Major constitutional facelift set to redefine power balance

ISLAMABAD: An upcoming constitutional amendment bill is set to introduce major changes in Pakistan’s judicial and parliamentary systems. Its key points likely include the setting up of a constitutional court, a merger of the judicial and parliamentary commissions responsible for the selection of judges, as well as a redefinition of Article 63-A of the constitution of Pakistan, which deals with the issue of disqualification of members of parliament on grounds of defection. Another important aspect is the fate of reserved seats in the National Assembly, which, according to some reports, is the trigger for the flurry of activity around this new constitutional amendment.

Although a consensus on increasing the retirement age of superior court judges has not yet been formalized, the PTI has already announced it would launch a countrywide protest if the age limit of Supreme Court and high court judges is revised. Nothing is set in stone so far, however, as there are several unpredictable elements at play. For example, the timing of the Supreme Court’s rebuke to the Election Commission of Pakistan over the delay in implementing its July 12 order about the PTI’s eligibility for reserved seats in parliament has raised many eyebrows in the power corridors.

A busy week

Last week was a busy time in the country’s political circles with several sets of secret meetings between political stalwarts and other stakeholders. PML-N leader Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif was part of at least two such meetings, according to well-placed sources.

Insiders privy to these meetings told The News that the political leadership sees the burgeoning consensus for a constitutional revamp as another opportunity to revive the 2007 Charter of Democracy signed between the PPP and PML-N.

The idea that the latest constitutional amendment was a revival of the spirit of the Charter of Democracy was endorsed by the Leader of the House in the Senate and Deputy Prime Minister Senator Ishaq Dar during his remarks in the Upper House on Saturday. He said that the constitutional bill was in line with the provisions of the Charter of Democracy, endorsed by all the political parties, including the PTI. He also touched upon the issue of a constitutional court.

“Under the Charter of Democracy, article four required a constitutional court in the country to hear constitutional petitions and dispose of them. The elite class in the country gets swift petition hearings whereas 60,000 cases are pending in the Supreme Court, including 25 per cent constitutional petitions and 50 per cent constitutional petitions in the high courts”, said Dar.

The historic 18th Amendment, passed during President Asif Ali Zardari’s first government, faced hostile opposition by then-maverick Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry. The judiciary pressured parliament to alter the procedure introduced in the 18th Amendment, and parliament succumbed by bringing another amendment to fix superior court judges’ selection according to the dictates of the Iftikhar Chaudhry-led judiciary.

Now, sources indicate that the government may attempt to reinstate the original version of this procedure. Former Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial and his bench, in a controversial majority decision, interpreted Article 63-A in a way that was seen as extra-constitutional. Their interpretation disqualified Punjab Assembly members who defied their parliamentary leader’s decision, stripping them not only of their votes but also of their assembly membership.

Recently, the government passed a law that retroactively barred any party from claiming reserved seats if they had not previously submitted a candidate list to the ECP. This was a move to counter the effects of a Supreme Court judgment that awarded reserved and women’s seats to the PTI, despite the party not having representation in parliament. The judgment caused a significant power shift in the Lower House and also the four provincial assemblies, as the seats had previously been distributed among parties present and those that applied for them before the elections.

The government is now looking to present a bill that bypasses the usual parliamentary committee process by transforming the entire house into a committee. This would expedite discussions, limiting the time for scrutiny. After cabinet approval, the bill is expected to be introduced as a government bill.