Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shehbaz Sharif on Friday accused the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government of arresting his niece Maryam Nawaz as a tactic of "distracting" others to hide its "failed policy" on the Kashmir issue."Maryam was arrested in front of her father and uncle.

Hamza Shehbaz and Maryam Nawaz's arrests prove once again that the PTI government is complicit with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB)," Shehbaz was quoted by Geo News as saying while speaking in the Parliament.

His comments came after an accountability court in Lahore on Friday reserved its verdict on NAB's request for 15-day physical remand of Maryam Nawaz and her cousin Yousaf Abbas, who was arrested by the anti-corruption watchdog yesterday in connection with the Chaudhry Sugar Mills case.

"Maryam's arrest is an attempt to distract (everyone) from the government`s failed policy on Kashmir. It is a tactic to distract from the sinking economy and from the crashing stock market," Sharif said.

Launching a scathing attack on Prime Minister Imran Khan, Sharif said that his party will not be "pushed back" against the government's "cruel tactics".

"Imran Khan is mistaken if he thinks he can pressure us with such cruel tactics. They are pushing us against the wall, but we won't be pushed back," the Pakistani opposition leader said.&nbsp; 
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Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shehbaz Sharif on Friday accused the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government of arresting his niece Maryam Nawaz as a tactic of "distracting" others to hide its "failed policy" on the Kashmir issue.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shehbaz Sharif on Friday accused the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government of arresting his niece Maryam Nawaz as a tactic of "distracting" others to hide its "failed policy" on the Kashmir issue."Maryam was arrested in front of her father and uncle. Hamza Shehbaz and Maryam Nawaz's arrests prove once again that the PTI government is complicit with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB)," Shehbaz was quoted by Geo News as saying while speaking in the Parliament. His comments came after an accountability court in Lahore on Friday reserved its verdict on NAB's request for 15-day physical remand of Maryam Nawaz and her cousin Yousaf Abbas, who was arrested by the anti-corruption watchdog yesterday in connection with the Chaudhry Sugar Mills case. "Maryam's arrest is an attempt to distract (everyone) from the government`s failed policy on Kashmir. It is a tactic to distract from the sinking economy and from the crashing stock market," Sharif said. Launching a scathing attack on Prime Minister Imran Khan, Sharif said that his party will not be "pushed back" against the government's "cruel tactics". "Imran Khan is mistaken if he thinks he can pressure us with such cruel tactics. They are pushing us against the wall, but we won't be pushed back," the Pakistani opposition leader said.

Maryam's arrest 'distraction' by government to hide 'failed' Kashmir policy: Shehbaz Sharif

US President Donald Trump offered to mediate on Kashmir during his meeting with<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/working-with-pakistan-to-find-way-out-of-war-in-afghanistan-trump-on-meeting-with-pm-imran-khan-at-white-house-237765"> PM Imran Khan at the White House</a> on Monday.

"If I can help, I would love to be a mediator," Trump said at the White House, where he was hosting Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan. "If I can do anything to help, let me know."

Trump said PM Narendra Modi had also asked him to help with disputed Kashmir region, he would love to be a mediator, Reuters reported.

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Pakistan PM Imran Khan said he will ask Trump if he can play role in peace in the subcontinent, Reuters added.

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Donald Trump said maybe the US can intercede in strained India, Pakistan relations, news agency Reuters said.

This is the first time the US president has offered to intervene in the Kashmir dispute. Trump had earlier taken credit for Hafiz Saeed's arrest in Pakistan which took place last week. India has strongly refused any mediation over the Kashmir issue.

On Friday, Trump said he was ready to help South Korea and Japan solve their long standing dispute over World War II-era forced labour that has recently put a brake on trade ties between the two countries.

In 2017, Trump offered to mediate territorial disputes in the South China Sea between China, Vietnam and other Asia-Pacific countries - a proposal that did not move forward.

The much-anticipated meeting between the US president and the Pakistan prime minister took place at the White House as Pakistan sought to renew its friendship with the US which has been stymied with repeated Trump tweets castigating the Pakistan government on its record on terror.

During the meeting with Imran Trump said the US was working with Pakistan to find a way out of the war in Afghanistan, the US president also held out the possibility of restoring US aid to Pakistan.

US President Donald Trump offered to mediate on Kashmir during his meeting with PM Imran Khan at the White House on Monday. "If I can help, I would love to be a mediator," Trump said at the White House, where he was hosting Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan.

