Pakistan: Lahore HC Files Petition Against 26th Constitutional Amendment

The Lahore High Court Bar has challenged the 26th Constitutional Amendment in Pakistan’s Supreme Court, according to ARY News on Saturday. Hamid Khan, Senior Vice-President of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, filed a petition from the LHC Bar, asking the court to declare several clauses of the 26th Amendment unconstitutional.

In his petition, Hamid Khan requested the court to deem sections 7, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, as well as sections 16, 17, and 21 as unconstitutional. He also urged the court to declare the actions taken under various sections of the 26th Amendment as unconstitutional, as reported by ARY News. Additionally, Khan asked the court to restrain the judicial commission and other related steps while the petition is pending.

The petition named the federation, judicial commission, National Assembly, Senate, Speaker of the National Assembly, and the President as respondents. Hamid Khan stated that restoring the constitution to its original form has been a significant issue in the Supreme Court Bar election, as noted by ARY News on Tuesday.

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A lawyer remarked that they view the 26th Amendment as the most significant attack on the constitution. When asked whether lawyers would accept the 26th Amendment, Hamid Khan told ARY News, “We consider the 26th Amendment the biggest attack on the constitution that has unsettled the judicial system.”

The elections for the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) were taking place on Tuesday, as per ARY News. Khan emphasized the necessity for lawyers to campaign against the 26th Amendment and make every effort to repeal it in order to ensure judicial independence.

Polling for the SCBA elections is underway to elect central office bearers, Vice Presidents, and executive members from various provinces, according to ARY News. Over 4,000 voters are expected to participate, with the largest number coming from Lahore (1,414), followed by Karachi (516) and Peshawar (372).

The constitutional amendment establishes a three-year term for the Chief Justice of Pakistan, with a 12-member parliamentary committee responsible for nominating a new Chief Justice from a panel of the three most senior judges, as reported by ARY News. This committee, consisting of eight members from the National Assembly and four from the Senate, will propose the nominee to the Prime Minister, who will then forward the name to the President for final approval.

A Judicial Commission of Pakistan, led by the Chief Justice and including three senior judges, two members each from the National Assembly and Senate, the Federal Minister for Law and Justice, the Attorney General, and a nominee of the Pakistan Bar Council with at least fifteen years of practice in the Supreme Court, will oversee the appointment of Supreme Court judges, according to ARY News.

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