ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Assembly on Tuesday deferred the bill seeking an increase in the number of Supreme Court judges.
The bill, introduced by PML-N’s Daniyal Chaudhry, aimed to expand the Supreme Court’s bench from 17 to 23 judges. However, Barrister Gohar pointed out that, according to Articles 74 and 81 of the Constitution, such a bill must be introduced by the government rather than a private member. Consequently, NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq halted Chaudhry’s attempt and deferred the motion.
In related developments, JUI-F member Noor Alam Khan introduced the Constitutional Amendment Bill 2024, which seeks to amend Article 184(3) of the Constitution. This article concerns the Supreme Court’s suo moto powers.
The proposed amendment stipulates that public interest cases be heard by a bench of at least nine judges and grants affected parties the right to appeal within 30 days to a larger bench than the one that issued the original decision.
Noor Alam Khan said that Article 184(3) has been misused, leading to unfair actions against political figures. Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar cautioned against introducing excessive details into the Constitution, noting potential complications.
Noor Alam Khan also presented a bill to reserve seats for overseas Pakistanis in the National Assembly, Senate, and Provincial Assemblies. Additionally, he proposed a bill banning dual citizenship for Supreme Court and High Court judges and bureaucrats. Both bills were referred to the Standing Committee.
Furthermore, Noor Alam Khan introduced the Contempt of Court Repeal Bill 2024, proposing either the repeal or amendment of the existing contempt of court law. This bill was also sent to the Standing Committee for review.