US President Donald Trump offered to mediate on Kashmir during his meeting with PM Imran Khan at the White House on Monday. "If I can help, I would love to be a mediator," Trump said at the White House, where he was hosting Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan. "If I can do anything to help, let me know." Trump said PM Narendra Modi had also asked him to help with disputed Kashmir region, he would love to be a mediator, Reuters reported. MORE: Trump says Indian PM Narendra Modi has also asked him to help with disputed Kashmir region, he would love to be a mediator — Reuters India (@ReutersIndia) July 22, 2019 × Pakistan PM Imran Khan said he will ask Trump if he can play role in peace in the subcontinent, Reuters added. MORE: Pakistan PM Imran Khan says will ask Trump if he can play role in peace in subcontinent — Reuters India (@ReutersIndia) July 22, 2019 × Donald Trump said maybe the US can intercede in strained India, Pakistan relations, news agency Reuters said. This is the first time the US president has offered to intervene in the Kashmir dispute. Trump had earlier taken credit for Hafiz Saeed's arrest in Pakistan which took place last week. India has strongly refused any mediation over the Kashmir issue. On Friday, Trump said he was ready to help South Korea and Japan solve their long standing dispute over World War II-era forced labour that has recently put a brake on trade ties between the two countries. In 2017, Trump offered to mediate territorial disputes in the South China Sea between China, Vietnam and other Asia-Pacific countries - a proposal that did not move forward. The much-anticipated meeting between the US president and the Pakistan prime minister took place at the White House as Pakistan sought to renew its friendship with the US which has been stymied with repeated Trump tweets castigating the Pakistan government on its record on terror. During the meeting with Imran Trump said the US was working with Pakistan to find a way out of the war in Afghanistan, the US president also held out the possibility of restoring US aid to Pakistan.

President Trump offers to mediate on Kashmir issue during meeting with Pakistan PM Imran Khan: Report

Political leaders come in all shapes and sizes. United States President Donald Trump was a real estate developer. Former British prime minister David Cameron was a public relations executive. And Iceland’s former prime minister Johanna Sigurdardottir was an airline stewardess.

So we shouldn’t dismiss Imran Khan, Pakistan Prime Minister, as a lightweight just because he was a cricketer. Khan’s background isn’t the problem. His credibility is. Shortly after being elected PM, Khan promised to build a ‘Naya Pakistan’. India has reacted cautiously. Old wine in a new bottle is the consensus.

Khan has done nothing to stop terrorist infiltration. His writ stops at the outskirts of Rawalpindi. Pakistan’s army generals are a law unto themselves. Though Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa has declared that Islamabad wants peace with India, Pakistan’s rogue Border Action Team (BAT), acting under Bajwa’s overall command, continues to attack Indian targets in the Kashmir Valley.

The Indian Army is eliminating Pakistan-abetted terrorists at the rate of roughly one a day. Over 300 terrorists were killed in 2018, a 50 per cent increase over 2017. But the Indian Army estimates that 280-300 terrorists remain active in the Valley. More are being pushed in by the Pakistani Army across the LoC’s porous terrain of forests, rivers and hillocks.

There have, however, been notable changes. Ceasefire violations across the LoC have fallen significantly since May 2018 when the Pakistani Army, bludgeoned by Indian retaliatory mortar fire, sued for peace. The Indian Army, CRPF and J&amp;K police have meanwhile tightened the tourniquet around Pakistani terror modules in the Valley.

Ever since governor’s rule was imposed in June 2018, followed by President’s rule, Indian security forces have succeeded in targeting the leadership of several Pakistan-backed terror groups active in the Valley.

On former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti’s watch, the security forces often operated with one hand tied behind their backs. Mufti, along with the other dynast in the Valley, Omar Abdullah of the National Conference (NC), spoke from both corners of the mouth. In Delhi, they spoke of a robust anti-terror strategy. In Srinagar, they spoke the language of separatist appeasement.

It is telling that tourism is again flourishing in the Valley. Over 8 lakh tourists (including 50,000 foreign tourists) holidayed in Kashmir in 2018. The PDP-NC narrative that the Valley is in the throes of its worst crisis plays into the hands of Pakistan. The ISI funds stone-pelters, Hurriyat separatists and a hoary cabal of journalists, ex-army officers, former intelligence operatives and activists to further the narrative of Kashmir under military siege.

