Constitutional package in limbo as Fazl opposes judges' extension, retirement age hike

• Fazl says he cannot "support government" on these two points.
• "Seems like numbers were not complete," says Khawaja Asif.
• Sources said the amendment bill is likely to be tabled today.

ISLAMABAD: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, has refused to support the government's proposal to extend judges' tenure or increase their retirement age, leaving the government-proposed constitutional amendment package hanging in the balance.

This development has created a major hurdle for the ruling coalition, which has been scrambling to secure enough support to push the amendments aimed at making major changes to Pakistan’s judicial and parliamentary systems through parliament.

According to sources, while opposition parties, including the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), along with some government allies, have given conditional backing for the formation of a constitutional court, they remain divided on the issue of judges' extension.

The development came after a meeting of special parliamentary committee, held to discuss the package, ended without a consensus, despite several rounds of consultations. 

After the meeting, the session of the National Assembly (NA), initially slated for 11am today (Sunday), finally got underway late at night after multiple delays in the wake of consultations between the government and opposition. 

It was adjourned till 12:30pm, Monday (today), shortly after it commenced. Similarly, meeting of the Senate, which was slated to take place earlier in the day, was also deferred till 12:30pm, today. 

Meanwhile, the federal cabinet meeting — summoned for the approval of the draft amendment — was also put off till Monday (today).

Sources said the amendment bill is likely to be tabled today.

A bustling Sunday

The federal capital bustled on a Sunday as the government made efforts to introduce a 'constitutional package' that reportedly gives it greater control over judicial procedures, with several meetings between the members of ruling and opposition parties continuing throughout the day. 

JUI-F's Fazl took centre stage in the cutthroat race for parliamentary support, with the ruling coalition, pushing to pass the bill, and the opposition, aiming to block it, vying for the cleric's decisive backing in the parliament. ahead of the expected legislation.

“We haven’t received the draft amendment bill yet […] How can we vote before analysing it?” JUI-F General Secretary Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri said speaking to journalists outside Fazl’s residence.

In pursuit of achieving the magic number, required to pass a constitutional amendment the government delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar visited the Fazl’s residence, where two sides held detailed discussions on constitutional and legal matters.

Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi were also present during the meeting.

Separately, Fazl also held meetings with PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who was flanked by Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab, and Aijaz Jakhrani.

The JUI-F chief also met PTI leaders Chairman Barrister Gohar Khan, Senator Shibli Faraz, Opposition Leader Omar Ayub, and former National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser.

Speaking on Fazl's high-stakes interactions, JUI-F's Kamran Murtaza said: "There have been some suggestions from the government which will be discussed with the party leaders."

"All parties including the PTI should be taken into confidence on constitutional amendment," he said, adding that the party would consider suggestions that it deems to be good.

After a slew of meetings with the ruling coalition and opposition, Maulana Fazl arrived at the Parliament House to attend the special parliamentary committee meeting. 

"Stay tuned," the veteran politician responded to a journalist's question in the parliament corridor.

The prospects of the said constitutional package came amid speculations revolving around extension in the tenure of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa — who is set to retire in October this year — after the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) sought an early issuance of notification regarding the next top judge last month.

As per a report published in The News, a consensus on increasing the retirement age of superior court judges has not yet been formalised, with the PTI vowing to launch a countrywide protest if the age limit of Supreme Court and high court judges is revised.

'Numbers game sorted'

Earlier, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, in an exclusive conversation with Geo News, asserted that they had achieved the magic number in both upper and lower houses of parliament for the passage of the much-touted constitutional amendment.

He said they have completed the numbers game for the constitutional amendment, also claiming the support of JUI-F chief Maulana Fazl Rehman after “his reservations are removed”.

"Apart from Maulana Fazl and coalition parties, some other votes will be secured,” the federal minister said without divulging into details. “They are not legally or constitutionally bound to any party."

He hoped the ‘constitutional package’ would be adopted today, adding that its passage would improve the parliament’s environment.

In response to a question regarding the Supreme Court’s clarification on reserved seats verdict issued a day earlier, the defence czar said: “We will be successful despite the apex court’s statement favouring the opposition.”

He castigated the July 12 reserved seats verdict, terming the apex court’s decision ‘an attempt’ to block the way for the constitutional amendment.

