LAHORE: Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan was surprised when an opposition member informed him that the Punjab Control of Habitual Offenders and Anti-Social Behaviour Bill, 2026 had been approved by the PA Standing Committee on Law. “It has been laid?” he asked, taken aback when PTI’s Rana Aftab Ahmad Khan clarified that the standing committee had given its nod to the legislation. The bill proposes a regime in which the executive can freeze a person’s bank account, seize their property, remove their online presence, confiscate their phone, and place them under electronic surveillance, all on the basis of an intelligence committee’s assessment of their conduct. MPA Rana initiated the conversation on the legislation in the House, which had met to discuss the province’s supplementary budget. He said the bill was against human rights and warned that if enacted, it would affect the coming generations. The ruling PML-N could also become a victim of it as it could not remain in power for forever, he said. For his part, the speaker said he was not aware that the bill had been introduced in the House, expressing annoyance with the assembly secretariat and warning of strict action. The bill was introduced in the House on June 8. DNA
