Criminal
1860 Penal Code overlaid by the Hudood Ordinances and anti-terrorism courts
The Pakistan Penal Code 1860 and Criminal Procedure Code 1898 remain the base. The 1979 Hudood Ordinances added offences drawn from Islamic law, and Anti-Terrorism Courts operate under a separate 1997 statute.
Governing law
- Pakistan Penal Code, 1860
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898
- Offence of Zina (Enforcement of Hudood) Ordinance, 1979
- Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997
- Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016
In practice
Qisas and diyat provisions allow compounding of homicide by the victim's heirs, which has attracted criticism in honour-killing cases and was narrowed by a 2016 amendment. Blasphemy provisions in sections 295-298 carry severe penalties including death and are highly consequential. The Women's Protection Act 2006 moved rape from the Zina Ordinance back to the Penal Code. PECA 2016 is the main instrument in online speech cases and has been repeatedly amended.