The way I look at it.. Our 70 years adversary got a dimmer as PM, a economy begging for money. We have a strong PM, strong growth and strong economy.
If it was some other country, it would made sure it does everything possible to push the adversary more in to the sinkhole.
However since we are descendants of Yudhishtir & Mahatma Gandhi.. we shall be doing no such thing. Prefer to wait for Pak to recover and hurt us more.
Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
anupmisra Ji :anupmisra wrote:So, what do you do when your economy is tanking? Why, take crowd pleasing measures to divert their attention.
Finance Minister Asad Umar announces Rs2 decrease in petrol, diesel prices
Finance Minister Asad Umar announced a Rs2 decrease in the prices of petrol and diesel on Friday. Umar, while addressing a press conference in Islamabad, explained how fuel prices for consumers are determined.This shoot-from-the-hip minister simply reduced the sales taxes on gas and diesel and passed the savings on to the consumers little realizing that the sliding value of Toi.Rs will make the burden yet more on his reserves. Shazam! Instant gratification! And the crowd goes wild!! And, there's always time to print more useless money.If I compare, the sales tax on diesel in May was 27.5 per cent, while in November it was just 12pc ─ less than half. The 15pc GST on petrol was reduced to 4.5pc.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1448586/finan ... sel-prices
Terroristani Finance Minister Asad Umar is a WILLY WOOFTER!
Cheers
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Little known fact, his abbajaan, general ghulam umar, was a proclaimed 1971 war criminal and a war profiteer. I'm the Dim has found the right person with the right pedigree to run his finance ministry. As the dimwit said, why should his goberment be held responsible for the past? Hainji? Read on.Peregrine wrote:Terroristani Finance Minister Asad Umar is a WILLY WOOFTER!
General Ghulam Umar was held responsible for the Bangladesh debacle according to the Justice Hamood-ur-Rehman Commission Report
That General Yahya Kina, General Abdul Hamid Khan, Lt. Gen. S.G.M.M. Pirzada, Lt. Gen. Gul Hasan, Maj. Gen. Umar and Maj Gen Mitha should be publicly tried for being party to a criminal conspiracy to illegally usurp power from F.M. Mohammad Ayub Khan in power if necessary by the use of force. In furtherance of their common purpose they did actually try to influence political parties by threats, inducements and even bribes to support their designs both for bringing about a particular kind of result during the elections of 1970, and later persuading some of the political parties and the elected members of the National Assembly to refuse to attend the session of the National Assembly scheduled to be held at Dacca on the 3rd of March, 1971. They, furthermore, in agreement with each other brought about a situation in East Pakistan which led to a civil disobedience movement, armed revolt by the Awami League and subsequently to the surrender of our troops in East Pakistan and the dismemberment of Pakistan
That the Officers mentioned in No. (i) above should also be tried for criminal neglect of duty in the conduct of war both in East Pakistan and West Pakistan.
In his book, Gen ‘Tiger’ Niazi accused Gen Ghulam Umar of being in the inner circle of Yahya Khan and even of embezzling money, misappropriating Rs 600,000 and returning only Rs 300,000 when caught.
The charge against Gen Umar was that he had interfered to scuttle an agreement already arrived at between Yahya and Mujib before Umar arrived in Dhaka from Islamabad. He met with General Yahya, General Tikka Khan and General Khudadad in Dhaka where he convinced them not to agree on anything with Mujib and to start Operation Blitz.
General Umar vehemently denied the allegation. He said he knew nothing about Operation Blitz.
Another accusation, according to Bangladeshi sources, was that Gen Umar together with Generals Gul Hasan and Tikka Khan had decided that Bengali intellectuals and journalists would be put to death.
Gen Umar denied it. He kept insisting that he was clean because of his religious background. He was from the family of Islamic scholars and ascetics (ulema and fuqara).
To the question that a recent book by Hussain Haqqani had also indicted him, Gen Umar said that he had no assets; he just could not be dishonest.
And, guess who is the inspiration behind minister umar? His abbajaan, who else?Maj Gen Ghulam Omar, father of PTI’s Asad Omar (former CEO Engro), who was the Secretary of Yahya Khan’s National Security Council, arranged funding for Muslim League Qayyum Faction so as to dent Bhutto’s position in West Pakistan.
Go figure! Pakhanistani society, especially the ruling class, is laced with children of war criminals and profiteers.
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
At the risk of a self-goal, war criminals that we let go scott free.anupmisra wrote:Go figure! Pakhanistani society, especially the ruling class, is laced with children of war criminals and profiteers.
I don't know if Umar was among the PoWs that we held.
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Notable Pakistani POWsKashi wrote:At the risk of a self-goal, war criminals that we let go scott free. I don't know if Umar was among the PoWs that we held.
1. Lt-Gen. Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi, PA, Commander of Eastern Command.
2. R.-Adm Mohammad Shariff, PN, later four-star admiral and Chairman joint chiefs in 1980.
3. Maj-Gen. Rao Farman Ali, military adviser and chairman of Fauji Foundation in 1970s.
4. Air-Cdre Inamul Haque, PAF pilot, later three-star rank air force general and politician
5. Maj-Gen. Mohammad Jamshed, PA
6. Capt. Ahmad Zamir, CO PM in East, later appointed as Vice-Admiral in the Navy.
7. Gp-Capt. Zulfiqar Ali Khan, PAF pilot and later four-star rank air force general.
8. Lt-Cdr. Mansurul Haq, PN, four-star admiral in the Navy.
9. Flt-Lt. PQ Mehdi– the PAF pilot who shot down, first POW, ascended as four-star rank air force
general, Air Chief Marshal, and chief of air staff in 2000.
10. Lt. Shahid Karimullah, PN, four-star admiral in the Pakistan Navy in 2005.
11. Maj. K.M. Arif, PA, four-star rank army general and vice-chief of army staff 1987.
12. Cdr. T.K. Khan, PN, four-star admiral in 1983.
13. Maj. Siddique Salik, PA, later one-star rank army general and DG of Inter-Services Public Relations in 1988
14. Capt. Ikram Sehgal.
15. Lt-Col. Raja Nadir Pervez, PM, politician.
16. Cdr. Iqbal F. Quadir, PN, analyst and later ascended as vice-admiral and vice naval chief in 1983.
17. Lt. Abdul Aziz Mirza, PN, later ascended as four-star admiral in 2002.
18. Capt. Jamshed Gulzar Kiani, PA later ascended as three-star rank army general.
19. Lt. T.M. Khattak, PN, three-star rank admiral in the Navy
20. Lt-Cdr Shamoon Alam Khan, PN and ISI agent, diplomat and later three-star rank admiral in the Navy.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prisoners ... stani_POWs
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Pakistan FM scored self-goal with ‘googly’ remark, says New Delhi - Suhasini Sherene Haidar, The Hindu
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi scored a “self-goal” by claiming that Prime Minister Imran Khan had tricked India over the Kartarpur corridor, government sources said in New Delhi on Friday.
“It [Mr. Qureshi’s remark] was intended to score a point but it turned out to be a self-goal that gives away Pakistan’s real intention in organising the [Kartarpur] event,” an official told The Hindu.
Mr. Qureshi’s statement at a function on Thursday claiming that Mr. Khan had “bowled a googly” became the latest in a series of contradictory messages that marked the otherwise cordial photo-opportunity afforded by the start of work on the Kartarpur Sahib corridor this week. PM Imran Khan was joined by Pakistan Army Chief General Bajwa, and Ministers from India — Harsimrat Badal, Hardeep Puri and Navjot Sidhu, for the foundation laying ceremony for the six-kilometre corridor.
