By Our Staff Reporter

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) stalwart Talal Chaudhry re-sponded to State Minister for NarcoticsControl Shehryar Afridi’s presser onWednesday afternoon over Rana Sanaullah’slegal proceedings, and stated that the ministerhas taken a u-turn by saying that he had “spo-ken of a footage and not a video”.“Shehryar Afridi has become a ‘u-turn

Niazi’ […] he should apologise to the nationas neither evidence nor video is available [tohim],” the PML-N leader said, while askingMr Afridi to resign for speaking a lie.“The nation has seen that Rana Sanaullah

was kept imprisoned for seven months on thebasis of a lie,” he said, adding that he couldsee no sign of humiliation, shame and regreton the face of the minister, instead continuedarrogance. “The nation was waiting forShehryar Afridi to present the video totoday."PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Au-

rangzeb has also demanded resignation fromwhosoever had leveled false allegationsagainst Rana Sanaullah, who is also a Mem-ber of the National Assembly (MNA).Talking to media at a ceremony held in

connection with the birth anniversary ofQuad-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah andPML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif’s, ChristmasDay, she said that Prime Minister ImranKhan has been “kidnapping his political op-ponents.”“The selected government is about to be

toppled,” she said and added those swearingallegations against Rana Sanaullah should re-sign.”The PML-N spokesperson said that the

prime minister couldn’t become a capableperson by putting opponents behind the bars,adding that false allegations were leveledagainst the PML-N leaders, but courtsgranted bails to them.Marriyum Aurangzeb said Quaid-e-Azam

had laid the foundation of the supremacy ofthe constitution and law and two-nation the-ory and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif hadtried to run the country as per principles ofthe Founder of the Nation.“The former prime minister made the

country an atomic power and laid the networkof motorways and brought the country out ofdarkness and gave the gift of CPEC whichhas been closed down today,” she said.Speaking on the occasion, former national

assembly speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq said that

instead of contacting the opposition overArmy Chief’s tenure extension, the govern-ment has started targeting the opposition.The ceremony was attended by Marriyum

Aurangzeb, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, PervzaizMalik, Imran Nazir, Shaista Pervaiz and otherparty workers.Meanwhile, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)

parliamentary leader Hasan Murtaza said thatthe life has to be given to the Almighty, butevidence has to be presented before the court.

'Footage' not a requirement in RanaSanaullah's case: ANF

Anti-Narcotics Force’s (ANF) SpecialProsecutor Raja Inam – following bailgranted to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz(PML-N) leader Rana Sanaullah in a nar-cotics case yesterday – asserted on Wednes-day that provision of “footage” was not therequirement in the legal proceedings in thecase and all evidence was submitted to thecourt.He further mentioned that all statements

relevant to the recovery of the heroin fromthe vehicle of Sanaullah were also submittedin the court. “Statements of three witnesseswere also submitted in the court […] we hadfiled an application for hearing the case ondaily basis,” he added.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has rejected theUS State Department's unilateral and arbi-trary designation under the religious freedomreport announced on 20 December 2019.The US Department of State on Dec. 18 re-

designated Pakistan and several other coun-tries as “Countries of Particular Concern forhaving engaged in or tolerated “systematic,ongoing, and egregious violations of reli-gious freedom.”“This pronouncement is not only detached

from ground realities of Pakistan but alsoraises questions about the credibility andtransparency of the entire exercise. The des-ignation is reflective of selective targeting ofcountries, and thus unlikely to be helpful tothe professed cause of advancing religiousfreedom,” the Foreign Office said late Tues-day.A statement said Pakistan is a multi-reli-

gious and pluralistic country where peopleof all faiths enjoy religious freedom underconstitutional protections and all branches -- the Executive, Legislature and the Judici-ary -- have made concerted efforts to ensurethat all citizens of Pakistan, irrespective offaith, denomination, caste or creed, can pro-

fess and practice their religion in full free-dom.“The higher judiciary of the country has

given landmark judgments directing on en-suring the sanctity and security of places ofworship of minorities,” the statement said.It said Pakistan has also engaged with the

international community, including theUnited States, for better understanding on re-ligious freedom issues. Earlier this year, Senator Samuel Brown-