However, after the deferral of NA session, the minister said: “It appears the required tally of numbers remains elusive that’s why the meeting has been adjourned.”

"Maulana Fazl didn't support us," he added. 

Proposed constitutional amendments

The government had been tight-lipped on the proposed amendments to the Constitution, but clarified that the package will not be a person-specific and would give the authorities ingress in the judicial procedure.

Its key points likely include the setting up of a constitutional court, a merger of the judicial and parliamentary commissions responsible for the selection of judges, as well as amendment to Article 63-A of the constitution of Pakistan, which deals with the issue of disqualification of members of parliament on grounds of defection.

Geo News obtained the details of a 'closely-guarded’ constitutional amendment bill, which sources claimed contained more than 20 clauses aiming to introduce major changes in Pakistan’s judicial and parliamentary systems.

The bill proposes amendments to Articles 51, 63, 175, 181 and 187 of the Constitution of Pakistan. It also includes the amendment to increase the representation of the Balochistan Assembly from 65 seats to 81.

It also proposed the formation of a constitutional court — which the draft says will hear the petitions related to Articles 184, 185 and 186. The remaining four judges of the constitutional court will be appointed by the judges, sources added.

Furthermore, inter-provisional transfer of high court judges has also been proposed.

Another important amendment proposed in the bill sought appointment of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) through a five-member panel comprising top court judges.

A merger of the judicial and parliamentary commissions responsible for the selection of judges sought in the amendments.

Moreover, it includes the formation of constitutional court and an increase in the number of judges in superior courts, as revealed by Asif. 

'No person specific legislation'

Speaking to journalists at Parliament House on Sunday evening, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar ruled out any "person specific" legislation, reiterating the government’s commitment to ensure speedy justice for the people of Pakistan.

He attributed the delay in tabling of the constitutional package to ‘ongoing broad political consultation’, saying that JUI-F chief held consultation with opposition lawmakers on "each clause of the proposed amendments".

Furthermore, Tarar said that it was decided in the Charter of Democracy that speedy justice would be ensured for the people of Pakistan. 

The minister said that the government does not intend to create misunderstanding regarding the clauses proposed in the amendment bill. "Once amendments are tabled in the parliament, voting will be held on each clause separately," he added.

Earlier, the minister said that reforms were overdue to give the people of Pakistan access to speedy justice, assuring that any legislation to be done in the collective interest of the nation.

The minister remarked that many decades were passed with several cases awaiting trials and it was imperative to take measures for providing speedy justice to the people.

He said that all coalition parties had representation in the special committee constituted for this purpose.

“The government was positive about the number game”, he said, adding that JUI-F chief was an old ally and partner for the ruling coalition. He asked the media to wait for a short while to get a good news in this regard.

The number crunch

The key aspect of the constitutional amendment is that unlike any other legislation, the government will need to secure a two-thirds majority in the parliament to successfully execute it.

In the lower house, the ruling coalition needs 224 votes to pass the constitutional amendment, whereas in the Senate the number stands at 64.

Currently, treasury benches have 211 members against the opposition's 101 MNAs meaning that the government needs 13 more votes to pass the said constitutional amendment.

The ruling coalition comprises the PML-N (110); the PPP (68); Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (22); Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (four); Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (four); Pakistan Muslim League-Zia (one); Awami National Party (one) and Balochistan Awami Party (one).

Meanwhile, the opposition comprises 80 MNAs of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) which are supported by PTI-backed independent lawmakers.

The JUI-F has eight members in the NA, whereas Balochistan National Party, Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) and Majlis-e-Wahdat-Muslimeen (MWM) have one MNA each in the NA.

The ruling benches of the Senate, as per the publication, comprise PPP (24), PML-N (19), BAP(4) and MQM-P(3) in addition to four independent senators.

The total strength of the ruling benches stands at 54 as the government is short of nine votes in the Senate to pass the constitutional amendment.

As for the opposition benches in the Senate, PTI holds 17 seats, JUI-F (5) and ANP (3), while SIC, MWM, BNP, National Party and PML-Q have one seat each.

In addition to this, there is an independent senator as well on the opposition benches with the total number of opposition senators standing at 31.