“The world watched, Pakistan watched, that PM Imran Khan bowled a googly at Kartarpur. As a result of the googly, India, that had refused to engage with Pakistan, had to send two ministers to Pakistan to engage. We are happy they came, as ours is a message of peace,” Mr. Qureshi had told an audience of lawmakers and ruling party supporters at a function to mark 100 days of the Khan government in Islamabad on Thursday.
Contradictory remarks
Only hours earlier, Mr. Qureshi had addressed a group of Indian journalists invited to Pakistan to cover the Kartarpur ceremony, and said just the opposite. “Let me clarify,” Mr. Qureshi had said, “The Kartarpur gesture, believe me, had no googly hidden in it.”
Mr. Qureshi had also said it was Pakistan’s failing economy that was the motivator for the “consensus for peace with India” in the country. “Let me point out why there’s support for the entire [engagement process]: because we have come on a mandate to fix the economy. We have inherited a difficult economic situation where the fiscal deficit is close to 6.6%, the trade deficit was historic and growth rate is abysmal. So the challenge….is the economy,” he had said.
Pakistan’s debt repayment crisis, the cancellation of about $3 billion in U.S. assistance over the past year as well as financial strictures arising from the “greylisting” of the country by the Financial Action Task Force, are all part of the challenge as well.
The Ministry of External Affairs didn’t comment officially on the latest remarks by the Pakistani foreign minister, although it had protested PM Khan’s reference to Kashmir during his speech at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Kartarpur corridor earlier, calling it an attempt to “politicise a pious event.”
Pakistani foreign office officials said that the MEA’s statement failed to account for comments made by Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, hitting out directly at the Pakistani Army Chief General Bajwa at the groundbreaking ceremony on the Indian side in Dera Baba Nanak on Monday. “Was that not an attempt to politicise the pious occasion as well,” asked one official.
On her own return from Pakistan, Union Minister Harsimrat Badal’s comments calling Congress minister Navjot Singh Sidhu a “traitor” and demanding that he be dismissed by the Congress party for having gone to Pakistan, added to the contradictory and noisy messaging that marked the week when the Kartarpur corridor, called a “corridor of peace” by leaders on both sides, was started.
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
is kartarpur going to be gateway for khalistanis? 
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Not if we don't allow them to. We need to be brave and vigilant rather than fearful. Even London or Vancouver can be a gateway for Khalistanis.rrao wrote:is kartarpur going to be gateway for khalistanis?
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Punjab police is not the 18,000 force it was in 80`s , it is a highly motivated 85,000 personnel, one today. But we need to be extremely vigilant. ISI is working and putting its own money to organise Khalistan, talks in London. We need to do a bigger event for balochistan. Call in Altaf, Harbyar marri and Mansoor Pastheen.
Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Pakistan lawmakers critical of army barred from leaving the country, briefly detained – Reuters
PESHAWAR/ISLAMABAD: Two lawmakers who are vocal critics of Pakistan's powerful military and have alleged widespread abuses by the armed forces say they have been barred from leaving the country, in the latest crackdown on dissent in the South Asian nation.
Ali Wazir and Mohsin Dawar, two parliamentarians from the violence-ravaged North Waziristan
region bordering Afghanistan, were due to leave for United Arab Emirates on Friday, when authorities at the airport in the northwestern city of Peshawar intercepted them and briefly detained them.
"Both of us are on the ECL," Dawar told Reuters, a reference to the Exit Control List, which names people forbidden from leaving Pakistan.
Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), which is in charge of the ECL list and whose officials stopped the lawmakers in Peshawar, did not respond to requests for comment.
But an FIA source confirmed Wazir and Dawar were both on the list, "so they can't leave the country."
Rights groups and media owners say the military, which has ruled Pakistan for nearly half its history, is increasingly restricting free speech and curtailing the work of civil society groups, something the army has denied.
The FIA source said a First Information Report (FIR), which marks the formal opening of a criminal investigation, has been opened against the two lawmakers for making "anti-state" speeches. In practice, such charges are usually levied only when the criticism centres on the military.
"The police in Swabi had lodged cases against them for their anti-Pakistan speeches in a public gathering there," the FIA source said, referring to a city 100 km (60 miles) east from Peshawar in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Wazir is the co-founder of the Pashtun ethnic rights movement, the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM). Dawar was one of the leaders of PTM before the July elections, when they were both elected to parliament as independent candidates.
The PTM alleges that thousands of Pashtuns were targeted in state organised killings after Pakistan joined the US-led war on terror in 2001 and launched major military operations against militant strongholds in tribal areas by the Afghanistan border between 2009 and 2014. The army denies the claims.
The military has been engaged in talks with PTM members, but the two sides are far apart on agreement over the grievances of PTM members.
The FIA source said Wazir and Dawar were both briefly detained by the police and will face court hearings or further police investigations
Cheers
PESHAWAR/ISLAMABAD: Two lawmakers who are vocal critics of Pakistan's powerful military and have alleged widespread abuses by the armed forces say they have been barred from leaving the country, in the latest crackdown on dissent in the South Asian nation.
Ali Wazir and Mohsin Dawar, two parliamentarians from the violence-ravaged North Waziristan
region bordering Afghanistan, were due to leave for United Arab Emirates on Friday, when authorities at the airport in the northwestern city of Peshawar intercepted them and briefly detained them.
"Both of us are on the ECL," Dawar told Reuters, a reference to the Exit Control List, which names people forbidden from leaving Pakistan.
Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), which is in charge of the ECL list and whose officials stopped the lawmakers in Peshawar, did not respond to requests for comment.
But an FIA source confirmed Wazir and Dawar were both on the list, "so they can't leave the country."
Rights groups and media owners say the military, which has ruled Pakistan for nearly half its history, is increasingly restricting free speech and curtailing the work of civil society groups, something the army has denied.
The FIA source said a First Information Report (FIR), which marks the formal opening of a criminal investigation, has been opened against the two lawmakers for making "anti-state" speeches. In practice, such charges are usually levied only when the criticism centres on the military.
"The police in Swabi had lodged cases against them for their anti-Pakistan speeches in a public gathering there," the FIA source said, referring to a city 100 km (60 miles) east from Peshawar in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Wazir is the co-founder of the Pashtun ethnic rights movement, the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM). Dawar was one of the leaders of PTM before the July elections, when they were both elected to parliament as independent candidates.
The PTM alleges that thousands of Pashtuns were targeted in state organised killings after Pakistan joined the US-led war on terror in 2001 and launched major military operations against militant strongholds in tribal areas by the Afghanistan border between 2009 and 2014. The army denies the claims.
The military has been engaged in talks with PTM members, but the two sides are far apart on agreement over the grievances of PTM members.
The FIA source said Wazir and Dawar were both briefly detained by the police and will face court hearings or further police investigations
Cheers
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
The khalistanis are embedded in every walk of life in punjab.menon s wrote:Punjab police is not the 18,000 force it was in 80`s , it is a highly motivated 85,000 personnel, one today. But we need to be extremely vigilant. ISI is working and putting its own money to organise Khalistan, talks in London. We need to do a bigger event for balochistan. Call in Altaf, Harbyar marri and Mansoor Pastheen.
sidhu is playing a very dangerous game, foolishly backed by his "captain", the janeaudhari Shiv bhakt.
