President Dr. Arif Alvi has refused to approve 13 laws and has returned them to parliament for reconsideration.
The returned laws were passed by both chambers of parliament during the tenure of the PML-N-led administration, and their destiny will be decided following general elections when a new National Assembly would be in place.
The Code of Criminal Procedure Amendment Bill, which gave police more powers, was among the bills returned to parliament.
Other returned bills include the Press, Newspapers, News Agencies, and Books Registration Amendment Bill, which seeks to replace the word ‘federal government’ wherever it appears in the law with ‘Prime Minister’; the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Bill, which seeks to transfer implementation of journalist protection from the Ministry of Human Rights to the Ministry of Information; and the National Commission for Human Development (Amendment) Bill, which seeks to redefine t
Imports and Exports (Control) (Amendment) Bill 2023, aimed at addressing hardship situations received from the business community and other quarters for one-time relaxation of import/export-related bans and limitations, was also returned.
President Alvi also returned the Higher Education Commission (HEC) measure, which sought to extend the term of the HEC chairman to four years. Other legislation that has been returned includes the public sector commission amendment bill, the Pakistan Institute of Management Sciences bill, the Horizon University bill, the Federal Urdu University amendment bill, the NFC Institute, the Multan amendment bill, and the National Institute for Technology bill.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) Amendment Bill 2023 has been approved by President Arif Alvi.
According to a news release from the President’s Secretariat news Wing, the president approved the measure under Article 75 of the Pakistani Constitution.
