Constitutional amendments in Pakistan

Constitutional amendments in Pakistan — I

It appears that the amendment in the constitution of 1973 was the worst one as it opened the gate for military dictators to overthrow parliament

Pakistan has become a laboratory for constitutional experiments is the very first line of a book titled Constitutional Development in Pakistan by G W Choudhry. This seems relevant and reasonable in 2013 as the constitution of 1973 has had 20 constitutional amendments. Here, it seems pertinent to briefly put together a few lines on historical aspects concerning previous constitutions of Pakistan. In the 20 years it has had three constitutions. Firstly, the Government of India Act 1935, as adopted under the Indian Independence Act 1947, which was known as the’ interim constitution’ of the country and under which it was governed from 1947 to 1956. Secondly, the constitutional of 1956, officially designated the ‘late constitution’, framed as a result of the deliberations of two constituent assemblies over nine years of effort but which remained in operation for only two and a half years. Thirdly, when following a period of martial law and 44 months, constitutional government was restored on June 8, 1958 and a new constitution promulgated by Ayub Khan in accordance with the mandate that he had received from the people in 1960.

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the chronology of 1973 constitutional amendments in Pakistan. The article will consider all 21 amendments made by several parliaments starting from 1973 to 2013.

Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto put into practice the 1973 constitution, and in the first five years he made seven amendments. He remains the only prime minister who in his tenure amended it more than any other to date. When Nawaz Sharif came to power in the 1990s, he made six attempts but succeeded in introducing only five, as one attempt was withdrawn. Muhammad Khan Junejo was successful in making two amendments out of three. General Ziaul Haq, who has the credit of ‘Islamisation’ of Pakistan, was provided a ‘licence’ by Junejo in the form of the eighth amendment, which can be regarded as a notorious amendment because it enabled General Zia to dissolve the elected parliament at any given time. It appears that the amendment in the constitution of 1973 was the worst one as it opened the gate for military dictators to overthrow parliament, dismiss prime ministers and get the control of the country by imposing martial law.

When Benazir Bhutto became the prime minister in 1988, the Pakistan People’s Party failed to secure an absolutely majority in parliament, and therefore did not do any harm to the constitution of 1973. The National Assembly adopted the 1973 constitution unanimously but the process to introduce amendments in it began soon after. Six amendments were introduced between May 8, 1974 and January 4, 1977, and the seventh on May 16, 1977 in its short tenure.

When Ziaul Haq dismissed Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, he suspended the constitution and imposed an authoritarian rule. The Supreme Court of Pakistan sanctioned Zia’s martial law on the basis of the doctrine of necessity. The Supreme Court on July 7, 1977 endorsed the action of the chief martial law administrator, followed by the authorisation to the CMLA to inculcate necessary amendments in the constitution.

The general elections of 1985 were non-party. Parliament had to pass the eighth amendment, which was mandatory for its own survival. A review of constitutional amendments revealed that the first amendment in the 1973 constitution was introduced on May 8, 1974, which reviewed 14 articles of the constitution including, 1, 8, 17, 61, 101, 127, 193, 199, 200, 209, 212, 259, 260 and 270, and the First Schedule were amended. Under these amendments, curbs were imposed on political parties, and they were barred from indulging in activities against national interest, besides making it mandatory on them to declare their source of income. It appears that to declare the source of income was sensible.

Under the second amendment on September 21, 1974, changes were made in Articles 106, 209. The changes declared the Ahmadis non-Muslims, and seats were reserved for them in the Assemblies. It is arguable that Articles 106 and 209 were changed to appease the right wing entities to get their support in parliament. It also appears that this amendment has put Pakistan under immense pressure and test. The state of Pakistan has always appeased the right wing political parties as it has no sense of secularism. The foundation of Pakistan was made on religion and in the 1960s it was made clear that religion and the state were not separable. Fundamentalism, in the last 20 years, has increased and intolerance in society is at its peak, which is alarming.

Through another amendment in the constitution on February 18, 1975, Articles 10 and 232 were amended. The executive was given the power to detain and arrest any person involved in activities against national security. The executive was also authorised to impose emergency in the country through a joint session of parliament. The review of constitutional history discloses that various laws pertaining to anti-terrorism were introduced. The purpose of introducing these laws was to arrest and detain politicians, intellectuals, and activists from all over Pakistan. Furthermore, it appears that the power given to the executive was unjustifiable.