Terroristan - October 8, 2018
TLP leader Khadim Rizvi charged with treason, terrorism: Fawad
Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) leaders Khadim Hussain Rizvi and Afzal Qadri have been charged with treason and terrorism, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said during a press conference on Saturday.
Khadim Rizvi among TLP leaders detained in countrywide crackdown
On November 23, Rizvi was taken into “protective custody” as security forces launched a crackdown against the religio-political party.
“A large operation was launched in which all the institutions of the government took part,” said the information minister that all institutions and major opposition parties were onboard and supported the government decision.
Fawad also thanked the media for its support in the operation against elements of TLP involved in anti-state activities.
The terms for treason and terrorism may be life imprisonment and the case against the TLP’s leaders will be heard in an anti-terrorism court (ATC), elaborated the information minister.
Referring to those workers of the TLP who were earlier taken into ‘protective custody’, the minister added they will be released after giving “sureties”.
Fawad touched upon the recent opening of the Kartarpur corridor and said a mindset exists in Pakistan and India that decisions are taken by the country’s armed forces.
“The Indian army chief has given a statement that no talks with Pakistan will be held till Pakistan becomes a secular state, while Prime Minister Modi termed the Kartarpur corridor a positive initiative.”
“Aren’t these two different things?”
The information minister also referred to the ongoing anti-encroachment drive in Karachi and clarified that the operation does not fall in the domain of the federal government and is being conducted under orders from the Supreme Court.
However, Fawad said the operation must start with the rich and influential as they “did in Islamabad”.
A crackdown was launched against the party’s activists and leaders in all major cities of the country, following the arrest of the firebrand cleric.
The party had staged violent countrywide protests against the acquittal of Aasi Bibi last month.
Top court moved to seek contempt proceedings against cleric Khadim Rizvi
The action was taken following TLP’s refusal to withdraw the call to stage a protest sit-in [at Liaquat Bagh in Rawalpindi] on November 25.
“Protecting public lives and properties is the first priority of the government,” said the information minister in a tweet earlier.
Cheers
Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) leaders Khadim Hussain Rizvi and Afzal Qadri have been charged with treason and terrorism, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said during a press conference on Saturday.
Khadim Rizvi among TLP leaders detained in countrywide crackdown
On November 23, Rizvi was taken into “protective custody” as security forces launched a crackdown against the religio-political party.
“A large operation was launched in which all the institutions of the government took part,” said the information minister that all institutions and major opposition parties were onboard and supported the government decision.
Fawad also thanked the media for its support in the operation against elements of TLP involved in anti-state activities.
The terms for treason and terrorism may be life imprisonment and the case against the TLP’s leaders will be heard in an anti-terrorism court (ATC), elaborated the information minister.
Referring to those workers of the TLP who were earlier taken into ‘protective custody’, the minister added they will be released after giving “sureties”.
Fawad touched upon the recent opening of the Kartarpur corridor and said a mindset exists in Pakistan and India that decisions are taken by the country’s armed forces.
“The Indian army chief has given a statement that no talks with Pakistan will be held till Pakistan becomes a secular state, while Prime Minister Modi termed the Kartarpur corridor a positive initiative.”
“Aren’t these two different things?”
The information minister also referred to the ongoing anti-encroachment drive in Karachi and clarified that the operation does not fall in the domain of the federal government and is being conducted under orders from the Supreme Court.
However, Fawad said the operation must start with the rich and influential as they “did in Islamabad”.
A crackdown was launched against the party’s activists and leaders in all major cities of the country, following the arrest of the firebrand cleric.
The party had staged violent countrywide protests against the acquittal of Aasi Bibi last month.
Top court moved to seek contempt proceedings against cleric Khadim Rizvi
The action was taken following TLP’s refusal to withdraw the call to stage a protest sit-in [at Liaquat Bagh in Rawalpindi] on November 25.
“Protecting public lives and properties is the first priority of the government,” said the information minister in a tweet earlier.
Cheers
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
^
Sorry Mods, just couldn't resist
Sorry Mods, just couldn't resist
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
SSridhar wrote:Pakistan FM scored self-goal with ‘googly’ remark, says New Delhi - Suhasini Sherene Haidar, The HinduPakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi scored a “self-goal” by claiming that Prime Minister Imran Khan had tricked India over the Kartarpur corridor, government sources said in New Delhi on Friday.
Mr. Qureshi had also said it was Pakistan’s failing economy that was the motivator for the “consensus for peace with India” in the country. “Let me point out why there’s support for the entire [engagement process]: because we have come on a mandate to fix the economy. We have inherited a difficult economic situation where the fiscal deficit is close to 6.6%, the trade deficit was historic and growth rate is abysmal. So the challenge….is the economy,” he had said.
Pakistan’s debt repayment crisis, the cancellation of about $3 billion in U.S. assistance over the past year as well as financial strictures arising from the “greylisting” of the country by the Financial Action Task Force, are all part of the challenge as well.
Anybody who falls for this charade of engagement is either delusional or a traitor. The Paki moronic gasbag of a FM gave it away quite plainly, that the reason they want to engage India is due to their desperate situation. In case their economy improves even slightly, they will be back to their old Jihadi terrorist ways (not that they have stopped or will stop in the first place, just dial it up or down a notch).
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Could one of the moderators please reach out to Falijee (email/text/thinking-of-you-card) and invite him back? Thanks in advance.
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Pakjabis are simple-minded braggarts who seek instant gratification. Their cellular-level hatred for Hindus and everything that is Indic is unbelievable. No wonder the Baloch and Sindhi intellectuals want to distance themselves from these inbred converts.Prem wrote:
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
If I remember my cricket playing days in the 60's and 70's, a googly was loosely defined as a "trick" to fool the batsman.Bart S wrote:The Paki moronic gasbag of a FM gave it away quite plainly, that the reason they want to engage India is due to their desperate situation.
Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Industry reels from double punch of rate hike, currency devaluation - Aamir Shafaat Khan
KARACHI: Trade and industry on Friday expressed its reservations over rupee devaluation and the increase in interest rate to 10 per cent.
Talking to Dawn, Trade and industry leaders stressed that the environment for doing business is becoming unfavourable by the day. The general consensus was that the hike in interest rate and weakening of the rupee would send negative signals to both foreign and local investors.
Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) President Junaid Esmail Makda said, “Such abrupt devaluations in the past led to economic distress which lasted for several years. Currency devaluation would have negative economic implications in the long run,” he opined.
Exporters may be happy on rising dollar value and the country’s economic indicators would also display some improvement in exports but this increase can only be attributed to dollar value as the export volume remains the same, Mr Makda opined. He said Pakistan’s exports have fallen sharply to many destinations around the world because of rising cost of doing business.
“Rupee devaluation is making imports costlier while the exporters would also bear the brunt due to rise in cost of imported raw materials,” he noted.
On the 150 basis points increase in benchmark interest rate to 10pc, he said that it would discourage borrowings besides soaring cost of doing business which is already too high as compared to other countries.
“Tight monetary policy is already hampering industrial production, hurting exports, and increasing joblessness,” the KCCI chief said.
The upward revision in lending rate would translate in multiplying inflation and increasing the cost of production. The decision would neither help curtail fiscal deficit nor control inflation as it had not served the purpose in the past rather it would create troubles for the investors, he added.
