The federal government has put off plans for the constitutional amendment for the time being after failing to gather the numbers required.
National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq adjourned on Sunday the session over a controversial constitutional amendment till 12:30 pm on Monday. The late-night lower house of Parliament session was convened after hours-long delay, owing to the treasury and opposition lawmakers’ meetings with JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to get his support for the legislation.
However, a copy of the NA’s agenda for Monday revealed that the the amendment was not part of the three items today. The Senate session was also postponed indefinitely
The NA session was convened briefly on Sunday night. Later, PML-N lawmaker Bilal Azhar Kayani moved a motion related to suspending the question and hour and call attention notices for the September 15 and 16 sessions.
When the speaker called for a vote on the motion, the majority of the lawmakers voted in favour of the motion as none of the constitutional amendments were tabled during the minutes-long session.
In a similar development, the Senate session was also adjourned till Monday 12:30 pm.
When a reporter asked, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that maybe the government’s numbers required for the crucial vote were not complete.
The PML-N lawmaker added that he did not know about the details of the meeting between the treasury members and JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman advised the government to postpone the tabling of legislation until tomorrow (Monday) during a special committee meeting on proposed constitutional amendments at the Parliament House, Islamabad.
PPP lawmaker Syed Khursheed Shah presided over the meeting. Members from both sides of the aisle attended the meeting.
The government has “finalised” the necessary votes for the constitutional amendment, sources said on Sunday, resulting in the cancellation of a meeting between PML-N President Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif with JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
Due to ongoing delays in the special committee of Parliament, along with the National Assembly and Senate sessions, the decision has been made to pass the constitutional amendment bill on Sunday (today).
A National Assembly session would be convened shortly, as the government has claimed that it has secured Fazl’s support and addressed the JUI-F’s concerns.
The role of JUI-F has become critical for the approval of the constitutional amendment in the NA. In recent days, PM Shehbaz has met with Fazl twice while President Asif Ali Zardari and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also approached the JUI-F leader to request support for the amendment.
A PTI delegation also visited Fazl at his residence last night for discussions.
The government has addressed the concerns of JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman regarding the constitutional amendment, with PPP lawmaker Bilawal Bhutto Zardari playing a “mediating role” between the two parties.
Following this development, a meeting of the JUI-F parliamentary party took place in Islamabad where Senator Kamran Murtaza presented the revised draft to the party chief. The JUI-F leader also briefed the parliamentary party on the matter.
Despite such discussions, it remained undecided whether the religio-political leader would support the government on the judicial reforms.
The proposed amendment is part of a comprehensive package that includes the establishment of a constitutional court, for which a procedure for appointing judges is also being formulated.
Sources stated that new judges would be appointed to the constitutional court, aimed at providing relief to ordinary petitioners.
During a meeting last night, Bilawal and Fazl addressed their differences, paving the way for the legislation to be presented in the National Assembly and Senate.
The government has secured the necessary votes in both the National Assembly and the Senate, sources said and added that amendments were also being made concerning the votes of dissident members, and a draft has been prepared for the amendment of Article 63-A (Disqualification on grounds of defection, etc) of the Constitution.
They added that the numbers for the constitutional amendments in the Senate are also complete. Previously, PML-N leader and lawmaker Tariq Fazal Chaudhry had also asserted that the government has the required votes for the constitutional amendment.
As the government works tirelessly in the National Assembly, the two votes from the Balochistan National Party (BNP-Mengal) have become crucial in the Senate. PM Shehbaz reached out to BNP-M chief Akhtar Mengal via telephone to request support for the legislation.
According to sources, Mengal responded that his party would not vote until the issue of missing persons was addressed. He requested the premier to share the draft of the constitutional amendment.
The BNP-M leader also confirmed such developments in a series of social media posts while responding to journalist Hamid Mir’s claims.
PML-N President Nawaz Sharif has returned to the country and would participate in the NA session, sources said. PM Shehbaz welcomed Nawaz at the Prime Minister’s House where they discussed the proposed package of constitutional reforms.
They added that Hamza Shehbaz was also present during the meeting and the premier briefed Nawaz on contacts with Fazl and other political parties.
The process of modifying the “constitutional package” continued until the last moment, resulting in multiple delays for the federal cabinet meeting, as well as sessions of the National Assembly and the Senate.
Sources stated that the cabinet meeting was originally scheduled for 3pm, but it was delayed. Staff outside the committee room reported that the cabinet meeting was on hold and it remains unclear when it would commence.
PM Shehbaz had called for the cabinet meeting on Sunday initially set for 12pm, but the timing was later changed to 3pm. The cabinet is expected to approve the draft of the constitutional amendments.
The time for the NA session has been altered several times. Originally scheduled for 11am, it was first pushed to 4pm, then rescheduled to 8pm, but that time has also passed without the meeting taking place.
The change in the meeting time was made based on a special recommendation from the parliamentary committee. The special session lasted for a while during which committee members requested time to consult with their respective leadership.
Following this, meetings of the parliamentary committees of various political parties were held.
After a meeting at 10am, the special committee requested the speaker for additional time to make decisions on several important matters. In response to the request, the NA speaker adjusted the meeting time and the NA Secretariat issued a notice regarding the change.
It is expected that the session would be convened at 10pm
The time for the Senate meeting has also been changed following alterations to the National Assembly’s schedule. Initially set for 4pm, it was later moved to 7pm, and it was expected to take place between 3am and 4am.
Sources indicate that the change in the Senate meeting time was made on the government’s recommendation and a notification regarding this adjustment has been issued.
The Senate Secretariat has released a five-point agenda for the meeting, which does not include any items related to constitutional amendments.
The agenda features two notices of attention, along with a motion concerning the suspension of questions by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar. Additionally, a motion expressing gratitude for President Asif Ali Zardari’s address to the house is also included.
Notably, neither chamber’s agenda contains any items related to the constitutional amendment, raising questions about what strategies the government may employ.
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The government needs a two-thirds majority in the National Assembly (224 votes) and a majority in the Senate (64 votes) to pass the amendments. Currently, the government holds 211 seats in the National Assembly and 54 in the Senate.
The government’s support base includes 110 members from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, 68 from the Pakistan Peoples Party, 22 from the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, and 4 each from the Awami National Party and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid. The government also has the support of one member from the Pakistan Muslim League-Zia and one from the Balochistan Awami Party.
The opposition currently holds 101 seats in the National Assembly, including 80 from the Sunni Ittehad Council, 8 independent members supported by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, 8 from the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, and one each from the Balochistan National Party, the Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen, and the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party.
The government needs the support of an additional 13 members to secure the necessary votes. Even with the support of the JUI-F’s 8 members, the government would still need 5 more votes.
