ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Information Commission (PIC) has directed the National Assembly Secretariat to disclose records of lawyers engaged by the Secretariat, payments made to them, and details of court cases handled by them.
The direction came in an order issued on July 16, 2026, while allowing an appeal filed by journalist Saddia Mazhar under the Right of Access to Information Act, 2017.
According to the Commission’s order, Ms Mazhar had submitted an information request on April 17, 2026, seeking five categories of information. These included a year-wise list of lawyers, advocates, law firms and legal consultants engaged by the National Assembly Secretariat from January 2022 onwards, along with a year-wise breakdown of payments made to each of them.
She also sought details of all cases filed by the National Assembly Secretariat before various courts since January 2022, including case numbers, case titles and names of the respective courts.
The applicant further requested information about payments made to lawyers engaged for filing Writ Petition No 2553/2023 and Writ Petition No 2554/2023 before the Islamabad High Court.
During the proceedings, the National Assembly Secretariat argued that the requested information was privileged under the Speaker’s ruling dated October 4, 2024. It also claimed that the information was protected as privileged communication under the Qanoon-e-Shahadat Order, 1984.
After examining the request, the Secretariat’s response and the applicable legal provisions, the Commission rejected these arguments. It held that the requested information constituted a public record and was not exempt from disclosure under any provision of the Right of Access to Information Act, 2017.
The Commission observed that the Speaker’s ruling did not classify information relating to payments made to lawyers as privileged. It also ruled that provisions of the Qanoon-e-Shahadat Order, 1984, were not applicable to the information sought.
Emphasising the objectives of the Right of Access to Information Act, 2017, the Commission noted that the law was meant to promote transparency, accountability, public participation, good governance and greater public access to information held by public bodies.
Allowing the appeal, the Pakistan Information Commission directed the Secretary, National Assembly Secretariat, to provide the requested information to both the applicant and the Commission within 10 days.
