The Punjab Assembly on Monday passed the controversial Punjab Anti-Terrorism (Amendment) Bill, 2026 amid protests and a walkout by opposition lawmakers.
Addressing the House, Speaker Malik Ahmad Khan issued a ruling confirming the bill could legally be placed on the agenda, citing Article 142 of the Constitution concerning criminal-law jurisdiction. He recalled that terrorism had claimed more than 100,000 lives in Pakistan during the war on terror, including those of high-profile figures, and led to attacks on places of worship.
He further argued that, in the past, terrorists often walked free due to a lack of witness protection and physical security. He noted that even democratic nations such as the U.S. have established “faceless” or anonymous courts to deal with extreme terror threats, urging the opposition to propose constructive amendments rather than block the bill.
However, Opposition Leader Moin Raza Qureshi condemned the “draconian” law, claiming it would “crush” the citizens of the province. He alleged the legislation aimed to target political rivals, particularly PTI leaders and activists, much like previous defamation and National Accountability Bureau laws. He specifically pointed to a provision under which a Grade-20-designated official would have the authority to advise the chief justice of the Lahore High Court on whether cases fell under the “special security” category.
Opposition lawmaker Ahmar Rashid Bhatti similarly compared the law to a 1909 British colonial-era act that Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah opposed. He warned that allowing the identities and voices of judges, prosecutors, defense lawyers and witnesses to be concealed or altered would violate Article 10-A of the Constitution, which guarantees the fundamental right to a fair and transparent trial.
After the debate, opposition lawmakers staged a walkout and attempted to point out a lack of quorum, but treasury benches gathered sufficient numbers to maintain it. Following the walkout, amendments proposed by the opposition were rejected and the Anti-Terrorism (Amendment) Bill, 2026 approved.
The amendment inserts Section 21AAA into the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, creating a “special security case” mechanism for cases in which participants are deemed to require extraordinary protection. It identifies a designated authority of an officer of at least BS-20 whose identity would itself remain confidential who could declare any case or class of cases special security cases. At this point, the LHC chief justice would assign the case to an Anti-Terrorism Court judge.
The bill also proposes that the identities of judges, public prosecutors, defense counsel, police officers, witnesses and other persons involved in such proceedings “shall not be disclosed.” Instead, judicial orders would carry official titles and witnesses would be identified either through codes or aliases.
The proceedings of all such cases could be held at secure premises or through video links, including from prisons. The proposed provision would also allow the government to adopt other security measures it considers appropriate.