The cabinet approved proposed 27th constitutional amendment will bring major changes in the structure of army and judiciary.
Details of important changes have been revealed in the draft constitutional amendment prepared by the federal government, including a new post for the army chief and large-scale reforms in the structure of the judiciary.
According to the draft, various amendments have been proposed in 48 articles in the constitutional amendment. Under these amendments, it has been proposed to establish a Federal Constitutional Court that will function as a federal constitutional court separate from the Supreme Court.
The headquarters of the Federal Constitutional Court will be in Islamabad and the term of its Chief Justice has been set at three years. The retirement age of the judges of the Constitutional Court will be 68 years and it will have the jurisdiction to hear disputes between the federation and the provinces, interpret the constitution and hear cases related to fundamental rights.
It has been proposed to abolish Article 184 of the Constitution and to include a provision for the establishment of a Federal Constitutional Court in Article 175. The constitutional powers of the Supreme Court will be limited and transferred to a new court.
A new procedure has been devised in Article 175A for the appointment of judges, in which the Chief Justice of both courts will be included in the Judicial Commission.
The decisions of the Federal Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court will not be binding on each other, however, according to the amendments in Article 189, the decisions of the Constitutional Court will be binding on all courts. The Supreme Judicial Council will be reconstituted and the Chief Justices of both courts will be its members.
A new post has also been proposed for the Army Chief. The post of Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee has been abolished, while the Army Chief will be given the additional post of Chief of Defense Forces, along with a proposal to give the rank of National Hero and lifetime privileges to the post of Field Marshal.
In addition, the Prime Minister will have the authority to appoint seven advisors and the number of advisors to the Chief Ministers will be increased, judges who refuse appointment to the Supreme Court or the Constitutional Court will be considered retired, while the new rules of the Supreme Judicial Council have been set to be made within 60 days.
A new chapter has been added from Articles 175B to 175L, which details the powers and procedures of the Federal Constitutional Court and will also determine the advisory scope of the Constitutional Court.
If this draft is approved, not only will there be major changes in the structure of the judiciary, but the role and powers of the Army Chief will also increase, which could prove to be a major turning point in the country’s political and constitutional landscape
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