Under the fourth constitutional amendment, brought into effect on November 25, 1975, changes were introduced in Articles 8, 10, 17, 19, 51, 54, 106, 199, 271, 272, 273, and the Fourth and First Schedules. Under these amendments, laws pertaining to fundamental rights were diluted and High Courts were barred from allowing bail to political detainees. The Fifth Amendment was on September 5, 1976 in which 16 Articles including 101, 160, 175, 179, 180, 187, 192, 195, 196, 199, 200, 204, 206, 212, 260, 280, and the First Amendment were amended. Due to the Fifth Amendment, the Bhutto government impaired the working of an independent judiciary and the high court was stripped of the power to issue orders on fundamental rights. The Sixth Amendment in the constitution was introduced on January 4, 1977, and considered Articles 179, 195, 246 and 260 for amendment. The Sixth Amendment added further curbs on the independence of the judiciary and the retiring age of the Supreme Court and High Court judges was fixed at 65 and 62 years, respectively.

(To be continued)

The writer is an attorney and a lecturer in Law of International Trade and can be reached at greenlaw123@hotmail.com

http://dailytimes.com.pk/opinion/03-Jun-13/constitutional-amendments-in-pakistann-i

Chronology of constitutional amendments in Pakistan — II

Constitutional amendments have always been carried out to victimise the political structure of Pakistan

The seventh amendment in the constitution was made effective on May 16, 1977 under which Articles 101 and 245 were altered. The prime minister was given the power of referendum to prove his popularity and the judiciary was restrained from touching issues pertaining to the armed forces. On October 17, 1985, the eighth amendment was carried, empowering the president to dissolve the National Assembly, appoint the services chiefs, governors of provinces, and designate the prime minister. It appears that two power centres were created and vast powers were vested in the president. Under these presidential powers, four successive elected governments could not complete their constitutional terms.

The ninth amendment was presented in the National Assembly in 1988 but it could not be approved. The 10th constitutional amendment became effective on March 29, 1987. The 11th amendment was tabled in 1988 but it could not be passed. In that amendment bill, the restoration of special seats for women was proposed. Through the 12th constitutional amendment, Nawaz Sharif established special courts to ensure speedy trial of accused involved in heinous crimes. Through the 12th constitutional amendment, Sharif established special courts to ensure speedy trial of accused involved in heinous crimes.

The 13th constitutional amendment became effective on April 4, 1997. Through this amendment the powers of dissolving the assemblies were taken back from the president and vested in the prime minister. This amendment was made with the mutual agreement of government and opposition.

The 14th amendment became effective on June 30, 1997. Through this amendment political parties were empowered to terminate the parliamentary membership of their members involved in floor crossing to strengthen other political parties.

The 15th amendment is about the Shariat Bill, which was approved on August 28, 1998. Through this amendment, the Holy Quran and Sunnah were declared the guiding principles for running government. Under the banner of an Islamic system, Sharif tried to get absolute powers. This amendment was passed by the National Assembly but could not be passed in the Senate.

The 16th constitutional amendment became effective in 1990. Through this amendment the period of the quota system was extended up to 2013. Only the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) voted against the move. The 17th amendment became effective in December 2003 in which the president got back the powers of dissolving the assemblies and the LFO was made part of the constitution.

The unanimous passage of the 18th, 19th and 20th amendments restored the genuine parliamentary system and ensured more autonomy to the provinces, as 247 members from both government and opposition benches in the lower house voted for the amended version of the bill. No members present in the house voted against it.

The amendment has set down a process to install a caretaker set-up and hold free and fair elections in the future. Through that, the PPP government has ensured free, fair and transparent elections in the country for future generations and an independent Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). It is to the credit of the democratic government that from now on there will not be any imported caretaker prime minister in this country. Even a minor role for appointing the caretaker prime minister to hold general elections has been eliminated by the 20th Constitutional Amendment.

The 20th Constitutional Amendment Bill 2012 has given the ECP sweeping powers by minimising government’s direct role in the appointment and removal of its members. Under the new mechanism of choosing caretakers, as envisaged by the amendment, both prime minister and leader of the opposition in the National Assembly would hold a ‘consultation’ on the matter. The process of finalising names must be completed within three days of the assembly being dissolved. In case the premier and the opposition leader fail to agree, an eight-member committee comprising four members from both sides will come up with its suggestions. If this panel also fails to agree, the ECP will then be empowered to send names to the president.

The amendment also envisaged that four members, one from each province, would be chosen for five years and the government would have to follow the same procedure to seek their removal, as is the case with High Court judges. An incumbent prime minister or chief minister will continue to hold office till the appointment of their replacements. The amendment also allows political parties to make additional nominations to their lists for parliamentary seats reserved for women and minorities if an existing list is exhausted.

In culmination, it is submitted that constitutional amendments have always been carried out to victimise the political structure of Pakistan. I daresay military dictators in the past abrogated the constitution by imposing martial laws to gain political benefits, which were vague and untenable in a modern age parliamentary democracy. Thus, the state pillars in coming years should work to strengthen democracy in Pakistan.

