KARACHI: Pakistani police arrested the son-in-law of the country’s exiled former Nawaz Sharif on Monday after he led a crowd in chanting against the military at the tomb of the country’s founder.
The arrest of Mohammad Safdar comes as Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League party has joined a series of nationwide protests against the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan. His arrest drew condemnation from the opposition, which said authorities wanted to target Sharif’s family.
Police detained Safdar at a Karachi hotel room where he was staying with his wife Maryam Nawaz, who addressed a large anti-government rally Sunday.
Safdar on Sunday had visited the mausoleum of Mohammad Ali Jinnah, who led independence movement to get a separate homeland from Britain in 1947 when united India was divided into two countries: India and Pakistan. Jinnah remains a revered figure in Muslim-majority Pakistan, with his tomb often drawing politicians and leaders.
While at the tomb, Safdar led a crowd in chanting: “Give respect to the vote!” That slogan is viewed in Pakistan as criticism of the country’s military, which ruled the country of 220 million people — directly or indirectly — for most of its history. The army says it does not meddle in politics.
Chanting political slogans at Jinnah’s tomb is widely considered taboo. Police say they arrested Safdar, himself a member of the Pakistan Muslim League party, after receiving a complaint from a citizen alleging he was harassed.
Hours after Safdar’s arrest, his politician wife Maryam Safdar told a news conference that police forcibly entered her room to take her husband away.
The 70-year-old Sharif served as Pakistan’s prime minister three times. A court in 2017 ousted him from power over corruption allegations. Sharif has been staying in London since November after being allowed to receive medical treatment abroad.
Several opposition leaders have faced criminal charges in recent weeks as organized opposition to Khan, a former cricketer, grows.
Pakistan police arrest son-in-law of exiled former premier
https://arab.news/8tn65
Pakistan police arrest son-in-law of exiled former premier
- Mohammad Safdar arrested for chanting political slogans at tomb of Pakistan's founder, widely considered taboo
- Police say they arrested Safdar after receiving a complaint from a citizen alleging he was harassed
Pakistan opens real-time digital payment system to exchange companies as reserves edge up
- Raast enables low-cost transfers between banks, microfinance firms and electronic money wallets
- Pakistan’s overall foreign reserves stand at $21.25 billion as central bank holdings rise $16 million
KARACHI: Pakistan’s central bank on Thursday allowed exchange companies to route home remittances through its instant payment system, Raast, saying the move aims to promote digital transactions and improve the efficiency of inflows, as the country’s foreign exchange reserves rose modestly in the latest week.
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said in a statement that the country's total liquid foreign reserves stood at $21.25 billion as of Jan. 9, while the central bank’s own reserves rose $16 million to $16.07 billion.
The statement said the decision to extend Raast to exchange companies forms part of the central bank’s broader push to strengthen digital payments infrastructure and support a shift toward a cashless economy.
“Building an innovative and inclusive digital financial services ecosystem is one of the key objectives of State Bank of Pakistan under its Strategic Plan 2023-2028,” the SBP said.
“In furtherance of this vision, SBP has now allowed Exchange Companies (ECs) to utilize ‘Raast,’ a state-of-the-art payment system launched by SBP in 2021, to facilitate remitters and beneficiaries of home remittances,” it added.
Raast, a real-time digital payment system, allows instant and low-cost transfers between banks, microfinance institutions and electronic money wallets.
“Through this enablement, the beneficiaries receiving remittances through ECs can receive their funds in their accounts and wallets ... in a safe and efficient manner,” the statement said.
Pakistan relies heavily on workers’ remittances from abroad and has been seeking to channel more inflows through formal banking systems by strengthening digital and regulated payment networks, as authorities try to curb informal mechanisms such as hawala and hundi, underground value transfer systems that move money outside the banking sector.
