ISLAMABAD:
An MP belonging to the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) has submitted a constitutional amendment bill to the National Assembly Secretariat seeking to ban alcohol nationwide, including for non-Muslims, by removing the existing religious exemption from the Constitution.
According to details, JUI-F’s Naeema Kishwar Khan moved an amendment to Article 37 of the Constitution, which currently provides a limited exception regarding consumption of alcohol for non-Muslims.
The bill, titled “The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2026,” says it seeks “to further amend the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.”
The proposed amendment specifically requests the omission of the words: “and, in the case of non-Muslims, for religious purposes” from paragraph (h) of Article 37.
The bill clearly states: “In paragraph (h) of the said article, the words “and, in the case of non-Muslims, for religious purposes”, shall be omitted.
If passed, the amendment would effectively remove the constitutional basis for granting permits or exemptions to non-Muslims for alcohol consumption, leading to a total ban across the country, regardless of religion.
The bill’s “Statement of Purposes and Reasons” asserts that alcohol is prohibited in all religions and that associating its consumption with religious minorities is unfair. “Alcohol is forbidden in all religions, so it is unfair to the country’s religious minorities to label them with alcohol.”
The document further invokes constitutional provisions regarding Islamic injunctions. It refers to Article 227, stating that “all existing laws shall be brought into conformity with the injunctions of Islam as set forth in the Holy Quran and the Sunnah.”
“It is true that Islam does not allow a Muslim state to issue alcohol licenses to non-Muslims, while the latter themselves refuse to consume alcohol as a religion.”
The bill also states that it “shall come into force immediately” upon enactment.
