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· collected 2026-08-28 · by Iftikhar A. Khan
The government on Friday withdrew a controversial bill that sought to give telecom licensees sweeping powers to install infrastructure on public and private land, saying it would introduce a new draft of the proposed legislation.
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it → withdraw → legislation
The bill, seeking changes to a 1996 act, was originally tabled by Khawaja and approved by the National Assembly on June 11 by a majority vote, a day before the presentation of the federal budget 2026-27.
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bill → seek → budget
It was then taken up in the Senate, where objections were raised about its clauses.
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objections → take → clauses
On Friday, a motion to withdraw the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organization) (Amendment) Bill, 2026 was moved in the upper house of Parliament by Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry on behalf of Information Technology Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja.
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motion → withdraw → Khawaja
The motion was passed by the House as the stipulated 90-day period for the bill’s passage was nearing expiry.
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period → pass → expiry
“Upon expiry of the prescribed period, the bill would have proceeded to a joint sitting of Parliament, the convening of which may not take place in the near future,” the Ministry of Information Technology said in a statement.
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Ministry → proceed → statement
“In order to avoid delays and expedite the legislative process, the ministry has decided to introduce a fresh bill, ensuring that the legislative process proceeds in a timely and effective manner, while retaining the essence of the proposed legislation,” it said.
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it → avoid → legislation
The bill’s statement of objects and reasons said amendments were needed for “swift and coordinated deployment of telecommunication infrastructure”.
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amendments → say → infrastructure
Highlighting the government’s rationale, Khawaja said last month that the existing legal framework did not meet the demands of modern technologies such as 5G.
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framework → highlight → 5G.
Under the now-withdrawn bill, no public authority was to demand any “charges, fees, rent, of any nature whatsoever” for access.
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authority → withdraw → access
If a public authority did not respond within 30 days of a licensee’s request, even after a reminder, approval was to be “deemed to have been granted”.
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approval → respond → reminder
For private land, licensees were to seek approval from owners/tenants by registered mail.
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licensees → seek → mail
No response in 30 days would allow the matter to be referred to the “appropriate government.”
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matter → allow → government
For housing societies, cooperative schemes and commercial estates, access was to be deemed approved after 30 days, though owners could impose conditions on timing and manner of work.
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owners → deem → work
“Disputes must be settled within 45 days by an officer not below the rank of secretary,” the bill said.
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bill → settle → secretary
It defined “private access” to include individual ownership and collective ownership by housing societies, Defence Housing Authority and cantonments.
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It → define → societies
“Public authority” covered federal and provincial governments and local bodies.
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authority → cover → governments
The bill also proposed fines of up to Rs50 million on any owner, tenant or entity that obstructed access.
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that → propose → access
The clauses triggered a strong backlash, with critics calling them “draconian” and saying that they violated Article 23 of the Constitution, which protects property rights.
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which → trigger → rights
The Islamabad Bar Association and digital rights groups warned the law could be used for “forced entry” into private premises.
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law → warn → premises
Several lawmakers, from both opposition and treasury benches, also raised concerns, while the PPP flat out refused to support the bill in the Senate.
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PPP → raise → Senate
Following public criticism and media reports, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif took notice and constituted a committee headed by Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar to examine the legislation.
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Sharif → follow → legislation
Khawaja later clarified that the bill “would not allow anyone to occupy private land”.
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anyone → clarify → land
Officials said the new draft would retain right-of-way provisions for public infrastructure but make prior consent mandatory for private property.
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consent → say → property
Officials said the amendments were aimed at removing right-of-way bottlenecks that have delayed fibre and 5G rollout in Pakistan.
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that → say → Pakistan
They said the nationwide rollout of modern telecommunications services required extensive infrastructure, including fibre-optic networks, telecom towers and both underground and overground installations.
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rollout → say → networks
The number of fibre-based internet connections has increased from two million to over five million in the past two years, through various policy and technical interventions, and a target has been set to double this in the next three years.
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target → base → years
Telecom operators had lobbied for the law, citing months-long delays in getting no-objection certificates from cantonments, housing societies and provincial authorities.
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operators → lobby → cantonments
