ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Parliamentary Affairs on Monday deferred discussion on a bill proposing official passports for children of former lawmakers, amid demands for uniformity and concerns regarding discrimination.
The committee met under chairmanship of Senator Khalil Tahir Sandhu to discuss and review private member’s bill titled “The Members of Parliament (Salaries and Allowances) (Amendment) Bill, 2026”, originally introduced by Senator Mohammad Abdul Qadir during Senate session held on May 8, 2026.
The proposed amendment seeks to extend privilege of a free official blue passport to spouses and dependent children under age of 28 of former members of Parliament.
During the briefing, the committee was informed by the ministry secretariat, on behalf of the minister, that both the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs oppose the amendment. The ministries maintained that eligibility for official passports for various categories of individuals is already regulated under the Passport Rules, 2021, framed by the federal government, and that the proposed amendment is unnecessary and unsupported.
During the discussion, Senator Kamran Murtaza observed if there is a practical need to revise criteria, changes should be made by amending rules rather than altering main legislation, noting the Act serves as fundamental legal framework.
Expressing reservations about current system, Senator Pervaiz Rasheed argued assigning different passport colours to different categories of people amounts to clear discrimination. The committee was also informed a specific department within United Nations formally defines diplomatic categories.
In light of these concerns, the committee suggested passport colours should remain uniform for all categories, with distinctions made only through official titles printed on passports.
Highlighting the main purpose of the legislative effort, Senator Abdul Qadir said complete uniformity was the central demand.
The committee decided to defer further consideration of the bill until its next meeting and allowed one month for reconsideration of proposal.
