SC moved against constitutional amendments in new petition

ISLAMABAD: The controversial constitutional amendments proposed by the government have been challenged in a new petition filed with the Supreme Court on Tuesday. 

The country is witnessing political turmoil revolving around Centre's prospective constitutional amendment bill, aimed at making major changes to Pakistan’s judicial and parliamentary systems, which the opposition parties, especially Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) vehemently oppose.

The petitioner requested the court to declare the proposed constitutional amendments to extend the tenure of the top judge as unconstitutional being in violation of the fundamental principles of judicial independence and separation of powers.

He also prayed that Article 179, which establishes the judges' age of retirement should be declared the basic structure of the Constitution and that it cannot be amended.

The petitioner requested the court to strike down any attempts by the executive or legislative branches to introduce a new Constitutional Court that undermines the authority of the existing Supreme Court.

"Reaffirm the principle of judicial independence as outlined in Article 175(3) and various judicial precedents, ensuring that no branch of government can interfere with the autonomy and impartiality of the judiciary," the plea read.

The plea stated that the proposed constitutional amendments to extend the tenure of the Chief Justice and establish a new constitutional court threatens the independence of the judiciary, the separation of powers and the basic structure of the Constitution of Pakistan.

"These amendments would undermine the impartiality of the judiciary, open the door to political interference, and weaken public confidence in the judicial system," it added.

The federal government, National Assembly speaker, Senate chairman and Ministry of Law and Justice have been made respondents in the case.

Last month, a similar petition was filed in the apex court by former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Abid Zuberi, former federal minister for education Shafqat Mahmood, Shahab Sarki, Ishtiaq Ahmed Khan, Munir Kakar and others.

However, the Supreme Court registrar returned with objections to the petition, saying that hypothetical questions have been posed in it.

The possibility of the prospective constitutional amendments came amid the speculations revolving around an extension in the tenure of incumbent Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa — who is set to retire in October this year.

The speculations were given rise by PTI's demand for an early issuance of notification regarding the next top judge in August.

However, for a successful passage of any constitutional amendment, the government needs two-thirds majority in both houses of parliament.

A report published by The News stated citing sources that the government benches are short of five senators and seven members of the National Assembly to carry out constitutional amendments.

As per the report, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl's (JUI-F) Maulana Fazlur Rehman has become a difficult challenge for the ruling coalition parties.

Despite desperate attempts to woo the veteran politician, the government has not yet been successful in gaining his support, which would have achieved the magic number for the much-disputed legislation.