The Senate Standing Committee on Information, chaired by Senator Syed Ali Zafar, reviewed the implementation of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) and ordered the withdrawal of hundreds of cases it found to have been illegally registered by provincial authorities. The committee created a sub-committee to ensure the rulings are implemented, called for safeguards to prevent misuse of PECA against journalists and critics, and addressed a series of cybercrime, harassment and fraud matters raised by lawmakers.
Chairman Syed Ali Zafar opened the session by declaring that a large number of cases filed under PECA by provincial authorities were unlawful and must be withdrawn immediately. To oversee compliance, the committee constituted a sub-committee tasked with monitoring the implementation of this directive. Zafar emphasized that no citizen should be prosecuted unlawfully and stressed the need to balance national security with freedom of expression.
The chairman warned against using PECA as a tool for censorship. Referring to a committee report, he said many cases categorized as “anti-state” require closer scrutiny to determine whether they genuinely concern national security or amount to suppression of dissent. “If someone commits an offence under the law, he should be prosecuted and punished, and the public fully supports that. But if criticism of government policies—for instance, pointing out inadequate flood response—is treated as an offence under PECA, that would be an abuse of the law,” he said.
Officials from the Ministry of Interior told the committee that none of the cases under review were related to anti-state activities; instead, they involved hate crimes such as incitement and sectarian violence. The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) reported registering 1,214 cases nationwide, including 10 cases against journalists, 611 related to financial fraud, and 320 concerning harassment. The agency said no arrests have been made in the cases filed in the federal capital.
The committee expressed concern over several hundred cases that were registered by provincial authorities after recent amendments to PECA that restrict provincial registration and transfer jurisdiction to federal authorities. Chairman Zafar questioned how to rectify the situation and recommended that all such cases be withdrawn. A sub-committee was formed to address these illegally registered cases.
Lawmakers raised specific complaints during the meeting. The committee discussed the Tariq Ali Work matter, and Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar informed members that the officer involved had been suspended and that the Rawalpindi police chief had met journalists at the Press Club to resolve the issue. “The issue has been settled amicably,” the minister said. The committee also recommended forming a coordination committee to address journalists’ grievances and complaints more systematically.
Senator Irfan-ul-Haq Siddiqui highlighted a major financial fraud in which scammers impersonated him to target nine members of the National Assembly. He said he had filed four complaints without satisfactory redress. NCCIA officials said Rs. 1.3 million had been recovered in Siddiqui’s case, four arrests made, and efforts continue to apprehend the principal suspect. They also reported that Rs. 10 million had been recovered in WhatsApp-related hacking cases over a recent five-month period. Senator Pervaiz Rashid told the committee he faced harassment and threats following a Senate speech and that his complaint had not been properly addressed.
The committee was informed that the Cabinet has approved rules for the Social Media Regulatory Authority and that recruitment notices for its staff would be published soon. Separately, Senator Syed Waqar Mehdi raised concerns about a state television anchor who aired a defamatory vlog targeting the Sindhi community; after hearing both sides, members unanimously recommended registering a first information report against the anchor under PECA.
Members also requested detailed figures on federal government advertising expenditures across print and electronic media from early March to the present, to be provided at the next meeting. The committee deferred consideration of the Motion Picture (Amendment) Bill to its next session.
The meeting was attended by Senators Sarmad Ali, Irfan-ul-Haq Siddiqui, Pervaiz Rashid, Abdul Shakoor Khan, Jan Muhammad, Syed Waqar Mehdi, and Faisal Javed, with Federal Minister Attaullah Tarar present. Senator Zafar reiterated the importance of press freedom, noting that “Journalists are the fourth pillar of democracy. We all aim to advance democracy, but questions must also remain within ethical bounds. Sometimes we face planted questions as well.”