Part of the blame lies with the Indian government. Its Pakistan policy has oscillated from conciliatory in 2014 to intransigent in 2019. Is it though a propitious time now to change the status quoist strategy on Pakistan? The conventional wisdom is that nothing will change before the May 2019 Lok Sabha election. Imran Khan has said much the same. He could be wrong.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is known to make unpredictable policy moves. Pakistan is today in a particularly vulnerable position. Its treasury is bankrupt, kept afloat by loans from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and China. Islamabad is under severe pressure from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) over terror financing and could be blacklisted in September 2019 when a final decision is taken by the Paris-based global anti-terror body.

In Afghanistan, meanwhile, the Taliban, Pakistan’s outsourced terror group to keep Kabul in Islamabad’s malign grip, has developed sub-Taliban groups. Many of these are outside the control of the main Taliban leadership. If the Taliban joins a “peace” coalition and the Afghan government following negotiations begin shepherded by the US, the sub-Taliban groups could attack the Pakistan State itself.

Khaled Ahmed of Newsweek Pakistan conceded in a recent column: “The mood in India is punitive. In contrast, the mood in Pakistan is cautiously submissive. For the Pakistan Army, some options are closing, especially one of “championing the Kashmir cause”, but it doesn’t know how to roll back the old agitprop. It is facing a new situation in next door Afghanistan, where India is now firmly entrenched. The Taliban is no longer willing to play ball, and is more inclined instead to listen to India and its patrons in the Gulf. A return to Taliban rule in Kabul will be dangerous for Pakistan because of its jihadi underground.”

Hemmed in on all sides, Pakistan is running out of options. It is an opportune moment for India to realign its Pakistan policy by continuing tough anti-terror operations in the Valley and talking directly to Pakistan Army chief General Bajwa. Talking to Imran Khan, who fantasises about fomenting trouble in Punjab through Khalistani separatists, is a waste of time.

Pakistan is a schizophrenic country. It wants trade with India but won’t grant it reciprocal MFN status. It wants talks with India without stopping abetment of terrorism against India.

Global think tanks project that India’s economy, already nearly 10 times as large as Pakistan’s, will within a few years put it in a different league, well out of Islamabad’s reach. Pakistan too has belatedly realised that its window to gain false equivalence with India will soon slam shut. India’s new policy to deal with ‘Naya Pakistan’ should be based on this hardnosed reality. 
 
(This article was originally published on The DNA. Read the <a href="https://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column-calling-imran-khan-s-bluff-2708745">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Political leaders come in all shapes and sizes. United States President Donald Trump was a real estate developer. Former British prime minister David Cameron was a public relations executive.

