Today’s top Pakistan current affairs April 09, 2021 with download link available in pdf. These are the latest breaking news about Pakistan which will be helpful for aspirants in test preparation of current affairs, Pakistan affairs, General knowledge for NTS, PPSC, CSS, FPSC, KPPSC, SPSC, BPSC, AJKPSC, OTS, PTS, and other Govt Jobs, exams & MDCAT, ECAT Entry test preparation.
One Liner
- PM Vows To Transform Pakistan Into Welfare State. Prime Minister Imran Khan has reaffirmed the determination to transform Pakistan into a welfare state as per the State of Madina’s principles of rule of law and compassion.
- Indian Troops Martyr Four More Kashmiri Youth In Pulwama. In Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K), Indian troops in their fresh act of state terrorism martyred four more Kashmiri youth in Pulwama district on Friday.
- Pak Navy Launches Mangrove Plantation Campaign 2021. Pakistan Navy launched Mangrove plantation campaign 2021 for preservation of the rapidly diminishing mangrove forest cover on coastal belt of Pakistan.
- 37 Brigadiers of Pakistan Army Promoted to Major General Rank: ISPR. Pakistan Army Promotion Board on Friday promoted 37 Brigadiers to the rank of Major General.
- Pakistan gets $2.5bn against Eurobond issue. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has received the proceeds of the government’s $2.5 billion eurobond issuance in its account.
- Britain’s Prince Philip Dies At Age 99. Prince Philip, the Greece-born royal who as the husband of Queen Elizabeth II was the longest-serving consort to a British sovereign, died Friday. He was 99.
- Drugs worth Rs80 mn found from US-bound consignment at Karachi port. Custom officials on Friday claimed to have recovered drugs worth Rs80 million from a United States (US)-bound consignment at Port Qasim in Karachi
- Pakistan desires meaningful dialogue with India: FO. Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri on Friday said that Pakistan never shy away from talks with India, but it must be meaningful and result-oriented to resolve outstanding disputes particularly the core issue of occupied Jammu and Kashmir
- Pakistani rupee soars against US dollar in early trade. The rupee continued to strengthen against the United States (US) dollar on Friday as it appreciated 17 paisas in opening trade at the interbank currency market.
Spotlight by The NewsRun
1. COVID-19 IN PAKISTAN
- 24-hour recap: Pakistan reported 5,329 cases and 98 deaths in 24 hours. Pakistan also conducted 40,816 tests in the span of 24 hours (P.S. this data was last updated on April 8 at 7:27am).
- Expanding vaccine eligibility to all citizens: Minister for Planning and Development, Asad Umar, said the govt plans to open COVID-19 vaccine registration to all citizens after Eid. Literally, the perfect Eid present. So far, 14,000 people have received privately imported vaccines, while 1.1 million have been vaccinated through the govt.
2. Possible jail time for army critics
What’s going on? A National Assembly panel (i.e. the Standing Committee on Interior) approved a bill that punishes whoever “intentionally ridicules or defames” the armed forces. This bill is suggesting amendments to the Pakistan Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure.
The details: According to the proposed Criminal Law Amendment Bill, if a civilian court finds anyone guilty of this offence, that person could face a two-year prison term, a fine of PKR 500,000, or both prison and a fine.
Tell me more: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) national assembly member, Amjid Ali Khan, introduced the bill. Lawmakers from the opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) expressed concerns about freedom of expression and opposed the bill. However, the National Assembly panel still approved it in the end. Activists and Pakistani journalists are also criticizing the bill.
Looking ahead: The bill still has to be formally presented in the National Assembly (i.e. the lower house of parliament), and there’s no timeline for when that will happen. It’s unclear if the army played a role in drafting the bill.
The context: Pakistan’s army has ruled the country for more than half of its 74-year history.
The bottom line: In its current form, the bill appears to be punishing criticism against the army.
3. FIFA suspends Pakistan football
Apparently, cricket isn’t the only sport people play and talk about in Pakistan. Pakistan has a football federation as well. However, FIFA, the international governing body of football, just suspended the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) due to a “hostile takeover” of the PFF headquarters. This news is a huge letdown for Pakistan’s football community. The PFF shared a post on Instagram with the tag, #SavePakistanFootball. “The ban will affect youngsters at the developmental stage the most. This will deprive the upcoming generation to play internationally, ” said Waleed Javed, coach of the Highlanders women’s football team.
- Backstory: Last month, a mob barged into the office of Haroon Malik, who is the FIFA-appointed Chairman of the PFF Normalization Committee. Malik said the mob restrained him, locked the doors, and forced him to hand over the organization’s accounts. He also claimed that former PFF President, Ashfaq Hussain Shah, led the mob attack. Shah has reportedly taken over the PFF headquarters, and FIFA is not recognizing his leadership, calling it an “illegitimate occupation.” This incident also led to the cancellation of a national women’s football championship that started in Karachi.
