ISLAMABAD, Oct 20: The Pakistan Cabinet Sunday approved the proposed draft of the controversial 26th Constitutional Amendment during a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif after seeking consensus from the coalition partners, his office said.
The coalition government is set to table the proposed judicial reforms bill in the Senate and the National Assembly on Sunday.
“The federal cabinet has approved the proposed draft of the 26th constitutional amendment of the government and its coalition parties, including the Pakistan Peoples Party,” Dawn News reported, quoting a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office.
After the cabinet meeting, Federal Minister Musadik Malik said the government approved its draft, which was prepared in collaboration with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), the government, and coalition partners. The cabinet has officially endorsed the draft.
The coalition government is highly optimistic about getting the much-anticipated 26th Constitutional Amendment passed in parliament, Geo News reported.
On Saturday night, the bill was discussed with Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
The details of the amendments are still a mystery as the government has not officially shared it with the media or discussed it publically. What has been reported so far shows that the bill’s alleged objective is to dilute the power of an independent judiciary.
Reports indicate that the government plans to raise the retirement age for judges and fix the tenure of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. A constitutional amendment requires separate passage in the National Assembly and Senate, with a two-thirds majority vote.
A common element in the drafts is that the government has abandoned the proposal to create a separate constitutional court. Instead, it has agreed to establish a special constitutional bench within the Supreme Court to address constitutional or political issues.
Reportedly, the government did succeed in getting support to prevent the senior-most judge of the top court from automatically becoming the Chief Justice. It also introduced a special parliamentary panel to appoint the Chief Justice out of the three top judges of the court.
If passed, the government could block Justice Masoor Ali Shah from succeeding the current Chief Justice, Qazi Faez Isa, upon his retirement. Isa is set to retire on October 25 after reaching superannuation, which is 65 years.
The original idea of extending the retirement age of judges from 65 to 68 is also not part of the amendment.
To succeed, it should be passed before the October 25 deadline to complete the formalities for setting up the special panel.
Meanwhile, after a late-night meeting, the PTI has decided to boycott the session when the amendment would be presented, media reports said.
Reportedly, Khan’s party sought to delay the process until October 25, when Chief Justice Isa retires, as it supports Justice Shah for the position.
There are also allegations by Khan’s party and some other parties that their lawmakers were being forced to support the move. (PTI)
