DINA for the Issue of March 08, 2012

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D A W N I n t e r n e t N e w s A l e r t
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March 08, 2012 Thursday Rabi-us-Sani 14, 1433
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The DAWN Internet News Alert (DINA) is a free daily news-service
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(c) Pakistan Herald Publications (Pvt.) Ltd., Pakistan - 2012

The link at the end of each extract can be used to access the
complete story on DAWN - the Internet Edition.


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Poll commission slaps 2-year ban on Waheeda
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By Iftikhar A. Khan
ISLAMABAD, March 7: The Election Commission of Pakistan disqualified on Wednesday Sindh politician Waheeda Shah from contesting election for two years for slapping EC staff at a polling station in her constituency during recently held by-elections.

The commission also nullified the result of the election for the PS-53 seat which Ms Shah had won...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/by-election-result-cancelled-poll-commission-slaps-2-year-ban-on-waheeda.html


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Gas woes may worsen in coming years: officials
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By Khaleeq Kiani
ISLAMABAD, March 7: With gas supplies partially restored to four fertiliser plants on the SNGPL (Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited) system following recent rises in temperatures, policymakers are worried about continuous surge in CNG consumption which they believe may adversely affect the country's long-term economic growth.

Officials said the gas shortage would continue even during summer months, requiring reduced supplies to power sector, textile and fertiliser industries. This may cause losses in production...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/supplies-to-4-fertiliser-plants-partially-restored-gas-woes-may-worsen-in-coming-years-officials.html


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Senate voices concern for the missing
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By Amir Wasim
ISLAMABAD, March 7: The Senate has expressed "its deep concern over the issue of missing persons" and asked the federal and provincial governments to take "immediate and effective steps to ensure speedy recovery and release" of all of them.

A resolution moved on Wednesday by Jamaat-i-Islami's Prof Khursheed Ahmed was adopted unanimously...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/senate-voices-concern-for-the-missing.html


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Nargis Sethi faces tough questions in court
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By Our Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, March 7: Defence and Cabinet Secretary Nargis Sethi informed the Supreme Court on Wednesday that no summary had been received from the law ministry about reopening graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari when she worked as principal secretary to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani from Sept 23, 2010 to Jan 17, 2011.

Appearing before a seven-member bench headed by Justice Nasirul Mulk hearing a contempt of court case against Mr Gilani, she acknowledged that two summaries had been received, one on May 21 and the other on Sept 23, 2010...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/nargis-sethi-faces-tough-questions-in-court.html


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Three labourers gunned down
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By Saleem Shahid
QUETTA, March 7: Gunmen killed three people and injured six others in a town close to the Iranian border in Kech district on Wednesday evening.

Official sources said that nine labourers, who hailed from Sahiwal and Faisalabad, had arrived in Mand Balo from Iran and were waiting for a bus to leave for Karachi when four men on motorcycles opened fire...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/three-labourers-gunned-down.html


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CM terms EC's verdict 'strange'
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KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah has termed 'a little strange' the Election Commission's verdict against PPP candidate Waheeda Shah for assaulting polling staff during the recent by-election and said an offender was not expected to be penalised twice for a single offence.

"I am a student of law and don't consider myself an authority on the subject, you have to assess the situation yourself," he said while talking to reporters at a dinner hosted by provincial Adviser Haleem Adil Sheikh on Wednesday in honour of newly-elected senators from Sindh...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/cm-terms-ecs-verdict-strange.html


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Time to transition out of Afghanistan, says Obama
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By Anwar Iqbal
WASHINGTON, March 7: US President Barack Obama says the uproar in Afghanistan over the burning of the Muslim holy book at a Nato military base indicates that now is the time for the American military to transition out of that country.

At a Tuesday afternoon news conference at the White House, President Obama also pledged to find a mechanism to assure the Afghans that the Americans were "not interested in staying there any longer than is necessary"...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/time-to-transition-out-of-afghanistan-says-obama.html


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Pakistan's importance in peace efforts stressed
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By Our Correspondent
WASHINGTON, March 7: The reconciliation talks with the Taliban will succeed if Pakistan agrees to play a constructive role in those talks, says Senator Carl Levin, chairman of the US Senate Armed Services Committee.

At a Senate hearing on Tuesday afternoon, US lawmakers and military officials reviewed Pakistan's role in the US-led peace efforts in Afghanistan, focusing on how tensions between Islamabad and Washington could affect those efforts...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/pakistans-importance-in-peace-efforts-stressed.html


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VC held by Taliban seeks govt help
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Bureau Report
PESHAWAR, March 7: The Vice-Chancellor of Islamia College University, Prof Ajmal Khan, being held in captivity by Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan for 18 months, has appealed to the government to release four Taliban in exchange of his freedom.

Prof Khan, who was a clean-shaven and healthy man before his kidnapping, appeared with a beard and looked exhausted and weak in a video message reportedly released by the TTP on Wednesday...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/vc-held-by-taliban-seeks-govt-help.html


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Umrani's relative kidnapped
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By Our Staff Correspondent
QUETTA, March 7: A close relative of Mir Sadiq Ali Umrani, president of the Balochistan chapter of Pakistan People's Party, was kidnapped from the Allahbad Tamboo area of Nasirabad district on Wednesday evening.

Sources said that Nazimuddin Umrani was going home when gunmen intercepted him and took him with them. Police have registered a case and started an investigation...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/umranis-relative-kidnapped.html


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Counsel wants heart specialist to treat accused: Judge hearing brigadier case changed
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By Malik Asad
RAWALPINDI, March 7: The counsel for detained Brigadier Ali Khan said on Wednesday he had no confidence in the judge of the Rawalpindi bench of Lahore High Court hearing a case relating to the court martial of his client.

In his petition, Brig Ali had challenged the legality of the case being heard by the Rawalpindi bench headed by Justice Ijaz Ahmed. After the judge's transfer to Lahore, the petition was transferred to Justice Rauf Ahmed Sheikh...

http://www.dawn.com/2012/03/08/counsel-wants-heart-specialist-to-treat-accused-judge-hearing-brigadier-case-changed.html


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Karachi Stocks Down 79.39 Points:
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KARACHI, Mar 07: At close of trading, the KSE-100 index was at 13244.95, down 79.39 points.
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Forex Update:
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KARACHI, Mar 07: The Pakistani Rupee was traded at 91.1 to the US Dollar in the open market.
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