• Achakzai questions govt’s handling of Tehran diplomacy, Afghanistan ties
• Senate resolution seeks coordinated national action to curb population growth

ISLAMABAD: Lawmakers in the National Assembly and Senate on Thursday raised concerns over the political situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and alleged human rights violations, while both houses also discussed electoral reforms and the need to strengthen parliamentary institutions.

National Assembly Opposition Leader Mehmood Khan Achakzai criticised the government for failing to take parliament into confidence over recent diplomatic developments in Tehran.

“How can four people decide the future of the whole nation?” he asked, warning that such decisions could push the country towards “anarchy and civil war”.

Mr Achakzai also opposed the suspension of trade with Afghanistan, describing Afghans as traditional friends of Pakistan and criticising the country’s past policies towards its neighbour.

PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said the parliamentary proceedings and the prevailing political situation in KP were creating a negative impression among the public. He also called for an end to hereditary politics in the country.

Rights concerns raised

Meanwhile, speaking on a point of order in the Senate, PTI parliamentary leader Barrister Syed Ali Zafar accused the government of undermining constitutional protections through the imposition of emergency and governor’s rule in KP.

He argued that fundamental human rights could not be suspended or compromised, regardless of the political situation. “There is one thing that cannot be broken, suspended or compromised: the fundamental human rights of the people of Pakistan,” he said.

Mr Zafar expressed concern over the detention of Noreen Niazi, sister of jailed PTI founder Imran Khan, claiming that she had suffered a heart attack and was hospitalised but her family was not being allowed to meet her.

Responding to the concerns, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said Noreen Niazi had been provided medical treatment in Lahore and was in satisfactory condition.

On allegations that her family was being denied access, Mr Sanaullah assured the house that details would be sought and the matter addressed according to the circumstances.

He defended her detention, alleging that she had sought to create unrest by mobilising people for a protest march towards Islamabad.

Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas also criticised the government’s actions in KP, alleging that the province had been “snatched from the people”.

He also questioned the imposition of emergency and governor’s rule in KP, arguing that democratic institutions could not function without respect for the law.

Population growth resolution

Separately, the Senate passed a resolution calling for urgent and coordinated national action to address the challenges posed by the country’s rapidly growing population.

The resolution, moved by PPP Vice President Senator Sherry Rehman, called for a comprehensive national response to population growth and its impact on public services and socioeconomic development.

Ms Rehman said Pakistan’s population was projected to reach approximately 390 million by 2050 at the current growth rate, placing unprecedented pressure on national resources.

Published in Dawn, October 30th, 2026

KARACHI: Two young sisters were allegedly shot dead by their brother over their use of social media in Drigh Road, within the jurisdiction of Shah Faisal Colony police, on Wednesday, police said.

Korangi SSP Fida Husain Janwari told Dawn that Sobia, 25, and Hira, 20, were gunned down inside their home in New Rehmanabad by their brother, Rehan.

The senior officer said the initial investigation suggested that the suspect had warned his sisters against using TikTok, which appeared to be a possible motive behind the double murder.

He said the suspect had fled the crime scene and efforts were on to ensure his arrest.

The SSP added that the alleged killer had a criminal record and had been arrested multiple times and sent to jail in connection with criminal cases.

The bodies were shifted to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) for medico-legal formalities.

Firing on under-construction building leaves watchman dead

A watchman was gunned down and two labourers were wounded in an armed attack on an under-construction building in the Garden area.

The Soldier Bazaar police said two armed men riding a motorcycle resorted to indiscriminate firing on the under-construction Jumani Square located on Nishter Road near Alibhai Auditorium. As a result, three persons sustained critical injuries and were taken to the Civil Hospital Karachi where Aslam, 30, was pronounced dead on arrival.

The police said the victim was watchman of the building. The injured labourers were identified as Shahid Ali, 25, and Shakir Ali, 28.

The police in a statement said the incident appeared to be related to extortion.

Published in Dawn, October 29th, 2026

ISLAMABAD: As many as 45 researchers from the National University of Sciences and Technology (Nust) have earned the prestigious honour of being among the world’s top 2pc of scientists in 2026, say rankings compiled by Stanford University and Elsevier.

According to a press release issued by Nust, the distinction places Nust researchers among an international community of leading scholars whose work is contributing immensely to the advancement of knowledge and scientific progress across diverse disciplines.

