Explained: How Imran Khan's Conviction Will Influence Pakistan Elections

Pakistan - Former Pakistani Prime Minister and cricket star Imran Khan was jailed for 14 years on Wednesday on charges of illegally selling state gifts, a day after he received a 10-year sentence for leaking state secrets.

The convictions come days before a national election scheduled for Feb. 8.

Here are some facts on how these sentences influence his political future, his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, and the upcoming election:

- Imran Khan, 71, was already barred from holding public office for five years following an earlier graft conviction, which ruled him out of next week's polls.

- Wednesday's sentence extends that ban on Imran Khan from holding public office to 10 years, which means he could not be Prime Minister again until 2034.

- The convictions also mean Imran Khan, in jail since August, will not be able to come out of jail to campaign for his party's candidates in the election.

- Imran Khan's absence has already left his party in disarray, with many key aides jailed, on the run, or having abandoned him in the face of a spate of legal challenges.

- There are a number of candidates backed by Imran Khan and his party that are contesting next week's election, but there are no big political names to carry his party in his absence.

- Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is temporarily being led by a little-known lawyer, Gohar Ali Khan, who is also Imran Khan's legal counsel.

- On Jan. 14, Imran Khan's party was stripped of its traditional electoral symbol of a cricket bat in a court ruling, which means his candidates are contesting as independents.

- Even if Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-backed candidates win, as independents they are not bound to stay with the party and are open to joining other parties - and Imran Khan remaining in jail for the foreseeable future increases the chances of this.

- The support of victorious independent candidates in the aftermath of the polls will be crucial for any party vying to secure the numbers necessary in parliament to form a government.

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Miniaturized Human Heart On A Chip Offers Promise For Safer Cancer Treatments

In a promising development for medical research, a new "heart-on-a-chip" model has been unveiled by Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles. This miniature, laboratory-grown heart holds the potential to revolutionize cancer treatment safety.

The primary purpose of the chip is to assess the cardiac risks associated with cancer therapies. Certain treatments, while effectively targeting cancer cells, can inadvertently harm the heart. This heart-on-a-chip model offers a controlled and ethical environment to test these drugs, ensuring patient well-being is prioritized.

Several significant advancements distinguish this model from its predecessors. Firstly, the team employed mature heart cells derived from human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). This enhanced cell maturity translates to a more accurate representation of human heart function. Furthermore, the chip boasts an impressive beating rate of approximately 60 beats per minute, mirroring the natural human rhythm.

The authors of the study say, "We develop a multi-lineage, fully integrated cardiovascular organ chip that can enhance hiPSC-EC and hiPSC-CM functional and genetic maturity, model endothelial barrier permeability, and demonstrate long-term functional stability. This microfluidic organ chip harbors hiPSC-CMs and hiPSC-ECs on separate channels that can be subjected to active fluid flow and rhythmic biomechanical stretch. We demonstrate the utility of this cardiovascular organ chip as a predictive platform for evaluating multi-lineage VPTKI toxicity. This study may lead to the development of new modalities for the evaluation and prevention of cancer therapy-induced cardiotoxicity."

"Ultimately, multi-lineage, hiPSC-based systems such as the heart chip presented here may reduce reliance on animal models that are traditionally used for preclinical drug cardiotoxicity testing," the researchers write in their published paper.

"The heart-chip platform we have developed enables the screening of potentially cardiotoxic chemotherapeutic agents on multiple cardiovascular cell types in a physiologically relevant model," write the researchers.

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"Bandh Karo": Passengers Protest At Delhi Airport After IndiGo Cancels Flight

Scores of passengers at the Delhi airport were on Wednesday seen shouting slogans against domestic carrier IndiGo after their flight was allegedly cancelled.

In a video posted by the news agency ANI, the passengers can be heard shouting "bandh karo, bandh karo" (stop it) after their flight from Delhi to Jharkhand's Deoghar was cancelled.

#WATCH | Passengers of Delhi-Deoghar IndiGo flight raise slogans and protest against the airline after it cancels the flight originating from Terminal 2 of Delhi airport pic.twitter.com/L8Nj1cW4Vq

— ANI (@ANI) January 31, 2024

According to the flight tracking website Flightradar24, over 10 flights were cancelled and more than 50 flights were delayed at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport on Wednesday morning due to dense fog and bad weather.

READ | "Falsely Promised" Hotel Stay, Alternate Flights, Flier Snubs IndiGo

Earlier in the day, IndiGo issued an advisory and said that flight operations in Delhi, Srinagar and Chandigarh are likely to be impacted due to inclement weather.

"Please keep a check on your flight status before leaving for the airport," IndiGo said.

IndiGo fined Rs 1.2 crore for five violations

IndiGo was fined Rs 1.2 crore for five violations earlier this month after its passengers were seen eating on the tarmac as they waited for their flight to take off.

Calling it a "violation of apron discipline", the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said, "It came to the notice of the DGCA through social media that on January 15, passengers of two IndiGo flights were on the apron for a considerable period at the CSMI Airport, Mumbai (MIAL). This violates Para 5 of DGCA Air Safety circular 04 of 2007 which directs all agencies working at the airport not to permit walking on an active apron. The presence of passengers on the apron for a considerable period violates apron discipline as it jeopardised the safety of the passengers and the aircraft."

IndiGo was asked to pay the penalty - the highest imposed on airlines in recent times - within 30 days.

