ISLAMABAD: On Thursday, Federal Minister for Law Azam Nazir Tarar criticised the “baseless propaganda” being circulated regarding the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill and argued that “Parliament cannot implement legislation contradictory to the Shariah.”
At a press conference in the federal capital, Tarar and Qamar Zaman Kaira, the advisor to the prime minister for Gilgit Baltistan and Kashmir, both spoke. The minister insisted that the statute in question was not brand-new because it was passed in 2018.
The head of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) was also consulted before the law was passed, he added. “At the time of its enactment, all political parties, including PML-N, PPP, PTI, and others, approved this law,” he said.
The law minister emphasised that the 2018 legislation was intended to “defend their rights, including inheritance, education, employment, health, and acquiring a property” and that transgender people are treated equally with other human beings.
He also noted that the Supreme Court of Pakistan had rendered a thorough decision in 2013, stating that transgender people were equal citizens and that it was the duty of the state to grant them rights.
In order to “avoid its exploitation,” Jamat-e-Islami (JI) senator Mushtaq Ahmed Khan recently recommended a modification to the law, the law minister said.
He added that according to the Pakistani Constitution, no one shall be subjected to discrimination on the basis of their gender. “Senator Mushtaq has proposed that those declaring themselves to be transgender must show a medical report to confirm it,” he said.
Speaking at the event, Kaira stated that the government supports the bill modifications put forth by Senator Mushtaq but noted that social media had turned into a “hotbed for bogus news.”Kaira argued that although changes have not yet been made to the law, they are necessary and that Senator Mushtaq’s proposed amendment will further strengthen the transgender law.
Kaira argued that the amendment should be backed since it will fix all the problems with the current law and that Senator Mushtaq “is not at all against the law.”