Govt withdraws controversial telecom bill, to bring new draft of proposed legislation

ISLAMABAD: 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.

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. It was then taken up in the Senate, where objections were raised about its 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.

The motion was passed by the House as the stipulated 90-day period for the bill’s passage was nearing 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.

“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.

The bill’s statement of objects and reasons said amendments were needed for “swift and coordinated deployment of telecommunication 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.

Under the now-withdrawn bill, no public authority was to demand any “charges, fees, rent, of any nature whatsoever” for access.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”.

For private land, licensees were to seek approval from owners/tenants by registered mail. No response in 30 days would allow the matter to be referred to the “appropriate 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.

“Disputes must be settled within 45 days by an officer not below the rank of secretary,” the bill said. It defined “private access” to include individual ownership and collective ownership by housing societies, Defence Housing Authority and cantonments.

“Public authority” covered federal and provincial governments and local bodies. The bill also proposed fines of up to Rs50 million on any owner, tenant or entity that obstructed 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. The Islamabad Bar Association and digital rights groups warned the law could be used for “forced entry” into private 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.

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.

Khawaja later clarified that the bill “would not allow anyone to occupy private land”.

Officials said the new draft would retain right-of-way provisions for public infrastructure but make prior consent mandatory for private property.

Officials said the amendments were aimed at removing right-of-way bottlenecks that have delayed fibre and 5G rollout in 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.

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.

Telecom operators had lobbied for the law, citing months-long delays in getting no-objection certificates from cantonments, housing societies and provincial authorities.