KEY POINTS
- Six supplementary clauses added to the 27th Amendment reshape judicial, executive, and military powers.
- Bill establishes a Federal Constitutional Court and ends Supreme Court’s suo motu authority.
- Military command restructured under a new Chief of Defence Forces with constitutional protection.
- Opposition and legal bodies decry the move as curbing judicial independence before Senate review.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Assembly, the lower house of the country’s Parliament, on Wednesday completed clause-by-clause approval of the 27th Constitutional Amendment Bill, adopting six supplementary amendments and voting 234–4 in favour.
The government described the changes as long-overdue legal and structural reforms. Opposition parties and legal experts described the move as a power grab that threatens judicial independence and federal-provincial balance.
Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar opened the debate by describing constitutional reform as an evolutionary process undertaken with careful deliberation.
He told the House that the draft had been reviewed with bar councils and bar associations nationwide, and that the Senate’s joint committee had already endorsed the earlier version with a two-thirds majority.
He added that the changes sought to remove ambiguities concerning the office of the Chief Justice of Pakistan and to strengthen institutional frameworks.
The Bill underwent a clause-by-clause vote, with 234 members rising in favour and four opposed, following which the supplementary amendments were accepted.
Because these amendments alter clauses already passed by the Senate, the Bill must return to the upper house to complete the constitutional process.
Among the most significant proposed reforms is the creation of a Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) to hear constitutional disputes and enforce the fundamental rights, thereby reducing the Supreme Court’s scope.
The amendment also restructures military leadership: it abolishes the post of Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from 27 November 2025, elevates the Chief of Army Staff to the new post of Chief of Defence Forces, grants the rank of Field Marshal (and equivalent) constitutionally, gives lifetime privilege and immunity to such officers, and places them under Article 47 removal only.
Changes to Articles 199 and 200 are also proposed: judges of High Courts may be transferred between provinces on the recommendation of the Judicial Commission, and judges refusing transfer may be deemed retired.
The amendments also grant the President lifetime immunity under Article 248—but only if the President does not hold public office again.
The Bill declares that certain acts of treason under Article 6 will not be subject to validation by any court, including the FCC, the Supreme Court or High Courts.
Political reactions were sharp. PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari supported the Bill as fulfilling commitments of the Charter of Democracy and ending misuse of suo motu judicial powers.
Opposition figures such as Mahmood Khan Achakzai insisted the amendment was undemocratic and opposed consultations, accusing the government of blocking public rule and calling for a caretaker national government and fresh elections.
In judicial circles, concerns are deep. Senior judge Athar Minallah has called on the Chief Justice to convene a full court meeting to discuss threats to judicial independence, warning that the Bill permanently denudes the Supreme Court of its authority.
Bar associations in Sindh and elsewhere staged protests, and the Sindh government imposed Section 144 to prevent gatherings.
The next step requires the Senate to reconvene and vote on the amended Bill. If approved there by a two-thirds majority, the Bill will be sent to the President for assent and become part of the Constitution.
The sequence thus remains: upper house approval, lower house reaffirmation, and presidential assent.
