Punjab Assembly passes anti-terrorism bill after opposition walkout
LAHORE: The Punjab Assembly passed the Anti-Terrorism Amendment Bill 2026 on Monday. Opposition lawmakers strongly opposed the legislation and walked out of the session. The debate involved serious concerns about its legal and constitutional impact. Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan defended the bill during heated exchanges. He said the assembly had the authority to consider […]
The Punjab Assembly has passed the Anti-Terrorism Amendment Bill 2026, despite opposition from lawmakers who walked out of the session. The bill was debated, with concerns raised about its legal and constitutional impact.
According to Dawn - Pakistan, the opposition leader Moin Riaz Qureshi described the bill as "draconian" and said it was intended to "crush the citizens of Punjab". In response, Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan cited Article 142 of the Constitution, which concerns criminal-law jurisdiction, to defend the bill's consideration.
The Speaker also referenced his personal experiences with terrorism in the 1990s, which he said had resulted in over 100,000 deaths in Pakistan. He suggested that the opposition propose amendments rather than blocking the bill, citing examples of "faceless" courts in other countries, such as the US, that deal with extreme terror threats.
Brief written by urgent.news from Daily Times, Dawn - Pakistan — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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