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Govt launches scheme to bring small shop owners into tax net

In what Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Friday called an “important milestone”, the government announced a fixed tax rate scheme for small shop owners in an effort to build a more “equitable, balanced and sustainable” tax system. The voluntary ‘Asaan Scheme’ aimed at small shops with annual earnings of Rs200 million, seeks to broaden the tax net by imposing a 1 per cent fixed tax on net income of the business. Shop owners will have to sign up for the scheme via a form available in multiple local languages. The announcement was made during a press conference by the finance minister along with State Minister for Finance Bilal Azhar Kiani. According to Kiani, shop owners who opt in for the scheme will receive Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) plaques displaying a unique QR code on them to be placed outside their shops and a point of sale system inside their shops. Tax inspectors making the rounds of the market will be able to acquire tax details for these shops using their QR code...
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Pakistan remains committed to the 'Shanghai spirit', Naqvi tells SCO moot

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Friday reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to the “Shanghai spirit” and called for a joint strategy among SCO member states to counter terrorism, organised crime, drug trafficking, cybercrime and terror financing. Naqvi said this at a special meeting of the Ministers of Interior and Public Security of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. He said the region faced “serious and complex security challenges” that were interconnected, noting that criminal and terrorist networks were rapidly adapting to technological advancements, exploiting artificial intelligence, digital platforms, online networks and cryptocurrency transactions to expand their activities. The interior minister emphasised the importance of modernising institutional coordination and enhancing intelligence-sharing mechanisms across the region to tackle these threats. Shared threats demanded shared solutions, Naqvi told the delegates, further calling for a comprehensive ...

2 sons of tribal elder killed as armed men open fire in KP's Wana

LOWER SOUTH WAZIRISTAN: Two sons of a prominent tribal elder, Malik Jamil Wazir, were killed after unidentified armed men opened fire near Kari Kot Bazaar in Wana tehsil, police said on Friday. Wana Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Asghar Ali Shah said the deceased were identified as Naveed Wazir and Moeenuddin Wazir. He said the two brothers were travelling on a motorcycle from their home towards Kari Kot Bazaar when they were targeted by the unidentified gunmen. Both died on the spot, while a passerby sustained injuries during the attack and was taken to the hospital for medical treatment, he said. He added that the attackers fled the scene immediately after the incident. The injured passerby and the bodies of the deceased were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital in Wana. Police recorded the incident in the daily register at the City Police Station Wana and launched an investigation. The tribal elder and his family have been targeted previously. One of his sons wa...

Noor Mukadam case: SC dismisses Zahir Jaffer's review plea, upholds death sentence

The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday dismissed a review petition filed by Zahir Jaffer and maintained its earlier verdict upholding his death sentence in the Noor Mukadam murder case. Noor, aged 27, was found murdered at Zahir’s Islamabad residence in July 2021, with the probe revealing she was tortured by him before being beheaded. Zahir was sentenced to death by a trial in February 2022 and his sentence has already been upheld by the SC once. Prior to that, the Islamabad High Court had also dismissed his plea challenging the trial court’s verdict. A three-member bench comprising Justices Hashim Khan Kakar, Salahuddin Pahnwar and Ishtiaq Ibrahim heard Zahir’s review plea on Thursday. Advocate Khawaja Haris appeared as Zahir’s counsel, while Shah Khawar was present from the respondents’ side. Both presented their arguments during today’s hearing, following which the bench announced its verdict. After today’s ruling by the SC, a presidential pardon under Article 45 of the Constit...

Nvidia CEO mounts charm push in South Korea with TV talk show, baseball appearances

When Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang makes his second visit to South Korea in just seven months this week, it won’t be only to meet top memory chip and robotics executives, but to throw the first pitch at a baseball game and appear on a TV talk show. While a celebrity in his own right, the charm push by the Taiwan-born 63-year-old highlights South Korea’s critical position in the AI landscape. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix between them make about 70 per cent of the memory needed for AI chips like Nvidia’s. And the country’s strength in manufacturing and robotics sets it up to be a key player in physical AI, where AI is embedded in robots, cars and factories. “Nvidia’s dependence on South Korean suppliers is rising,” Jeff Kim, an analyst at Seoul-based KB Securities, wrote in a research note. Huang “needs a manufacturing site for physical AI”, Kim said. “South Korea is emerging as a perfect testbed.” Asia’s fourth-largest economy is also a major Nvidia customer, with the Silicon Vall...

Superior courts should issue directions to high courts for swiftly deciding pending cases sparingly, FCC rules

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) on Thursday ruled that directions to the high courts for expeditious decisions in pending matters by superior courts should be issued sparingly and couched in appropriate words. The judgement comes against the backdrop of a recent petition by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) before the Supreme Court challenging its May 12, 2026 direction to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) for deciding in two weeks the sentence suspension pleas of human rights lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha in the controversial social media posts case. The NCCIA had also requested the SC to recall and withdraw that order to help preserve the “sanctity and independence of the judiciary, maintaining equality among citizens and avoiding discrimination”. According to a three-page order by Justice Aamer Farooq, issued in deciding a dispute between the Gujranwala Electric Power Company (Gepco) and Master Tiles and Ceramics Indu...

Tropical storm Jangmi batters Japan, cuts power to 60,000 homes

Severe tropical storm Jangmi ripped across Japan on Wednesday, with fierce winds and torrential rain disrupting transport and businesses, and knocking out power for tens of thousands of homes. The storm’s centre lay about 150 kilometres south of Tokyo as of early Wednesday afternoon, moving northeast with maximum sustained winds of up to 25 metres per second, Japan’s Meteorological Agency said. The storm is set to pass very close to the Pacific side of eastern Japan and heightened vigilance is needed, the agency added. At least 15 people have sustained minor injuries, according to authorities. The storm, with a central pressure of 985 hectopascals, has cut power to nearly 60,000 households so far, and authorities have been receiving reports of flooding, fallen trees and debris, and landslides across a wide stretch of regions, government spokesperson Minoru Kihara said during a regular press briefing. “If you sense any danger, please ...