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district briefs:

Court suspends Punjab Bar Council elections

BAHAWALPUR: Jawad S Khawaja, the Lahore High Court judge, on Friday suspended the Punjab Bar Council (PBC) elections after hearing a writ petition against the amended ordinance under section 7 of the legal practitioners and bar council Act 1973. After the suspension, the council might rescheduled the elections that were announced on September 29. Petitioner Riaz Hanif Rahi has challenged the amending of the Bar Council Act and the schedule that the council announced on November 6. The Punjab advocate general had announced the new schedule. Jawad S Khawaja, the judge, summoned the Punjab advocate general on November 12 but he was unable to appear in court. Petitioner Riaz Hanif Rahi claimed that he was a candidate for the council from Rahimyar Khan under the September 29 election schedule and the Punjab advocate general was bound to complete the elections till November 30. He added that the Punjab advocate general had issued a new election schedule without amending the previous one. Polling under the new schedule was set to be held on December 18 that was contradicting the law. The next hearing will be on October 23. staff report

Bank officers suspected of financing Pasban-i-Ali

MULTAN: A police attempt to arrest two local bank officers after being suspected of financing an outlawed militant organisation fell short of their objective following a bungled raid on the bank on Club Road in Sargodha on Friday. Habib Ahmed Khan, the deputy superintendent of police, conceded that the two wanted bank officers, Imran Shirazi and Ghulam Abbas, remained on the run. “Our team raided a bank branch in Sargodha to arrest them after we received intelligence that they were financing the outlawed Pasban-i-Ali – the organisation that bombed Rashidabad.” staff report

Samjhota to run on Mondays and Thursdays

LAHORE: Pakistan Railways have announced new schedule for Samjhota Express running between Lahore and Atari (India). Now the train will operate every Monday and Thursday from November 24. According to a notification, the train will leave Lahore at 8am, reach Wagah at 8.35am from where it will depart at 11.30 am for Attari to reach at 11.40am. On the return journey, the train will steam off from Atari at 2pm and reach Wagah at 2.10pm. It will reach the Lahore Railway Station at 4.45pm. staff report

MQM hails Indian troop reduction in Kashmir

KARACHI: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement on Friday lauded Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s announcement on reduction of Indian forces in Kashmir in the near future. “It is a positive step towards permanent peace in South Asia,” the MQM’s coordination committee said in a press statement. It described the announcement as being the “first major success” resulting from the visit of party leader Altaf Hussain to India. “Mr Hussain has time and again demanded the demilitarisation of Kashmir during his addresses to various gatherings. staff report

HRCP grieves Shahani’s death

LAHORE: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) is shocked and grieved at the death of ML Shahani’s, a former HRCP governing body member and Sindh High Court judge, said IA Rehman, the HRCP director, in a statement on Friday. Mr Shahani was a well-known human rights activist and helped minorities and labourers, said the statement. Mr Rehman said that Mr Sahani handled several important court cases on behalf of trade unions and minority communities and remained committed to human rights while working as the Sindh advocate general. His career as a Sindh High Court judge was unfortunately cut short in circumstances that appeared to be less than fair, said Mr Rehman. As a member of the HRCP governing body, Mr Shahani spared neither time nor effort to advocate the rights of the underprivileged. HRCP condoled his family and prayed for the departed soul. staff report

29 Indian fishermen held

KARACHI: The Maritime Security Agency (MSA) arrested 29 Indian fishermen, 89 nautical miles from the Karachi coast, on Friday night for fishing in Pakistan’s territorial waters. Five fishing boats were also seized. The MSA handed over the arrested fishermen to the Docks police. staff report

Fire at Old Haji Camp

KARACHI: A fire erupted at old Haji Camp in Ranchhore Lines on Friday night. No one was injured. A spokesman for the fire brigade said eight fire tenders were pressed into service to put out the fire. The fire was controlled soon. staff report

Haqiqi activist shot dead

KARACHI: An activist of the Mohajir Qaumi Movement (Haqiqi) was shot dead in the police limits of Supermarket in Liaquatabad on Friday night. Shiraz, son of Shaukat, was sitting outside a shop in a street when two unidentified men riding a motorcycle sprayed him with bullets. He died on the way to Civil Hospital. Shiraz’s friend Abid was injured in the shooting. He has been admitted to Civil Hospital. The police have registered the case. staff report

Reckless driving claims 5 lives

KARACHI: Reckless driving claimed five lives in the city since late Thursday night. Shahid, aged 15, and Nisar, aged 20, were seriously injured when a speeding minibus of route D- 7 hit them in Saudabad, Malir. They were rushed to a hospital where Shahid died. The bus driver sped off after the accident. Imran Masih died after he was hit by a Metro bus in Mominabad. The victim was riding a motorcycle when the accident took place. Abdul Hameed was run over by unknown vehicle in Korangi while walking across a main road. Five passengers, including two women, and a cyclist were injured when a passenger coach overturned near Aisha Bawany School on Sharea Faisal. The cyclist, Shujaat, aged 35, was rushed to a hospital where he died. An unidentified 60 years old man was run over by an unknown vehicle in Kharadar while walking across the main road. staff report

Divali celebrated in Karachi

KARACHI: Hindus celebrated Divali, the festival of lights, here on Friday. People illuminated their houses with earthen lamps and other kinds of lights. Congregations were held at various temples of the city. The largest gathering took place in Swami Narayan Mandir on MA Jinnah Road. People at the gatherings also prayed for the well-being and prosperity of the country. Deevali heralds the beginning of winter. staff report

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