President Asif Ali Zardari has promulgated an ordinance to protect Islamabad’s safe city cameras and surveillance infrastructure, imposing fines of Rs2 million on anyone found damaging such equipment.
The ordinance, issued on the advice of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, was announced through a press release from the President Secretariat Media in Islamabad. It aims to safeguard the capital’s surveillance network from damage and to ensure compensation whenever losses occur.
Under the new law, individuals who damage a camera or any part of the surveillance infrastructure, or who incite others to do so, will face a fine of Rs2 million.
If such damage occurs during protests, rallies, processions, public gatherings, sit-ins or strikes, the organizers of these events will be held equally responsible alongside those directly involved.
An authorized officer will determine the fine amount and the cost of the damage after giving the concerned person an opportunity to be heard. Anyone dissatisfied with this determination can file an appeal with the district and sessions judge in Islamabad within 30 days of the decision.
Funds collected through fines and compensation will be used exclusively for repairing and replacing damaged cameras and surveillance infrastructure. Should a fine or damage cost go unpaid, the amount will be recovered as arrears of land revenue.
