National Assembly on Wednesday passed an amendment to the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), 1997, which reinserted powers granted to law enforcement authorities and the armed forces to detain “suspicious” individuals for up to three months.
The National Assembly passed the Bill with majority of votes, rejecting amendments proposed by JUI-F member Aliya Kamran while incorporating an amendment proposed by PPP member Syed Naveed Qamar.
Minister of State for Interior and Narcotics Control Talal Chauhdry moved the bill further to amend the Anti-terrorism Act, 1997 [The Anti-terrorism (Amendment) Bill, 2024] in the House.
Section 11EEEE (preventive detention for inquiry) of the ATA was amended in 2014, providing the government and authorised armed forces and civil armed forces with the authority to conduct preventive detention of individuals suspected of involvement in terrorism-related activities. However, this amendment was subject to a sunset clause, limiting its validity to two years, which expired in 2016.
In November 2024, the government quietly introduced the bill in the NA, seeking to grant military and civil armed forces the authority to keep individuals facing terrorism charges in ‘preventive’ detention for up to three months.
The House passed the bill through clause by clause read. Earlier, the House adopted the motion to consider the bill with 125 votes in its favour and 59 against it.
The statement of objects and reasons of the bill says, the current security situation requires a robust response that goes beyond the existing legal framework. The erstwhile amendment of Section 11EEEE of the Act ibid are required to re-inserted to empower the government, Armed Forces and Civil Armed Forces with the necessary authority to detain individuals who pose a significant threat to national security. This provision would allow for the preventative detention of suspects based on credible information or reasonable suspicion, thereby disrupting terrorist plots before they can be executed. This will also provide Law Enforcement Agencies with the legal backing to conduct more effective operations against terrorism. It would facilitate the use of Joint Interrogation Teams (JTIs), composed of members from various law enforcement and intelligence agencies to conduct comprehensive inquiries and gather actionable intelligence.
The National Assembly also passed two more bills including the National School of Public Policy (Amendment) Bill, 2025 and the Petroleum (Amendment) Bill, 2025 as reported by the Standing committees concerned.
The bills were moved by Ministry for Parliamentary Affairs Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhary and Minister for Petroleum Ali Pervaiz in the House respectively.
NA passes resolution to take steps to prevent excessive growth in population
The National Assembly unanimously passed a resolution to take measures to prevent the excessive growth in population. According to the resolution, the current alarming rate of population growth is a major challenge for national development. Reducing the rate of population growth is essential for increasing opportunities for all populations. All provincial and federal governments should take steps to reduce the rate of population growth.
Reporter: Rozeena Ali