Notably, 16 Nust researchers have consistently featured in the rankings over successive years, demonstrating sustained scholarly impact and a long-term commitment to advancing knowledge across disciplines.

“Extending his heartiest felicitations to the distinguished researchers, Rector Nust Dr Muhammad Zahid Latif remarked that the meritorious accomplishment of our truly erudite faculty and researchers has brought immense pride to Nust and the nation, and exemplifies the calibre of scholarship that continues to elevate Pakistan’s standing in the international research community,” read the press release.

Rector said that the recognition also speaks volumes of Nust’s enduring commitment to intellectual leadership, scientific inquiry and the pursuit of finding solutions to complex real-world challenges.

Like, Nust faculty members from several other universities are also part of the top 2pc of scientists list.

Published in Dawn, October 29th, 2026

LAHORE: Additional District & Sessions Judge (AD&SJ) Rafaqat Ali Gondal on Tuesday recused himself from hearing the bail application of Ahmed Tanveer, a key suspect, in the rape case of an Azeri woman, and referred the matter to the Lahore High Court for further proceedings.

Earlier, Advocate Safdar Shaheen Pirzada, counsel for the suspect, filed an application seeking exemption for his client from personal appearance before the court.

The counsel stated that the suspect’s interim bail expired on Oct 27, but he could not appear before the court because he had been arrested in another case.

He said Ahmed was in jail for a 14-day identification parade in connection with the other case.

He asked the court to exempt the petitioner/suspect from appearing for one hearing.

However, AD&SJ Gondal expressed his inability to hear the matter.

The judge informed the counsel that he had prepared a reference of the matter and forwarded it to the high court for further action.

Without naming a case, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, last week, had alleged that in a recent rape case, it was revealed that the suspect’s wealthy family allegedly offered huge money to the victim in exchange for withdrawing her allegations, despite her statement already having been recorded under Section 164.

“It was further alleged that the judge who granted bail to the accused had also been bribed,” she added.

Defence-C police had registered the case on the complaint of the Azeri woman, who accused three men of subjecting her to gang rape. She also accused two women of abetment in the crime.

Now all five male and female suspects are in police custody.

Published in Dawn, October 28th, 2026

KARACHI: Foreign investors welcomed the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) 50bps rate hike to 12 per cent on Monday, but the business community called it counterproductive for stabilisation, industrial growth and export competitiveness.

M. Abdul Aleem, Secretary General of the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry, acknowledged the SBP’s move, saying it was needed to contain inflationary pressure and safeguard macroeconomic stability amid global energy price risks.

However, with large-scale manufacturing growth recovering to 1.9pc in July-August FY26 and private-sector credit expanding 14.1pc year-on-year, it is equally important to sustain the emerging momentum in investment and economic activity, he said.

As inflationary pressures are significantly influenced by external energy prices and domestic supply constraints, he emphasised that monetary tightening must be complemented by targeted supply-side reforms, fiscal discipline, competitive energy tariffs, broader tax-base coverage and predictable taxation and regulatory policies.

Foreign investors back SBP’s move to curb inflation, while industry says it will hurt exports and growth

In contrast, FPCCI President Atif Ikram Sheikh said raising the policy rate to an uncompetitive 12pc would further inflate borrowing costs for manufacturers already grappling with unprecedented high overheads, soaring utility tariffs and liquidity constraints.

Instead of curbing inflation — driven largely by supply-side bottlenecks, energy costs and fiscal anomalies rather than excess demand — tight monetary policy has crippled domestic manufacturing, he said, urging the government and the State Bank to recalibrate the framework and bring the policy rate to single digits to make credit affordable for trade, SMEs and large-scale manufacturing.

High interest rates also place an unmanageable debt-servicing burden on the exchequer and private borrowers, creating a cycle of fiscal distress and stagnant output, he said, asking the SBP to align rates with regional benchmarks.

KCCI President Talat Mahmood warned that the hike would further raise the cost of doing business, discourage private-sector investment and undermine growth. He said Pakistan needs to strengthen its productive capacity, attract investment, generate employment and accelerate export-led growth but the policy rate hike will send the wrong signal to businesses planning to invest and expand.

SITE Association of Industry President Abdul Hadi said the move would further aggravate industry problems at a time when factories are operating far below capacity and barely surviving.

