Federal Shariat Court strikes down 2022 law decriminalising attempted suicide

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Shariat Court on Monday declared the 2022 legislation decriminalising attempted suicide un-Islamic and void, restoring the earlier legal provisions that treated the act as a criminal offence, according to a written judgment.

The court allowed petitions challenging the 2022 amendments and ruled that the legislation was not in line with Islamic injunctions.

It held that the changes made to Pakistan’s criminal law in 2022, which removed provisions treating attempted suicide as an offence under the Code of Criminal Procedure, could not sustain legal scrutiny.

“The relevant law is declared void,” the court said in its verdict.

As a result of the ruling, provisions earlier removed from the criminal code have been restored, effectively reinstating the offence of attempted suicide under Pakistani law.

The case was heard by a bench comprising Chief Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rahman, Justice Muhammad Anwar Iqbal and Justice Ameer Khan.

Petitions in the case were argued by lawyers Hamad Hassan Dar and Azam Malik, according to court proceedings.

The court had reserved its judgment earlier and announced the decision on Monday after concluding hearings.

Under the now-nullified 2022 amendments, the provision criminalising attempted suicide had been removed from the Code of Criminal Procedure, a change that the court has now overturned.

No immediate reaction from the government was available following the verdict.