By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The government withdrew legislation that would have granted telecommunications companies broad authority to install infrastructure on private and public land, bowing to criticism that the measure trampled constitutional property protections and opened the door to forced entry onto private premises.
The Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication pulled the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organisation) (Amendment) Bill, 2026, from the Senate on Friday, with officials saying a revised version would be introduced in the coming weeks. Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry moved the withdrawal motion on behalf of IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja, and the upper house approved it.
The retreat came as the bill’s 90-day constitutional window for passage was set to lapse. Had that deadline passed without action, the legislation would have been forced into a joint sitting of Parliament — a venue the ministry said was unlikely to convene soon enough to keep the process moving.
“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,” the ministry said in a statement.
The National Assembly had approved the original bill on June 11, one day before the government unveiled its 2026-27 federal budget, sending it to the Senate for concurrence. It was there that the legislation ran into sustained resistance.
Provisions Drew Fire
The bill sought to amend Pakistan’s 1996 telecommunications law to speed the rollout of fiber-optic networks and 5G infrastructure, which the government has identified as a priority as it works to close the country’s digital-connectivity gap. Under the proposed changes, public authorities would have been barred from charging any fees for granting telecom companies access to land, and requests left unanswered for 30 days — even after a follow-up reminder — would have been automatically deemed approved.
Private landowners faced a similar mechanism. Telecom licensees would have been required to notify owners or tenants by registered mail, but silence for 30 days would have allowed the matter to be escalated to what the bill termed the “appropriate government.” Housing societies, cooperative schemes and commercial estates would have seen access deemed granted after the same 30-day period, though property owners could still set conditions on timing and how work was conducted.
Disputes were to be resolved within 45 days by an officer holding a rank no lower than secretary. The bill’s definition of private access encompassed both individual property owners and collective bodies such as housing societies, the Defence Housing Authority and cantonment boards. Public authority was defined broadly to include federal and provincial governments along with local bodies. Owners, tenants or entities that obstructed access risked fines of as much as 50 million rupees.
Those terms triggered swift condemnation. The Islamabad Bar Association and digital-rights organizations warned the bill’s language could effectively sanction forced entry onto private property, while critics argued the provisions ran afoul of Article 23 of Pakistan’s Constitution, which safeguards property rights. Lawmakers from both the opposition and treasury benches voiced objections, and the Pakistan Peoples Party declined to back the bill in the Senate.
Sharif Steps In
The backlash prompted Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to establish a review committee led by Law and Justice Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar to scrutinize the legislation. Khawaja subsequently sought to ease concerns, stating the bill “would not allow anyone to occupy private land.”
Officials said the forthcoming draft would preserve right-of-way provisions for public infrastructure projects while making prior consent from private property owners mandatory — a shift from the deemed-approval structure that drew the sharpest criticism.
The ministry has framed the legislation as essential to clearing regulatory bottlenecks that have slowed fiber and 5G deployment nationwide. Officials said expanding modern telecommunications service requires substantial new infrastructure, including fiber-optic cable networks, telecom towers, and both underground and above-ground installations.
Fiber-based internet connections in Pakistan have more than doubled over the past two years, climbing from 2 million to more than 5 million, according to the ministry, which has set a target to double that figure again within three years.
Telecom operators had pushed for the legislation, pointing to delays of several months in securing no-objection certificates from cantonments, housing societies and provincial authorities — approvals needed before infrastructure work can begin.
In a written response to a National Assembly question from lawmaker Asiya Naz Tanoli, Khawaja outlined the economic case for the amendment, citing World Bank research indicating that each 10-percentage-point increase in broadband penetration can generate GDP growth of 0.9% to 2%, potentially adding close to $30 billion to Pakistan’s economy over five years. She also referenced a 2019 study by economists Jonas Hjort and Jonas Poulsen, which found that a similar increase in broadband access could lift employment by 3.1% to 13.2% — a gain Khawaja said could translate into more than 2 million new jobs domestically.
Khawaja told the assembly the legislation would establish a legal framework for rationalizing right-of-way fees, which she said should lower both the cost and time required to deploy fiber-optic cable. That, in turn, would let telecom operators extend network coverage and offer more affordable broadband service, she said.
The government has not specified a timeline for introducing the revised bill, though officials indicated the process would move within the coming weeks.
Copyright © 2021 Independent Pakistan | All rights reserved
