The Senate approved by a majority the Zainab Alert, Response and Recovery Act, 2020 Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) lawmakers voted against it and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) senators recommended amendments to the bill. The legislation has been named after Zainab, a seven-year-old who was kidnapped from her home in Kasur, raped and killed in 2018. The law will now be effective in the entire country, and which was previously only practiced in Islamabad.
But why did JI oppose?
State Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan suggested Jamat-e-Islami to propose the amendments and assured them of government’s support in this regard. He said Prime Minister Imran Khan had given directions for the Act to be adopted by the Senate during meetings of the Federal Cabinet, stating that that the accused involved in the rape of children, should be awarded death sentence. “It is a matter related to our children’s life and honour, an amendment should be introduced,” he remarked. To read more from ProperGaanda: The Batman: Matt Reeves reveals first look at Robert Pattinson’s Batmobile