Islamabad: Pakistan’s coalition government once again did not introduce the controversial Constitution Amendment Bill in Parliament on Monday. This was apparently due to the lack of numbers required to pass it. The details of the amendments still remain a mystery, as the government has not officially shared it with the media or discussed it publicly. The reports received so far suggest that the government is planning to increase the retirement age of judges and fix the tenure of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
The bill will be introduced in Parliament soon
Senator Irfan Siddiqui of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) told the media that the amendment bill will not be introduced in Parliament on Monday. Siddiqui told Geo News that the session of both houses on Monday would be “adjourned” and “it will be convened next time when we are ready in all aspects to introduce the constitutional amendments.” Asked if the matter could be delayed for months, the PML-N senator said the bill was likely to be introduced within a week or two. “Our wish was that the bill should be passed within two days,” the senator said.
This is why the government backed down
The government was forced to postpone the move to introduce the amendment bill in parliament after efforts to get the support of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman failed. The government needs 224 votes in the National Assembly and 64 in the Senate to pass the amendments. The coalition has 213 votes in the National Assembly and 52 in the Senate. With eight members of the National Assembly and five senators, the JUI-F is in a position to play a key role.
