Tech Desk 
Jan 30, 2025
Just days after the contentious Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) Amendments Bill 2025 was approved in both the National Assembly and Senate, President Asif Ali Zardari also gave it a final nod on Wednesday, transforming the bill into a full-fledged law.
The bill's transition and implementation as a law comes amid strong, continued opposition from journalists and media regulatory authorities, lamenting that the amendments to the existing PECA law were introduced without seeking deliberations from the media fraternity and relevant stakeholders.
Besides giving controversial PECA amendments the green light, the president also signed the “The Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2025 as well as the National Commission on the Status of Women (Amendment) Bill 2025”.
The News reported that the president signed three bills including the Prevention of Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Bill 2025, the Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2025, and the National Commission on the Status of Women (Amendment) Bill 2025, turning all three bills into laws as acts of Parliament.
Lawmakers who expressed dissent over the bill's passage described it as hasty and vindictive legislation. They claimed that the bill would curb government criticism and violate freedom of expression.
The bill was moved in the House by Minister for Industries and Production Rana Tanveer Hussain on behalf of Interior Minister Mohsin Raza Naqvi, for which amendments were submitted by lawmakers standing with the opposition of the bill. Unfortunately, opposing lawmakers' concerns and amendments to the bill were not considered in the Senate.
Syed Shibli Faraz, leader of the opposition in the Senate, was of the view that laws are devised to protect people or to stop something, which he said requires time and stakeholders' consultation to be quality legislation.
