Category: Lahore

Lahore: Professor at the Institute of Energy and Environmental Engineering, Dr Mahmood Saleem, on Wednesday assumed charge as the Pro Vice Chancellor of University of the Punjab, bringing with him more than three decades of experience in higher education, research and academic administration.

Prof Dr Mahmood Saleem is a distinguished chemical engineer, researcher and educationist with over 33 years of experience in teaching, research and university leadership.

According to PU’s spokesperson, before assuming his new responsibilities at Punjab University, he served as Vice Chancellor of Mir Chakar Khan Rind University of Technology. He also previously held the position of Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology at Punjab University.

He obtained his doctorate in Chemical and Process Engineering from Graz University of Technology. His research focuses on gas cleaning technologies, process development, filtration and separation systems, sustainable energy, biomass pyrolysis and fluidized bed combustion.

During his academic career, Prof Dr Mahmood Saleem has supervised numerous PhD scholars, led several national and international research projects, and authored a significant number of research papers published in reputed journals, besides writing books in his field of specialization.

Apart from his academic achievements, he has held important leadership positions in the Pakistan Institute of Chemical Engineers and has also served as a member of the Pakistan Engineering Council, contributing to the advancement of engineering education and professional standards in Pakistan.

Lahore: A local court on Wednesday granted the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) a six-day physical remand of YouTuber Rehan Tariq in a case involving allegations of raising sensitive and controversial sectarian issues in a video posted on social media.

The NCCIA produced the accused before a judicial magistrate at the District Courts and sought his physical remand for further investigation.

After hearing the agency’s request, the court approved a six-day physical remand and directed investigators to produce the accused again upon the expiry of the remand period.

According to the investigation agency, an FIR has been registered against Rehan Tariq over allegations of raising sensitive and controversial sectarian issues in a video posted on social media.

Lahore: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has acquitted Shah Muhammad, who had been serving a life sentence in a murder case, after allowing his appeal and setting aside the trial court’s judgment.

In a detailed 12-page verdict released on Wednesday, Chief Justice Aalia Neelum ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove the charge against the appellant beyond reasonable doubt. The court also dismissed the complainant’s revision petition seeking enhancement of the sentence.

The judgment noted that the prosecution’s case was marred by serious contradictions in the FIR, witness statements and the overall prosecution narrative, rendering the case doubtful.

The court held that the identification parade was neither reliable nor conducted in accordance with legal requirements. It observed that the witnesses had neither identified the accused nor provided any description of the suspects in the FIR, making the subsequent identification unsafe to rely upon.

The verdict further stated that the extraordinary delay in the proceedings, deficiencies in the evidence and flaws in the investigation had created serious doubts about the prosecution’s case. The court also declared the forensic evidence and the alleged recovery of the murder weapon from the accused unreliable, refusing to treat them as a basis for conviction.

Chief Justice Aalia Neelum observed that the benefit of the doubt is a legal right of an accused, not a concession. She reiterated that a criminal conviction can only be sustained when the prosecution proves its case beyond reasonable doubt, a standard that was not met in the present case.

The court directed the immediate release of Shah Muhammad, ordering prison authorities to set him free without delay if he is not required in any other case.

Lahore: Punjab Police arrested 6,687 members of 2,753 organised criminal gangs during the current year and recovered stolen property worth over Rs1.72 billion.

According to a Punjab Police spokesperson, the recoveries included 255 vehicles, 4,713 motorcycles, 4,105 mobile phones, 2,131 livestock animals and 915 tolas of gold seized from the possession of the accused.

Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) Abdul Kareem directed police officers to further accelerate operations against organised criminal gangs across the province. He emphasised that indiscriminate action against criminal elements must continue and instructed police officers to ensure the protection of the lives and property of citizens at all costs.

Lahore: A World Bank (WB) delegation led by Clelia Rontoyanni called on Punjab Revenue Authority (PRA) Chairman Moazzam Iqbal Sipra here at PRA Headquarters on Wednesday.

During the meeting, the delegation was briefed on the Punjab Revenue Authority’s reform agenda, ongoing modernization initiatives and key institutional programmes. Both sides exchanged views on measures aimed at making Punjab’s tax system more modern, transparent, efficient and digitally driven.

The World Bank delegation appreciated the initiatives undertaken by PRA Chairman Moazzam Iqbal Sipra, particularly the Authority’s achievement of record tax revenue collection. Both sides also agreed to further strengthen the ongoing technical cooperation between the World Bank and the Punjab Revenue Authority.

Speaking on the occasion, the PRA Chairman said that establishing a citizen-centric, efficient and transparent tax system through the use of modern technology remains a top priority of the Punjab government. He added that initiatives to pr
ovide taxpayers with improved, simplified and online services would significantly contribute to further growth in revenue collection.

He said, special measures have been undertaken to broaden the tax base and promote a stronger tax culture across Punjab. He also emphasized that alongside public awareness and outreach campaigns, the taxpayer complaint registration and redressal mechanism would be made more accessible and user-friendly.

Lahore: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Anti-Corruption Circle, Lahore, arrested a suspect allegedly involved in illegally tampering with and reversing Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) electricity meters, an FIA spokesperson said on Wednesday.

The spokesperson said the suspect, identified as Muhammad Arif, was arrested during a raid conducted in Lahore.

During the operation, FIA officials recovered several LESCO electricity meters, meter-reversing devices, a laptop and specialized software from the suspect’s possession.

The investigation revealed that the suspect was involved in manipulating electricity usage data to under report actual power consumption, causing financial losses worth millions of rupees to LESCO.

The recovered laptop was allegedly being used for illegal programming and tampering with the data of LESCO electricity meters, while advanced electronic devices used for meter reversing and multiple electricity meters were also taken into custody during the raid.

The FIA registered a case against the suspect and launched further investigations to trace and arrest other individuals involved in the illegal activity, the spokesperson added.