President Dr. Arif Alvi signed the Official Secrets Amendment Bill and the Army Act Amendment Bill.It may be recalled that the last National Assembly approved the Official Secrets Act before the end of the term.
In a notable development, it was observed that when the Official Secrets Act amendment bill was presented in the Senate, not only did the government’s coalition partners become agitated alongside the opposition, but Reza Rabbani from the Pakistan Peoples Party had torn up multiple copies of the bill.
Apart from representatives of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Jamaat-e-Islami, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (Pakistan), National Party, and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, several senators from the Pakistan Muslim League-N, including Dr. Afzal Allah, protested against the bill. In response, the Senate Chairman had referred the bill to the standing committee due to the members’ protests.
Subsequently, the Official Secrets amendment bill and certain contentious sections of the Army Act were separated and presented again in the Senate. The Senate approved it, and later, the National Assembly also granted approval for the amended bill, sending it to the President of Pakistan for formal enactment.