“54 Changes Proposed: 26th Amendment to Pakistan’s Constitution Unveiled”

Islamabad-(Mudassar Iqbal)-The draft of the proposed 26th Constitutional Amendment Bill has been unveiled, while the government struggles to garner enough support in parliament to introduce changes to various articles of the Constitution.

The sessions of both the National Assembly and the Senate were set to re-convene today, as the government continued its efforts to table crucial judiciary-focused constitutional amendments. However, in a setback, the federal cabinet’s meeting scheduled for 10:30am today to approve the draft law on judicial reforms, has been postponed.

It is being said that the meeting was postponed as Maulana Fazlur Rehman refused to extend support to the bill.

The government is set to table proposed constitutional amendments in Parliament on Monday, comprising 54 clauses. Key changes include:

– Increasing representation in the Balochistan Assembly from 65 to 81 seats
– Amendments to Article 63, stipulating voting rights for dissident members
– Appeals against constitutional court decisions to be heard within the same court
– Transfer of judges to high courts in other provinces
– Appointment of chief justice from a panel of five senior judges
– New article (9A) entitling citizens to a healthy and clean environment
– Immunity for PM from scrutiny by courts
– Changes to Articles 177, 179, 215, and 239

A major portion of the amendments deals with the establishment of a new Federal Constitutional Court, including:

– Referral of political party matters to the Federal Constitutional Court
– Inclusion of judges of the new court among those whose conduct cannot be questioned
– Funding for the Federal Constitutional Court
– Appointment of Chief Justice and judges
– Jurisdiction in matters involving two governments

These proposed amendments aim to bring significant changes to Pakistan’s constitutional framework.