https://www.aajenglish.tv/live/politics0410222

LAHORE: PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz said on Tuesday she would soon be leaving for London, where her father and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif is living, after getting her passport from the Lahore High Court registrar.

“Inshallah, soon,” she replied in response to a query about when she would leave for London to meet her father from a reporter outside the court.

A three-member bench of Lahore High Court directed the deputy registrar (judicial) on Monday to return PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz’s passport, which she had surrendered to the court in 2019 for getting bail in the Chaudhry Sugar Mills case, while presiding over a petition for the return of her passport.

Maryam also said that she would address a press conference today (Tuesday) at 4:30pm.

“Having Kashmiri daal chawal on my way back from the court. Passport handed over, Alhamdolillah,” she said in a tweet.

“My passport has been returned to me Alhamdulillah, but do you know that the passport was confiscated for three years in this case which was never filed against me?” she said in a tweet on Monday.

“Due to the fear of my meetings, Fitnah kept me in NAB for three months and in death cell in Kot Lakhpat Jail for “investigation”, but the case has not been filed till date,” she said while accusing former prime minister Imran Khan.

Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Umar Ata Bandial has described Article 62(1)f – which provides for the lifetime disqualification from holding public office – as a draconian law.

The CJP made the observation at the hearing of a petition filed by PTI’s Faisal Wavda, who was slapped with a lifetime bar under Article 62(1)f on holding a public office after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) found that he hid his dual nationality in his nomination papers for General Elections 2018.

However, Wavda is not the only politician to face disqualification under Article 62(1)f. PMLN supremo Nawaz Sharif and PTI leader Jehangir Tareen were also disqualified under the same law.

Wavda’s counsel Wasim Sajjad said that Wavda contested the election in 2018 and the petition which led to his disqualification was filed two years later.

The chief justice said that the ECP had the power to investigate misdeclaration. Even if the court overturned the ECP order, facts would remain the same, he said.

He said that the ECP had correctly reviewed the facts.

Lawyer Farooq H Naik said that Wavda confessed to having dual nationality.

However. the CJP also questioned if the ECP could slap a lifetime ban and added that the apex court would carefully examine the case.

The court adjourned for Thursday, October 6.

ISLAMABAD: The resident representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Monday that policy commitments made by Pakistani authorities to resume the support programme continue to apply.

“Policy commitments made by the Pakistani authorities as part of the seventh and eighth review under their IMF-support program continue to apply,” IMF representative in Islamabad Esther Pérez Ruiz told Reuters.

She said policy discussions, including how to target support to those affected by the floods while maintaining macroeconomic stability, will commence in the coming weeks after the damage assessment report becomes available.

Floods triggered by heavy rains have killed nearly 1,700 people in Pakistan since mid-June. Pakistan has urged the international community to help it to deal with the calamity and called for debt relief.

The United Nations has revised up its humanitarian appeal for Pakistan five-fold to $816 million from $160 million as it seeks to control a surge in water-borne diseases following the country’s worst floods in decades, an official said on Monday.

Moreover, the Sindh government with the assistance of the World Bank has decided to launch an Rs110 billion housing project for the flood-affected people for which a special unit would be established under the chief secretary.

Washington last week rolled over an agreement to suspend service payments on $132 million of Pakistan’s debt, the United States embassy in Islamabad said in the wake of the devastating floods.

Islamabad also sought a rollover of $2 billion in Chinese deposits. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had urged Pakistan to seek debt relief from China during a meeting with Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, who has aimed at improving the currency exchange rate, has said that the dollar would go below Rs200 as the prevailing value of the greenback was not “real”.

“The real value of the dollar is less than Rs200. I won’t tell you the figure,” he said in an interview with journalist Hamid Mir aired on Geo News. “Hopefully, it will go below Rs200. The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics is independent and it does not manipulate.”

Dar, who became the finance czar on September 28, admitted that the US currency was strong in the international market and cited the example of the UK sterling which continued to fall in front of it.

However, he claimed that the government would bring it down below Rs200 with its policies. Dar added that he has done his homework.

The claim comes as the rupee continues to strengthen against the dollar in the inter-bank market. It appreciated by 0.51% on Monday. The local currency as of October 3 stands at Rs227.29, according to the State Bank of Pakistan.

Miftah’s announcement to step down and Dar’s return to Pakistan coupled with the decreasing oil prices have led to increasing in the rupee’s value. The finance minister appreciated that the moment he sat in the airplane to reach Pakistan the speculators changed their course and the dollar started to fall.

He stressed the need for removing the speculative angle, which shoots the dollar value.

“It was a man-made disaster,” Dar said while speaking about the state of the economy and currency. He expressed hope that the PTI’s planned long march in the third week of October would not impact the currency market.

Dar also spoke about his predecessor Miftah Ismail’s concerns over the recent decrease in petrol prices.

Replying to PTI leader Shaukat Tarin’s comment, Miftah in a series of tweets slammed the former government for breaking the International Monetary Fund deal. But, he also criticised his party for the fuel rate decrease.

“Not increasing PDL this month without IMF approval is reckless, but what PTI did with our economy was unforgivable,” he said.

Dar started his response by saying that everyone has their own view. “It’s my responsibility to handle the IMF. Mr Miftah has not to deal with the IMF or someone else.”

Pakistan has assured the IMF to increase the petroleum development levy by Rs50 till next year as per the details of the letter of intent. But, the floods triggered by heavy rains have pummelled Pakistan and the country has asked for relief from the world.

“Prime Minister [Shehbaz Sharif] told me that on the sidelines of UN General Assembly, Mr Miftah was also there, he proposed that freeze our taxes for three months. Firstly, they did not say no. Secondly, she said that she would talk to the board about the process,” Dar was apparently talking about Shehbaz’s meeting with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.

He further said that the summary did not pertain to increasing but decreasing the prices. “I think it was not justified to impose Rs10 PDL on half of Pakistan which is under water and the burdened people. So I passed on the relief to people. Mr Miftah might have been comfortable with it. But, I have been dealing with the IMF.”

He advised Miftah and “everyone” to not worry as it was his responsibility. He claimed that he knew how to deal with the global lender.

Dar owned the decision and said he took the premier onboard before the decision. “The reason is I have other solutions and I deal with it,” he said and described Miftah’s tweet as a “bad thing”.

“It was better to call me than going into the public,” he said, “I can give a couple of solutions to the IMF.”