Cheque distribution at CM House: Harmful drinking water served,10 women fall unconscious

At least 10 women, belonging to the families of the victims who lost their lives in Karachi’s Abbas Town bombing, fell unconscious when they were served harmful drinking water during an event to distribute cheques at Sindh Chief Minister House here on Tuesday. Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah was scheduled to distribute compensatory cheques among the families that lost their homes and loved ones in the bombing that killed 51 people and injured over 140 others. 

The women who were seated in the front rows asked the event organisers for water. Around 10 women fell unconscious after drinking the water served to them. Later, when to news come to the surface, the CM House’s spokesman said that the water served by the caterers in event was harmful for health. He, however, said that only two people including a woman and a man fell unconscious after drinking the water. Meanwhile, nine people were shifted to the Civil Hospital Karachi in the early hours of Tuesday when they fell unconscious after a toxic gas filled a house located on Mauripir road.(FP)

Ansar, Sarim burney split over hindu boy's televised conversion

Ansar Burney

The conversion to Islam of a Hindu boy working with the Ansar Burney Trust has split the Burney brothers with one defending it and the other calling it a ‘drama’.

On Wednesday, chat show host Maya Khan opened the doors to another controversy by televising live Sunil’s conversion in the prime-time Ramazan slot.

Sunil works at the Ansar Burney Trust, a human rights organisation whose chairman, Ansar, was recently in the headlines for the case of the Pakistani sailors taken hostage by Somali pirates.

Ansar skewered the conversion, called it a ‘drama’, and announced that he would sue Maya Khan. He publicly lashed out at his younger brother Sarim on Twitter, saying that he had dismissed Sarim three months ago from the trust on corruption charges.

Sarim Burney

“If we [want] to save our country, we shall have to fight against corruption, and I started it from my own office at Karachi,” said Ansar tweeting about his brother Sarim. Talking to the Indian media, Ansar said that “[Sunil] was offered incentives, and though keen, he had no idea as to what was happening.”

Sarim was the vice chairman at the Ansar Burney Trust, which was started in 1980 as the Prisoners Aid Society. He dismissed the corruption allegations, saying that Ansar had always handled the funds and the accounts. “Ansar should know about corruption as he was directly involved with the monetary affairs of the organisation,” Sarim told The Express Tribune. He maintained that he had separated their work for the past three months and formed his own trust, Sarim Burney Welfare Trust. “This did not please Ansar as he always wants to be in the limelight,” alleged Sarim.

Sarim maintained that Ansar had settled in London 22 years ago and he had been running the organisation and “keeping his name alive”. Today Sarim has removed the signboards with Ansar’s name, and replaced it with his own at their office in Arambagh.

Maya Khan

Sarim backed the conversion. “I have seen the boy fast when he had not embraced Islam. He did it of his own free will. Being miles away, how can Ansar say that it was forced?” Sarim also claimed that Sunil worked for the Sarim Burney Welfare Trust and not the Ansar Burney Welfare Trust.

Ansar has served as the federal human rights minister, and the UN’s expert adviser on human rights. He is currently in London and could not be immediately reached for comment.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 29^th, 2012

Guilty National heroes should be treated with an iron hand

Salman Butt

By MOHAMMAD KHAN SIAL
Karachi

Our three cricket national heroes, Salmaan Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamir have been proved guilty of corruption with heavy punishments resulting in debarring them from cricket for the next 10 years, seven years and five years respectively. Nonetheless, they have immensely defamed the country internationally for their own vested interests. Such an act is no less than treachery. 

Mohammad Asif

Mohammad Amir

I believe that such cases should be treated with an iron hand without any leniency. It was an act of treachery and should be referred to the courts of law. Nevertheless, some influential people will always, for one reason or the other, protect these people who are determined to defame the country worldwide, which is why such cases always resurface.