Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Law Department has formed a committee to review legislation passed by the provincial assembly during the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government's tenure, with recommendations due to the relevant authorities within seven days.

The review covers laws linked to 20 provincial departments, including legislation on prosecution, universities and medical teaching institutions. It will also examine laws governing the powers and privileges of the provincial assembly, among them the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Prosecution Service (Amendment) Act 2025.

Governor Faisal Karim Kundi has confirmed the exercise, saying any law found to be flawed will be amended. Adviser on Information Samar Haroon Bilour said the government was examining some highly controversial laws passed hastily during the PTI's time in office, though officials have not yet specified which laws could face amendment or other changes.

What the committee is being asked to judge

At its heart, the review asks a governance question rather than a purely legal one: whether the laws passed under the previous government strengthened institutional autonomy and public welfare, or concentrated powers, privileges and administrative control in ways that served narrower interests.

The distinction matters because the committee's findings are expected to guide the next steps, and the authorities will decide on further action only after receiving its recommendations. Until then, no individual law has been singled out publicly for repeal or amendment.

Why the timing matters

The review comes at a sensitive moment for the province, where the elected PTI-led government has been displaced by governor's rule and an advisory set-up. A systematic audit of the previous government's statute book is therefore likely to be read politically as well as administratively — as both a clean-up exercise and a test of how the new arrangement justifies its decisions.

For now, the concrete facts are limited to the committee, its seven-day deadline and its wide remit. What it recommends will determine whether this becomes a routine legal tidy-up or a much larger rewriting of the province's recent laws.

Sources: Azaad Digital; 365 News.