So many measures were taken to discourage the imports including the imposition of Regulatory Duty on many items but imports remained inelastic and a weaker rupee would not help it, he said.
He urged the federal government to stop further rupee devaluation and bring down the interest rate before it’s too late. Steps have to be taken to create an enabling business environment, he stressed.
President Site Association of Industry (SAI) Saleem Parekh said the industry was expecting 1pc rise in interest rates.
“There was no need for rupee devaluation under the current economic conditions,” he said. “Uncertainty over future rupee-dollar parity still looms thus causing anxiety among businessmen on how to satisfy foreign buyers and run industries smoothly,” the SAI president said.
Mr Parekh said the government must ensure consistency in its economic policies otherwise the results would be devastative for the economy.
He said rising cost of imported raw materials because of falling rupee does not provide full benefit to exports which usually rises owing to sinking rupee.
Meanwhile Chairman Karachi Wholesalers Grocers Association (KWGA) Anis Majeed anticipated another 5pc jump in the prices of imported pulses due to fresh loss in rupee value.
He said only Rs5-10 per kg price hike was passed to the buyers in previous devaluation in the last 50 days. However, some traders could not pass even 5pc due to dull demand of commodities and hovering tension among importers on further currency fluctuation, the KWGA chairman said.
“The State Bank usually comes out to rescue rupee after massive dollar rise in morning trading. As a result, rupee value finally settles in the evening with a fresh devaluation despite intervention from the central bank which is alarming for importers mainly,” he said, adding that the SBP should take rupee-dollar parity issue seriously.
Cheers
KARACHI: Trade and industry on Friday expressed its reservations over rupee devaluation and the increase in interest rate to 10 per cent.
Talking to Dawn, Trade and industry leaders stressed that the environment for doing business is becoming unfavourable by the day. The general consensus was that the hike in interest rate and weakening of the rupee would send negative signals to both foreign and local investors.
Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) President Junaid Esmail Makda said, “Such abrupt devaluations in the past led to economic distress which lasted for several years. Currency devaluation would have negative economic implications in the long run,” he opined.
Exporters may be happy on rising dollar value and the country’s economic indicators would also display some improvement in exports but this increase can only be attributed to dollar value as the export volume remains the same, Mr Makda opined. He said Pakistan’s exports have fallen sharply to many destinations around the world because of rising cost of doing business.
“Rupee devaluation is making imports costlier while the exporters would also bear the brunt due to rise in cost of imported raw materials,” he noted.
On the 150 basis points increase in benchmark interest rate to 10pc, he said that it would discourage borrowings besides soaring cost of doing business which is already too high as compared to other countries.
“Tight monetary policy is already hampering industrial production, hurting exports, and increasing joblessness,” the KCCI chief said.
The upward revision in lending rate would translate in multiplying inflation and increasing the cost of production. The decision would neither help curtail fiscal deficit nor control inflation as it had not served the purpose in the past rather it would create troubles for the investors, he added.
So many measures were taken to discourage the imports including the imposition of Regulatory Duty on many items but imports remained inelastic and a weaker rupee would not help it, he said.
He urged the federal government to stop further rupee devaluation and bring down the interest rate before it’s too late. Steps have to be taken to create an enabling business environment, he stressed.
President Site Association of Industry (SAI) Saleem Parekh said the industry was expecting 1pc rise in interest rates.
“There was no need for rupee devaluation under the current economic conditions,” he said. “Uncertainty over future rupee-dollar parity still looms thus causing anxiety among businessmen on how to satisfy foreign buyers and run industries smoothly,” the SAI president said.
Mr Parekh said the government must ensure consistency in its economic policies otherwise the results would be devastative for the economy.
He said rising cost of imported raw materials because of falling rupee does not provide full benefit to exports which usually rises owing to sinking rupee.
Meanwhile Chairman Karachi Wholesalers Grocers Association (KWGA) Anis Majeed anticipated another 5pc jump in the prices of imported pulses due to fresh loss in rupee value.
He said only Rs5-10 per kg price hike was passed to the buyers in previous devaluation in the last 50 days. However, some traders could not pass even 5pc due to dull demand of commodities and hovering tension among importers on further currency fluctuation, the KWGA chairman said.
“The State Bank usually comes out to rescue rupee after massive dollar rise in morning trading. As a result, rupee value finally settles in the evening with a fresh devaluation despite intervention from the central bank which is alarming for importers mainly,” he said, adding that the SBP should take rupee-dollar parity issue seriously.
Cheers
Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Sidhu faces flak over jibe at Amarinder, 3 Punjab ministers call for his resignation – PTI
CHANDIGARH: Three Punjab ministers on Saturday called for Navjyot Singh Sidhu's resignation from the state cabinet over his jibe at chief minister Amarinder Singh, a fallout of the controversial politician's recent trip to Kartarpur in Pakistan.
The row over the trip escalated in the state even as Sidhu backtracked on his claim that Congress president Rahul Gandhi was involved in his decision to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the Kartarpur corridor.
“Get your facts right before you distort them, Rahul Gandhi Ji never asked me to go to Pakistan. The whole world knows I went to Pakistan on Prime Minister Imran Khan's personal invite," Sidhu tweeted.
A day earlier in Hyderabad, Sidhu had mocked Captain Amarinder Singh when reporters asked him about going to Pakistan despite his disapproval.
"Rahul Gandhi is my captain. It is he who sent me to Pakistan. Rahul Gandhi is the captain of the captain (Amarinder Singh) also," Sidhu had then said.
Reacting to this, the Punjab ministers said if Sidhu, who holds the local bodies and tourism portfolios, didn't consider Amarinder Singh to be his captain, he should quit the chief minister's team.
Sidhu was attacked over his remark by rural development and panchayat minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, revenue and rehabilitation minister Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria and sports minister Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi.
Sodhi said other ministers too are backing Amarinder Singh on this.
"Among the ministers I spoke with are Aruna Chaudhary and Sadhu Singh Dharamsot. We are all solidly behind Capt Amarinder Singh," Sodhi said.
Sources said the issue is likely to be raised in the state cabinet meeting on Monday
"If he does not consider Capt Amarinder as his captain then he should resign on moral grounds from the cabinet and do whatever work is assigned to him by Rahul Gandhi," Bajwa said.
He said Sidhu should apologise to the chief minister.
“He will have to accept Captain sahib as his leader in Punjab,"Bajwa said.
"My advice to the younger brother is to speak less and concentrate on work," he added.
Sarkaria said Sidhu's language while referring to the chief minister was "objectionable."
"Rahul Gandhi is our leader, he is our party's national president. In Punjab, the government is headed by Capt Amarinder Singh, who is our captain in the state and we all work like a team under his leadership,”he said.
“If Sidhu or anyone else has a problem with this and cannot work under his leadership, he must resign," the minister said.
Sodhi called the ex-cricketer's jibe "distasteful".
“While Rahul ji heads our party, Capt Amarinder is the captain of Punjab government. It is Captain sahib who helped bring back Congress to power in Punjab,” he said.
“If Mr Sidhu thinks that Amarinder ji is not the captain in the state, or if anybody else doesn't accept him as the captain of the team, they can follow their own course," Sodhi told PTI.
Congress MLA Raj Kumar Verka said, “The party does not agree with Navjot Singh Sidhu's statement, which is objectionable.”
Sidhu's wife and former BJP MLA Navjot Kaur Sidhu asserted that everyone in the Congress is Rahul Gandhi's soldier.
