ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Tuesday passed seven private members’ bills, including the Corporate Social Responsibility Bill, 2026, which seeks to establish a legal framework for corporate social responsibility (CSR) spending and require eligible companies to allocate one per cent of their profits to social welfare initiatives.
According to the bill’s statement of objects and reasons, CSR is an established corporate governance practice under which organisations allocate a portion of their profits to social and environmental projects in the communities where they operate.
The proposed legislation seeks to encourage corporate and private-sector contributions to the welfare of disadvantaged communities, environmental improvement and Pakistan’s efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
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The statement notes that Pakistan is lagging behind in achieving the SDGs and argues that the corporate and private sectors must share responsibility for meeting these targets.
Currently, corporate contributions to CSR are guided largely by guidelines and informal arrangements. The statement says neither the Companies Act, 2017, nor the existing company law contains specific, binding provisions governing CSR expenditure.
It argues that guidelines alone cannot ensure compliance without legally enforceable obligations and penalties.
The bill seeks to formalise existing practices by establishing a structured framework for CSR spending.
It also proposes extending the framework beyond Section 42 companies to cover the banking sector and state-owned enterprises.
Under the proposed framework, eligible companies would be required to spend one per cent of their profits on CSR activities.
Separately, the House referred a proposed amendment to the Anti-Rape (Investigation and Trial) Act, 2021, to the relevant standing committee following a heated exchange between PTI MNA Shandana Gulzar and Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar over the monitoring of convicted rapists and measures to prevent repeat offences.
Moving the bill, Gulzar highlighted gaps in tracking repeat offenders, travel notifications and long-term monitoring.
She stressed that sexual violence affected women, boys and girls, underscoring the need for effective safeguards against repeat offences.
Tarar said the National Police Bureau (NPB) already maintained an updated digital register of offenders and argued that the proposed legislation duplicated existing provisions.
He added that the law and human rights ministries opposed the proposed changes.
However, the minister supported referring the bill to the standing committee for further consideration.
The House subsequently approved an amendment moved by JUI-F MNA Aliya Kamran to refer it to the committee.
The other bills passed by the House included the Pakistan Council for Science and Technology Amendment Bill, 2025, the Qanun-e-Shahadat Amendment Bill, 2026, the Islamabad Capital Territory Senior Citizens Amendment Bill, 2025, the Code of Criminal Procedure Amendment Bill, 2024 (Schedule-II), the National Commission on the Rights of Child Amendment Bill, 2025, and the Criminal Law Amendment Bill, 2025.
Meanwhile, six other bills were referred to the relevant committees for further deliberation. These included the Factories (Amendment) Bill, 2025, the Anti-Rape (Investigation and Trial) (Amendment) Bill, 2024, the Islamabad Rent Restriction (Amendment) Bill, 2025, the National Highways Safety (Amendment) Bill, 2025, the Payment of Wages (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and the Criminal Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025, which seeks amendments to the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860, and the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (Section 297A).
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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