Pakistani authorities have foiled a plot to attack parliament during President Asif Ali Zardari's address to a joint sitting of the two houses and arrested several terrorists and an employee of the foreign ministry, Interior Minister Rehman Malik said on Saturday. The terrorists had planned to attack Parliament when Zardari was addressing a joint session of the National Assembly and Senate on March 17, Malik said.
This year saw no improvement in bilateral ties as India accused Pakistan of cross-border infiltration and re-activation of terror-launching pads near the LoC.
Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon on Wednesday briefed Congress Members of Parliament about various aspects of the Indo-Pak joint statement issued at Sharm-el Sheikh, hours ahead of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention on the issue in Parliament. Menon briefed a group of party MPs from both the Houses on the technical details of the statement so that they were aware of all the details of the communique before the discussion on the issue, sources said.
Khan had been at loggerheads with Bajwa ever since his ouster from power in April by a no-confidence motion.
The apex court on Wednesday sought the minutes of the National Security Council meeting to know more about the alleged 'foreign conspiracy' as it delayed its verdict on whether Prime Minister Khan had violated the Constitution by dissolving Parliament rather than face a no-confidence vote.
United States officials have identified Pakistan as a base of operations or target for numerous armed and non state militant groups, some of which have existed since the 1980s, the independent Congressional Research Service said in the report.
Beleaguered Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Monday offered to resign, after holding a meeting with President Asif Ali Zardari and the top leaders of the country's ruling coalition ahead of a crucial Parliament session, TV reports claimed.
"Of course, we do not tolerate persecution anywhere, but I am not sure that I agree at all with the characterisation that the hon. gentleman has put forward," the British prime minister said.
In a temporary relief for Imran Khan, a Pakistani court on Wednesday ordered the police to stop till Thursday its operation outside the former prime minister's residence in Lahore to arrest him in a corruption case after a scuffle between the security personnel and his supporters.
The change of government in Pakistan after the exit of hawkish Imran Khan and his likely replacement by hard-core realist Shehbaz Sharif may provide a little window of opportunity for the leaders of India and Pakistan to reset their nearly frozen bilateral ties, according to experts.
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, who presented the budget in the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, said the government will target a growth rate of 3.5 per cent in the coming fiscal year.
Pakistan's Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial on Thursday noted that National Assembly deputy speaker Qasim Suri's move to dismiss a no-confidence motion against embattled Prime Minister Imran Khan through a controversial ruling is, prima facie, a violation of article 95 of the constitution as the apex court heard the high-profile case for the fourth day.
A Pakistani court in Islamabad on Monday rejected former prime minister Imran Khan's plea seeking the suspension of the non-bailable warrant issued against him in the Toshakhana case.
After over a week of diffidence, the Congress on Monday came out openly backing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the controversial Indo-Pak joint statement in Egypt that has come under a lot of criticism.
Shehbaz, the younger brother of former three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif, received 174 votes -- two more than the simple majority of 172.
A larger bench of the apex court -- comprising Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel, Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail -- took up the matter after Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri rejected the move to dislodge the prime minister by declaring the no-trust motion unmaintainable due to its link with a so-called foreign conspiracy.
"These three officers have primarily been held responsible for the incident. Their services have been terminated by the central government with immediate effect. Termination orders have been served upon the officers on August 23," it said.
With the possibility of President Pervez Musharraf seeking re-election, a senior Pakistani minister has said the next president would be elected by the existing Parliament and Provincial Assemblies in September-October 2007.
Khan, who faced his toughest political test since assuming office in 2018 due to defections in his party and cracks in the ruling coalition, in a surprise announcement during an address to the nation on Sunday said he had advised the president to 'dissolve assemblies'.
Pakistani experts are disappointed with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's speech in Parliament on the Indo-Pak joint statement, terming it as a response to the pressure exerted by Opposition parties.
The Pakistan Parliament witnessed multiple adjournments and heated arguments, but the voting on a no-confidence motion against him appeared to be a distant possibility.
Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria said in a statement that Indian High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale was called to hand over a letter of invitation for talks.
He will meet Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf when the general visits New Delhi to watch the Indo-Pak one-dayer on April 17.
Opposition political parties this month sought a no-confidence motion in parliament to remove Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Justice Farooq said the PTI should submit a fresh plea to the Islamabad administration seeking permission for its long march, demanding early general election.
According to a Union home ministry notification, those Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians residing in the districts of Anand and Mehsana in Gujarat will be allowed registration as a citizen of India under Section 5 or will be granted certificate of naturalisation under section 6 of the Citizenship Act, 1955 and in accordance with the provisions of the Citizenship Rules, 2009.
'We are fully capable of handling anti-India propaganda but it does pain when a former president of such a big political party does ochi rajiniti (shallow minded politics) at a time of problems. It is a matter of self-introspection for him and the Congress'
Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Friday blamed his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh for lack of progress in Indo-Pak dialogue, saying that he was unable to stand the pressure inside and outside the Indian Parliament.
The Pakistan government has restrained its Cricket Board from initiating any dialogue with the Board of Control for Cricket in India on the issue of a long-pending bilateral series, which has been scuttled repeatedly on account of volatile political ties between the two nations.
Khan was ousted from power after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership following days of high drama.
The bus service was first started in February 1999 but suspended after the 2001 Parliament attack. It was restarted in July 2003.
Dhaka emerged as the free capital of independent Bangladesh on December 16, 1971 after the war between India and Pakistan broke out on December 3 when the Indian troops directly stood beside the Mukti Bahini soldiers.
As Indo-Pak foreign secretaries met in Delhi for talks aimed at ending the chill in bilateral ties, Pakistan on Thursday claimed that 'Indian networks' were behind the terror attacks in Mumbai and on the Samjhauta Express and Indian Parliament. Without giving any evidence to substantiate the claims, Interior Minister Rehman Malik claimed that a terrorist assault of the magnitude of the Mumbai terror attacks could not have been carried out otherwise.
Vajpayee, who died on Thursday at the age of 93 after a prolonged illness, had made a significant diplomatic breakthrough and travelled on a bus from Amritsar to Lahore with a delegation that included the likes of Bollywood legend Dev Anand, writer Javed Akhtar and cricket icon Kapil Dev.
Pakistan Army said on Thursday that it has 'nothing to do with politics' and it will remain apolitical in the future as well, as the powerful institution asserted that its chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa was not seeking an extension and will neither accept one.
Terrorist groups operating from Pakistani soil have played a "very serious role" not just in attacks in India but also in Pakistan, a senior British lawmaker said on Monday.
Pakistan on Wednesday called for "stability and predictability" in Indo-Pak relations, saying governments on both sides should have the courage to withstand pressure in the wake of "unfortunate incidents" and prevent derailment of ties.
'The man who has 16 billion and 8 billion rupees of corruption cases, whoever selects and elects the Prime Minister can not be a big insult to the country'
Pakistan's anti-government protesters had a quiet day in Islamabad's high security area where they have been camping demanding Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's resignation, even as opposition leader Imran Khan vowed to continue the sit-in until goals achieved.
The Council of Islamic Ideology issued a statement after a meeting which was presided over by its chairperson, Dr Qibla Ayaz.
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