The Senate refers the 27th Constitutional Amendment Bill to the Joint Parliamentary Committee

The Senate session, chaired by Senate President Yusuf Raza Gilani, began on Saturday with discussions centered on the 27th Constitutional Amendment Bill, which was approved earlier in the day by the federal cabinet.

Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar tabled the 27th Amendment in the Upper House and requested that question hour be suspended. The motion to suspend Question Time was made by the Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and was approved by the Senate.

The bill was subsequently referred to a mixed parliamentary committee consisting of members from both the Senate’s Standing Committee on Law and Justice and the National Assembly’s counterpart.

Read: 27th Amendment – What we know so far

The joint committee will be chaired by the chairmen of both committees, Senator Farooq H. Naek and MNA Mahmood Bashir Virk, and will review the proposed legislation in detail.

During the session, Law Minister Tarar informed the house that all political parties would be invited to participate in the committee’s deliberations. He stressed that the bill would be discussed thoroughly before it went ahead.

Opposition senators, including Senator Ali Zafar and Senator Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, expressed concern that the amendment had been introduced without broad consensus. They argued that the opposition had not been given sufficient time to review the draft.

Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar stated that detailed deliberations would take place in the Standing Committee and noted that the appointment of the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate fell under the prerogative of the Senate President.

Read more: The cabinet delays the meeting on the 27th amendment

The session also dealt with the preparations for the upcoming Inter-Parliamentary Speakers Conference to be held in Islamabad where Speaker Gilani briefed the members on the arrangements of the event.

A joint meeting between the National Assembly and the Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice has been called for 14 today to continue discussions on the 27th constitutional amendment.

The government approves the change

The federal cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif via video link from Baku, approved the draft of the 27th constitutional amendment, the state-run PTV News reported.

The Prime Minister welcomed government members and thanked allied parties for their support. The meeting was attended by Union Ministers Khawaja Asif, Bilal Azhar Kayani, Rana Tanveer, Aurangzeb Khichi, Rana Mubashir, Aun Chaudhry, Dr. Shezra Mansab, Riaz Hussain Pirzada, Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh and Malik Rasheed Ahmed while Attorney General Awan’s house were present at Usman Awan’s Prime Minister’s house.

After the government’s approval, Federal Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar briefed the media and stated that the bill would now be presented in the Senate and subsequently referred to a joint parliamentary committee. He said the government had completed consultations with coalition partners, including the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).

Read also: The government will finalize the first 27th amendment draft for cabinet review tomorrow

Tarar explained that under the proposed amendment, the powers of the executive with regard to the transfer of judges would be curtailed, transferring the power to the Judicial Commission. He added that the amendment also addresses delays in Senate elections in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa to ensure simultaneous polls across the country.

He noted that proposals to increase the number of advisers from five to seven and to amend Article 243 to change the procedure for key appointments were also included. In addition, the title of “Field Marshal” would remain an honorary, lifelong distinction.

The Minister further stated that an amendment to Section 140-A had been proposed, which reflects the MQM’s bill on the powers of local authorities, which will also be considered by the Parliamentary Committee.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the amendment represented a collective effort in the national interest and to strengthen the federation’s relationship with the provinces. He thanked the Ministry of Law and Justice, the Attorney General and their teams for their contribution.

The prime minister said he had consulted PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari and expressed gratitude for their guidance and approval. He also thanked the allied leaders Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Dr. Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Abdul Aleem Khan, Khalid Hussain Magsi and Chaudhry Salik Hussain for their approval of the draft.

Shehbaz added that consultations had also been held with political leaders including Aimal Wali Khan and Ejazul Haq. He said political and economic stability had put the country on the right track and urged all stakeholders to work collectively for national prosperity.