Political leaders come in all shapes and sizes. United States President Donald Trump was a real estate developer. Former British prime minister David Cameron was a public relations executive. And Iceland’s former prime minister Johanna Sigurdardottir was an airline stewardess. So we shouldn’t dismiss Imran Khan, Pakistan Prime Minister, as a lightweight just because he was a cricketer. Khan’s background isn’t the problem. His credibility is. Shortly after being elected PM, Khan promised to build a ‘Naya Pakistan’. India has reacted cautiously. Old wine in a new bottle is the consensus. Khan has done nothing to stop terrorist infiltration. His writ stops at the outskirts of Rawalpindi. Pakistan’s army generals are a law unto themselves. Though Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa has declared that Islamabad wants peace with India, Pakistan’s rogue Border Action Team (BAT), acting under Bajwa’s overall command, continues to attack Indian targets in the Kashmir Valley. The Indian Army is eliminating Pakistan-abetted terrorists at the rate of roughly one a day. Over 300 terrorists were killed in 2018, a 50 per cent increase over 2017. But the Indian Army estimates that 280-300 terrorists remain active in the Valley. More are being pushed in by the Pakistani Army across the LoC’s porous terrain of forests, rivers and hillocks. There have, however, been notable changes. Ceasefire violations across the LoC have fallen significantly since May 2018 when the Pakistani Army, bludgeoned by Indian retaliatory mortar fire, sued for peace. The Indian Army, CRPF and J&K police have meanwhile tightened the tourniquet around Pakistani terror modules in the Valley. Ever since governor’s rule was imposed in June 2018, followed by President’s rule, Indian security forces have succeeded in targeting the leadership of several Pakistan-backed terror groups active in the Valley. On former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti’s watch, the security forces often operated with one hand tied behind their backs. Mufti, along with the other dynast in the Valley, Omar Abdullah of the National Conference (NC), spoke from both corners of the mouth. In Delhi, they spoke of a robust anti-terror strategy. In Srinagar, they spoke the language of separatist appeasement. It is telling that tourism is again flourishing in the Valley. Over 8 lakh tourists (including 50,000 foreign tourists) holidayed in Kashmir in 2018. The PDP-NC narrative that the Valley is in the throes of its worst crisis plays into the hands of Pakistan. The ISI funds stone-pelters, Hurriyat separatists and a hoary cabal of journalists, ex-army officers, former intelligence operatives and activists to further the narrative of Kashmir under military siege. Part of the blame lies with the Indian government. Its Pakistan policy has oscillated from conciliatory in 2014 to intransigent in 2019. Is it though a propitious time now to change the status quoist strategy on Pakistan? The conventional wisdom is that nothing will change before the May 2019 Lok Sabha election. Imran Khan has said much the same. He could be wrong. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is known to make unpredictable policy moves. Pakistan is today in a particularly vulnerable position. Its treasury is bankrupt, kept afloat by loans from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and China. Islamabad is under severe pressure from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) over terror financing and could be blacklisted in September 2019 when a final decision is taken by the Paris-based global anti-terror body. In Afghanistan, meanwhile, the Taliban, Pakistan’s outsourced terror group to keep Kabul in Islamabad’s malign grip, has developed sub-Taliban groups. Many of these are outside the control of the main Taliban leadership. If the Taliban joins a “peace” coalition and the Afghan government following negotiations begin shepherded by the US, the sub-Taliban groups could attack the Pakistan State itself. Khaled Ahmed of Newsweek Pakistan conceded in a recent column: “The mood in India is punitive. In contrast, the mood in Pakistan is cautiously submissive. For the Pakistan Army, some options are closing, especially one of “championing the Kashmir cause”, but it doesn’t know how to roll back the old agitprop. It is facing a new situation in next door Afghanistan, where India is now firmly entrenched. The Taliban is no longer willing to play ball, and is more inclined instead to listen to India and its patrons in the Gulf. A return to Taliban rule in Kabul will be dangerous for Pakistan because of its jihadi underground.” Hemmed in on all sides, Pakistan is running out of options. It is an opportune moment for India to realign its Pakistan policy by continuing tough anti-terror operations in the Valley and talking directly to Pakistan Army chief General Bajwa. Talking to Imran Khan, who fantasises about fomenting trouble in Punjab through Khalistani separatists, is a waste of time. Pakistan is a schizophrenic country. It wants trade with India but won’t grant it reciprocal MFN status. It wants talks with India without stopping abetment of terrorism against India. Global think tanks project that India’s economy, already nearly 10 times as large as Pakistan’s, will within a few years put it in a different league, well out of Islamabad’s reach. Pakistan too has belatedly realised that its window to gain false equivalence with India will soon slam shut. India’s new policy to deal with ‘Naya Pakistan’ should be based on this hardnosed reality. (This article was originally published on The DNA. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Calling Imran Khan’s bluff: India needs to realign its Pakistan policy

The independent leadership in Pakistan administered Kashmir and Gilgit, led by the United Kashmir People&#39;s National Party (UKPNP), have strongly rejected moves by Pakistan to establish military courts in the region in order to further suppress the local population. 
 
In a conference titled &quot;National Action Plan &amp; Freedom of Expression in PoK and Gilgit Baltistan&quot; held recently in Mirpur city of the region, Kashmiri leaders vehemently rejected the draconian law. 
 
Pakistani security forces have arrested many Kashmiri nationalist leaders under the national action Plan that was established by Pakistan government in January 2015 to crack down on terrorism. 
&nbsp;
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Mirpur (PoK): Kashmiri leaders protest Pakistan&rsquo;s move to establish military courts. <a href="https://t.co/z4zxzgznvQ">pic.twitter.com/z4zxzgznvQ</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/761757222678519808">August 6, 2016</a></blockquote>
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In a resolution passed unanimously, the participants demounces establishment of military courts and implementation of national action plan (NAP) in Pakistan administered Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan. They said Pakistan has no jurisdiction in these areas. 
 