back, the US Ambassador-at-Large for Inter-national Religious reedom, was welcomed inPakistan for dialogue to advance the mutualobjectives of religious freedom globally. It isregrettable that this constructive engagementhas been overlooked.“The subjectivity and bias of the State De-

partment’s designations are further illustratedby the conspicuous omission of India, thebiggest violator of religious freedom,” thestatement said.It pointed out that the US Congress has

held two hearings and more than 70 US leg-islators have publicly expressed concernsover India’s treatment of Kashmiris and pro-longed suppression of their fundamental

rights in the Indian Occupied Jammu andKashmir (IOJ&K).The UN High Commissioner for Human

Rights in Geneva, the UN Secretary Generalin New York, and several European Parlia-ments have similarly expressed their con-cerns. In today’s India, people belonging tominority communities are being lynched, per-secuted and killed with impunity.The National Register of Citizens (NRC)

and the recently adopted Citizenship Amend-ment Act (CAA) are the latest examples ofthe Indian government's actions to discrimi-nate against people and evidently pave theway towards cleansing of society on the basisof religion.The statement said challenges to religious

freedom are a global concern and only coop-erative efforts can help address them.“For its part, Pakistan has also raised con-

cerns over growing trend of Islamophobia inmany Western countries including theUnited States. Working together in an envi-ronment of trust and understanding is thebest way forward in realising the objectiveof promoting and protecting religious free-dom.” —DNA

NAB recovers Rs 153b in last 27months: ChairmanISLAMABAD: The National Ac-

countability Bureau (NAB) has arrested630 accused, filed 600 references, de-posited Rs 153 billion in the national ex-chequer in the last 27 months, saidChairman Justice (Retd) Javed Iqbal onWednesday.In a statement, he said the overall ratio

of conviction of NAB was 70 percent inthe accountability courts, which was high-est as comparing to any other such antigraft institution.Right now,1,261 refer-ences, having accumulated value of Rs943 billion, were in 25 different account-ability courts. NAB has no affiliation withany political party, group or individualbut has affiliations with the state of Pak-istan and NAB officers were performingtheir national duty of eradication of cor-ruption with dedication.Justice Javed said the anti graft watch-

dog was making vigorous attempts toeradicate the menace of corruption by pur-suing its policy of ‘Accountability forAll’. NAB has already set its goal of tak-ing the cases of the corrupt, proclaimed of-fenders to logical conclusion as per lawand ensure the return of looted money ofthe nation from them. The performance ofthe bureau has already been acknowledgedby prestigious national and internationalinstitutions including Pakistan Institute ofLegislative Development and Trans-parency (PILDAT), Mashal Pakistan,Transparency International and WorldEconomic Forum, he said adding accord-ing to Gillani and Gallup International 59percent people of Pakistan expressed con-fidence over NAB, which has encouragedthe bureau’s officers as they have redou-bled their efforts for eradication of cor-ruption from the country. —APP

PM to lay stone of Jalalpur canal todayISLAMABAD: Prime Minister (PM)

Imran Khan will lay foundation stone ofJalapur-Kundwal canal project today(Thursday).This project will be built at the cost of

Rs 48 billion and completed till 2024.The ceremony will be attended by ChiefMinister Punjab Usman Buzdar, JahangirTareen and Fawad Chaudhry. This megaproject of irrigation came into considera-tion 124 years before but work was notstarted over it. The canal originating fromRasool bridge will terminate at Khushabafter passing through Pind Dadan Khan.1,70,000 acres land will be cultivated

through this project. Water flow in thiscanal will be 1350 cusecs and 48 percentclean drinking water will be provided to17 different villages through this project. The expenses to be incurred on this

project will be shared by Asian Develop-ment Bank and Punjab government.About 5.5 lakh people from districtJhelum and Khushab will benefit fromthis canal. —Online

