Senate panel tells SBP to stop forcing female staff to wear abayas

A parliamentary committee and the government agreed on Wednesday to ask the State Bank of Pakistan to urge commercial banks to stop requiring their female staff to wear abayas, saying women should not be compelled to follow any specific religious dress code.

The commitment was made during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Finance, where lawmakers were also briefed on a plan by tax authorities to deploy artificial intelligence based cameras across 17 key industrial sectors to curb extensive tax evasion.

The discussion on dress requirements began after Senator Zarqa Suharwardy informed the committee that some Islamic banks were compelling their female employees to wear abayas.

“Pakistani women already dress modestly and should not be forced to wear abayas at Islamic bank counters just to present a religious appearance,” she said.