Overview
- The Punjab government formally pulled the Punjab Control of Habitual Offenders Bill, 2026 from the Assembly process on Tuesday and ordered a clause-by-clause reconsideration.
- Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz directed that the draft be reviewed with input from all stakeholders before it is returned to the Law Department and then placed before the provincial cabinet for fresh deliberation.
- Opposition lawmakers, civil society groups and social media users had flagged provisions they said risked infringing fundamental rights, and those objections were cited as the main reason for the halt.
- In the same sitting the Assembly unanimously urged the federal government to tackle the national water-storage shortfall of roughly 90 days, approved a zero-tolerance plan on narcotics in schools, and endorsed a move to a fully digital, paperless legislature.
- The pause gives officials time to rewrite contested clauses and hold consultations but it also keeps the bill’s fate uncertain and signals that rights scrutiny and public pressure can reshape security-related laws in Punjab.