KP Assembly bill seeks wider powers, privileges for lawmakers

A proposed law to expand the powers, privileges and legal protections of members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly has triggered debate in political and public circles. The draft, titled the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Powers, Immunities and Privileges Act, 2026, proposes several new facilities and safeguards for MPAs.

These include up to eight arms licences, exemption from all toll taxes, enhanced security, free accommodation at government rest houses, access to VIP airport lounges and a restriction on arresting an MPA without prior approval of the Speaker.

According to the draft, no MPA could be arrested or placed under administrative detention without the Speaker’s approval. The Speaker would also have the authority to seek reports from relevant authorities and order inquiries in such cases.

The bill also proposes legal protections to ensure that lawmakers can attend assembly sessions and committee meetings. In certain circumstances, an arrested lawmaker could be released to attend assembly proceedings.

The draft recommends at least B-category security for every MPA, while A-category security could be provided in cases involving a higher threat level. It also proposes official passports and assembly identity cards for lawmakers and their spouses, along with access to VIP lounges at airports across the country.

On arms licences, the draft retains the existing provision of four non-prohibited bore licences already available under the current law. It further allows lawmakers to obtain four additional licences, subject to the prescribed fee, rules and legal requirements applicable to ordinary citizens.

Other proposed privileges include exemption from toll taxes at all toll plazas, free accommodation at circuit houses, rest houses and dak bungalows, and permission to use special assembly number plates and tinted windows.

The draft also seeks to give MPAs the powers of a Justice of the Peace. It would allow lawmakers to inspect government offices, hospitals, prisons, educational institutions and development projects.

Supporters of the proposed law say some provisions are aimed at strengthening parliamentary autonomy.

But critics argue that several proposals require constitutional and legal scrutiny, particularly those relating to arrest, administrative detention, lawmaker privileges and media access.

Meanwhile, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government rejected reports that provincial lawmakers would be issued blue passports, calling them baseless and misleading.

Provincial Information Minister Shafiullah Jan said the issuance of blue passports falls under the constitutional and legal jurisdiction of the federal government. He said no such decision had been made by the provincial government or the assembly.

In a separate clarification, the KP Assembly Secretariat said provincial lawmakers already had the facility of official passports under existing arrangements. It said the recent recommendation was forwarded to the federal government after the agenda of the Speakers’ Conference and the unanimous recommendations of all provincial assemblies.