Pakistan Cabinet approves controversial constitutional amendment bill

Islamabad: 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.

Ahead of the cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Shehbaz met with President Asif Ali Zardari for detailed discussions on the proposed constitutional amendment, during which the president was briefed and consulted, Express News reported.

After the 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.

A notification from the Senate secretariat said that the upper house session will commence at 3 pm. The National Assembly session will start at 6 pm, according to a separate notification from the NA secretariat.

Strict security arrangements have been made for today's session of the National Assembly, with guest entry strictly prohibited, according to the assembly's spokesperson.

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.

Earlier, the government lacked the required numbers in the Senate and the National Assembly. However, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has claimed that the government now has the support to reach the required numbers.

Maulana Rehman of JUI-F, in a late-night talk with the media along with Bilawal, said his party would support the 26th constitutional amendment after receiving a response from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and sought a day for further deliberation.

The JUI-F reached a consensus on the constitutional package after the government agreed to remove all parts not acceptable to the party, Rehman said.

Bilawal, who is spearheading the official effort to garner the required numerical strength, said on the occasion that he wanted the legislation to take place with the consensus of all the political parties.

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.

To pass the amendment, the governed needs 224 votes in the 336-member National Assembly and 64 in the Senate. The current coalition strength in the NA is 213 and 52 in the Senate. The JUI-F with eight NA members and five senators is in a position to play a major role. Rehman can also bring the votes of opposition parties like the jailed former premier Imran Khan's PTI.

The government was forced to delay tabling the amendment bill in Parliament last month after its efforts to get Rehman's support failed earlier.

Meanwhile, after a late-night meeting, the PTI has decided to boycott the session when the amendment would be presented, media reports said.

PTI leader Gohar Khan told the media that party founder Khan wanted more time and authorised his party to continue to engage with Rehman.

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. The PTI claimed it was unable to contact at least two of its senators.

Allegations about opposition lawmakers being abducted to vote for the bill have been rejected by Defence Minister Asif.