Aaj Logo

Published 21 Aug, 2023 06:44pm

As many as 199 bills were passed during President Alvi’s tenure

As many as 199 bills were passed during the presidency of Dr Arif Alvi, out of which the gazette notifications of 194 have been issued while five bills are still under consideration.

Among the bill under consideration, four were sent by the National Assembly and one was sent by the Senate of Pakistan.

A total of 199 bills were made Act of Parliament since President Alvi assumed office on September 9, 2018, according to parliamentary sources.

The Official Secrets (amendment) 2023 bill and the Pakistan Army Act (amendment) 2023 bill automatically became law as the president was reported to not return the bills with objection within the constitutional period. The gazette notifications for both bills were issued on August 20.

As per Article 75 of the Constitution, when a bill is sent for assent, the president has two options; either give assent or refer the matter to the parliament with specific observations

The bills under consideration include the Criminal Code (amendment) bill, 2023 and the Code of Criminal Procedure (amendment) bill, 2023.

Read: President’s Secretary Waqar removed after bills fiasco

As the National Assembly neared the end of its tenure, the president returned most of the bills with objection. Among them are the bills for the establishment of more than two dozen educational institutions.

The returned bills also included Import Export (amendment) bill, Higher Education Commission (amendment) bill 2023, Newspapers and News Agencies and Books Registration bill 2023, Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals (amendment) bill 2023 and Federal Public Service Commission (amendment) bill 2023.

The Anti-Money Laundering bill and National Accountability Bureau (amendment) bill 2023 were signed by the president, along with the Election (amendment) bill 2023 which were passed in the joint session of the Parliament.

Read Comments