“We are individual soldiers of the Indian National Congress. We are not the soldiers of the CM sahib or the ministers here," she said Saturday.
Even while taking a dig at Amarinder Singh in Hyderabad, Sidhu had said he is a “father figure” for him.
The Kartarpur corridor will connect the shrine in Pakistan to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Gurdaspur, across the border between the two countries.
The planned corridor will give visa-free access to Indian pilgrims to the place where Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, spent the last years of his life.
Sidhu's visit to Pakistan had riled Amarinder Singh, who said he tried to dissuade Sidhu from travelling to the neighbouring country following a grenade attack in Amritsar that left three people dead.
Since his return from Kartarpur, Sidhu has been criticised for lavishing praise on Imran Khan, who too showered special attention on him.
He was also targeted over a photograph which showed him posing with Gopal Singh Chawla, the Pakistan Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee head who is considered pro-Khalistan.
But Sidhu claimed “tens of thousands” of people wanted to take pictures with him in Kartarpur and he didn't know Chawla
Cheers
CHANDIGARH: Three Punjab ministers on Saturday called for Navjyot Singh Sidhu's resignation from the state cabinet over his jibe at chief minister Amarinder Singh, a fallout of the controversial politician's recent trip to Kartarpur in Pakistan.
The row over the trip escalated in the state even as Sidhu backtracked on his claim that Congress president Rahul Gandhi was involved in his decision to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the Kartarpur corridor.
“Get your facts right before you distort them, Rahul Gandhi Ji never asked me to go to Pakistan. The whole world knows I went to Pakistan on Prime Minister Imran Khan's personal invite," Sidhu tweeted.
A day earlier in Hyderabad, Sidhu had mocked Captain Amarinder Singh when reporters asked him about going to Pakistan despite his disapproval.
"Rahul Gandhi is my captain. It is he who sent me to Pakistan. Rahul Gandhi is the captain of the captain (Amarinder Singh) also," Sidhu had then said.
Reacting to this, the Punjab ministers said if Sidhu, who holds the local bodies and tourism portfolios, didn't consider Amarinder Singh to be his captain, he should quit the chief minister's team.
Sidhu was attacked over his remark by rural development and panchayat minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, revenue and rehabilitation minister Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria and sports minister Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi.
Sodhi said other ministers too are backing Amarinder Singh on this.
"Among the ministers I spoke with are Aruna Chaudhary and Sadhu Singh Dharamsot. We are all solidly behind Capt Amarinder Singh," Sodhi said.
Sources said the issue is likely to be raised in the state cabinet meeting on Monday
"If he does not consider Capt Amarinder as his captain then he should resign on moral grounds from the cabinet and do whatever work is assigned to him by Rahul Gandhi," Bajwa said.
He said Sidhu should apologise to the chief minister.
“He will have to accept Captain sahib as his leader in Punjab,"Bajwa said.
"My advice to the younger brother is to speak less and concentrate on work," he added.
Sarkaria said Sidhu's language while referring to the chief minister was "objectionable."
"Rahul Gandhi is our leader, he is our party's national president. In Punjab, the government is headed by Capt Amarinder Singh, who is our captain in the state and we all work like a team under his leadership,”he said.
“If Sidhu or anyone else has a problem with this and cannot work under his leadership, he must resign," the minister said.
Sodhi called the ex-cricketer's jibe "distasteful".
“While Rahul ji heads our party, Capt Amarinder is the captain of Punjab government. It is Captain sahib who helped bring back Congress to power in Punjab,” he said.
“If Mr Sidhu thinks that Amarinder ji is not the captain in the state, or if anybody else doesn't accept him as the captain of the team, they can follow their own course," Sodhi told PTI.
Congress MLA Raj Kumar Verka said, “The party does not agree with Navjot Singh Sidhu's statement, which is objectionable.”
Sidhu's wife and former BJP MLA Navjot Kaur Sidhu asserted that everyone in the Congress is Rahul Gandhi's soldier.
“We are individual soldiers of the Indian National Congress. We are not the soldiers of the CM sahib or the ministers here," she said Saturday.
Even while taking a dig at Amarinder Singh in Hyderabad, Sidhu had said he is a “father figure” for him.
The Kartarpur corridor will connect the shrine in Pakistan to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Gurdaspur, across the border between the two countries.
The planned corridor will give visa-free access to Indian pilgrims to the place where Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, spent the last years of his life.
Sidhu's visit to Pakistan had riled Amarinder Singh, who said he tried to dissuade Sidhu from travelling to the neighbouring country following a grenade attack in Amritsar that left three people dead.
Since his return from Kartarpur, Sidhu has been criticised for lavishing praise on Imran Khan, who too showered special attention on him.
He was also targeted over a photograph which showed him posing with Gopal Singh Chawla, the Pakistan Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee head who is considered pro-Khalistan.
But Sidhu claimed “tens of thousands” of people wanted to take pictures with him in Kartarpur and he didn't know Chawla
Cheers
Terroristan - October 8, 2018
'You only play googlies': Sushma hits back at Pak foreign minister
NEW DELHI: External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday responded to her Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi's "googly" jibe at India, saying that the Imran government exposes itself by making such remarks and shows it has no respect for Sikh sentiments.
"Mr.Foreign Minister of Pakistan - Your 'googly' remarks in a dramatic manner has exposed none but YOU. This shows that you have no respect for Sikh sentiments.
You only play 'googlies'," Sushma Swaraj said on Twitter.
Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had on Thursday said Prime Minister Imran Khan bowled a "googly" to ensure Indian government's presence at the groundbreaking ceremony of the landmark Kartarpur Corridor
Pakistan had invited Swaraj for Wednesday's ceremony. But Swaraj said she was unable to travel to Kartarpur Sahib due to prior commitments. India was represented at the events by Union ministers Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Hardeep Singh Puri.
Cheers
NEW DELHI: External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday responded to her Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi's "googly" jibe at India, saying that the Imran government exposes itself by making such remarks and shows it has no respect for Sikh sentiments.
"Mr.Foreign Minister of Pakistan - Your 'googly' remarks in a dramatic manner has exposed none but YOU. This shows that you have no respect for Sikh sentiments.
You only play 'googlies'," Sushma Swaraj said on Twitter.
Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had on Thursday said Prime Minister Imran Khan bowled a "googly" to ensure Indian government's presence at the groundbreaking ceremony of the landmark Kartarpur Corridor
Pakistan had invited Swaraj for Wednesday's ceremony. But Swaraj said she was unable to travel to Kartarpur Sahib due to prior commitments. India was represented at the events by Union ministers Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Hardeep Singh Puri.
Cheers
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
And, Indian batsmen & batswomen are very good at playing googlies anyway. We don't pick them off the surface, we pick them off the hand. Besides, the Dimmer doesn't even know how to bowl googlies.
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sanjaykumar
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Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Further trenchant analysis Pakistani style,
https://tribune.com.pk/story/1857645/6- ... n-saffron/
Methinks they need to keep to a study in green.
Some Muslims have openly lamented to me (Indian Muslims) that if they had Muslims on their side they could teach Hindus a lesson.
That day may come with a prosperous, socially and intellectually advanced Muslim Pakistan, it is optimistic to expect Sikhs or even the majority of Indian Muslims to embrace an emaciated Pakistan with its weeping leprous sores. Somehow it's too repulsive even for humour.
https://tribune.com.pk/story/1857645/6- ... n-saffron/
Methinks they need to keep to a study in green.
