PECA 2016 § 2V — Tribunals

Statutory text (English)

(1) The Federal Government may, by notification in the official gazette,
establish as many Social Media Protection Tribunals for the purposes of this Act as it may determine.
Where more than one such Tribunals are established, the Federal Government shall specify territorial
limits within which or the class of cases in respect of which each of such Tribunal shall exercise
jurisdiction under this Act.

(2) A Tribunal shall consist of—
(a) a Chairman, who has been or is qualified to be a judge of a High Court;
(b) a journalist registered with any press club of Pakistan having not less than
twelve years of relevant experience with known professional competence in his
field and having a bachelor’s degree in journalism recognized by the Higher
Education Commission of Pakistan; and
(c) a software engineer, and expert in the field of social media rights haying a
minimum of bachelor’s degree recognized by the Higher Education
Commission, of Pakistan, in relevant field or allied subject.

(3) The Chairman and members of a Tribunal shall be appointed by the Federal Government
for a period of three years, on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed.

(4) The Chairman or a member of a Tribunal may resign from his office by writing under his
hand addressed to the Federal Government through the division to which business of law stands
allocated.

(5) The Federal Government may remove the Chairman or a member of the Tribunal if he is
found unable to perform the functions of his office due to mental or physical disability, inefficiency or
to have committed misconduct.

Explanation.— For the purposes of this section, the expression “misconduct” means conviction
for any offence involving moral turpitude and abuse or misuse of authority.

(6) In case of a vacancy occurring due to the death, resignation, completion of his term of
appointment or removal of Chairman or any member of the Tribunal, the Federal Government shall
appoint another qualified person within a period not exceeding one month from the date, the vacancy
occurred.

(7) The Tribunal shall decide all cases within ninety days. In case the decision is not rendered
within the stipulated time, the Tribunal shall record the reasons for the same.

(8) The Tribunal shall follow such procedure as may be prescribed.
(2W) Jurisdiction of the Tribunal.—

(1) The Tribunal shall exercise such powers and perform
such functions as are or may be conferred upon or assigned to it by or under this Act or rules made
thereunder.

(2) Any person aggrieved by any decision of the Authority may prefer an appeal before the
Tribunal in such manner as may be prescribed.

Source and verification

Source citation: PECA 2016 (Act XL of 2016) s.2V: Pakistan Code portal consolidated official PDF 'THE PREVENTION OF ELECTRONIC CRIMES ACT, 2016' (incl. Act XXXVII of 2023 & Act II of 2025 amendments), p. 18, 19, ingested 2026-09-15. Automated transcription from official source (pypdf extraction, audited artifact repair); human admin re-check required before production.

Verification status: verified · Text status: auto_transcribed_verified_source

The record cites an official source, but its transcription is automated or only partly checked; a human re-check is pending.

Official Urdu text status: pending_official_urdu_text. Where official Urdu wording has not been sourced, Qanoon does not substitute an unverified translation for the statutory text.

Historical text notes

1 historical record is linked to this section. Historical wording may be incomplete or pending verification; it is not presented as current law.

• Date not confirmed: Consolidated current text as published in the official Pakistan Code PDF (p. 18, 19) — reflects all amendments recorded in the official footnotes up to ingest date 2026-09-15. Automated transcription; per-amendment…

Read this provision with care

This is a public reference to a stored statute record, not legal advice or a case-specific interpretation. Check the latest official gazette, applicable amendments and jurisdiction before relying on the text. A citation and verification label describe the record in this app; they cannot confirm that no later change has occurred. For a real legal matter, consult a licensed advocate.

Use the full PECA 2016 section index to compare nearby provisions, or return to search.