President Alvi denies signing Official Secrets and Army Act amendment bills.
In an unexpected turn of events, President Arif Alvi claimed Sunday that he had not signed the Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, 2023, or the Official Secrets (Amendment) Bill, 2023, because his staff had “undermined” his orders.
A day after he had given his approval to the two measures, Alvi made his revelations on the microblogging website X, formerly known as Twitter.
“As God is my witness, I did not sign Official Secrets Amendment Bill 2023 & Pakistan Army Amendment Bill 2023 as I disagreed with these laws,” President Alvi said on X.
“I asked my staff to return the bills unsigned within the stipulated time to make them ineffective. I confirmed from them many times whether they have been returned & was assured that they were.”
“However I have found out today that my staff undermined my will and command. As Allah knows all, He will forgive IA. But I ask forgiveness from those who will be affected,” he added.
President Alvi denies signing Official Secrets and Army Act amendment bills, check his Tweet:
As God is my witness, I did not sign Official Secrets Amendment Bill 2023 & Pakistan Army Amendment Bill 2023 as I disagreed with these laws. I asked my staff to return the bills unsigned within stipulated time to make them ineffective. I confirmed from them many times that…
— Dr. Arif Alvi (@ArifAlvi) August 20, 2023
It is important to note that on August 15, two PTI leaders, Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Imran Khan, were detained following the filing of a first information report (FIR) under the Official Secrets Act accusing them of divulging the contents of the diplomatic cypher for political gain.
The Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which aims to punish people with a maximum five-year prison sentence for exposing sensitive information about national security or the armed services, was passed by the National Assembly on July 31.
Separately, the Official Secrets Act received approval just a few days prior to the National Assembly’s dissolution on August 7.
Also read: Secrets of Official Secrets Act
The legislation was handed to the president for final approval after being approved by the Senate and National Assembly, a decision that prompted condemnation from members on both the treasury and opposition benches.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the president’s party, harshly criticized the president for signing the measures.
