Senator Ali Zafar says \u201cSupreme Court being dismantled\u201d through proposed amendments
\n Islamabad
\nThe Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday refused to take part in the process for the tabling and passage of the 27th Constitutional Amendment, calling it a \u201cpre-decided\u201d exercise.
\nThe party\u2019s opposition to the proposed amendment comes shortly after Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar presented the 27th Constitutional Amendment Bill in the Senate, which was referred to the Standing Committee on Law and Justice.
\nSpeaking to the media outside Parliament House, where he was flanked by opposition leaders, PTI\u2019s Senator Ali Zafar said that government members handed them a draft comprising 50 amendments.
\n\u201cThese amendments are being made secretly,\u201d he said, adding that opposition members were asked to present their stance in the standing committee.
\n\u201cWe have not even read a single word of it \u2014 how could we appear before the committee?\u201d asked Senator Zafar.
\nThe Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led federal government has proposed abolishing the \u201cChairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee\u201d (CJCSC) position and introducing a new title, \u201cChief of Defence Forces\u201d in the proposed amendment.
\nProposals also include sweeping reforms to the judicial framework, including the establishment of a Constitutional Court, the president and prime minister having a central role in the appointment of judges, and transferring certain constitutional authorities from the Supreme Court to the proposed Constitutional Court.
\nAdditionally, parliament would be empowered to determine the number of judges serving in the Constitutional Court.
\nSenator Zafar noted that the 18th Amendment was passed after a year of consultation, in contrast to what he described as a \u201cstaged drama\u201d surrounding the 27th Amendment.
\nHe also criticised the proposal for presidential exemptions, saying that the government was planning to shield the president from being held accountable for life.
\nThe PTI leader stated that the proposed amendment would abolish Article 184, which the Supreme Court invokes to safeguard fundamental rights. \u201cThe spirit of the 1973 Constitution is being changed.\u201d
\n\u201cThrough these amendments, the Supreme Court is being dismantled. It would be reduced to a mere appellate court,\u201d he said.
\nSenator Zafar announced PTI\u2019s opposition to the tweaks, saying that his party \u201cwould not become part of the conspiracy against the Constitution\u201d.
\nMajlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM) Head Senator Allama Raja Nasir Abbas described the amendments as \u201can attack on the integrity of Pakistan\u2019s Constitution\u201d.
\nRecalling the consensus built on the 18th Constitutional Amendment, he said that parliamentarians were \u201ccoerced and threatened\u201d during the passage of the 26th Amendment.
\n\u201cThis parliament does not represent the people of Pakistan. The amendment will end the very status of parliament,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Senator Ali Zafar says \u201cSupreme Court being dismantled\u201d through proposed amendments Islamabad The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday refused to take part in the process for the tabling and passage of the 27th Constitutional Amendment, calling it a \u201cpre-decided\u201d exercise. The party\u2019s opposition to the proposed amendment comes shortly after Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":513411,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-513391","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n