Govt moves to allay fears over new telecom bill

Ministers deny property rights will be undermined as Pakistan prepares for 5G era

ISLAMABAD:

Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar on Sunday said a committee constituted by the prime minister to resolve concerns over proposed amendments to telecommunication laws had unanimously agreed to revise the draft legislation, making the consent of property owners mandatory before any telecommunications infrastructure could be installed on private land.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had constituted the committee following strong criticism from both government allies and opposition lawmakers, who demanded a thorough review of the bill and amendments to its contentious provisions.

Addressing a joint press conference in Islamabad alongside Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunications Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Tarar said the revised draft of The Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organisation) (Amendment) Bill explicitly required a property owner's consent before any right-of-way could be granted over private land.

Tarar and Khawaja dismissed concerns surrounding the proposed Bill, insisting that the legislation would not allow the occupation of private land and was solely intended to modernise Pakistan's outdated telecom laws to support next-generation digital technologies.

They said that the proposed amendments to the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organisation) Act, 1996, were necessary because the existing legal framework, drafted during the 2G era, no longer met the requirements of 5G and other advanced telecommunications technologies.

Khawaja said the bill was introduced in the National Assembly in January this year, where it underwent detailed scrutiny by the relevant standing committee before being passed in June after extensive consultations, including amendments proposed by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). She said the bill was subsequently referred to the Senate standing committee, where further deliberations were continuing.

Responding to criticism over the proposed legislation, the minister said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had constituted a committee, headed by Law Minister Tarar, to examine the bill after concerns surfaced in the media and public discourse.

Explaining the need for the amendments, she said Pakistan had experienced nearly a 25% increase in data consumption over the past two years due to rapid digital adoption and population growth. She added that spectrum availability had increased from 274MHz to around 750MHz through the country's largest-ever spectrum auction, while work on next-generation telecommunications infrastructure was also progressing.

The minister said the proposed law sought to facilitate investment in digital infrastructure, expand high-speed internet access and remove regulatory hurdles without compromising citizens' fundamental rights. She noted that the nationwide expansion of telecom services required extensive fibre-optic networks, telecom towers and other supporting infrastructure.

Khawaja said only three million households had fibre-based internet connections when the present government assumed office, but the number had since risen to more than five million through policy and technical interventions. She said the prime minister had set a target of extending wired broadband connectivity to at least 10 million households over the next three years.

She maintained that the proposed amendments would improve the regulatory environment and address long-standing right-of-way issues that had discouraged investment, while provincial governments had also contributed to structural reforms aimed at strengthening the telecommunications sector.

Rejecting allegations that the legislation would permit forced occupation of private property, the minister said no such provision existed in the bill. She also announced that she had requested the prime minister to order a formal inquiry into allegations regarding her and the IT secretary's financial integrity, saying she would accept responsibility if any wrongdoing was established. However, she said legal action would be pursued if the accusations were proven baseless.

Tarar said the parliamentary committee had found no evidence that the bill was intended to benefit any individual. He added that the National Assembly had passed the legislation with six amendments and clarified that the consent of property owners would remain mandatory before fibre-optic cables could be laid through private land.

"No citizen can be compelled to allow telecom infrastructure on private property," Tarar said, reiterating that the proposed legislation would not permit the forced use or occupation of privately owned land.

(WITH INPUT FROM APP)