Frontier Corps Ordinance, 1959

The Frontier Corps Ordinance, 1959 sets out the law governing the Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force maintained by the Federal Government primarily to protect and administer Pakistan's external frontiers in and around the Tribal Areas (Section 3). Section 4 says the Corps' structure, and members' pay, pensions and privileges, are set by the Federal Government from time to time, and Section 5 lets the Government appoint Inspectors General, Deputy Inspectors General and Commandants to run individual Units.

Section 6 governs how ordinary members and subordinate officers are recruited: they must sign a recruiting roll and an affirmation (an oath of loyalty to the Government of Pakistan, reproduced at the end of the Ordinance in Urdu, Pashto and Balochi translations) before an appointing officer. Section 7 places overall command of the Corps with the Federal Government, administered day-to-day by the Inspector General and Commandants, while in peacetime each Unit also answers to the local Political Agent or Deputy Commissioner on matters other than internal administration and training.

Sections 8-13 set out a military-style disciplinary code specific to the Corps, covering "more heinous offences" (such as mutiny, using force against a superior officer, or abandoning a post) and "less heinous offences," along with summary punishments, deductions from pay, and collective fines that can be imposed on a group. Sections 14-24 cover how sentences of imprisonment or detention are carried out, the transfer of prisoners, and the recapture of deserters, while Section 16 gives legal protection to Corps members for actions taken in the course of their duties, and Section 17 sets out which authorities have jurisdiction over Corps members.

This is an old ordinance dating to 1959 that has been amended multiple times, including by the Frontier Corps (Amendment) Act, 1965, the 1974/1975 amendment, and a 1981 amendment, several of which changed terms like "Central Government" to "Federal Government" and updated the definition of "Political Officer." Because the extract does not spell out specific penalty amounts for most of the disciplinary offences (referring instead to "summary punishments" as prescribed), those details should be checked against the current rules rather than assumed.