Opinion Hyderabad blues
During a visit to PPPs traditional pocketborough of Hyderabad last week,Pakistans PM Yousaf Raza Gilani announced the citys old administrative status would be restored....
During a visit to PPPs traditional pocketborough of Hyderabad last week,Pakistans PM Yousaf Raza Gilani announced the citys old administrative status would be restored. During the Musharraf years,the devolution of districts was undertaken,gerrymandering Hyderabad into four districts to the benefit of the pro-Mohajir Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) which was Musharrafs coalition partner,led by the exiled Altaf Hussain and to the obvious detriment of PPP,Musharrafs chief opponent. The announcement to unify the districts riled Hussain. Dawn reported on May 10: A controversy between PPP and MQM… intensified when MQM collected resignation letters from its ministers and advisers in the federal and Sindh governments… PPP did not appear in a mood to retract its stance. Daily Times ,on May 12,added: Interior Minister Rehman Malik met Altaf Hussain in London and forwarded President Asif Zardaris message to him… that the government would maintain the current status of Hyderabad. On May 13,a report in The News indicated it was decided to maintain the current
status quo to keep the coalition intact.
Capital court
Pakistan saw another debate on the restoration of the the Islamabad High Court (IHC). The News reported on May 11: As a first step to implement the 18th Amendment,the National Assembly passed a bill for establishment of a High Court for Islamabad. Islamabad got its own high court in 2007 under then president,Pervez Musharrafs second Provincial Constitutional Order. However,it ceased to exist when the supreme court declared that PCO illegal on July 31,2009. Expectedly,this move met with opposition,as Daily Times reported on May 14: Senior advocate Tariq Aziz Malik moved a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the establishment of IHC… The petitioner… said it was discriminatory to establish this court only in one city… Rawalpindi Bench of the Lahore High Court was already functioning. Malik said the law minister had lied,there were 25,000 lawyers in Islamabad,and IHC would… facilitate them. He said there were only 1,000 lawyers in the capital… Malik added… the exercise would put extra burden on the nation.
Corrupt banker
Pakistans top banker a fugitive since 2008 is in its enforcement net,report the papers. On May 10,Dawn reported: The Supreme Court was informed (that) Hamesh Khan,former president of Bank of Punjab and the main accused in the Rs 9 billion loan scam,would be extradited from the US on May 14. Khan,now an American citizen,filed an application before the US justice department seeking assurance of a fair trial and no maltreatment. The bench hearing his case shot back: You are telling the world you do not expect a fair trial from the highest court of your country. Daily Times reported the issuance of such an assurance letter: the US State Department has sought a written guarantee from the Government of Pakistan in this regard.
CBM reload
On May 11,Dawn reported on the phone talks between foreign ministers of Pakistan and India. Qureshi looked upbeat ahead of the talks… He told a group of former foreign ministers,foreign secretaries and ambassadors at a consultative session,Pakistan wants the momentum generated at Thimphu be sustained. Daily Times added on May 12: He said he was optimistic despite an uphill task… Dont expect miracles.
Value addition
Ahead of their new budget,Pakistan is exploring ways to generate more revenue. The News on May 11 reported: Pakistans economic managers will rush to Doha next week for holding talks with IMF ahead of the upcoming budget… by extending assurances to keep fiscal deficit under limit and implementing VAT from July 1. The News on May 13 quoted the adviser to the PM on finance saying in unequivocal terms that VAT would be implemented from July 1 and a minimum 6 per cent power tariff hike… was simply unavoidable.
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