The Christian community of Jaranwala returns to their neighbourhood to find their homes ransacked and gutted.

“What the mob could not steal they burned to the ground,” said one woman. “It took us 20 years to build this home. In one day they [the mob] sent us back 20 years,” said a man, whose home was burnt, “We can never rebuild our lives again.”

Key takeaways from the Election (Amendment) Bill 2023. Thread: Definition of “assets” tweaked. Now includes property owned by candidates and "spouses and dependent children".

Definition of “technocrat” also tweaked. Now a technocrat must have at least 20 years of experience at international and national level “post qualification”.

In an interview to the Guardian, Imran Khan said military and ISI were above the law.

“They can pick up people, detain people, disappear people. They try and influence judges...”

But whenever Khan is asked how he'd reduce military’s over-sized role in politics, his response: To AJE in April he said:

“You cannot wish away the role of the military in Pakistan because it is entrenched for 70 years. But you need that balance...”

Key highlights from the ECP judgement. Thread: Funds amounting to $2,121,500 were transferred from a Dubai-based company by Arif Naqvi into PTI’s account.

The PTI “knowingly received donations from a company which was being operated by a business tycoon who was involved in criminal fraud,” states the ECP.

PTI did take prohibited funds, states the Election Commission of Pakistan as reported by Geo News. PTI took funds from 34 foreign nationals, states the ECP, as reported by Geo News.

A short thread regarding adding the oath of Khatam-e-Nabuwat in the nikahnama in Punjab.

I wrote about it for BBC Urdu in December. In October, Punjab Assembly passed a resolution, unanimously, to add a Khatam-e-Nabuwwat column in the marriage certificate.

The resolution was moved by lawmakers from PML-Q and the PML-N.

The lawmakers said the speaker Punjab assembly supported the resolution.

Should the Supreme Court have made the recording of the JCP meeting public?

Legal experts weigh in.

geo.tv/latest/430855-… “I think the transcript should not have been released until and unless the consent of all nine participating members was taken. Naturally, the comments that were made about the judges were done under the assumption of secrecy.” - Lawyer Salahuddin Ahmed.

According to the Economic Survey, during FY2022 “the agriculture sector recorded a remarkable growth of 4.40% and surpassed the target of 3.5% and last year’s growth of 3.48 %.” As per the Survey “The literacy rate has gone up in all provinces:

Punjab (66.1 percent to 66.3 percent)

Sindh (61.6 percent to 61.8 percent),

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (52.4 percent to 55.1 percent)

Balochistan (53.9 percent to 54.5 percent).”

In a press conference yesterday, the ex-servicemen said they were ready for “a third war” and announced that one of their enemies is Rana Sanaullah. 🤷‍♀️ The ex-servicemen said they wanted to convey “a loud and clear message to American that if it continues to have anti-Pakistan policies then we have other options.”

Why do they think they can set Pakistan’s foreign policy?

Here are some the major changes made to the NAB Ordinance 1999.

Thread. Once passed by the Senate, and signed into law by the president, the amended bill will apply to all cases, being probed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), since 1999.

PTI approached 'neutrals' for talks with govt: Ahsan Iqbal

I report.
geo.tv/latest/419043-… “They [PTI] sent a message through the ‘third party’ that they wanted to talk to us and negotiate,” Iqbal told Geo.

In a presser, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah says that Punjab is now completely “calm and cool”. Sindh has also rejected this march, while the only activity right now is in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, says the interior minister.

“There are around 3,000 – 4,000 people with Ali Amin Gandapur. They are using provincial machinery,” he adds.

Till now, 162 PTI workers have been arrested in Lahore alone, official sources tell me. Police fire gas shells at a PTI rally led by Yasmin Rashid at Batti Chowk in Lahore, reports Geo News.

In a press conference Imran Khan says that the current government is just an “undemocratic as the dictators of the country”. "We protested for 124 days, did we ever do anything wrong? Tell me any such incident,” asks Imran Khan

Sindh govt imposes Section 144 for 30 days.

Notification states it has been informed that “some political and other disgruntled elements are planning to trigger acts of unlawful assembly with an intent to block roads, highways and organize a sit-in." Punjab government has also imposed Section 144, says PML-N's Attaullah Tarar in a press conference.

"We have intelligence reports that they [PTI] have started gathering weapons and want that when a crowd gathers they will start firing to disturb peace."

Maryam Nawaz Sharif claims that the letter, shown by PM Khan, was drafted in the MOFA. Maryam Nawaz says PM Khan used the National Security Committee for political reasons.

Calls on the establishment to come on the record and tell public the truth.

Ministers and government officials, belonging to the ruling PTI, have lobbied accusations of “fake news” at reporters and media outlets.

But Geo TV finds that these claims of “fake news” are often inaccurate.

Here is a rolling list of fact-checks:
geo.tv/latest/308215-… The minister for information incorrectly quotes a Human Rights Watch report.

geo.tv/latest/308215-…

Why are journalists opposing the proposed Pakistan Media Development Authority? #PMDA geo.tv/latest/370271-… “The controversial law proposes to set up all media (print, television, radio, films, social media and digital) control under one body, ignoring the fact that each media format has unique dynamics and characteristics that cannot be governed under one authority.”

Pakistan officials deny visiting Israel last November.

But what is also interesting to note was the activity inside and outside Pakistan during that timeframe – therefore August – December 2020.

A thread: UAE and Bahrain sign peace agreements with Israel on September 15, 2020.

Internationally, the Trump-led diplomacy continued with other Arab nations which also signed peace treaty with Israel.

With the Elections (Second Amendment) Ordinance 2021, the government expects the ECP to make long-term arrangements on the basis of a short-term law.

Why is that unlikely to happen?

Thread: Sources say that the government’s election ordinance seems to be just “an eyewash”, adding that the ruling party did not table the ECP’s reports on electronic and internet voting in the parliament in the past three years.

The enablers of corruption must also be held accountable, says the prime minister. The prime minister says his government came with a robust public mandate to get ride of this menace from the country. “But what is needed is international cooperation to bring perpetrators of financial crimes to justice,” he added.