Gunned down: Couple killed over ‘honour’ in Charsadda

CHARSADDA: A couple was gunned down in the name of 'honour' in Mullagori, Charsadda, said police on Wednesday.

Pur Dil Khan's sister Fatima had eloped with Gul Roz, a resident of Swat, according to Umerzai police station SHO Kausar Khan. Kausar added the two families later reached an agreement and settled
the matter.

 

"However, Fatima's family was bent upon teaching Roz a lesson. Pur Dil invited his sister and her husband to his house on Tuesday night. When the couple arrived, the accused opened fire, killing them," said Kausar.

He added neighbours heard gunshots and informed the police, who arrived at the spot and found Roz lying lifeless in a room. The accused managed to escape with Fatima's body after the incident.

Gul Muhammad, one of Fatima's brothers, filed an FIR against Pur Dil at the police station.

Battagram

Meanwhile, a man gunned down his father and wife in Torghar district on Tuesday for allegedly having illicit relations. According to Judba police, Nehmatur Rehman, a resident of Shangaldar village, had been living with his wife Shahida Bibi* in a separate house.  Rehman's father Khitab Zameen had allegedly developed relations with his daughter-in-law and used to visit her house regularly, despite several warnings from Nehmat.

Police said Nehmat returned home on Tuesday afternoon and found his wife and father in an objectionable state and opened fire at them, killing them on the spot. He then managed to escape, the
police said.

*Name has been changed to
protect identity

Published in The Express Tribune, September 12^th, 2013.

Beware of ATM frauds!

Beware of ATM frauds, some groups are active in twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad who install skimmer devices on ATMs to collect cards details and then withdraw money from the accounts.

 

Despite having security cameras in ATM booths banks of twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad are seemed helpless to counter skimmer devices. The managements of all the banks have orders their branches to regularly check ATMs for security but it is not an effective way to fight the menace.

 

Many people have lost their money from their accounts and some are having other problems because of misuse of their ATM cards.When 'The News' contacted official spokesman of Punjab Police (Rawalpindi) Syed Imran Haider, he said that it is under the knowledge of police that some groups are using skimmer devices in twin cities but so far they haven't received any registered complaint from any bank customer in this regard. He said it is just because people don't have awareness and they don't contact police to register their complaints.

 

A manager of a private bank, on condition of anonymity, said that it is very difficult to counter skimmer devices, as banks have lots of ATMs and it is impossible for them to depute security on each ATM booth. He said almost all the banks are helpless and no one has technology to counter skimmer devices. "Only measures the banks have taken is that they have circulated an office order directing staff to regularly visit ATM for security check," he added.

 

He said that ATM skimmer is a device placed over the original card slot to capture the card information. This information then is transferred to another card with the help of card writer. The new card then could be used to withdraw money or purchases.

 

There are three types of skimmer devices, first kind is normal skimmers which captures card information and stores the memory. This device is first installed and then removed for getting the data and downloading it on a computer.

 

Second is a bluetooth skimmer, which collects card information and transmits the information by using bluetooth signal to a nearby laptop where one can 'see' the card information and store information for writing a duplicate ATM card.

 

Third is GSM skimmers it is the latest design and one can install it in one country and can receive the information in another country. A GSM skimmer uses GSM network and after capturing information sends it to a pre-programmed phone number by SMS. These devices are mostly used in developed countries.

 

To decrease the effectiveness of this technique, banks in developed countries are putting a picture or diagram on the face of their ATM machines that shows exactly what the card slot and key pad should look like, and advising customers to compare the machine with the diagram closely. The goal is to help cardholders spot signs of tampering so they can avoid being scammed and contact the bank or ATM issuer to have it repaired.

 

It is very important to inspect any ATM before inserting your card or entering your PIN to look for signs of skimmers. Card skimmers always place a piece of metal or plastic directly on the card slot. If you are using an unfamiliar ATM, check the card slot thoroughly to see if there is any extra piece is affixed on it. If you have used it before, just look for signs that the machine is different than the last time. A few other tips are if there is no blinking light visible on the card slot, or if one piece of the ATM front looks out of sync with the colour and design of the rest of the unit. Also, because your PIN is still required, if you cover the keypad completely with one hand while entering the PIN with the other, no camera will be able to record it. By following these simple guidelines and taking proactive steps, it is possible to spot ATM skimmers and keep personal data safe even while travelling the world over. 

 

The News 

An appeal to DC Charsadda

On 6th of September in the early hours of morning, I went out myself to get a few loaves of bread from the tandoor, whose price was 10 rupees for single loaf, with weight reduced almost to half to the weight of pre-strike period of Nanbais.
This very injustice to the citizens of Charsadda city, not to speak of whole of Charsadda district, under the very nose of the district administration speaks a lot about the carelessness.