Some Muslims have openly lamented to me (Indian Muslims) that if they had Muslims on their side they could teach Hindus a lesson.
That day may come with a prosperous, socially and intellectually advanced Muslim Pakistan, it is optimistic to expect Sikhs or even the majority of Indian Muslims to embrace an emaciated Pakistan with its weeping leprous sores. Somehow it's too repulsive even for humour.
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sanjaykumar
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- Joined: 16 Oct 2005 05:51
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
sanjaykumar wrote:Further trenchant analysis Pakistani style,
https://tribune.com.pk/story/1857645/6- ... n-saffron/
Methinks they need to keep to a study in green.
Some Muslims have openly lamented to me (Indian Muslims) that if they had Sikhs on side they could teach Hindus a lesson.
That day may come with a prosperous, socially and intellectually advanced Muslim Pakistan, it is optimistic to expect Sikhs or even the majority of Indian Muslims to embrace an emaciated Pakistan with its weeping leprous sores. Somehow it's too repulsive even for humour.
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Blogged some thoughts on the Kartarpur Corridor
Blog Link
Twitter Link
Blog Link
Twitter Link
This brings us to the question – Why in the world was a corridor not established in the 71 years that both India and Pakistan have existed as independent nations?
The answer to this question should be clear enough to all of us, on both sides of the border, so I won’t waste time on that.
Now this gives rise to two other questions in my mind – Why Now? and What Next? It is these questions that have been trickling my brains for some time now. It is these questions that I am seeking to delve into, by the way of this blog post.
This brings me to the next, more interesting question – WHAT NEXT?
To think that the corridor has happened due to sudden benevolence on part of Pakistan would be a joke, esp since not so long ago, even Indian Diplomats were refused entry into Nankana Saheb!
However, on the contrary, in case of a future conflict, this corridor can actually give a legitimate claim to India for retaining this piece of land, if captured!
I guess no one has talked about this till now, but I do hold this view that it does.
In fact, a quick google search tells me that in 1971, the Indian Army very nearly reached Kartarpur, held back only because they decided not to cross the Ravi River that winter! Here is an account of the Battle of Dera Baba Nanak – Link
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Pakis may bowl googlies, but the Chinaman will take their wicket.SSridhar wrote:And, Indian batsmen & batswomen are very good at playing googlies anyway. We don't pick them off the surface, we pick them off the hand. Besides, the Dimmer doesn't even know how to bowl googlies.
+1anupmisra wrote:Could one of the moderators please reach out to Falijee (email/text/thinking-of-you-card) and invite him back? Thanks in advance.
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sanjaykumar
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Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
GDP per capita
Pakistan $1550
India $2000
Pakistan Panjab $1500
Indian Panjab $2000
Haryana $2,700
Sindh $1750 (highly unequal due to Karachi. probably closer to $800 for rural Sindh
Gujarat $2,200
Lahore Perhaps $2000
Chandigarh $3,400
Delhi $4,600
Pakistan $1550
India $2000
Pakistan Panjab $1500
Indian Panjab $2000
Haryana $2,700
Sindh $1750 (highly unequal due to Karachi. probably closer to $800 for rural Sindh
Gujarat $2,200
Lahore Perhaps $2000
Chandigarh $3,400
Delhi $4,600
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Did you ever note that in all cabinet and related meetings with I'm the Dim, there's that same ubiquitous khakhi sitting behind him? Can't be his s'curity guy.
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Film actor Babar Ali leaves Pakistan after receiving death threats
Well-known Pakistani film and television actor Babar Ali has left Pakistan after receiving death threats from extremists.
Babar Ali has left for United States after receiving threatening calls from unknown persons.
Babar, in the FIR, states that unidentified persons threatened him for life via phone calls. In a statement the actor says he started receiving threats after a TV drama was aired.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/40062 ... th-threatsHe went on to say extremist elements are also active against the artists.
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Bushra Bibi visits shelter home
What is that? The real PM?
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/400718 ... elter-home
What is that? The real PM?
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/400718 ... elter-home
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Didn't Im The Dim just sign a deal with this guy and agree with all their terms? And now this?
Rizvi & Co booked under sedition, terrorism charges
Government, TLP reach agreement; state to take legal measures to place Asia Bibi's name on ECL
https://www.dawn.com/news/1443123
Rizvi & Co booked under sedition, terrorism charges
Minister says Khadim Rizvi, Pir Afzal Qadri, Iniyatullah Haq and Hafiz Farooqul Hassan will be tried in anti-terrorism courts for inciting violence, arson and damage to public and private property during TLP protest last month
Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry Saturday said the top leadership of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) has been booked
The minister said the miscreants damaged the public property worth Rs 50 million besides misbehaving with the common citizens
They even harassed women and snatched their purses
https://dailytimes.com.pk/328793/rizvi- ... m-charges/Some 2,899 TLP activists were held in Punjab, 139 in Sindh and 126 in the federal capital
Government, TLP reach agreement; state to take legal measures to place Asia Bibi's name on ECL
The government has also promised to take appropriate legal action to redress any deaths that may have occurred during the protests against the Asia Bibi verdict and to release all people picked up in connection with the protests starting October 30.
The TLP has, in turn, apologised if it "hurt the sentiments or inconvenienced anyone without reason".
Whoa! Looks like PTI just went back on its agreement with TLP. Fun times ahead!The agreement was signed by Dr Noorul Haq Qadri (religious affairs minister) and Raja Basharat (law minister Punjab) on behalf of the government, and by Pir Muhammad Afzal Qadri (senior leader of the TLP) and Muhammad Waheed Noor (central chief nazim of the TLP).
https://www.dawn.com/news/1443123
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
TLP committed mother of all blasphemy by criticizing pak army. They crossed the red line. This is army putting TLP in place. iMoron has no balls.
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
We need to bring back Falijee
I loved it that Pakimoron FM exposed himself and his masters. Indian offensive on it has completely shattered the Pakistani advantage. You can see the conversation and build up dying from the Pakistani side. With a counter narrative from India the leverage that could be availed in the future in lost.
For what Next part I think this event was suppose to lay foundation for a global image of IK and would have been followed with a series of peace overtures (only talk) with aim to pressurize India to come back to the table for discussions. A new PM, his landmark initiative to provide a corridor, his peace and this time its different talks, would have eventually pushed us to a corner globally. The whole initiative was lost due to FMs pre-mature celebration.
I loved it that Pakimoron FM exposed himself and his masters. Indian offensive on it has completely shattered the Pakistani advantage. You can see the conversation and build up dying from the Pakistani side. With a counter narrative from India the leverage that could be availed in the future in lost.
For what Next part I think this event was suppose to lay foundation for a global image of IK and would have been followed with a series of peace overtures (only talk) with aim to pressurize India to come back to the table for discussions. A new PM, his landmark initiative to provide a corridor, his peace and this time its different talks, would have eventually pushed us to a corner globally. The whole initiative was lost due to FMs pre-mature celebration.
Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Pakistan can seek India’s help if it feels it cannot handle terrorism alone : Rajnath
JAIPUR: Home minister Rajnath Singh said Pakistan could seek India's help if it cannot handle the fight against terrorism alone.
Addressing a press conference here, he said that Jammu and Kashmir was not an issue as it was an integral part of the country. "The issue is of terrorism, and Pakistan can discuss it," Singh said.
