News

Pakistan ex-PM Khan given three-year jail sentence

Published

2 years ago

August 5, 2023

editor

Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has been given three-year jail sentence over corruption allegations.

Mr Khan was found guilty of not declaring money earned from selling gifts he received in office. He denies the charges and says he will appeal.

After the verdict, Mr Khan was taken into custody from his home in Lahore.

In a pre-recorded statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, he told his supporters: “I have only one appeal, don’t sit at home silently.”

The former cricketer-turned-politician, 70, was elected in 2018, but was ousted in a no-confidence vote last year after falling out with Pakistan’s powerful military.

Mr Khan is facing more than 100 cases brought against him since his removal – charges he says are politically motivated.

Saturday’s verdict centred on charges that he incorrectly declared details of presents from foreign dignitaries and proceeds from their alleged sale.

The gifts – reported to be worth more than 140m Pakistani rupees ($635,000; £500,000) – included Rolex watches, a ring and a pair of cuff links.

“His dishonesty has been established beyond doubt,” judge Humayun Dilawar wrote in his ruling.

Mr Khan’s barrister Gohar Khan said the verdict was “a murder of justice”.

“We weren’t even given a chance. We weren’t even allowed to cross [examine], to say anything in defence or conduct our arguments. I haven’t seen this kind of injustice before,” he told Dawn newspaper.

As the court decision was announced, a crowd, which included some prosecuting lawyers, began chanting “Imran Khan is a thief” outside the building.

His party, Tehreek-e-Insaf, confirmed to the BBC that after being arrested in Lahore, Mr Khan was flown to the capital, Islamabad, to begin serving his sentence.

For months he had avoided arrest, with his supporters at times fighting pitched battles with police to keep him out of custody.

In May, Mr Khan was arrested for not appearing at court as requested. He was then released, with the arrest declared illegal.

Since then, his party has been under intense pressure from the authorities.

Many senior officials have left and thousands of supporters have been arrested, accused of being involved in the protests that followed Mr Khan’s arrest.

When questioned by BBC HARDTalk as to whether he had created an atmosphere of hostility to the military resulting in violence, Mr Khan said he and his party had never advocated the use of violence and had a record of peaceful protest.

Mr Khan said the army in Pakistan was “petrified” of elections which his party would win “hands-down” and, for that reason, “they’re dismantling a democracy”.

Pakistan’s army plays a prominent role in politics, sometimes seizing power in military coups, and, on other occasions, pulling levers behind the scenes.

Many analysts believe Mr Khan’s election win in 2018 happened with the help of the military.

In opposition, he has been one of its most vocal critics, and analysts say the army’s popularity has fallen.

Since being ousted, Mr Khan has been campaigning for early elections.

Conviction would disqualify Mr Khan from standing for office, possibly for life.

Pakistan’s parliament will be dissolved on August 9, leaving a caretaker government to take over in the run up to the elections.

No election date has been announced, although constitutionally they should take place by early November.

Source – BBC

News

Major reforms planned for bus transport

Published

2 hours ago

April 28, 2025

editor

Minister of Transport, Highways, Ports, and Aviation, Bimal Rathnayake, recently held a special discussion with officials from the National Transport Commission (NTC), the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB), and the Provincial Road Passenger Transport Authorities across nine provinces. The meeting led to several key decisions aimed at modernizing and improving the country’s road passenger transport sector.

Among the major initiatives discussed were:

Immediate implementation of an integrated bus timetable for the Puttalam route.
Launch of a pilot project on Route 138, where all buses operate under a single association with profit-sharing arrangements.
Installation of GPS and CCTV systems in buses for improved monitoring and safety.
Development of an online ticket booking system in collaboration with the Ministry of Digital Technology.
Introduction of random drug and alcohol testing for bus drivers.
Mandatory issuance of bus tickets through electronic ticketing machines (implementation phase in progress).
Formulation of specifications for buses used in passenger transport.
Mandatory seatbelt usage for bus drivers.
Identification of new roads/routes for the addition of new bus services.
Provision of WhatsApp numbers for passengers to report complaints about buses, with numbers prominently displayed inside buses.
Minister Rathnayake emphasized the need for swift action to implement these measures and instructed officials to continuously monitor and report on the progress of each initiative.

(dailynews.lk)

(Except for the headline, this story, originally published by dailynews.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)

News

Chongqing gears up for 25th Lijia International Intelligent Equipment expo

Published

3 hours ago

April 28, 2025

editor

The international internet celebrity city of Chongqing in China will host a grand equipment manufacturing industry event – the 25th Lijia International Intelligent Equipment Exhibition 2025 next month.

The Expo will be held at the Chongqing International Expo Center from May 13th to 16th, 2025, attracting exhibitors and professional visitors from all over the world to discuss and showcase the latest technologies and products in the equipment manufacturing industry.

This exhibition, spanning across 100,000 sq. meters will bring together 1,400 globally renowned enterprises which will showcase their intelligent manufacturing equipment and technology, particularly the latest achievements, cutting-edge technologies, and high-end products in the fields of machine tools, industrial automation and robots, tool holders and measuring tools, sheet metal, die-casting casting, molds, rubber and plastic.

The 2025 Lijia Exhibition will also create multiple themed exhibition islands showcasing manufacturing powerhouses of China, which will comprehensively showcase solutions to industry pain points through on-site demonstrations, technical explanations, and physical displays.

In addition, the exhibition will also hold over 100 industry conferences and events. The main forum, “FIM-Future Intelligent Manufacturing Conference,” focuses on future factories, with the theme of AI+manufacturing. Industry experts are expected to provide suggestions and recommendations for manufacturing transformation.

Organizers point out that for global manufacturing enterprises, the expo is not only an excellent opportunity to learn about the latest technologies and products in China’s equipment manufacturing industry, but also also an important platform for gaining a deeper understanding of the Chinese market and expanding international cooperation. It will also open up opportunities to engage in in-depth exchanges and cooperation with Chinese counterparts, and to jointly promote the development and prosperity of the global equipment manufacturing industry.

News

RW issues special statement after exiting CIABOC (Video)

Published

4 hours ago

April 28, 2025

editor

Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe has left the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) after providing a statement today (April 28).

Soon afterwards, he had also made a special statement in this regard.

(Video : VoiceTube)

(Previous news 2025 April 28 – 9.20.a.m.)

Ex-President Ranil to appear before CIABOC today

Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe is scheduled to appear before the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) today (April 28) at 9.30 a.m.

He has been summoned to record a statement over the statement he had made on MP Chamara Sampath Dassanayake.

Former President Wickremesinghe, who was initially summoned to the CIABOC on April 17 but requested a postponement. He had requested a date after April 27th to appear before CIABOC, citing that his lawyer Ronald Perera is currently abroad.

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