The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F has refuted journalist Hamid Mir’s claim that its party chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman was under pressure to give a vote to the controversial constitutional amendment and join the federal cabinet.

JUI-F leader Rashid Mehmood Soomro confirmed this to Aaj News while appearing on News Insight with Amir Zia via video link on Monday.

When asked about reports that Fazl was not just under pressure by the federal cabinet but also a foreign ambassador to cooperate with the government, he said: “No, there is no such thing.”

Described as the “26th Constitutional Amendment”, the intended legislation is set to propose a fixed three-year tenure for the chief justice of Pakistan. Although the legislation was initially scheduled to be introduced in the National Assembly and Senate on Monday, the government was unable to present it over the weekend despite intensive efforts to secure the necessary support. The government failed to convince Fazl after hours of efforts to woo him.

The details of the proposed amendments, which had largely been kept under wraps, were discussed during a special parliamentary committee meeting on Sunday night.

Mir while appearing on Geo News show Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay claimed that one group in the federal cabinet managed to “get Fazl telephoned from somewhere” and asked him not just to support the government but also join the cabinet.

The journalist, who hosts Capital Talk, alleged that some cabinet members were of the view that they could get the religio-political leader’s vote through just a telephone call. But Fazl was “determined” in his position.

According to Mir, the government also “asked someone from the outside to call Fazl” after the JUI-F leader “politely refused” President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif over their request for a vote for the legislation.

The journalist was of the view that “unnecessary pressure” offended Fazl and the constitutional amendment was not in front of him.

He stated the government was still trying to get Fazl on board and getting the PTI leader’s consent on it.

According to Mir, the JUI-F chairman was against the appointment of the chief justice of Pakistan in the constitutional court and asked the treasury to wait until a month. He asked the government to wait for the incumbent CJP to retire. He added that the PTI asked the treasury to have a table talk and “release their four men.” The BNP-M also wants 2,000 men released for the vote.

The journalist claimed that there were at least three to four drafts of controversial constitutional amendments and the one presented to the JUI-F was the third one. “When the PPP saw it, the party got worried after comparing it with the first one,” he said and alleged that the PML-N reprimanded its three senators after they asked for the “real draft”. But they “got upset, went to Parliament Lodges, and switched off their phones.” Mir claimed that they would resign if the party would dictate them.

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When some PML-N parliamentarians got to know that PML-N President Nawaz Sharif left for Lahore, Mir claimed that some of them told the party that they would not turn up for the session.

In response to a query whether the government was making itself unstable, the journalist replied that Independent Senator Faisal Vawda’s comments that the government was “incompetent should not be ignored as it has some background.”

Mir claimed that the PML-N has put Bilawal forward after getting failed in bringing legislation. He added that the government would bring legislation for “face-saving” that would be acceptable to PPP, JUI-F, and PTI. “But if this did not happen, then what I am hearing from within the government circles is that some cabinet members are worried about their future and they don’t know what will happen.”