- Meeting comes after both coalition partners step back from earlier stance on constitutional court
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday discussed the proposed constitutional amendments and prevailing political situation in the country during a meeting held at the President House.
PM Shehbaz went to President’s House to discuss the proposed constitutional amendments with President Zardari.
The meeting between the two bigwigs of the two coalition partners comes after the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) stepped back from their earlier stance to establish constitutional courts.
On the other hand, during a special parliamentary committee meeting, chaired by Khursheed Shah, discussions were held on the 26th constitutional amendment draft.
According to sources, the governing coalition parties and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) have agreed to drop the proposed 26th constitutional amendment, which called for the creation of constitutional courts.
Instead, they reached a consensus on forming a constitutional bench.
The special committee meeting concluded with the government and JUI-F deciding to consult the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on a joint draft. JUI-F leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman will share the finalised draft with PTI leadership, marking the nearing completion of the amendment process.
However, Information Advisor for Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Barrister Saif announced PTI will mount both legal and political resistance against the proposed constitutional amendment.
PTI lawmaker Barrister Saif labelled on Thursday that the current government is “illegitimate” and accused it of “attempting to secretly alter the constitution without public representation”.
PTI’s political committee has announced its decision to resist recent constitutional amendments and hold a nationwide protest this Friday.
The parliamentary committee will reconvene after Friday prayers to continue discussions on the draft.
Earlier in the day, the amendments proposed by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s (MQM-P) to 26th constitutional draft were discarded.
The proposed amendments related to local government powers and funds have also been removed from the draft.
Both the ruling PML-N and PPP succeeded in convincing MQM.
According to the two main coalition partners, the amendments proposed by the MQM-P will be considered in the next 27th constitutional amendment, with the party expressing agreement with the government’s suggestions.
