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Crackdown on Pakistanis in US: 50,000 May Be Detained WASHINGTON: Around 50,000 Pakistanis are likely to be detained in line with the INS registration drive in the US, incurring a loss of 2.5 million dollars per month to Pakistan's exchequer, speakers feared during a community meeting here at the Pakistan embassy. The meeting was chaired Saturday by Pakistan Ambassador to United States Ashraf Jahangir Qazi, and it was aimed at apprising the Pakistani community of the INS registration. Speaking on the occasion, the US attorneys, who were also invited by the embassy, called upon the Pakistanis to bring 1500 dollars with them while registering with the INS to avoid arrest.
Reports are also pouring in that the US uthorities are savagely harassing Pakistanis heading to their motherland after winding up their business and quitting their jobs in the wake of the INS campaign. At the airports, highways, roads, markets, hotels, restaurants, beaches, public parks and even in hospitals Muslims, specifically of Middle Eastern origins, and Pakistanis are targeted and bizarrely quizzed by numerous US intelligence agencies. Questions like when and why did you come to the US; where from you brought money; how much dollars have you sent to Pakistan; why are you winding up; what amount of dollars are you taking along; what places in the US have you been staying and whom have you been meeting, visiting and talking to in the US - are blatantly hurled upon Pakistanis in one go. In many cases Pakistanis have been sent to interrogation cells from airport lounges where from they were to fly for their motherland. Already in various US cells, hundreds of Pakistanis are languishing without being charged and without a crime of trivial nature. Haj Pilgrims from Srinagar for Jeddah SRINAGAR: The first batch of Haj pilgrims left for Jeddah from Srinagar on Monday, January 6. A sense of mutual trust, geniality and friendliness was clearly evident at the reception centre of the airport. About five flights each way would be operated this year by Air India to transport nearly 6,400 Haj pilgrims to Mecca from Jammu and Kashmir.
Wasim Files Petition Against Sanctions (Go To Top) KARACHI: Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram has finally filed a writ petition in the Lahore High Court challenging the sanctions imposed on him by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on the recommendations of a match-fixing Inquiry Commission, reports the News. (Details) Punjab Effort to Put Golden Temple in World Heritage List (Go To Top) CHANDIGARH: The Government of Punjab wants the Golden Temple to have the status of a World Heritage monument. It is working in that direction. Home to "Akal Takht", the temporal seat of Sikhs, Golden temple in Amritsar city showcases the religious traditions of Sikhism, the world's youngest religion. (Details) Kolkata Sergeant Who Protested Against Eve-teasing Dead (Go To Top) KOLKATA: Traffic sergeant Bapi Sen, who was battered by five drunken city constables for protesting against eve-teasing on New Year's eve, died on Monday. According to reports, Sen, who was in deep coma since January 2 and kept alive on life support system, passed away at 6.30 am. The deceased had been beaten up by the policemen when he intervened to stop them from teasing a young woman. He suffered serious injuries in his head. Charged with Section 307 (attempt to murder) and Section 34 (abetment of criminal offence) of IPC, the five have been sent to police custody till January 9 by the chief metropolitan magistrate. Jesus Used Cannabis to Heal Ailments: Study (Go To Top) WASHIGTON: A new study of scriptural texts has revealed that Jesus and his disciples used cannabis to heal sufferings of many during that time. According to a report in the Guardian, the study suggests that the drug was used to cure problems like eye and skin diseases as referred to in the Gospels. The anointing oil used by Jesus and his disciples contained an ingredient called kaneh-bosem which has since been identified as cannabis extract, says an article by Chris Bennett in the drugs magazine, High Times, entitled "Was Jesus a Stoner"? The incense used by Jesus in ceremonies also contained a cannabis extract, suggests Bennett, who quotes scholars to back his claims, the report adds. "There can be little doubt about a role for cannabis in Judaic religion," Carl Ruck, professor of classical mythology at Boston University, stated. Referring to the existence of cannabis in anointing oils used in ceremonies, he added: "Obviously the easy availability and long- established tradition of cannabis in early Judaism ... would inevitably have included it in the (Christian) mixtures." Bennett suggests those anointed with the oils used by Jesus were "literally drenched in this potent mixture. Although most modern people choose to smoke or eat pot, when its active ingredients are transferred into an oil-based carrier, it can also be absorbed through the skin". Quoting the New Testament, Bennett argues that Jesus anointed his disciples with the oil and encouraged them to do the same with other followers. This could have been responsible for healing eye and skin diseases referred to in the Gospels. "If cannabis was one of the main ingredients of the ancient anointing oil ... and receiving this oil is what made Jesus the Christ and his followers Christians, then persecuting those who use cannabis could be considered anti-Christ," Bennett concludes. -ANI |
