Public and parliamentary debates are intensifying over the new telecom laws. Consequently, the Prime Minister constituted a special committee recently to strictly review the Right of Way (RoW) provisions in the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organization) (Amendment) Bill, 2026. Furthermore, the authorities demand a swift resolution. The Prime Minister ordered the committee to submit its final report within three days. For context, viewers can read our previous coverage of the Telecom (Re-organization) (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
The High-Profile Telecom Amendment Bill Review Team
The Federal Minister for Law & Justice will head this high-level committee as its Chairman. Meanwhile, the Secretary of the Ministry of IT & Telecom (MoITT) will serve as the committee’s Secretary.
The Prime Minister appointed the following individuals as members:
- Ms. Sherry Rehman (MNA)
- Federal Minister for Information Technology & Telecommunication
- Federal Minister for Economic Affairs
- Attorney General
- Mr. Javed Hanif (MNA)
- Barrister Zafar Ullah Khan (Lawyer)
- Dr. Daud Munir (Lawyer)
- Ms. Bayyinah Shah (Lawyer)
In addition, the committee can co-opt any other member or expert if required.
Terms of Reference & Private Property Concerns
The committee holds a specific mandate to dissect the legal, constitutional, and policy implications of the bill. Specifically, they will evaluate the proposed RoW framework under Sections 2(qb), 2(ma), 27A, and 27B.
Property rights are a primary focus of this review. Therefore, the members must examine how telecom infrastructure impacts private property. This includes individually owned properties, housing societies, and collective ownership entities. The team aims to balance fast infrastructure deployment with strict property rights protection.
Additionally, the committee will analyze several critical regulatory mechanisms:
- Deemed Approval Mechanism: The members will review Section 27A(3) regarding housing societies and private entities to recommend better safeguards and oversight.
- Financial Provisions: The team will inspect rules on compensation, fees, rent, and charges under Section 27A(5). This includes restrictions on recovering charges by housing societies.
- Enforcement and Penalties: The committee will review dispute resolution frameworks and penalties under Section 27B to ensure fairness and proportionality.
Ultimately, the team will address any other matters directly related to these terms of reference.
