Imran Khan's party forms special committees to strategise government formation in Centre, Punjab, KP
Islamabad (PTI): Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's party has established special committees to strategise the government formation at the Centre, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.
Participants during the party's core committee meeting agreed to early completion of the nomination process for important government and parliamentary positions according to the recommendations and strategies proposed by the committees, Dawn News cited a statement as saying on Monday.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is formulating a plan to form its government in the Centre, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after independent candidates backed by the party bagged 101 of the 266 National Assembly seats in the recently concluded February 8 elections marred by allegations of rigging.
The PTI-backed candidates ran as independents due to the party losing the election symbol of bat' following controversy surrounding its intra-party elections.
The statement issued after the party's core committee said specialised committees entrusted with the responsibility of devising strategies for government formation in these pivotal regions had been constituted.
These committees are focused on accelerating the nomination process for crucial governmental and parliamentary roles, guided by their proposed recommendations and strategies, it said.
The PTI in the statement affirmed its commitment to prevent any unethical endeavours to hand over the cash-strapped country's leadership to individuals with criminal backgrounds.
The party maintained that the people bestowed upon the party's founding chairman Imran Khan an "unparalleled certificate of patriotism", giving a "heavy mandate" to his party.
Separately, PTI leaders held a meeting with President Dr Arif Alvi to brief him on the alleged irregularities during the elections.
According to a statement issued by the president's office, President Alvi during his meeting with PTI leaders Raoof Hassan and Umer Niazi was apprised of the party's stance and reiterated that Form-45, issued in various constituencies, reflected the facts of the electoral outcomes.
They emphasised that despite attempts to pressurise the party, snatching of electoral symbols, and numerous arrests, PTI emerged victorious against all odds.
According to the party, the PTI was cruising with a lead of 170 National Assembly seats before the alleged rigging swung the pendulum in favour of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party.
Around 60 million, or approximately 47 per cent, of nearly 129 million voters cast their ballots last Thursday to elect a new government to bring cash-strapped Pakistan out of financial crunch.
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Deepfake video of Nirmala Sitharaman used to dupe Belagavi man in Rs 7.9 lakh scam
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): A 76-year-old man in Belagavi city was allegedly cheated of Rs 7.9 lakh in an online investment scam that used an AI-generated deepfake video misusing the name of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to lure investors, police said on Wednesday.
An online fraud case was registered at the cybercrime police station on May 1, they said.
According to Belagavi Police Commissioner Bhushan Gulabrao Borase, the victim, Prakash Gubbi, a senior citizen, stated in his complaint that in November last year, he came across a video on YouTube in which Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman appeared to endorse an investment scheme.
The video also mentioned a link in its description for making investments.
The victim clicked on the link, entered his details, and was later contacted on social media by a person identifying himself as Adarsh Anand, who persuaded him to invest, the officer told reporters.
Citing the complaint, the officer said the victim initially invested a small amount, after which the application began showing profits of USD 65,000.
When he attempted to withdraw the amount, the accused demanded a “customs duty” payment of Rs 4.2 lakh, claiming it was required to process the withdrawal.
The victim paid the amount, after which he was asked to pay an additional Rs 2 lakh. It was at this stage that he realised he had been cheated. In total, he lost around Rs 7.9 lakh in the fraud, the officer added.
A case has been registered under relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act, and police are investigating the matter, police said.
The commissioner cautioned the public not to trust such videos, stating that the finance minister does not endorse any such schemes.
He warned that such content is created using artificial intelligence and deepfake technology.
He further advised the public to remain vigilant, avoid offers that appear too good to be true on the internet, and invest only through legitimate, registered agencies or trusted channels.
Deepfake technology enables the creation of realistic videos, audio recordings, and images that can mislead viewers by superimposing one person’s likeness onto another, altering their words and actions. This can present a false narrative or spread misinformation.
