The draft of the constitutional amendments approved by the special committee came out.
The 11-page draft was finalized after a consensus was reached in the special parliamentary committee meeting. The constitutional amendment has been named as the 26th Amendment Act, 2024.
Federal Minister of Law and Attorney General will also be members of the commission. A lawyer nominated by the Pakistan Bar Council with at least 15 years of experience will be a member of the commission for two years, two members of the National Assembly and two members of the Senate will be part of the commission. A woman or non-Muslim qualified as a technocrat in the Senate will also be made a member of the commission for two years. One of the three most senior judges of the Supreme Court will be appointed as the Chief Justice. According to the amendment, the parliamentary committee for the appointment of the Chief Justice will have 12 members. The committee will include eight members of the National Assembly and four members of the Senate.
All parliamentary parties will have proportional representation in the parliamentary committee. No court, tribunal or authority can question the advice sent by the Prime Minister or the Cabinet to the President.
Interest will be abolished as far as possible by January 1, 2028. The Chief Justice will be appointed on the recommendation of a special parliamentary committee. On the recommendation, the Prime Minister will send the name of the Chief Justice to the President.
According to the proposal, in case of a judge’s refusal, the name of the next senior judge will be taken into consideration. A 12-member special parliamentary committee is proposed for the appointment of the Chief Justice. All parliamentary parties will have proportional representation in the parliamentary committee. The committee will have 8 members of the National Assembly and four members of the Senate.
According to the proposal, the term of the Chief Justice of Pakistan will be three years. It is proposed to set the upper age limit for the Chief Justice at 65 years. Under Article 184, the Supreme Court cannot give any directive or declaration on its own, under Article 185 of the Constitution. Cases relating to the interpretation of will fall under the jurisdiction of the Constitution Benches.
Under Article 186A, the Supreme Court can transfer any case of the High Court to another High Court or to itself.
No court will be able to inquire about the recommendations sent to the President of the Cabinet or the Prime Minister. The amendment to increase the number of members of the Judicial Commission by amending Article 175A is also a part of the draft.
In Article 175A, the Judicial Commission will include the Chief Justice along with the 4 most senior judges of the Supreme Court, the Law Minister, the Attorney General and the nominated advocate of the Pakistan Bar as a member of the Judicial Commission, two members of the National Assembly and the Senate in the Judicial Commission. will also be included, while one member of the National Assembly and the Senate will belong to the government and the opposition.
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