Politicians askednot to interfere in FPCCI pollsBy Our Special Corresspondent

LAHORE: Chairman United BusinessGroup (UBG) Iftikhar Ali Malik Wednes-day categorically cautioned the politi-cians not to exercise their sphere ofinfluence and intervene in the upcomingelections of Federation of Pakistan Cham-bers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI)scheduled to be held on December 27.Talking to media prior to his departure

to Karachi along with 200 voters heretoday, the veteran trade leader Iftikhar AliMalik who is also Senior Vice Presidentof SAARC CCI said their group will de-feat the Businessmen Panel (BMP) inFPCCI.He said BMP has been facingcrushing defeats since last five consecu-tive years and they would meet the samefate while one of UBG VP candidateMuhammad Ali Quaid from KPA electedunopposed which speaks of our popular-ity among chambers.He said chambersare apolitical entities. He said that the de-feat of the opposition is writing on thewall. He also alleged that BMP always tryto come in power through the backdoorand now they are using some influential

India closes down Internet, deploys forcesto suppress protests LUCKNOW: Indian authorities stepped up security and

shut down the internet in various places while members ofthe ruling party Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) planned marchesbacking a new citizenship law even though nationwideprotests against it are escalating.An interior ministry official said the government expected

all state security officials to be on duty on Christmas Eve andthrough the holiday week.“We want the police to prevent an outbreak of “violence”

but we also realise that the situation can get out of control,hence paramilitary forces will be deployed in markets andpublic spaces,” said a senior security official in New Delhi.At least 20 rallies in support or against the new law were

scheduled in different cities with protesters from both sidescanvassing on social media to get people out over Christmasand the New Year. The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)aims to fast-track citizenship for persecuted Hindus, Parsis,Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Christians who arrived in Indiabefore Dec. 31, 2014, from Muslim-majority Afghanistan,Bangladesh and Pakistan.Its passing on Dec. 11 triggered demonstrations in the east-

ern state of Assam, where protesters fear it will make illegalmigrants from Bangladesh legal residents.Elsewhere, critics say the law discriminates against Mus-

lims and is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindunationalist agenda. The government denies that.Activists opposed to the law said they were trying to keep

up the momentum and were looking for ways to work aroundthe police clampdown and internet blackouts.Senior members of Modi’s BJP leading rallies to support

the law said they were determined to counter what they see asmisleading criticism of it. —DNA

Chinese investors visits FIEDMC to see business chancesBy Our Staff Corresspondent

LAHORE: A high-level Chinese investors delegationWednesday visited Allama Iqbal Industrial City, a mega pri-oritized project of Special Economic Zone (SEZ) of Faisal-abad Industrial Estate Development and ManagementCompany (FIEDMC) under CPEC to strengthen bilateraltrade relations through exploring business potential and in-vestment opportunities. Mian KashifAshfaq, chairmanFIEDMC and Muhammad AamerSaleemi chief operatingOfficer received the delegation and apprised them of the de-velopment of the project. Both the sides discussed issues forimprovement in various sectors and projects.Highlighting the development projects of FIEDMC, Mian

KashifAshfaq said that around Rs357 billion foreign and localinvestments will be injected into various projects, whichclearly indicates that investors have reposed complete confi-dence in the present regime. “More than 25 Chinese compa-nies had made agreements for investments in the industrialcity,” he addedHe said that Allama Iqbal Industrial City has been planned

over an area of 4000 acres, which is strategically located onMotorway M-4 near Sahianwala Interchange, Faisalabad.He further said all industries within the export processing

zone will be exempted from tax for a period of 10 years andplants, machinery, raw material and other equipment will beimported duty-free.Representatives of the Chinese delegation said Pakistan and

China were all-weather strategic co-operative partners andtheir partnership was aimed at promoting peace, developmentand prosperity in the region.They also emphasized that the special relationship between

the two countries was reflected in expression of warmth bythe Chinese people towards Pakistan at every occasion.They stressed that the Chinese investors were confident

about Pakistan's economic potential and hoped that the eco-nomic relationship between the two countries would reach thelevel of their excellence.

Ethiopian Muslimsprotest after severalmosques burned The Business Report

AMHARA: Several thousand Muslims across Ethiopia inrecent days have protested the burning of four mosques in theAmhara region.The Dec 20 attacks in Motta town also targeted Muslim-

owned businesses. Muslims have called for the perpetrators tobe brought to justice.Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has called the at-

tacks attempts by extremists to break down the country's richhistory of religious tolerance and coexistence.Recent ethnic-based unrest in some parts of the country has

at times taken religious form. Prominent Muslim scholarKamil Shemsu on Tuesday told The Associated Press thereare political actors who want to pit one religious group againstanother and blamed the negative role of activists and videoscirculated online.Amhara regional officials said they have arrested 15 sus-

pects in connection with the attacks. Police commander JemalMekonnen told state media the attacks appeared to be trig-gered by news of a fire that broke out in an Orthodox churcha few days earlier.

PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Khyber PakhtunkhwaMahmood Khan has said that road networks, developmentof tourist destinations and rapid establishment of indus-trial zones were part of the provincial government's over-all developmental strategy. He expressed these viewsduring a meeting with the Provincial Minister for Com-munications and Works Akbar Ayub at Chief Minister'sSecretariat Peshawar. —DNA

Quaid-e-Azam a visionary leader of South Asia: Bilawal ISLAMABAD: PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari

has said Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was a vi-sionary leader of South Asia and importance of his Two- Na-tion Theory is becoming more clear. He said this in his statement on the eve of birth anniver-

sary of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah Wednesday. He held Quaid-d-Azam authored a history by making

Pakistan through splendid struggle. —Online

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PRINTED AT TIJARAT PRINTERS FOR TIJARAT PUBLICATIONS AND PUBLISHED BY IRFAN ATHAR FROM TIJARAT HOUSE, 14-DAVIS ROAD, LAHORE. GROUP EDITOR RIAZ AHMAD CHAUDHRY

Lahore, Thursday, December 26, 2019 Rabi-us-Sani 28, 1441

FAISALABAD: The Directorate of Intel-ligence and Investigation of Inland Revenue,Faisalabad has unearthed a big scam of issu-ing/adjusting fake and flying invoices in-volving tax fraud involving over Rs 134million and an FIR has been registeredagainst M/s Arrow International, and 65 com-panies which were buyers, suppliers andother beneficiaries of M/s Arrow Interna-tional.According the documents and the FIR

available with the DNA, the case has beenregistered under section 37A read with sec-tion 2(37) of the Sales Tax Act, 1990 againstM/s Arrow International, its buyers, suppli-ers and other beneficiaries involved in de-frauding national exchequer from tax revenueof over Rs 134 million.

According to the documents, investigationsin the said case revealed that M/s Arrow In-ternational is a non-existent and a dummyunit, which was registered for the purpose ofissuance of fake and flying invoices to facil-itate buyers and suppliers avoid payment ofdue sales tax including further tax by thecompanies involved in import/export, weav-ing, spinning, manufacturing of textile prod-ucts.The detailed investigations, according to

the document revealed, that M/s Arrow In-ternational was registered for the purpose ofsales tax in 2017 with primary activity ofwhole sale and retail trade, repair of motorvehicles motorcycles, wholesale of house-hold goods, wholesale of textiles, clothingand footwear.

“The tax returns filed by the said firm forthe tax years of 2016, 2017 and 2018 revealedthat the registered person filed “Nill” returnsin the years 2016 and 2017 and declared tax-able income of Rs 3. 85 lakh for the year2018 with a business capital of Rs 9.20 lakhonly,” stated the documents.According to further details the sales tax

profile of the registered person of M/s ArrowInternational revealed huge “Bogus” suppliesof worth over Rs 1.4 billion during the Feb-ruary 2017 to October 2017, but the firm didnot pay a single penny in the national ex-chequer during this period. “M/s ArrowArrow International also declared “Fictitious”purchases amounting to over Rs 1.3 billionfrom 65 different textile units in order to fa-cilitate them to avoid the payment of the due

PML-N ask Afridi to resign forfalse charges against Sanaullah

Pakistan rejects US statement on religious freedom

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting, Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan addresses APP awards distribution ceremony.

Roads, tourism, industrial zonespart of PTI strategy: CM

Tax fraud involving Rs 134munearthed in Faisalabad

TheBusiness

RAWALPINDI: Leader of Pakistan People Party (PPP) Qamar Zaman Kaira inspects the preparation of coming public gathering on 27th December on the eve of

12th death anniversary of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto will be observed at Liaquat Bagh.

g In Pakistan all people of different faiths enjoy religious freedom