Voting on constitutional amendments underway in Senate – Pakistan

Following much controversy and delays, the process of voting to pass the 26th Constitutional Amendment Bill is finally underway in the Senate on Sunday.

The bill, better known as the Consti­tutional Package, is legislation proposing a set of constitutional amendments, including the extension of the chief justice’s term. A special parliamentary committee formed last month — which has the representation of all parties, including the PTI — had been discussing various proposals.

The bill, which was approved by the federal cabinet earlier in the day with the consensus of the government’s coalition partners, was presented in the Senate today by Law Minister Tarar.

According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) released in the afternoon today, the cabinet decided to approve the bill “in the wider interest of the country while adhering to the oath of national development and public welfare.”

“I … wish to introduce a bill further to amend the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Constitution 26th Amendment Bill, 2024,” the law minister said at the Senate as he presented the bill.

“Is it opposed?” asked Senate Chairman Yousaf Raza Gilani, to which he received no response from the Senate members.

Speaking about speculations regarding the extension of the chief justice’s tenure in the Constitutional Package, Tarar clarified that Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa was not interested in any extension.

“During the three meetings that I had with the top judge, he reiterated his disinterest in the extension of his tenure, saying that any amendments would come into effect after his retirement,” Tarar said.

Before the Senate session, the law minister also addressed a press conference at Parliament House, flanked by Information Minister Attaullah Tarar. During the presser, he outlined the contents of the bill and said that a constitutional bench would be formed by a judicial commission led by the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP).

“Before the 18th Amendment, judges were appointed by the President on the advice of the PM,” Tarar said.

“This ‘new-face’ commission will be made up of the CJP, four of the senior-most Supreme Court judges, two senators and two MNAs — one of each will be from the opposition,” the law minister said. “We are aiming to achieve a broader consensus with this commission,” he added.

The minister said that he and the attorney general will also be a part of the commission.

“Marginalised communities and those whose fundamental rights need to be enforced, such as women and minorities, will be appointed by the National Assembly Speaker,” he added. “We will also bring in someone from outside parliament as a technocrat, who can provide input based on their experience.”

In terms of the provincial judiciary, Tarar also said a performance evaluation system was being introduced to assess the performance of judges.

“People complain that their cases are pending for up to 10 years,” he said. “This judicial commission needs to enforce a nationwide standard, so the performance of high court judges will be evaluated.”

Tarar continued: “We need to appreciate the judges who perform well, but in the past, we have received complaints that after confirmation, their work is inadequate. We need to ensure that taxpayers’ money is being well spent, and when the judiciary is receiving such perks, we expect results.

“Cases where there is inefficiency will be referred to the Supreme Judicial Council,” he added.

PTI says ‘no objection’ to draft but decides not to vote

Meanwhile, the PTI, according to a statement released by its media cell, said that the party’s political committee has decided to boycott the voting process in both houses of the parliament, in case the government tabled the constitutional amendments today.

PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, flanked by the JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman as the two held a press conference outside the latter’s residence, said that the party had “no objections” to the final draft, but will not vote on the bill when it is presented in parliament.

“Our leader Imran Khan will always have the final say on party decisions, so we act on his instructions and recommendations,” the PTI chairman said.

“He instructed us to have more consultations before voting since this legislation is so serious.

“Given that we have no time for further consultations, as well as all the delays, how the bill was processed and how our MNAs and senators were harassed and intimidated, the PTI cannot vote for this bill,” Gohar declared.

The PTI has the right to not vote: Fazl

Will move forward with or without PTI: Bilawal

JUI-P senator laments ‘lack of trust’ in system