Indecent Advertisements prohibition Act, 1963

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THE INDECENT ADVERTISEMENTS PROHIBITION ACT, 1963 
 
             CONTENTS 
1.  Short title, extent and commencement 
2.  Definitions 
3.  Prohibition against persons advertising, displaying, etc., indecent advertisements 
4.  Penalty 
5.  Confiscation of documents, etc., containing indecent advertisements 
6.  Offences by companies 
7.  Complaint by a police officer 
8.  Jurisdiction to try offences 
9.  Officers to be deemed to be public servants 
10.  Indemnity 
11.  Other laws not affected 
12.  Power to exempt from application of Act 
13.  Power to make rules 
*14.   
 
 
 
 
*Omitted 

 
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THE INDECENT ADVERTISEMENTS PROHIBITION ACT, 1963 
 
Act No. XII OF 1963 
[18th June, 1963] 
 
An Act to prohibit indecent Advertisements 
 
 WHEREAS it is expedient to provide for the prohibition of indecent advertisements; 
 
 AND WHEREAS  the national interest of Pakistan in relation to the achievement of 
uniformity within the meaning of clause (2) of Article 131 of the Constitution requires Central 
legislation in the matter; 
 
 It is hereby enacted as follows:— 
 
 1. Short title, extent and commencement. —(1) This Act may be called the Indecent  
Advertisements Prohibition Act, 1963. 
  
 (1) It extends to the whole of Pakistan.  
  
 (2) It shall come into force at once.  
 
 2. Definitions.—In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context,__  
 
(a) “advertisement” includes any notice, circular or other document, displayed on 
any house, building or wall, or published in any newspaper or periodical, and 
any announcement made ora lly or by any means of producing or transmitting 
light or sound, but does not include trade circulars issued by manufacturers of 
drugs to medical practitioners; 
 
(b) “indecent” includes whatsoever may amount to any incentive to sensuality and 
excitement of  impure thoughts in the mind of an ordinary man of normal 
temperament, and has the tendency to deprave and corrupt those whose minds 
are open to such immoral influence, and which is deemed to be detrimental to 
public morals and calculated to produce pernic ious effect, in depraving and 
debauching the minds of persons; 
 
(c) “taking any part in the publication of any advertisement” includes— 
 
(i) the writing, typing, stamping, drawing, announcing, printing or 
transmitting of the advertisement ;  
 
(ii) the publ ication of any advertisement outside Pakistan by or at the 
instance of a person residing in Pakistan ; 
 
(d) “public place” means any place where an advertisement can be seen or heard 
by members of the public.  
 
 
 
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 3. Prohibition against person advertising, displaying, etc., indecent advertisements. — 
Subject to the provisions of this Act—  
 
(i)  no person shall take any part in the publication of any advertisement which is 
indecent ; and  
 
(ii)  no person having the ownership, possession or control of any pro perty or 
public place shall knowingly allow any advertisement which is indecent to be 
displayed on such property or place, or to be announced therefrom.  
 
 4. Penalty.—Whoever cotrnavenes any of the provisions of this Act shall, on conviction, be  
punishable—  
(a) in the case of a first conviction, with imprisonment which may extend to six 
months, or with fine, or with both; and  
 
(b) in the case of any subsequent conviction, with imprisonment which may 
extend to one year, or with fine, or with both. 
 
 5. Co nfiscation of documents, etc., containing indecent advertisements. —Any person  
authorised by the  1[Provincial Government] in this behalf may, at any time, seize and detain any 
document, article or thing which such person has reason to believe contains any advertisement which 
contravenes any of the provisions of this Act and the court trying such contravention may direct that 
such document (including all copies thereof), article or thing shall be forfeited to the Government. 
 
 6. Offences by companies.—(1) If the person contravening any of the provisions of this Act  
is a company, every person who at the time the offence was committed, was in charge of, and was 
responsible to, the company for the conduct of the business of the company  as well as the company 
shall be deemed to be guilty of the contravention and shall be liable to be proceeded ag ainst and 
punished accordingly: 
 
 Provided that nothing contained in this sub -section shall render any such person liable to any 
punishment provided in this Act if he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge 
or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission on such offence. 
 
 (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub -section (1), where any offence under this A ct 
has been committed by a company and it is proved that the offence was committed with the consent 
or connivance of, or is attributable to any neglect on the part of, any director, manager, secretary or 
other officer of the company , such director, manager, secretary or other officer shall also be deemed 
to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly. 
 
 Explanation.—For the purpose of this section— 
 
(a) ‘company’ means any body corporate and includes a firm  or other association 
of individuals, and 
 
(b) ‘director’ in relation to a firm means a partner in the firm. 
 
 7. Complaint by a police officer. —Without prejudice to the right of any other person to  
make a complaint of an offence under this Act, a police o fficer not below the rank of sub -inspector 
who receives information that such an offence has been committed, shall, if he is satisfied as to the 
truth of the information, make a complaint of the offence in writing to the nearest 2[Judicial 
Magistrate] having jurisdiction. 
 
1Subs. by F.A.O., 1975(P.O. NO. 4 of 1975), Art.  2 and Sch., for “Central Government”. 
2Subs. by the Federal Laws (Revision and Declaration) Ordinance, 1981 (XXVII of 1981), s. 3 and Sch. II. 
 
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 8. Jurisdiction to try o ffences.—No Court in ferior to that of a Magistrate of the first class  
shall try any offence punishable under this Act.  
 
 9. Officers to b e deemed to be public servants. —Every person authorised under s ection 5 
shall be deemed to be a public servant with in the meaning of s ection 21 of the Pakistan Penal Code  
(Act XLV of 1860).  
 
 10. Indemnity.—No suit, prosecution o r other legal proceeding shall lie  against any person 
for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done under this Act. 
  
 11. Other laws not af fected.—The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to, and not in  
derogation of, the provisions of any other law for the time being in force.   
 
 12. Power to exempt from application of Act. —lf, in the opinion of the 1[Provincial 
Government], public interest so requires, it may, by notification in the official Gazette, direct that the 
provisions of section 3 shall not apply, or shall apply subject to such conditions as may be specified 
in the notification, to, or in relation to, the advertisement of any specified drug or class of drugs.  
 
 13. Power to make rules. —The  1[Provincial Government] may, by notification in the 
official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act.  
 
 14. 2[Omitted]  
 
_________ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Date: - 18.04.2024 
 
1Subs. by F.A.O., 1975 (P.O. No. 4 of 1975), Art. 2 and Sch., for “Central Government”.  
2Omitted by the Federal Laws (Revision and Declaration) Ordinance, 1981 (XXVII of 1981), s. 3 and Sch. II.