Telecom competition rules: Ministry-CCP row delays finalization
ISLAMABAD: A long-running jurisdictional dispute between the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoITT) and the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has emerged as the key reason behind the decade-long delay in finalising the Telecom Competition Rules.
Official documents reveal that the principal obstacle is a disagreement over which institution has the legal authority to frame the competition rules governing Pakistan’s telecom sector.
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According to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), under Section 57 of the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organisation) Act, the federal government is empowered to frame the rules, while Clause 5.1.2 of the Telecom Policy 2015 assigns the Ministry of IT the responsibility of drafting the Telecom Competition Rules.
The regulator stated that it submitted the initial draft rules to the ministry in 2016 following the notification of the Telecom Policy 2015.
In 2017 and 2018, the ministry conducted public consultations and subsequently referred the draft rules to the Ministry of Law and Justice for legal vetting. During this period, the PTA continued to issue reminders to the ministry, urging it to expedite the finalisation process.
The regulator said it had again submitted an updated draft of the rules to the ministry in 2022 in an effort to move the process forward.
However, according to the PTA, the CCP maintains that the MoITT lacks the mandate to frame competition rules, arguing that competition regulation falls within its
own jurisdiction. The institutional disagreement has effectively stalled the process.
In a detailed decision delivered on November 1, 2025, the Islamabad High Court upheld the CCP’s jurisdiction over competition and deceptive marketing matters in the telecommunications sector, dismissing petitions filed by major telecom operators including Jazz, Telenor, Zong, Ufone, and PTCL.
The Court held that the CCP possesses “overarching jurisdiction across all sectors of the economy, including telecommunications,” and that the Competition Act, 2010, and the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organisation) Act, 1996 operate in “distinct yet complementary domains.”
While the PTA regulates technical and operational aspects of the telecom sector, the Court ruled that the CCP has the statutory mandate to prevent and prohibit anti-competitive conduct, abuse of dominance, collusive arrangements, and deceptive marketing.
The judgment also observed that the CCP’s jurisdiction extends to all sectors of the economy, including those regulated by sector-specific regulators.
The latest developments indicate that efforts to resolve the impasse remain underway.
In January 2026, the Ministry of IT circulated a revised draft of the Telecom Competition Rules, to which the PTA submitted its comments in March.
Subsequently, several meetings were held between the regulator and the ministry. The ministry shared another revised draft on July 7, 2026, and the PTA submitted its latest feedback on July 27.
Despite multiple rounds of consultations and revisions, the rules have yet to be finalised, leaving Pakistan’s telecom sector without a dedicated competition framework envisioned under the Telecom Policy 2015.
Industry observers believe the absence of sector-specific competition rules has prolonged regulatory uncertainty, particularly as the telecom market undergoes consolidation and prepares for next-generation technologies, including 5G deployment.
The delay also comes at a time when the government is pursuing broader reforms aimed at improving the regulatory environment and attracting investment into Pakistan’s digital economy. Until the jurisdictional issue between the Ministry of IT and the CCP is resolved, the long-awaited Telecom Competition Rules are unlikely to see the light of day, the officials added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026