"I want to ask the Pakistani prime minister that if in Afghanistan, a fight can be carried out against terror and Taliban with the help of the US, then, Pakistan can seek help against terrorism from India if it feels that it cannot handle it alone," he said.
He also accused the Congress of creating a crisis of distrust in politics and claimed there was a difference in their words and deeds.
Cheers
JAIPUR: Home minister Rajnath Singh said Pakistan could seek India's help if it cannot handle the fight against terrorism alone.
Addressing a press conference here, he said that Jammu and Kashmir was not an issue as it was an integral part of the country. "The issue is of terrorism, and Pakistan can discuss it," Singh said.
"I want to ask the Pakistani prime minister that if in Afghanistan, a fight can be carried out against terror and Taliban with the help of the US, then, Pakistan can seek help against terrorism from India if it feels that it cannot handle it alone," he said.
He also accused the Congress of creating a crisis of distrust in politics and claimed there was a difference in their words and deeds.
Cheers
Last edited by Peregrine on 02 Dec 2018 23:52, edited 1 time in total.
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sanjaykumar
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Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
Pakistan can push India into a corner? This is not the 1980s or rather the early 1960s. There is nothing that Pakistan can do to compel India. If the latter makes its red lines wrt terrorism more restrictive Pakistan holds no cards.
Water?
Economy?
Artillery?
Airforce?
Navy?
Space based assets?
Second strike?
Culture?
The future?
There is evidence that India is acquiring the land warfare assets to inflict severe punishment on the Pakistan Army at stand-off distances. That is, as use of airpower is considered escalatory, Indians are developing options to fight a largely cryptic war of attrition.
These actions will not however remain hidden from those PA personnel being sent to the LOC or even IB. This is the least cost effective way to discredit the power structure in Pakistan. Imran Khan and his Kartarpur corridor is a sideshow.
Water?
Economy?
Artillery?
Airforce?
Navy?
Space based assets?
Second strike?
Culture?
The future?
There is evidence that India is acquiring the land warfare assets to inflict severe punishment on the Pakistan Army at stand-off distances. That is, as use of airpower is considered escalatory, Indians are developing options to fight a largely cryptic war of attrition.
These actions will not however remain hidden from those PA personnel being sent to the LOC or even IB. This is the least cost effective way to discredit the power structure in Pakistan. Imran Khan and his Kartarpur corridor is a sideshow.
-
sanjaykumar
- BRF Oldie
- Posts: 6111
- Joined: 16 Oct 2005 05:51
Re: Terroristan - October 8, 2018
sanjaykumar wrote:Pakistan can push India into a corner? This is not the 1980s or rather the early 1960s. There is nothing that Pakistan can do to compel India. If the latter makes its red lines wrt terrorism more restrictive Pakistan holds no cards.
Water?
Economy?
Artillery?
Airforce?
Navy?
Space based assets?
Second strike?
Culture?
American benefactor?
The future?
There is evidence that India is acquiring the land warfare assets to inflict severe punishment on the Pakistan Army at stand-off distances. That is, as use of airpower is considered escalatory, Indians are developing options to fight a largely cryptic war of attrition.
These actions will not however remain hidden from those PA personnel being sent to the LOC or even IB. This is the most cost effective way to discredit the power structure in Pakistan. Imran Khan and his Kartarpur corridor is a sideshow.
Terroristan - October 8, 2018
A bridge too far? - Muhammad Ali Ehsan
The writer, a retired lieutenant colonel of the Pakistan Army, has a doctorate in civil-military relations and is a member of the faculty of contemporary studies at National Defence University, Islamabad
Imran Khan lives with many unfinished businesses of his predecessors. The weight of history is heavy and so are the responsibilities as he wears the crown of Prime Ministership. So being in the saddle that rides the horse expected to clear many hurdles, it was pleasing to hear him talk about ‘peace’ in the post-groundbreaking ceremony of the Kartarpur corridor. Most interesting and immediate was the response by the opposition — primarily the leadership and followers of the PML-N — the party that handed over the reins of governance to Imran Khan’s PTI. They argued why their leadership was accused of all kinds of ‘anti-Pakistaniyaat’ when it extended a hand of friendship to the Indians? May it be the former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s participation in the swearing-in ceremony of Nerandra Modi as prime minister of India in May 2014 or the private (stopover) visit by the Indian PM (the first since 2004) on his return from Afghanistan in Dec 2015. The personal one-on-one rapport between the two leaders didn’t bring about the much sought peaceful political outcome.
McMaster, the former US National Security Adviser, authored a book in 1997 titled Dereliction of Duty — considered as a field manual for avoiding another Vietnam War. The book refers to the joint chiefs who oversaw the Vietnam War as ‘five silent men’ who failed to establish the essential personal rapport with the civilian leadership so that they could speak their minds. This communication disconnect resulted in ‘US military fidgeting without clear objectives’, ‘US Presidents interfering with operations’ and ‘US public not mobilised behind the war effort’. Result? ‘Vietnam was a disaster’. Unfortunately for former PM Nawaz Sharif and his government as well as Pakistan, when it came to civil-military relations, Sharif and his conduct was also found ‘too wanting’ to develop any kind of rapport with military leadership of the country. His government’s diplomatic unsuccessfulness lay in its inability to seek and accommodate military recommendations and advice and align them with the ‘peace-seeking and peace-enabling’ environment that it wanted to or could create. With Sharif and his government in power all the Indian-Pakistani ‘political and diplomatic discussions and settlements’ remained very ‘privatised’ and seemed more to be the ‘means’ rather than an ‘end’. Thus any conflict-resolution or settlement between India and Pakistan could not be reached as it seemed based only on the strong political impulse or whims of the civilian leadership alone. I O W the Terroristan Army ALWAYS CALLS THE SHOTS VIS-À-VIS INDO-Terroristan relations!
The lesson — with Pakistan undoubtedly in a state of war and also exposed to both internal as well as external threats, no Pakistan-India rapprochement policy can proceed forward without the Pakistan military’s participation in it. In the existing threat environment, it’s not the military’s exclusion but inclusion in national security policy-making that can be the difference between a futile or fruitful political effort.
Had the PML-N government’s ‘Indian rapprochement policy’ not been two-pronged, it might have succeeded. Its first prong was ‘Indian engagement’ which was all right as long as the military was not kept in the dark and knew the broad contours of this engagement. While this was still alright, the second prong — (lest we forget) was of dangerous consequences — ‘challenging own military’ which post-Sharif judicial conviction took the shape of an ‘outright confrontation’. Whether it was out of self-preservation or any other motive, the PML-N government only ended up distancing itself from the military establishment to a very large scale. The McMaster’s proffered ‘dereliction and neglect’ to ‘political duty’ and Sharif’s inability also to develop any personal rapport with the military leadership of the country are the two reasons that stand out as the ‘political non-enablers’ for the PML-N ending up unsuccessful in executing its rapprochement strategy with India.
The current bilateral talks offered by the PTI have also been met with Indian reluctance but the Kartarpur ceremony at least demonstrated to the whole world the existing ‘civil-military harmonisation’ and how if any ‘political settlement’ needs a compromise then both the civil-military leadership in Pakistan stand together to discuss and talk about it. While India may continue to view such a compromise ‘as a bridge too far’, Pakistan by taking the initiative on the Kartarpur Corridor has indicated its willingness in building corridors and bridges through which political desires can take the shape of reality.
