New Delhi, Nov 19 (IANS): Pakistan's Parliamentary Secretary for Law and Justice, Maleeka Bokhari, revealed on Friday that a clause providing for "chemical castration" of habitual rapists has been removed from the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2021, in the light of objections raised by the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII), the Dawn reported.

Flanked by Law Minister Farogh Nasim at a press conference in Islamabad, Bokhari said the CII had objected to the punishment of chemical castration for rapists, describing it as "unIslamic", the report said.

The clause was later omitted from the Bill before its passage in Wednesday's joint session of Parliament, Bokhari said, noting that "Article 227 of the Constitution also guarantees that all laws must be under the Shariah and the Holy Quran, hence we cannot pass any law that goes against these values".

She said the omission was made after detailed deliberation by a government committee under the guidance of the law minister.

About the Anti-Rape (Investigation and Trial) Bill, 2021, the Members of the National Assembly (MNA) said the previous law had flaws that hampered the provision of justice to victims, hence a new law had been introduced to ensure swift dispensation of justice.