Punishment remitted too oftenAccording to Jang, Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday, from a 'larger bench' of the Supreme Court in Lahore, said that the government was too generous in remitting punishments handed down by the courts. Many criminals were let off on flimsy excuses, who then went back to life of crime. He said in one case a prisoner was let off by the government on his learning the Quran by heart, but when he was asked to recite a verse (ayatul kursi) he could not remember it. The bench said that a prisoner given 25 years goes on appeal but before his appeal lands at the Supreme Court he is let off on remission. What should the court do? In other countries, life imprisonment meant life but in Pakistan prisoners were let off through special remissions of all sorts, on national days, and as inam and such pretexts as hifz Quran. In all, over 60 cases were before the court. The court then asked the provinces to provide lists of convicts thus let off. According to Nawa-e-Waqt, Justice Ramday said that life sentence was equal to death and the prisoner should leave jail only after his death.
A society of 'khabay'
Columnist Nazeer Naji wrote in Jang that he was not very hopeful that the American policy in Pakistan would be able to change the culture of the country back to what it used to be, but he wished sincerely that it would. He said Pakistan used to be a warm-blooded society which encouraged arts and tolerated differences of style of life; but now it was controlled by cruel ideologues who taught men to kill each other for sect. Pakistan was once full of entertainment and, like anywhere in Europe, one could see Pakistanis enjoying themselves at restaurants, dance clubs, navy and air force messes; but now all that was gone and it had become difficult to breathe in an atmosphere of civic liberties. Society was dominated by clerics who did much more useful scholarly work when culture was alive; now they simply joined the oppressive forces. All culture was focused on khabay khana (eating big) and then letting off dakaar (burp) and going home sleepy with over-eating. Would America be able to change all this?
Film on Shia-Sunni unity threatened
According to Khabrain, film producer Syed Nur was being threatened by unknown persons for his film Ham aik hain (we are one). The theme of his film was unity of Shia and Sunni communities in Pakistan. The film actually showed that it was not Shia and Sunni communities fighting with each other. It showed that a third power outside Pakistan was doing all the killings. But because of a scene of matam (self-flagellation) he was receiving death threats from the very communities he was exonerating from sectarianism.
Bridegroom teases girls
According to Jang a marriage hall in Sabzi Mandi in Lahore saw a strange drama of eve-teasing. Two barats (wedding parties) had arrives from Tatlay Aali and Gakhar Mandi; but once in the hall the barati people started teasing the women and touching them. On this, the two barats clashed. Chairs were flung at each other (kursian chal gayeen) and there was exchange of mukka ghoonsa (fisticuffs) after which the police arrived and took doolha (bridegroom) Tariq in custody. He was made to rest in thana with his paraphernalia till the two parties had reached an understanding.
Musharraf's photo on banknotes
Sarerahe wrote in Nawa-e-Waqt that an organisation called People's Movement took out a procession in Islamabad asking President Musharraf to print his portrait on the banknotes in Pakistan. They were carrying banners saying Musharraf ka jo ghaddar hai goli ka haqdar hai (He who betrays Musharraf deserves to be shot). The movement also threatened that if the president took off his uniform its ten members will burn themselves in front of his house.
Is this blasphemy?
Writing in Jang, Javed Chaudhry said that the tomb of Barri Imam near Islamabad was being designed and the design was identical with the one seen at the mausoleum of Prophet Muhammad PBUH in Madina. He stated that the planned tomb at Barri Imam was so identical that it could amount to blasphemy.