The business community has long demanded a single-digit policy rate, but industry’s real problems have again been ignored, he said, adding that high rates will not only make fresh funding harder but also increase the burden on existing loans.

He said the rate hike would burden manufacturers, forcing formal businesses to shut down or scale back, as costlier borrowing would hit new investment, expansion and production.

Korangi Association of Trade & Industry President Sheikh Umer Rehan said the hike could hurt industry, business growth, and recovery, adding that inflation could also be curbed by cutting energy costs, fixing taxation, improving the business climate, and implementing effective industrial policies.

Pakistan Textile Exporters Association Chairman Rehan Naseem Bharara said the rate hike would raise working-capital costs, constrain investment and weaken global competitiveness at a time when industry is already grappling with expensive energy and financing.

Published in Dawn, October 27th, 2026

ISLAMABAD: Bestway Group on Saturday launched Chinese automaker Geely Auto in Pakistan, acquiring the Proton plant at Port Qasim, Karachi, for assembly.

Bestway Automotive, Geely’s sole authorised distributor, will handle sales and after-sales service.

The Group Managing Director, Irfan Sheikh, said the company would focus on localisation and build a charging network to support its long-term presence.

The launch includes three models: the EX2 compact electric hatchback, the EX5 electric SUV, and the Starray EM-i with range-extended EV technology.

Bestway said it has invested over $350 million in Pakistan and created 20,000 jobs in the last three years.

Geely Auto Inter­national Corporation Vice President Evin Ye said Pakistan was Geely’s first market in South Asia, adding that it was the only automaker with a low-orbit satellite network.

Published in Dawn, October 25th, 2026

• Calls for increased market supply, warns against hoarding and speculation
• PTI Kisan Wing welcomes wheat support price, seeks effective procurement mechanism

ISLAMABAD: Expressing concern over rising wheat prices, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Saturday directed federal and provincial governments to take all necessary measures, including increasing market supply, to bring prices under control.

Chairing a cabinet committee meeting to review the stocks, prices and supply of essential commodities, Mr Dar emphasised that safeguarding national food security and ensuring the availability of essential items at reasonable prices were government priorities.

The participants reviewed national reserves, procurement frameworks, domestic consumption and price trends. They were informed that stocks of essential commodities remained adequate, ensuring stability in local supplies.

The committee was briefed that domestic and imported wheat stocks were sufficient to meet requirements until the next harvest.

Regarding sugar, the committee was informed that its price in the domestic market remained well below the targeted retail price of Rs155 per kg, with surplus stocks available until the next crushing season.

Mr Dar directed federal and provincial authorities to closely monitor market networks, stressing that all organisations must show zero tolerance for hoarding and market speculation.

The meeting was attended by National Food Security and Research Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain, Climate Change Minister Musadik Malik, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Tariq Bajwa, the secretaries of the national food security and research and commerce ministries, the chief secretaries of all provinces, and senior officials from relevant federal and provincial departments.

Implementation urged

In a related development, the PTI Kisan Wing has welcomed the government’s announcement of a wheat support price of Rs4,500 per maund (40kg), while expressing reservations about its implementation and demanding concrete measures to ensure farmers receive the announced rate for their produce.

A day earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif set the new indicative wheat support price for 2027, increasing it by Rs1,000 from the rate fixed last year.

According to a statement issued on Saturday, PTI Kisan Wing Central Secretary Information Khalid Nawaz Sadhraich said the announcement had come after a prolonged wait and persistent demands by farmers’ organisations, which had repeatedly urged the government to protect growers from rising production costs and financial losses.

He welcomed the announcement but said its significance would depend on whether the government ensured its implementation in letter and spirit. Merely announcing a support price would serve little purpose if farmers continued to be denied the promised rate when selling their wheat, he added.

Referring to previous wheat procurement seasons, Mr Sadhraich said farmers had repeatedly suffered despite government claims and official announcements regarding support prices.

“In the absence of an effective procurement mechanism, middlemen and commission agents exploited growers’ vulnerability, compelling them to sell their produce at throwaway prices, often without effective intervention by the relevant authorities,” he said.

He cautioned the government against repeating these mistakes, saying farmers could not afford another season of financial uncertainty after investing heavily in seeds, fertilisers, pesticides, diesel, electricity and irrigation.

“A support price announced on paper provides no meaningful relief unless farmers can actually sell their wheat at the declared rate,” he added.

