Pakistan’s Senate has approved the Criminal Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025, which eliminates the death penalty for crimes such as harbouring hijackers and publicly stripping women.
The Criminal Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025, brings Pakistan’s laws in line with its international commitments under the GSP+ trade agreement with the European Union, which requires limiting capital punishment to only the most serious offences.
Minister of State for Interior, Talal Chaudhry, introduced the bill and emphasised the need to comply with Article 6(2) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
The legislation replaces the death penalty under Sections 354-A and 402-C of the Pakistan Penal Code with life imprisonment. Section 354-A states: “Whoever assaults or uses criminal force against any woman, strips her of her clothes, and exposes her in public shall be punished with death or life imprisonment, along with a fine.” The bill’s statement of objects and reasons explains that three stakeholder meetings in September 2021 reviewed the proposed change to ensure consistency with ICCPR standards and Islamic jurisprudence.
Senate members expressed mixed views. PTI’s parliamentary leader, Barrister Syed Ali Zafar, argued that stripping a woman equals murder in severity and urged retaining the death penalty. Senator Muhammad Abdul Qadir feared a broader abolition of terrorism. Balochistan Awami Party’s Samina Mumtaz Zehri called for stricter laws against crimes against women, warning leniency emboldens criminals. She highlighted low conviction rates due to weak prosecution and pushed for police and judicial reforms.
Read: Pakistan Senate Committee Rejects Public Executions for Capital Offences
Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar countered that sentence severity does not deter crime, citing Europe’s 2% crime rate, which is reportedly lower than the rate in countries that do not have capital punishment. He noted Pakistan imposes the death penalty for over 100 offences and that Section 354-A’s death penalty dates back to General Zia ul Haq’s 1982 regime.
The Senate also passed the Extradition Amendment Bill to streamline extradition requests and the Pakistan Citizenship Act Amendment Bill, which enables the diaspora to reclaim their citizenship. The session adjourned until Monday afternoon.