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"You Want Him To Be A Farmer?" Chinese Principal Forces Mother To Send Sick Child To School

A Chinese school principal has sparked controversy on social media after paying a visit to a student's home. The incident unfolded when the boy, who had taken the morning off due to illness, was found by the principal, surnamed Li, playing outside. The principal, who heads a school in Hainan province, expressed concern for the child's absence and decided to visit the family. Upon reaching their residence, she became upset and raised her voice while speaking to the boy's mother. This incident has left social media users in the country divided, according to the South China Morning Post. 

"My son does not feel well, don't you understand? Is it wrong to take half a day off school?" the boy's mother told the principal in a video shared on social media.

"Yes. In his condition, he should go to school," the principal replied.

The mother of the boy was perplexed by the principal's actions, considering that her son had fainted at school the day before. A teacher had contacted her, requesting that she come to pick him up.

The mother conveyed to the principal that her son had experienced dizziness the night before. However, the principal remained adamant, asserting that an official sick leave required a medical certificate.

"He still felt dizzy last night and I had already said he would be off sick," the mother said.

"Taking sick leave requires a medical certificate. If he has any problems at school, our teachers will look after him," the principal responded.

The principal shifted the conversation's focus and inquired of the boy's mother whether she envisioned her child pursuing a career as a farmer.

The principal shifted the conversation's focus and inquired of the boy's mother whether she envisioned her child pursuing a career as a farmer.

The video soon went viral on the internet and received mixed reactions from social media users in China. 

A user wrote, "Li must be a responsible principal. Not only does she make time to visit the pupil's home, she also tries hard to convince the mother."

"The principal's attitude is very rude," another user commented. 

"The mother is right," the third user wrote. 

"They are so lucky to have such a responsible principal," the fourth user commented. 

 

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UP Teen Raped, Threatened By Father; Accused Arrested: Cops

A man was arrested for allegedly raping his minor daughter in the Jani police station area of this district, police on Monday said.

"A 14-year-old girl has accused her father (in mid 30s) of raping her. She also claimed that her father has been raping her since January 15," Additional Superintendent of Police (Rural) Kamlesh Bahadur said.

"The mother of the minor girl lodged a complaint with the police on Monday following which the accused was detained and is being interrogated," he added.

The statement of the minor girl, who has been sent for medical examination, will be recorded, police said.

A video of the minor girl has also gone viral in which she that she was allegedly raped by her father on January 15 when his mother had gone to Lucknow.

The girl also said in the video that her father had threatened to kill her by administering poison if she opened her mouth.

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Mamata Banerjee Alleges Border Force Wants To Issue New Identity Cards

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday alleged that the Border Security Force (BSF) wants to provide a separate identity card to the people in the border areas and asked people to refrain from taking the card as they could be kicked out of the country under the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

Ms Banerjee's remarks came after Union Minister Shantanu Thakur said on Sunday that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) would be implemented across the country in a week.

"The BSF is oppressing the people. The BSF wants to give a separate identity card to the people in the border areas. Remember, do not take the separate identity card that the BSF wants to give by entering the border area; say that I have an Aadhaar card or that I have a ration card; say that I will not take your card. If you take that card, you will come under the NRC, and they will throw you out," she said.

"Please enroll your name in the voters' list so that Delhi cannot get a chance to throw you out of the state," she added.

The CAA, introduced by the Narendra Modi government, aims to confer Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants, including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians, who migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014.

Following the passage of the CAA by Parliament in December 2019 and its subsequent presidential assent, significant protests erupted in various parts of the country.

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What Ajit Pawar Said On Party Colleague Opposing Maratha Quota Decision

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Monday said he would talk to his party and cabinet colleague Chhagan Bhujbal on the latter's opposition to the state government's decision on Maratha quota.

Mr Bhujbal, a senior OBC leader, on Sunday said protests will be held outside the residences of MLAs, MPs and tehsildars on February 1 against the state government's decision regarding the Maratha quota.

Mr Bhujbal's announcement came after Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange called off his stir on Saturday following the state government saying it had accepted his demands.

Steps are being taken to fool OBCs in the state, Mr Bhujbal had said.

Queried on the issue, Mr Pawar said, "In a democracy, everyone has different opinion. Chief Minister Shinde took a decision on Maratha reservation and tried to reach a solution. (Deputy Chief Minister Fadnavis) Devendraji has said he will talk to Bhujbal."

"He (Fadnavis) has said he does not feel injustice has been done to anybody. I too feel the same. Give me some time, I will speak to him (Bhujbal)," the senior NCP leader added.

Asked about Mr Bhujbal's statement that the party and government should decide whether to keep him with them, Mr Pawar said it is an internal matter of the party.

Mr Bhujbal, who belongs to the NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar which joined the government last July, has been routinely criticising the Shinde-led dispensation over its handling of the Maratha quota issue.

Ajit Pawar further said all constituents of the National Democratic Alliance had resolved to make Narendra Modi Prime Minister for a third time.

Addressing reporters after reviewing developmental projects in Kolhapur, Mr Pawar said the opposition has no work apart from criticising and opposing the Prime Minister.

Ridiculing the opposition, Mr Pawar said West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann had decided to take "a different path" (fight polls on their own without allying with the Congress), while the stand of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was known to all.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav is setting conditions for seat sharing in Uttar Pradesh, he added.

Mr Kumar ditched the Congress-RJD alliance in Bihar and returned to the NDA.

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