Mr Sadhraich demanded that the government immediately announce a clear wheat procurement policy, ensuring that it purchased wheat directly from farmers at the announced rate.

He said the policy should spell out procurement arrangements and operational procedures and establish an effective monitoring mechanism to prevent exploitation by middlemen and ensure that the benefits reached genuine growers.

He also called for the timely establishment of procurement centres, transparent purchasing procedures and an accessible complaints mechanism so that small and medium-sized farmers could sell their produce without unnecessary hurdles or pressure from market intermediaries.

Published in Dawn, October 25th, 2026

RAWALPINDI: The National Assembly Standing Committee on Interior and Narcotics Control has summoned the Punjab inspector general of police (IGP), regional police officer (RPO), city police officer (CPO) Rawalpindi, SSP Investigation and additional inspector general of the Crime Control Department (CCD) to brief it on the investigation into the alleged brutal murder of Hina Javed.

The committee meeting is scheduled for Thursday, October 29, 2026, at 2pm in the committee room at Parliament House, Islamabad.

The police officials will brief committee members on the latest developments in the high-profile murder case.

The Punjab government has also formed a three-member high-powered committee to review the investigation into Hina Javed’s murder. Her husband and domestic servant have been placed on judicial remand at Adiala Jail in connection with the case.

The committee has already visited Rawalpindi, questioned the deceased woman’s husband and domestic servant at Adiala Jail, met her family and inspected the crime scene.

The panel comprises Additional IG CCD Sohail Chatta, DIG Lahore Shoaib Khurram Janbaz and SSP Investigation Rawalpindi Saifullah.

According to the postmortem and DNA report analysis, evidence collected during the investigation indicated that Hina Javed had been brutally tortured. The report noted blue marks on her hands and arms and a 27-centimetre-deep wound on her neck.

The report also stated that DNA collected from bloodstains, bedsheets allegedly used in the strangulation, a door lock and a door handle matched the DNA of the domestic servant.

Evidence collected for DNA testing included swabs from the deceased’s left-hand fingernails, samples taken from her body and pieces of cloth from a bedsheet bearing suspected bloodstains and spermatozoa. According to the report, the samples matched the domestic worker’s blood.

A reddish piece of carpet bearing suspected stains was also recovered from the southeastern bedroom of the apartment where the crime occurred. The report said the stains matched the blood and sperm attributed to Zeeshan Arshad.

The investigation has focused on the domestic servant’s alleged involvement, with the reported DNA findings forming part of the evidence under examination.

Meanwhile, Hina Javed’s family has again expressed mistrust in the Rawalpindi police investigation and the claims made by the CCD chief, demanding the formation of a judicial commission to probe the murder.

The family has alleged that police are protecting the main accused while holding the domestic servant responsible for the crime.

The initial postmortem examination and police report stated that Hina Javed’s body was found in the washroom of her apartment with signs of torture, including a strangulation mark around her neck, an injury below her right lip and bleeding from her nose.

Published in Dawn, October 24th, 2026

LAHORE: The police on Friday claimed to have arrested a man who had allegedly tortured and injured a young woman riding a scooty on busy Mozang Link Road in the city.

Identified as Ghulam Mustafa, the attacker was tracked down and arrested by the police with the help of data of dozens of the Punjab Safe Cities Authority (PSCA) cameras, besides using traditional investigation techniques. He was sent behind the bars after being nominated in a criminal case.

A CCTV footage of the incident, which took place late on Thursday, sparked widespread public outrage once footage was aired.

The footage showed the suspect overtook the scooty rider on the busy road, placed his bike in front of her two wheeler and subjected her to brutal torture in the presence of several passersby.

It was shocking to observe that none of the onlookers tried to intervene and rescue the woman. The man pulled her hair and slapped her repeatedly.

As per initial police reports, the woman suffered facial injuries, including nasal bone fracture, during the brutal attack.

A police official says the attacker also threw the victim’s bag on the ground that contained a laptop valuing around Rs90,000, resulting in severe damage to the laptop. The suspect later fled the scene in the presence of several onlookers, he adds.

A special police team, under the supervision of Civil Lines Superintendent of Police (SP) Maniza Karamat, tracked down and arrested the suspect using modern digital tracking technology.

The official says that a case has been lodged against the attacker on the complaint of the victim’s father.

Published in Dawn, October 24th, 2026