After taking from half-reduced loaves of bread for Rs. 10.00 each, I visited a butcher in the Charsadda Chowk, who otherwise enjoys a good reputation amongst the locals of Charsadda for providing good, fresh, and hygienically-appropriate meat, sold me buffalo-meat for 250 rupees per kilo.
When I inquired as to what was the officially-fixed price for the meat from that butcher, he said, \"It is 220 but the choice is mine, and 250 to give you according to your choice.\" I could not argue with him for these people are always armed with their sharpest daggers.
The local administration however has the means of controlling them, and keeping them on the right track. Would the DC of Charsadda take immediate steps to control fleecing of the consumers and implementation prices fixed by the administration
Usman Ghani

Charsadda

Two killed in Charsadda firing

At least two persons were killed and two others injured when unknown gunmen barged into a house and opened fire at the residents here in Charsadda on Monday.
According to details, unidentified miscreants broke into the house of Afghan refugees located in Lalazar Colony in tehsil Shabqadar of Charsadda and opened indiscriminate fire at residents.
As a result of firing two sons of Abu Zar, the tenant, identified as Jamshed, 25, and 12-year-old Naveed were killed on the spot while the couple sustained injuries.
The assailants managed to escape from the scene after committing dual murder.
The bodies and injured were shifted to hospital for medico-legal requirements.
Police feared that the firing incident could be outcome of personal enmity, however, a case has been registered and investigations were in progress.
The Nation

Watershed moment: Asif Zardari basks in afterglow of democracy

 

ISLAMABAD / LAHORE.: In epoch-making style, Asif Ali Zardari stepped down as president on Sunday, securing his place in history as the country's first democratically elected head of state to complete his term in office.

The watershed moment is made more significant by the fact that Zardari's last three predecessors – Ghulam Ishaq Khan, Muhammad Rafiq Tarrar and General Pervez Musharraf —were all in one way or the other forced out of office.

A guard of honour by a contingent of armed forces formally marked the end of the tenure of Zardari, who will be carrying his trademark smile right from the Aiwan-e-Sadr to Bilawal House in Lahore.

From Saturday midnight, Asif Zardari ceased to be president. So far, 11 presidents have served the country since the 1956 Constitution was adopted.

A huge fireworks display was organised by the Sindh cabinet members at midnight at Karachi's Sea View to honour the outgoing president. Several parliamentarians and leading politicians were invited at the display.

On Monday, in what again will be a turning point in Pakistan's 66-year history, the outgoing president will attend the oath-taking ceremony of the newly elected president, Mamnoon Hussain.

Zardari was elected president on September 6, 2008 after winning a majority in the electoral college with 481 votes of 702. He will remain the Peoples Party – the post he acquired after the assassination of his wife, the former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

On reaching Lahore, the outgoing president chaired a meeting to kick off the PPP Punjab's re-organisation campaign.

Addressing party leaders at the meeting, Zardari said that he accepted the new government's mandate with an open heart for the sake of democracy. However, he added, "It is peculiar though that the PPP won the whole of Sindh in the May 11 election, but was wiped out in Punjab."

He promised Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that the PPP will support him in each and every step. His commitment to Sharif was a stern message to those forces that wanted to weaken democracy and favoured the bullet rather than the ballot, Zardari claimed Free from his presidential responsibilities, he said he looked forward to meeting with party workers and visit PPP strongholds. "I'll revive the axiom of "Jeay Bhutto" (Long Live Bhutto) from Kashmir to Karachi!"

In his remarks, Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, who organised the meeting, welcomed Zardari and said that he was the only President who gave away his powers to the Parliament through the 18th Amendment. He lauded the outgoing president to have pursued the policy of reconciliation and demonstrated immense patience during his five-year tenure despite incessant criticism.

In with the new

President-elect Manmoon Hussain will be sworn in today (Monday) under the third schedule of the 1973 Constitution.

A contingent of armed forces will welcome him with a guard of honour and the incoming president will then be greeted by the presidency administration.

Mamnoon Hussain, 73, was elected the country's 12th president on July 30. He won 432 votes and his only rival, Wajihuddin Ahmed, 77, after the PPP boycotted the vote.

Hussain owns a textile firm and was president of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry at one point during Nawaz's second term as prime minister from 1997 to 1999.

In 1999, Nawaz surprisingly appointed him governor of Sindh, but his tenure was cut short when Nawaz was deposed in the October 12, 1999 military coup.

History: 11 Presidents of Pakistan

1956: Iskander Mirza

1958/1962: Ayub Khan

1969: Yahya Khan

1971: Zulfikar Ali Bhutto

1973: Fazal Ilahi Chaudhry

1978: Muhammad Ziaul Haq

1988: Ghulam Ishaq Khan

1998: Muhammad Rafiq Tarar

2001/2007: Pervez Musharraf

2008: Asif Ali Zardari

* Wasim Sajjad and Muhammad Mian Soomro served as acting presidents from December 1997 to January 1998, and August 2008 to September 2008, respectively. 

 

The Express Tribune