The National Assembly has passed the amended Army Act of 1952, imposing a 5-year imprisonment for individuals who disclose sensitive information related to the country or the armed forces.
The amended Army Act was passed in the Senate last week and was scheduled to be presented in the National Assembly today by Defense Minister Khawaja Asif.
In the absence of Defense Minister Khawaja Asif, Federal Law Minister Nazeer Tarar presented the amended bill in the National Assembly, where only a few members were present.
Nazeer Tarar clarified that the legislation would not apply to civilians and would only be relevant to military courts, which are under the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. He assured that the bill would not resemble past controversial legislation.
Earlier, in the Senate, there was strong criticism, but after extensive deliberations, the bill was approved. Following this, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has initiated an inquiry against its senators who voted in favor of the bill.