Pakistan's 'National Assembly' (Parliament) approved the amended bill limiting the tenure of the Chief Justice in the early hours of monday (October 21, 2024) after an overnight discussion. The Senate on sunday gave the green signal to the 26th Constitutional Amendment Bill with a two-thirds majority. Then, during the session that started late sunday night and continued till five o'clock on monday morning, the National assembly also passed the bill.
The opposition alleges that the bill aims to reduce the powers of the independent judiciary. Out of 336 members of the National assembly, 225 supported the proposed bill. President Asif ali Zardari later gave his approval to the bill, which became law after his signature. According to the notification of the National assembly Secretariat, the 'Constitution (26th Amendment) Act, 2024' has got the President's approval. pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Sunni-Ittehad Council (SIC) opposed the amendment bill, but six independent members who won seats with the support of PTI supported the bill.
The government needed 224 votes to pass the bill. A two-thirds majority is required to approve the amendment and the Senate on sunday voted 65 to 4 to approve the amendment. The ruling coalition needed the support of 64 members in the upper house of Parliament.
The bill includes several constitutional amendments, including the formation of a special commission to appoint one of the three senior-most judges of the supreme court as the Chief Justice. Introducing the bill in this session of the Senate, Law minister Azam Nazir Tarar said that the 'new face' commission will include the Chief Justice, four senior-most judges of the supreme court, two senators and two members of the National assembly (MNAs). One of the two members each from the Senate and the National assembly will be from the opposition party.
This amendment has now put a stop to the automatic promotion of the senior-most judge of the supreme court to the post of Chief Justice after the retirement of the current Chief Justice. Speaker Ayaz Sadiq presided over the proceedings in the National Assembly. According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister's office (PMO), before the cabinet meeting, prime minister Shahbaz Sharif met President Asif ali Zardari to brief and consult him on the proposed constitutional amendment in detail.
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