New Delhi: Pakistan’s federal cabinet finally convened on Sunday, after its meeting was repeatedly postponed amid a political tug-of-war, to pass the draft Article 26 constitutional amendment aimed at overhauling key aspects of the country’s judicial system. Approved.
Together, the controversial amendments form a “constitutional package” and are expected to affect power relations between the political executive and the judiciary.
The federal government was scheduled to consider the policy on Saturday, but both parliaments faced delays and adjourned just before midnight.
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After approval by the Cabinet, the bill will be debated by the Senate and then the National Assembly, with a vote scheduled for Sunday evening.
The government’s plan to table constitutional amendments in the Senate on Friday ended after Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman withdrew from negotiations over allegations of harassment of opposition members. The plan was then thwarted by threats.
Pakistan People’s Party’s Syed Khurshid Shah initially claimed that a “unanimous” agreement had been reached, but party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari later said that if a broader agreement was not reached, Pakistan – He warned that he would push through the amendments with support from the Islamic League (N). Achieved.
Rehman, who met with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leadership, reportedly said that he had received a positive response from Imran Khan on the amendments and expected the PTI to give a formal reply on Sunday. are.
However, PTI leader Gokhar Khan said the party would meet Rehman today, while PTI lawyer Ali Zafar clarified that he would not vote in favor of the amendment. PTI political committee too decided to boycott the voteIf the amendment was tabled on Sunday.
ThePrint describes the key proposed amendments, the rationale behind them, and their potential impact.
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suggested package
The constitutional amendment bill was first introduced in September by the PPP-led coalition government as a change to “increase executive involvement in judicial appointments.” The proposed amendments aim to curb the coercive powers of the Supreme Court, fix the term of office of the Chief Justice of Pakistan to three years, and allow the prime minister to appoint the CJP from among the three senior judges.
One of the proposed amendments to create a new Federal Constitutional Court that would encompass the Supreme Court of Pakistan has reportedly been deleted. The government succeeded in preventing the most senior judge from automatically becoming a CJP by introducing a special parliamentary committee to appoint the next judge from among the top three judges. This will prevent Justice Masoor Ali Shah from succeeding Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, who is retiring on October 25. A proposal to extend the retirement age for judges from 65 to 68 was also scrapped.
The package also includes other provisions such as increasing seats in Balochistan’s provincial parliament and changing the appointment process for military commanders.
Some of the major changes proposed are listed below.
Appointment of CJP: The Chief Justice is appointed from among the top three Supreme Court justices by a special committee of Congress. The committee sends the nominee to the Prime Minister, who forwards it to the President for appointment.
Special Congressional Committee for Judicial Appointments: The committee will consist of 12 members, eight from the National Assembly and four from the Senate. Representation of political parties is proportional to their strength in parliament. The committee will have to make the nomination at least 14 days before the CJP’s retirement. The first appointment after the 26th Amendment must be made at least three days before the CJP retires from office. A vacancy or absence of a member shall not invalidate the committee or any decision made by the committee.
Powers of parliamentary committees: The commission will be empowered to make rules containing procedures and criteria for assessing the suitability of judges. The CJP will no longer have the power to appoint a replacement in the absence of the High Court Chief Justice. This responsibility rests with parliamentary committees.
Composition of the Judicial Appointment Commission (Article 175A): The amendment proposes that the committees responsible for the appointment of judges to the Supreme Court, High Courts and Federal Shariat Courts should include members with at least 15 years of experience as senior lawyers in the Supreme Court. There is.
Presidential Recommendation (Article 48): The changes to Article 48 of Pakistan’s constitution aim to prohibit any court, tribunal or authority from investigating advice submitted to the president by the prime minister or cabinet.
Term of CJP (Article 179): The CJP’s term of office is set for three years, or until he resigns, reaches the age of 65, or is dismissed, whichever comes first. The CJP will retire at the end of his three-year term, regardless of his age.
Performance evaluation: A parliamentary committee conducts an annual performance review of High Court judges. Those who do not meet the criteria will be given a certain period of time to improve, after which their case will be referred to the Supreme Judicial Council.
Reduction of suo motu jurisdiction of the Supreme Court (Article 184): this The Supreme Court’s jurisdiction is limited only to applications filed under the relevant provisions.
Constitution Bench: The Judiciary Commission of Pakistan will set up constitutional review boards as necessary and will elect equal representation from each province to the extent possible. Only the Constitutional Court may exercise the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court under Article 184, appellate jurisdiction under Article 185(3) (for constitutional proceedings), and advisory jurisdiction under Article 186. Masu.
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Political opposition to the amendment
In order for this bill to take root in national law, it needs support from two-thirds of both houses of Congress.
However, the current government does not have the necessary numbers to pass the amendment. The party sought support from its ally JUI-F, but refused to support it in Parliament unless the draft was disclosed.
A parliamentary special committee set up last month with representatives from all political parties, including the PTI, then discussed various proposals. On October 11, the PPP published its proposal and subsequently reached an agreement with JUI-F on a joint draft of the amendments.
Following this, a special parliamentary committee chaired by Syed Khurshid Shah approved the draft constitutional amendment on Friday. JUI-F’s Rehman, along with PPP leader Bhutto Zardari, announced on Friday that the party supports the constitutional amendment of Article 26 following PTI’s reply and sought additional days for deliberations.
The agreement was reached after the government agreed to delete parts of the proposed amendments that were unacceptable to JUI-F. Bhutto Zardari stressed the need to pass the amendments with broad political consensus.
Although PTI was close to reaching an agreement with JUI-F, it delayed the decision pending guidance from jailed chief Imran Khan. The party claims members were offered up to 3 billion rupees in exchange for support for the amendment.
The government has denied allegations that members are being coerced into supporting the amendment, including allegations of the abduction of opposition members. The parliamentary session scheduled for Saturday was adjourned before midnight, further delaying proceedings.
Why are Congressional numbers important?
Shahbaz Sharif’s government faces major obstacles in securing the votes needed to pass the amendment. The government needs a two-thirds majority in both houses of parliament, or at least 224 votes in the National Assembly and 64 votes in the Senate.
However, the current coalition government has only 213 members in the House of Representatives and 52 in the Senate, falling short of the required numbers. To make up for the deficit, the PPP-led government is courting the JUI-F, which holds eight seats in the National Assembly and five in the Senate.
The bill is Described by a political analyst as follows: attempt to undermine judicial independenceespecially by giving executive authorities greater control over the appointment and tenure of judges.
On September 17, a petition was filed with the Supreme Court claiming that the proposed amendments are unconstitutional and threaten the independence of the judiciary. It was subsequently rejected. A senior lawyer from Balochistan also protested against the proposed changes.
(Edited by Manat Chu)
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