Prime Minister Imran Khan made a mention of how “India and Pakistan may have fought wars and killed, but there is no massacre similar to that between Germany and France.” If their leaders could break with the past, why couldn’t India and Pakistan. VERY SIMPLE - Neither Germany nor France want to "Conquer" the other but Terroristan wants to CONQUER INDIA! As of now, the response from the Indian side has been very cold as its Minister of External Affairs has already conveyed that the dialogue process is not connected to Kartarpur Corridor and also that India was unwilling to attend the upcoming Saarc Summit in Pakistan. That’s nothing new as that has been India’s official position for a very long time but this should not dampen the desire for peace that PM Imran Khan’s government pursues. India needs to clearly understand what is coming from Pakistan and under which environment? Is it only politically ‘opportunistic’ or a state-driven policy that in nature is truly strategic?
Any Pakistan-India deal built or a ‘civil-military split’ cannot be politically endurable. The failure of this, the Indians must carry as an experience in the previous government’s time. On the other hand, PM Khan would be well advised to wait for six months for the Indian elections are due to be held in April/May 2019. The next six months are only likely to witness an upsurge and maximisation of anti-Pakistan rhetoric because that is what earns parties like the BJP votes in elections.
In the meantime, the Pakistani government and the military need to keep its security shield raised. Reading Bob Woodword’s latest book Fear — Trump in the White House tells you how American CIA has maintained 3,000-strong covert army in Afghanistan. Bob Woodward writes that they have been ‘conducting dangerous and highly-controversial cross-border operations into neighbouring Pakistan’ — this not only exposes the myth of Pakistan being ‘used’ as a ‘major non-Nato ally’ but also the many dangers that Pakistan is still exposed to in this hybrid war that it continues to confront and fight.
Cheers
The writer, a retired lieutenant colonel of the Pakistan Army, has a doctorate in civil-military relations and is a member of the faculty of contemporary studies at National Defence University, Islamabad
Imran Khan lives with many unfinished businesses of his predecessors. The weight of history is heavy and so are the responsibilities as he wears the crown of Prime Ministership. So being in the saddle that rides the horse expected to clear many hurdles, it was pleasing to hear him talk about ‘peace’ in the post-groundbreaking ceremony of the Kartarpur corridor. Most interesting and immediate was the response by the opposition — primarily the leadership and followers of the PML-N — the party that handed over the reins of governance to Imran Khan’s PTI. They argued why their leadership was accused of all kinds of ‘anti-Pakistaniyaat’ when it extended a hand of friendship to the Indians? May it be the former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s participation in the swearing-in ceremony of Nerandra Modi as prime minister of India in May 2014 or the private (stopover) visit by the Indian PM (the first since 2004) on his return from Afghanistan in Dec 2015. The personal one-on-one rapport between the two leaders didn’t bring about the much sought peaceful political outcome.
McMaster, the former US National Security Adviser, authored a book in 1997 titled Dereliction of Duty — considered as a field manual for avoiding another Vietnam War. The book refers to the joint chiefs who oversaw the Vietnam War as ‘five silent men’ who failed to establish the essential personal rapport with the civilian leadership so that they could speak their minds. This communication disconnect resulted in ‘US military fidgeting without clear objectives’, ‘US Presidents interfering with operations’ and ‘US public not mobilised behind the war effort’. Result? ‘Vietnam was a disaster’. Unfortunately for former PM Nawaz Sharif and his government as well as Pakistan, when it came to civil-military relations, Sharif and his conduct was also found ‘too wanting’ to develop any kind of rapport with military leadership of the country. His government’s diplomatic unsuccessfulness lay in its inability to seek and accommodate military recommendations and advice and align them with the ‘peace-seeking and peace-enabling’ environment that it wanted to or could create. With Sharif and his government in power all the Indian-Pakistani ‘political and diplomatic discussions and settlements’ remained very ‘privatised’ and seemed more to be the ‘means’ rather than an ‘end’. Thus any conflict-resolution or settlement between India and Pakistan could not be reached as it seemed based only on the strong political impulse or whims of the civilian leadership alone. I O W the Terroristan Army ALWAYS CALLS THE SHOTS VIS-À-VIS INDO-Terroristan relations!
The lesson — with Pakistan undoubtedly in a state of war and also exposed to both internal as well as external threats, no Pakistan-India rapprochement policy can proceed forward without the Pakistan military’s participation in it. In the existing threat environment, it’s not the military’s exclusion but inclusion in national security policy-making that can be the difference between a futile or fruitful political effort.
Had the PML-N government’s ‘Indian rapprochement policy’ not been two-pronged, it might have succeeded. Its first prong was ‘Indian engagement’ which was all right as long as the military was not kept in the dark and knew the broad contours of this engagement. While this was still alright, the second prong — (lest we forget) was of dangerous consequences — ‘challenging own military’ which post-Sharif judicial conviction took the shape of an ‘outright confrontation’. Whether it was out of self-preservation or any other motive, the PML-N government only ended up distancing itself from the military establishment to a very large scale. The McMaster’s proffered ‘dereliction and neglect’ to ‘political duty’ and Sharif’s inability also to develop any personal rapport with the military leadership of the country are the two reasons that stand out as the ‘political non-enablers’ for the PML-N ending up unsuccessful in executing its rapprochement strategy with India.
The current bilateral talks offered by the PTI have also been met with Indian reluctance but the Kartarpur ceremony at least demonstrated to the whole world the existing ‘civil-military harmonisation’ and how if any ‘political settlement’ needs a compromise then both the civil-military leadership in Pakistan stand together to discuss and talk about it. While India may continue to view such a compromise ‘as a bridge too far’, Pakistan by taking the initiative on the Kartarpur Corridor has indicated its willingness in building corridors and bridges through which political desires can take the shape of reality.
Prime Minister Imran Khan made a mention of how “India and Pakistan may have fought wars and killed, but there is no massacre similar to that between Germany and France.” If their leaders could break with the past, why couldn’t India and Pakistan. VERY SIMPLE - Neither Germany nor France want to "Conquer" the other but Terroristan wants to CONQUER INDIA! As of now, the response from the Indian side has been very cold as its Minister of External Affairs has already conveyed that the dialogue process is not connected to Kartarpur Corridor and also that India was unwilling to attend the upcoming Saarc Summit in Pakistan. That’s nothing new as that has been India’s official position for a very long time but this should not dampen the desire for peace that PM Imran Khan’s government pursues. India needs to clearly understand what is coming from Pakistan and under which environment? Is it only politically ‘opportunistic’ or a state-driven policy that in nature is truly strategic?
Any Pakistan-India deal built or a ‘civil-military split’ cannot be politically endurable. The failure of this, the Indians must carry as an experience in the previous government’s time. On the other hand, PM Khan would be well advised to wait for six months for the Indian elections are due to be held in April/May 2019. The next six months are only likely to witness an upsurge and maximisation of anti-Pakistan rhetoric because that is what earns parties like the BJP votes in elections.
In the meantime, the Pakistani government and the military need to keep its security shield raised. Reading Bob Woodword’s latest book Fear — Trump in the White House tells you how American CIA has maintained 3,000-strong covert army in Afghanistan. Bob Woodward writes that they have been ‘conducting dangerous and highly-controversial cross-border operations into neighbouring Pakistan’ — this not only exposes the myth of Pakistan being ‘used’ as a ‘major non-Nato ally’ but also the many dangers that Pakistan is still exposed to in this hybrid war that it continues to confront and fight.
Cheers