Cabinet approves constitutional amendments draft to present in parliament today

The federal cabinet on Sunday approved the proposed draft of the 26th constitutional amendment after seeking consensus from the government’s coalition parties, a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office said.
The Consti­tutional Package is legislation proposing a set of constitutional amendments, including the extension of the chief justice’s term. A special parliamentary committee formed last month — which has the representation of all parties, including the PTI — has been discussing various proposals.
Following the approval, the ruling coalition is set to present the draft of the judicial reform package in both houses of the parliament today.
Prior to the National Assembly and Senate sessions, a cabinet meeting was held in Islamabad today under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif.
“The federal cabinet has approved the proposed draft of the 26th constitutional amendment of the government and its coalition parties, including the Pakistan Peoples Party,” the statement from PMO said.
According to the statement, the cabinet took the decision in the wider interest of the country while adhering to the oath of national development and public welfare.
“By the grace and grace of Allah, after the stability of the country’s economy, a milestone was crossed for the country’s constitutional stability and rule of law,” the statement quoted PM Shehbaz as saying.
Meanwhile, the PTI, according to a statement released by its media cell, said that the party’s political committee has decided to boycott the voting process in both houses of the parliament, in case the government tabled the constitutional amendments today.
PTI leader Zulfi Bukhari, in a conversation with Dawn.com, said that the party will attend both sessions of the parliament today, but will not vote for the amendment.
“The party will abstain from voting and record their protest while sitting in the parliament”, Bukhari said.
On the other hand, PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said that the party had “no objections” to the final draft, but will not vote on the bill when it is presented in parliament.

PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan (left) and JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman (right) speaking during a press conference outside the latter’s residence in Islamabad on October 20, 2024. — DawnNews TV

“Our leader Imran Khan will always have the final say on party decisions, so we act on his instructions and recommendations,” the PTI chairman said, flanked by the JUI-F Chief, Maulana Fazlur Rehman as the two held a press conference outside the latter’s residence.
“He instructed us to have more consultations before voting since this legislation is so serious.
“Given that we have no time for further consultations, as well as all the delays, how the bill was processed and how our MNAs and senators were harassed and intimidated, the PTI cannot vote for this bill,” Gohar declared.
Expressing gratitude to the JUI-F chief for his role in the process, Gohar said that the party will attend parliament today and has “no objections” if Fazl votes on the bill. He also demanded “the return” of PTI lawmakers who have been allegedly abducted.
“We will deliver a speech on the assembly floor, but we will not vote on the 26th amendment.”
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said that the government will move forward with the amendment whether the PTI voted in favour of it or not.
“We have waited for as long as we could, and today, under any circumstance, this work will be completed,” Bilawal said while speaking to reports at the Senate.

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Bilawal said that he had hoped the bill was passed with the joint consensus of JUI-F, and, “god willing, that will happen today”.
He said that he was disappointed with the PTI’s stance, adding that he was hopeful that the party would still agree to be a part of the constitutional amendment.
Ministers of the federal government claimed yesterday that it had the required number of lawmakers to pass the much-touted 26th constitutional amendment.
Recounting the various political meetings occurring in the past few days, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said: “Despite the numbers and homework being complete, the attempt was made not to stop the consultation process and achieve broader consensus because when a constitutional amendment takes place, it is our obligation to not only bring all political parties onboard but have a fruitful debate on every clause to take it to a logical conclusion.”
“As [PPP Chairman] Bilawal [Bhutto-Zardari] said yesterday. We have other options present but we are democratic-minded people and it is our effort to move forward on this matter after a complete consensus.”
Similarly, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif also maintained that the government was pursuing a broad consensus on the constitutional package in both houses of parliament despite the government’s numbers being “pretty much complete”.
“Our numbers are complete, Asif said.
More to follow