Asif Shah Kashmiri, president of J K Peoples National Party said, &quot;In Gilgit Baltistan, the Pakistan court have imposed false cases against Baba Jan and his colleagues and announced 20 years of imprisonment. We strictly condemn it.&quot; He said, &quot;We condemn sedition charges leveled against Muhammad Khwaja Rafiq of Kashmir International Friendship Club, Talat Mehmood and other political leaders of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan.&quot; 
 
Most speakers criticised Kashmir policy of Pakistan government and human rights violations committed by them in the region and Gilgit-Baltistan. 
 
Advocate Nasir Ansari, president of J&amp;K Plebiscite Front (JK Mahaz-e-Rai Shumari) said, &quot;We also want to see a progressive Pakistan. It is making atomic bombs. But, can a human being eat these atom bombs? Pakistan has failed to provide a glass of clean drinking water to its citizens in the past 70 years. Can we have faith on Pakistan that it will make us free?&quot; 
 
The speakers said that the Pakistan establishment is trying to convey that recent elections in the region were free and fair, but in fact, the elections were rigged, unfair and partial. Nationalist parties were not allowed to participate in the elections. 
 
Shafique Kayani, secretary general of the J K Freedom Movement said, &quot;Why you required a National Action Plan. It was because to arrest those Kashmiris who are demanding freedom. Why you are not arresting those terrorists in Karachi who are involved in kidnappings and killings. They are carrying out terrorist attacks and killings children in schools.&quot;&nbsp; 
(ANI)

Security forces have arrested many leaders in Pakistan administered Kashmir under the national action plan to crack down on terrorists

The independent leadership in Pakistan administered Kashmir and Gilgit, led by the United Kashmir People's National Party (UKPNP), have strongly rejected moves by Pakistan to establish military courts in the region in order to further suppress the local population. In a conference titled "National Action Plan & Freedom of Expression in PoK and Gilgit Baltistan" held recently in Mirpur city of the region, Kashmiri leaders vehemently rejected the draconian law. Pakistani security forces have arrested many Kashmiri nationalist leaders under the national action Plan that was established by Pakistan government in January 2015 to crack down on terrorism. Mirpur (PoK): Kashmiri leaders protest Pakistan’s move to establish military courts. pic.twitter.com/z4zxzgznvQ — ANI (@ANI_news) August 6, 2016 In a resolution passed unanimously, the participants demounces establishment of military courts and implementation of national action plan (NAP) in Pakistan administered Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan. They said Pakistan has no jurisdiction in these areas. Asif Shah Kashmiri, president of J K Peoples National Party said, "In Gilgit Baltistan, the Pakistan court have imposed false cases against Baba Jan and his colleagues and announced 20 years of imprisonment. We strictly condemn it." He said, "We condemn sedition charges leveled against Muhammad Khwaja Rafiq of Kashmir International Friendship Club, Talat Mehmood and other political leaders of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan." Most speakers criticised Kashmir policy of Pakistan government and human rights violations committed by them in the region and Gilgit-Baltistan. Advocate Nasir Ansari, president of J&K Plebiscite Front (JK Mahaz-e-Rai Shumari) said, "We also want to see a progressive Pakistan. It is making atomic bombs. But, can a human being eat these atom bombs? Pakistan has failed to provide a glass of clean drinking water to its citizens in the past 70 years. Can we have faith on Pakistan that it will make us free?" The speakers said that the Pakistan establishment is trying to convey that recent elections in the region were free and fair, but in fact, the elections were rigged, unfair and partial. Nationalist parties were not allowed to participate in the elections. Shafique Kayani, secretary general of the J K Freedom Movement said, "Why you required a National Action Plan. It was because to arrest those Kashmiris who are demanding freedom. Why you are not arresting those terrorists in Karachi who are involved in kidnappings and killings. They are carrying out terrorist attacks and killings children in schools." (ANI)

Activists in Pakistan administered Kashmir protest move to establish military courts in region

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Maryam's arrest 'distraction' by government to hide 'failed' Kashmir policy: Shehbaz Sharif

President Trump offers to mediate on Kashmir issue during meeting with Pakistan PM Imran Khan: Report

Calling Imran Khan’s bluff: India needs to realign its Pakistan policy

Activists in Pakistan administered Kashmir protest move to establish military courts in region