Minister for Planning Development & Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal. Photo file: APP
Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal on Thursday dismissed reports claiming that the government was considering increasing the minimum voting age from 18 to 25 years, calling the claims “baseless” and part of a disinformation campaign.
In a post on his X account, the minister said citizens had been asking whether such a move was under consideration. “I want to make it clear that there is no proposal under review, nor is any legislation being introduced to raise the voting age,” he said.
Iqbal stressed that the government trusted the youth of Pakistan and could not imagine depriving them of their constitutional right to vote. He accused the opposition of spreading false narratives to create controversy and remain politically relevant, saying such tactics were aimed at misleading the public.
Reiterating the government’s position, he said no proposal was under consideration and no legislation was being discussed in any joint session of parliament to increase the voting age.
“The youth of Pakistan are a national asset and fully capable of making informed decisions about the country’s future,” he added, while categorically rejecting the rumours.
The clarification follows the emergence of a letter a day ago written by senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders currently imprisoned in Kot Lakhpat Jail, criticising an alleged proposal to raise the voting age.
The letter was conveyed through their counsel, Advocate Rana Mudassir Umar, and carried the names of Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Dr Yasmin Rashid, Mian Mahmood-ur-Rasheed, Senator Ejaz Chaudhry and Umar Sarfraz Cheema.
In the letter, the PTI leaders termed the proposal regressive and compared it to the previously imposed requirement of a bachelor’s degree for contesting elections, which was later withdrawn.
They questioned why the voting age should be raised when the legal age for obtaining a national identity card, a driving licence and marriage was 18, warning that excluding young voters would weaken democracy rather than strengthen it.
