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The Senate Standing Committee on Interior approved the Prevention of Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Bill, 2025 with a majority vote on Monday while the opposition and journalists strongly criticised the changes to the country\u2019s cybercrime laws.<\/p>\n
The National Assembly rushed<\/a> the controversial amendments to the country\u2019s cybercrime laws last week amid protests, with PTI lawmakers and journalists walking out of proceedings. PPP members had voiced their support during the voting. The bill is now with the Senate<\/a> after being referred to the standing committee on interior.<\/p>\n The bill, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com<\/em>, proposes a new provision, Section 26(A), to Peca, to penalise perpetrators of \u201cfake news\u201d online. It said anyone who intentionally spreads, displays, or transmits false information likely to cause fear, panic, or unrest in society may face up to three years\u2019 imprisonment, a fine of up to Rs2 million, or both.<\/p>\n According to a report issued today by Senator Faisal Rehman, chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Interior, the bill was discussed by Senators Shahadat Awan, Palwasha Khan, Dostain Khan Domki, Irfan Siddiqui, Naeema Ahsan and Umer Farooq while Senator Karman Murtaza attended as a special guest.<\/p>\n According to the report, the bill \u201cprimarily seeks to modernise \u2026 the legislative framework for combating cybercrimes in Pakistan\u201d, while the interior secretary emphasised that the bill was written in good faith and aimed to \u201cprotect the general public \u2026 and to make the in-field act more effective to protect people\u2019s rights\u201d.<\/p>\n As per the report, PML-N\u2019s Senator Siddiqui said that he agreed with the intent behind the amendment bill while Rehman raised his reservations on the proposed amendments and argued that they circumvented the freedom of speech, adding that they were moved in haste and he was against them as per the PTI\u2019s policy.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter detailed discussion, the bill was put to the vote of committee which was passed by the majority votes,\u201d the report reads, adding that the committee recommended that the bill be passed by the Senate.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, a press release issued by the Senate said Rehman emphasised the committee\u2019s readiness to provide constructive suggestions to the government to facilitate improvement.<\/p>\n \u201cThe committee members unanimously agreed on the necessity of a robust law to prevent electronic crimes and ensure strict compliance. They highlighted that existing laws addressing issues such as pornography, child protection and hate speech lack clear definitions.<\/p>\n \u201cThe members agreed that the bill is of utmost importance, as trolling and abuse are widespread issues that must be curtailed. Following a comprehensive discussion, the committee unanimously resolved to cooperate on refining the proposed law and formulating meaningful recommendations.\u201d<\/p>\n