In the “interest of national security,” the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication has authorized the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to intercept and trace calls, according to a notification released in this respect.
According to the ministry’s announcement, which was released on Monday and of which Dawn.com has a copy, the ISI was authorized under Section 54 of the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organization) Act, 1996.
The notification stated, “In exercise of the powers conferred under Section 54… the federal government is pleased to authorise the officers not below the rank of grade 18 to be nominated from time to time by the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) to intercept calls and messages or to trace calls through any telecommunication system as envisaged under Section 54 of the Act,” in the interest of national security and the apprehension of any offence.
During the December hearing of a case involving audio leaks, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) was informed that the government has forbidden any intelligence agency from recording audio conversations.
During the high court hearing, Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan disclosed to the court that Bushra Bibi, the spouse of former premier Imran Khan, had filed a petition requesting action against a supposedly leaked discussion in which she and PTI leader Latif Khosa were included.
The former first lady claimed that the recording violated the right to privacy and dignity guaranteed by Article 14 of the Constitution when she contacted the IHC on December 6.
The chief secretary to the prime minister and the secretaries of defense and interior were named as respondents in the application, which was submitted through Khosa to the IHC.
Justice Babar Sattar had said in May that, in theory, no public employee had the right to spy on its inhabitants and that anyone caught doing so or encouraging someone to do so would be held “liable for offences.” Also, he had outlawed cell firms from giving government authorities access to the data of citizens.
In accordance with Section 54 of the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organization) Act, 1996, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar notified the National Assembly that the government had given permission to the nation’s top intelligence agency to intercept communications and/or trace calls for the purpose of maintaining national security or apprehending criminal activity.
According to the minister, Section 54 of the Pakistan Telecommunication Reorganization Act of 1996 was further modified when it went into effect in 1996, rather than being a brand-new statute.
He said that this clause had not been altered by any of the preceding administrations and remained unaltered.
According to Section 54 of the act, “the federal government may authorise any person or persons to intercept calls and messages or to trace calls through any telecommunication system, regardless of anything contained in any law for the time being in force, in the interest of national security or in the apprehension of any offence.”
The minister stated that the government periodically released notices in this regard and that numerous instances occurred where the intelligence services used the aforementioned statute to intercept calls and identify the perpetrators of horrible crimes.
“Human rights and privacy are violated”
In response to the notification, the PTI declared that giving police “unlimited powers for phone tapping” amounted to a “lack of privacy and human rights.”
The party wrote on its official X account, “One major reason many companies are leaving Pakistan is lack of privacy and human rights.” “The SIFC initiative is already hurting, and this will make it even worse!”
Shireen Mazari, a former minister of human rights, criticized the action as well. She compared the move to George Orwell’s novel “1984,” which explores how totalitarian governments utilize censorship to stifle dissent, control knowledge, and manipulate reality.
