Official secrets bill gets Senate’s nod after govt removes contentious clauses

• Minister says provision seeking arrest without warrants powers withdrawn. 
• Bill referred to standing committee after it drew fierce opposition.
• Bill seeks to secrets act 'more effective in view of changing social milieu'.

The Senate on Sunday passed Official Secrets (Amendment) Bill 2023 by a majority vote, days after the legislation was referred to the standing committee following fierce opposition from parliamentarians.

Earlier this week, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)-led government got the bill adopted by the National Assembly in a bid to empower intelligence agencies to raid and detain any citizen, even under suspicion of them breaching the law.

The bill also sought a penalty on a citizen with a prison term of three years for disclosing the “identity of the members of the intelligence agencies or the informants or sources”.

Subsequently, the bill was presented in Senate which was referred to the standing committee by the upper house of parliament's chairman Sadiq Sanjrani after fierce opposition from lawmakers.

Earlier today, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar tabled the bill in the Senate again and informed the parliamentarians that the government withdrew the provision to empower intelligence agencies to carry out raids or make arrests without warrants.

“The objection has been removed.. the arrest without warrant clause has been withdrawn,” the minister added.

He said the objections raised over some words have also been removed from the bill.