power.

But there is a risk Putin could be forced into action over Crimea by the nationalist thinking that he has let loose and this would be particularly risky if he were pushed into action to defend Russian speakers in eastern Ukraine.

The decision to seek authorisation to send in troops looked less like a prelude to war and more like a threat aimed at getting Kiev and the West to cut a deal, Professor Mark Galeotti from the Center of Global Affairs at New York University wrote on his blog.

"As the language toughens and the troops roll, though, it's getting harder to believe that common sense is going to prevail in the Kremlin."

In broadcasts with Cold War overtones, state television has many times repeated footage of parliament accusing Washington of crossing a red line by warning that Moscow will face "costs" if it intervenes in Ukraine.

It has run image after image of pro-Russian protesters raising the Russian flag above administrative buildings in several eastern regions, including the industrial centres of Donetsk and Kharkiv.

The patriotic mood has caught on. For every dissenter wondering whether this is the worst thing Russia could do since it crushed opposition in Czechoslovakia in 1968, there are dozens more who say the West is fomenting violence.

Near Red Square and the Defence Ministry in Moscow on Sunday, a few hundred protesters waved banners calling for "No War". Dozens were detained.

But their numbers could not match the thousands who turned out for a demonstration for the "defence of the Ukrainian people" in central Moscow.

"Fascism will not win," the protesters chanted. "Crimea is Russia. We are for Russian unity."

Co-working Takes Off in Pakistan

With three co-working spaces going operational within the last six months, the concept—we can say—has taken off in Pakistan.
Cheer up, deserted freelancers and lone entrepreneurs, you can now join others like yourself while still being free from the chains of a conventional 9-6 job.
For the sake of understanding the idea, a co-working space is  an office environment shared by many people who are otherwise working independently. It provides you a ready-to-move work environment with facilities like electricity, internet, business address, and a desk.
Agree to pay a small amount and you get a desk along with the frills of an office without spending money or time in setting one up.
Not to mention that a co-working space is a lot cheaper than doing all of it yourself.
DotZero in Karachi were the pioneer in this space. They have recently been joined by Basecamp from Peshawar and TechHub from Lahore. Let me give you a brief overview of the three:

1. DotZero, Karachi

 

DotZero, started in July 2013, wants to be more than a mere co-working space.
Launched with the goal ‘of creating and catalysing an ecosystem for technology start-ups,’ DotZero labels itself as community space for entrepreneurs. DotZero caters to technology entrepreneurs, no matter at what stage of  business they are.
If you are just a starter without any funding source or a revenue stream, you can apply for the Rs. 4,000/month community desk. Otherwise, you will have to pay 8 to 12 thousand rupees for a desk. Considering they launched just 6 months ago, it’s remarkable that they are running at close to full capacity with over 80 (out of 110) desks already occupied.

2. BasecampPK, Peshawar

Located in the heart of Peshawar, on the main G.T. Road, Basecamp also brands itself as a co-working space for startups. They started operation just a week ago, on January 15th.
Although still in beta, they are accepting a select number of people to join the facility. Fee isn’t mentioned on their website, maybe that will change when they launch.
For now, you can contact them for details.

3. Plan9 TechHub, Lahore

 

Backed by Plan9, TechHub is an upcoming co-working space to be launched on February 3rd, 2014. Plan9 is a technology incubator of Punjab Information Technology Board headed by the the former LUMS professor and serial entrepreneur Dr. Umer Saif.
TechHub primarily wants to attract the freelancers. Their open day, held on January 21st, attracted around 100 people. With only Rs. 5,000 a month, it is priced quite reasonably.

Epilogue

I, for one, as someone who has worked freelance for extended periods of time, welcome this trend. Although freelancing earns you a lot more than a day-job but that comes, for most, at the cost of getting cut off from the day to day interaction with real people in the real world.
A co-working space should help with that.