Abid Hafeez

THE bustling streets of Lahore have become a battleground for an unusual menace: the illegal sale of utensils disguised as “Sadka Meat.” These vendors strategically position themselves along busy roads, creating a daily nuisance for commuters and endangering lives. The term “Sadka Gosht” refers to meat scraps packaged for sale by these unscrupulous vendors. These vendors set up selling points where traffic accumulates, disrupting the flow of vehicles. Buyers, often motorcyclists, suddenly pull over to purchase these packets of meat. They then toss them into the air as an offering to birds of prey. The birds, lurking behind trees and electricity poles, dive down to grab the meat. Unfortunately, this leads to accidents as they collide with passing vehicles or crash into windshields. The sudden appearance of birds in the path of moving vehicles causes distraction and loss of control for drivers. Despite previous efforts by the City District Government, the problem persists. The vendors co...

  0 JOIN OUR WHATSAPP CHANNEL THE federal government has recently announced an ambitious initiative to establish schools for impoverished street children across the country. The move seeks to address the pervasive issue of child beggary in society by providing access to high-quality education to all these vulnerable youths. Many children in Pakistan’s bustling cities are compelled to beg at traffic signals rather than attending school because of their family’s financial constraints. By recognising the needs of such children, the federal government’s initiative is not simply a step towards education, but a realistic leap towards a better future for these children. The project is set to enrol a significant number of children whose parents cannot afford educational expenses. By bringing them into the fold of formal education, the programme promises to pave the way for a more literate and empowered generation. Besides, the schools will also offer a curriculum tailored to the needs of t...

In the bustling streets and vibrant markets, a peculiar scene often unfolds that captures the attention and tugs at the heartstrings of passers by. Bird catchers, with cages filled with fluttering wings and chirping beaks, invoke a sense of sympathy among the crowd. They present a proposition: free these birds, and in doing so, cleanse your sins and pave the way for financial wellbeing. It’s a compelling narrative, one that intertwines spirituality with the act of liberation, suggesting that freedom for these creatures equates to divine favor for the liberator. However, this narrative is fraught with a troubling paradox. If the act of freeing these birds is indeed a source of blessing for the one who opens the cage, then what does that imply about the one who ensnares them? Does the seller, who captures and commodifies these birds only to sell their freedom, not incur a curse for their initial act of imprisonment? This dichotomy raises profound ethical questions about the nature of the...

HAJJ, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, is one of the five pillars of Islam and a sacred duty that every Muslim must undertake at least once in their lifetime, if they are physically and financially able. The rituals of Hajj are a commemoration of the trials of Prophet Abraham, his wife Hagar, and their son Prophet Ishmael (Peace Be Upon Them). Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) emphasized the importance of Hajj in his teachings, highlighting it as a profound act of worship and a means to seek forgiveness from Allah. During his lifetime, he performed Hajj once, known as the Farewell Pilgrimage, and it is during this time that he demonstrated the rites of Hajj to his followers. The Prophet (PBUH) taught that the pilgrimage is a journey that symbolizes the believer’s renunciation of worldly pleasures and their submission to Allah. He instructed pilgrims to enter a state of Ihram – a condition of spiritual purity marked by wearing two white seamless cloths for men, with women wearing simple white dres...

Friendship’ pitfalls From the Newspaper   Published   May 16, 2024 0 JOIN OUR WHATSAPP CHANNEL WHILE waiting for my wife in the car with my teenage son, I saw a young woman, aged around 20 years, clad in an abaya, exiting the pharmacy where my wife had gone to get some medicines. The girl was visibly distressed, sobbing uncontrollably. I wondered what had transpired to cause such emotional turmoil. Upon my wife’s return, I asked her if she had noticed the girl. As narrated by my wife, the girl had confided in the pharmacy cashier that her boyfriend had stolen her phone, and was demanding money in exchange for not sharing ‘compromising’ pictures on social media and with her family. With my wife’s assistance, I called the girl over to our car. She approached in a highly emotional state and, through tears, recounted her ordeal, insisting that the pictures had been manipulated through a software, and did not depict actual events. Thankfully, she had managed to deactivate her bank ...

Israeli barbarism Letter April 18, 2024   FACEBOOK   TWITTER   WHATSUP   LINKDED   EMAIL Israeli barbarism KARACHI: The ongoing Israeli barbarism in Gaza and the forced settlement in Palestine is unprecedented. The indiscriminate violence and disregard for human life displayed by the Israeli military in Gaza are nothing short of a humanitarian crisis. Innocent civilians, including children, are being targeted and killed without any regard for their basic rights or safety. This is a clear violation of international law and the principles of democracy. Furthermore, the forced settlements in Palestine continue to exacerbate tension and perpetuate injustice. The Israeli government’s expansionist policies only serve to further marginalise and oppress the Palestinian people, denying them their fundamental rights to land, freedom and self-determination. It is imperative that the international community takes immediate action to address this crisis. The UN and ICJ must ...