President objects to CrPC amendment bill

Alvi notes that designating offense as non-bailable, authorizing warrantless arrests by exceeds police jurisdiction

ISLAMABAD:

President Arif Alvi has returned the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) Amendment Bill 2023, focused on addressing acts deemed insulting to Sahaba-e-Karam, to parliament after raising objections.

Following endorsement from the National Assembly and Senate, the bill was presented to the president for final approval.

Alvi's objections pertained to two of the three amendments in Section 298A of the CrPC Amendment Bill.

These amendments aimed to render the offense non-bailable and grant the police authority to arrest suspects without a warrant. Notably, the president did not express concern regarding the increased sentence for the crime, raised from three to 10 years.

Citing constitutional provisions (Articles 8, 9, 10, 10A, and 14), Alvi maintained that designating the offense as non-bailable and authorizing warrantless arrests by the police exceeded their jurisdiction.

He cautioned that such granted powers could potentially be abused, leading to the wrongful apprehension of innocent citizens. Alvi urged the parliament to address this issue.

The bill, aimed at augmenting penalties for acts considered disrespectful to Sahaba-e-Karam, secured approval from the National Assembly on January 17 and later from the Senate on August 7.

The legislation proposed a minimum sentence of ten years, coupled with a fine of Rs1 million. In cases of severe contempt, it suggested either life imprisonment or a 14-year jail term.

A day earlier, Alvi created a stir by claiming that he had not signed the Official Secrets (Amendment) Bill and the Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, attributing the confusion to his staff's actions.

In a social media post, the president vehemently denied giving his assent to the two bills.

He admitted, however, that his staff failed to return the bills to parliament within the stipulated 10-day timeframe mandated by Article 75 of the Constitution.

He accused his staff of not only deceiving him but also undermining his authority, effectively concealing the fact that the bills had not been returned.