Hello all this Monday Aug 10.
It took a WHILE to find stories for today’s newsletter and that’s not a bad thing. A slow day isn’t a bad day, I think.
The third phase of polling is happening right now in AJK, Sharjeel Memon’s son’s name is being linked to the murder of Mir Raza Ali (vehemently denied by Memon) and friends kidnapping you for money? Yup, that’s happening now too.
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Polling is underway in the third phase of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir elections across four constituencies in Bagh and Haveli districts, with around 460,000 voters expected to cast their ballots. Voting began at 8am and will continue until 5pm, while elections in seven constituencies in Poonch and Sudhnoti have been postponed amid ongoing protests and sit-ins. So far, the PML-N has emerged as the dominant party, winning 24 seats in the first two phases, while the PPP has secured 10 seats.
Deputy PM Ishaq Dar has said the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye is open to any country that supports mutual respect, cooperation and the peaceful resolution of disputes. He stressed that the pact is not directed against any specific country and is intended to strengthen regional peace. Egypt is eyeing entry to the pact and Kuwait has also congratulated Pak for the agreement. Under the agreement, an attack on one member will be treated as an attack on all three nations.
The Sindh govt has announced a judicial inquiry, headed by high court judge, into the murder of young entrepreneur Mir Raza Ali after a second autopsy ruled out suicide and revealed signs of torture and a gunshot wound to his back. Authorities have dissolved the previous investigation team, suspended two police officers for mishandling the crime scene and formed a new committee to lead the probe. Sindh minister Sharjeel Memon has approached the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency over what he calls a malicious social media campaign linking him and his family to the case (his son is being allegedly linked to Raza and Memon is addressing rumours on social media that Memon owns the guest house that Raza was killed in and that his son has left the country).
A 26-year-old man from Lahore was allegedly kidnapped by two of his friends, who reportedly demanded Rs1.5 million in ransom and sent his family photos and videos of him being tortured. Police traced the suspects using CCTV footage and rescued the victim from Faisalabad before arresting the accused. The case has sparked outrage online, with many social media users expressing shock over the alleged involvement of close friends in the kidnapping.
It’s supposed to be a struggle and asking why me, isn’t going to help. You have to find another way out.
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