No forced abayas, Senate panel tells banks

A Senate committee has directed Islamic banks not to force female employees to wear abayas and instructed all banks

A Senate committee has directed Islamic banks not to force female employees to wear abayas and instructed all banks to adopt a modest dress policy without making any specific attire compulsory.

The Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue, chaired by Senator Saleem Mandviwalla, discussed complaints regarding dress code policies at banks, particularly those offering Islamic banking services.

During the meeting, Senator Dr Zarqa Suharwardy Taimur said some female employees had complained that they were being required to wear abayas while male staff were not subject to similar restrictions.

Senator Sherry Rehman said no employee should be compelled to wear a particular dress. She said Pakistan already has a recognised national dress and a modest dress code should apply equally to everyone, regardless of gender.

State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmad informed the committee that similar guidelines had been issued previously and communicated to all banks.

The committee clarified that it supported a decent and professional dress code but opposed making any specific clothing mandatory. It directed all banks to submit their dress code policies and instructed the SBP to issue fresh guidelines to ensure employees are not subjected to unnecessary restrictions.

The committee also reviewed complaints about charges imposed on ATM withdrawals, Visa card transactions and SMS banking alerts.

Members expressed concern over customers being charged for SMS alerts even when they did not request the service. Senator Abdul Qadir claimed that banks were collecting significant amounts through SMS charges.

The SBP governor explained that SMS charges were collected by telecom operators rather than banks. However, committee members questioned the level of charges imposed on customers.

The panel directed that SMS notifications should only be provided to customers who choose to receive them and unnecessary alerts should be discontinued.

The committee also sought details about dollar-denominated charges on ATM and Visa card transactions and asked the relevant authorities to review the matter.

Separately, lawmakers discussed taxes collected through electricity bills. Some members argued that electricity consumers were paying a heavy tax burden, making household bills increasingly difficult to afford.

Federal Board of Revenue Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial said most of the tax collected through electricity bills consisted of sales tax, which is applied under the country’s taxation system. He added that several exemptions were already available for electricity consumers.