ISLAMABAD: Business leaders in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi will soon launch a new airline inspired by the success of Air Sial, which was established by their counterparts in Sialkot, a Pakistani city renowned for its cottage industries, according to a former leader of the Association of Builders and Developers of Pakistan on Wednesday.
The development comes as Pakistan witnesses the rise of private airlines amid the financial and administrative troubles faced by its national carrier, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), which the government is working to privatize.
Hanif Gohar, who until recently was the association’s chairman, said the idea resonated with Karachi’s business community when he shared it following the launch of Air Sial.
“When I discussed the idea of an airline with Air Vice Marshal Imran Qadir, the recently retired Southern Commander of the Pakistan Air Force, he offered his expertise,” he told Arab News. “Subsequently, I presented it to the business community, which also supported it.”
Air Sial was launched with contributions of Rs10 million ($35,900) each from 300 businessmen, raising a total of Rs3 billion ($10.8 million) before its inauguration and the launch of its first domestic flight in December 2020. The airline began international operations in March 2023 with a flight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The proposed carrier, Air Karachi, plans to pool Rs50 million ($179,502) from each of its 100 shareholders, totaling Rs5 billion ($18 million).
“The response was so enthusiastic that some business families proposed multiple shareholders,” Gohar said.
He added that the process of launching the airline has already begun.
“We have registered Air Karachi with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and completed other formalities,” he said. “Once the government issues the license, which is expected soon, we will acquire three aircraft to launch domestic flights.”
Gohar further said that after the mandatory one year of domestic operations, the airline will expand its fleet to seven and begin international flights to the Middle East.a
He informed that Air Vice Marshal Qadir had been appointed the chief operating officer of Air Karachi, while a team of retired Air Force officials with extensive aviation experience has been assembled to support the initiative.
Notable shareholders in the venture include Pakistani business tycoons Aqeel Karim Dhedhi, Arif Habib, S.M. Tanveer, Bashir Jan Muhammad, Khalid Tawab, Zubair Tufail and Hamza Tabani.
The idea of a Karachi-based airline gained attention earlier this month after former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif advised his daughter and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz to acquire PIA and rename it Air Punjab.
Following offers from the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments to purchase PIA, Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori revealed that Karachi’s traders were also interested in acquiring the national airline.
“Karachi’s businesspersons are constantly contacting me to talk about the airline’s matters,” Tessori wrote on the social media platform X on Monday. “Karachi’s businesspersons want the PIA to be given to them for a year, and they are also interested in starting a new airline.”
Karachi business leaders plan new airline amid rise of private operations in Pakistan
https://arab.news/w6u8h
Karachi business leaders plan new airline amid rise of private operations in Pakistan
- Air Karachi, inspired by Sialkot’s Air Sial, aims to raise Rs5 billion from 100 shareholders
- The move follows PIA’s financial struggles amid government’s privatization efforts
Pakistani court sentences TLP leader for 35 years over incitement against ex-chief justice
- The case stems from a 2024 speech targeting former Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa over a blasphemy ruling
- Conviction follows the government’s move to proscribe Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan after clashes with police this year
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court this week sentenced a leader of the religio-political party Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) to 35 years’ imprisonment on multiple charges for inciting hate against former Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa.
Peer Zaheer ul Hasan Bukhari made the remarks in a 2024 speech at the Lahore Press Club against the former chief justice for issuing a judgment in a case involving a man named Mubarak Sani under the blasphemy laws, a member of a minority religious community whose death sentence was overturned.
Authorities said Bukhari’s comments amounted to incitement to violence, after which police registered a case against him under various terrorism-related provisions as well as charges of inciting hatred.
The cleric was handed multiple jail terms on a range of charges, with the longest being 10 years of rigorous imprisonment, amounting to a total of 35 years.
“All the sections of imprisonment awarded to the convict shall run concurrently,” Anti-Terrorism Court Judge Arshad Javed said in a letter to the Kot Lakhpat Central Jail superintendent.
A collective fine of Rs600,000 ($,150) was also imposed on the TLP party leader under the provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act.
The move follows Pakistan’s decision in October to ban the TLP and designate it a proscribed organization under the Anti-Terrorism Act after violent clashes between its supporters and law enforcement in Punjab.
The unrest erupted as demonstrators attempted to travel from Lahore to Islamabad, saying they wanted to stage a pro-Palestine rally outside the US Embassy.
However, officials said TLP supporters were armed with bricks and batons, arguing their intention was to stir violence similar to earlier marches toward the federal capital.
The clashes between TLP supporters and police resulted in the deaths of five people, including two policemen, and injured more than 100 officers and dozens of protesters.
Led by Saad Hussain Rizvi, the TLP is known for its confrontational street politics and mass mobilizations.
Since its emergence in 2017, the party has repeatedly organized sit-ins and marches toward Islamabad, often triggering violent confrontations and prolonged disruptions on major routes to the capital.