(Concluded)

The writer is an attorney and a lecturer in Law of International Trade and can be reached at greenlaw123@hotmail.com

http://dailytimes.com.pk/opinion/03-Jun-13/chronology-of-constitutional-amendments-in-pakistan-ii

 

1973 Constitution uneasy marriage between Islam, socialism: govt counsel

NASIR IQBAL — PUBLISHED May 19, 2015 06:46am

ISLAMABAD: A counsel defending the 18th and 21st amendments on behalf of the federal government has termed the original 1973 Constitution “infinitely inferior” to what exists now as the earlier one was an uneasy marriage between Islamic concepts and socialism.

“The 1973 Constitution is an uneasy marriage between Islam and socialism which will never succeed,” senior advocate Khalid Anwar argued before a 17-judge bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk.

Also read: SC judge says Constitution has concept of basic structure

The full court is hearing a set of petitions challenging the appointment procedure of superior court judges under the 18th Amendment and establishment of military courts under the 21st Amendment to try hardened terrorists.

While the preamble of the Constitution under Article 2 enunciated about the Islamic doctrine of sovereignty, Mr Anwar said, Article 3 was the exact reproduction of Article 12 of the USSR’s 1936 constitution which asked for the elimination of exploitation and gradual fulfilment of the fundamental principle.

He recalled that with the consent of minority parties the founders of the 1973 Constitution were the PPP which had won the elections on the basis of a popular slogan “roti, kapra aur makan” (food, clothes and shelter) which revolved around the concept of socialism, and not religion.

“Should we say then socialism is the basic structure of the Constitution,” the counsel said, adding that the concept of socialism was derived from Marxism which hated religions and held them to be opium for the people.

“The present constitution is far, far superior than the earlier 1973 Constitution the credit of which goes partly to the Supreme Court as well as parliament,” he said.

The preamble of the Constitution, Mr Anwar emphasised, stated that sovereignty over the entire universe belonged to Allah Almighty and had to be exercised through the will of the people and not that of any institution through the chosen and not appointed representatives of the people to realise the principles of democracy, freedom, equality, tolerance and independence of judiciary.

“These are the aspirations and hopes framed by the framers of the Constitution,” he said, adding that the independence of judiciary did not mean increasing the powers of the judiciary but to keep it away from the influence of the executive and legislative wings.

Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed, a member of the bench, asked the counsel to refer to the speeches of Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, instead of theories of Karl Marx and Lenin, and say whether he was trying to suggest abrogation of the Constitution.

“For God’s sake, we should not be fixated with the past since the basic structure concept has neither been workable nor will it work,” the counsel retorted.

Justice Jawwad S. Khawaja observed that as judges “we have taken oath to the Constitution and whether the basic structure exists or not, or the Constitution was good or bad, we cannot simply rubbish it”. “It’s a judgment call that the 1973 Constitution is inferior,” he observed.

Justice Ejaz Afzal cited the letters written by Dr Allama Iqbal to the Quaid-i-Azam and said that the concept of equalitarian society as emphasised upon in the letters was part of Islam.

Khalid Anwar said he wondered why military courts could not coexist in Pakistan when the same survived in the United States despite the fact that the US Supreme Court wielded immense judicial authority and independence while in Pakistan the authority was vested to the apex court under the Constitution.

However, the counsel preferred to elaborate further on the subject later.

Referring to Article 209 of the Constitution which dealt with removal of judges, he said it was the most controversial provision.

“It may not be that controversial though very seldom and less applied provision that was invoked lastly in 1970,” observed Justice Saqib Nisar.

“The Supreme Court does not have any army for the implementation of its judgments,” Mr Anwar said, adding that only through its moral authority the court implemented its judgments through the executive.

Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2015

http://www.dawn.com/news/1182763

PCO and its victim judges

— PUBLISHED Jan 07, 2008 12:00am

OUR Constitution is the basic law of the country and is the fountainhead of all other laws, which are subordinate to and consistent with it. The oath of office is prescribed to important office-holders in the third schedule to the Constitution, and calls on them to preserve, defend, uphold and act according to the basic law.

Judges of the superior courts and officials of the armed forces also take the oath with an additional requirement for armed forces personnel — they are required to steer clear of political activities.

If the Constitution stands suspended, the oath of a judge remains intact because he acts according to law which includes a suspended Constitution, essentially an extraordinary situation. A judge, having taken oath under the Provisional Constitution Order (PCO), can declare both the suspension of the Constitution and the PCO illegal.

The country has seen constitutions abrogated in 1958 and 1969 and martial laws imposed. But the judicial system continued as it was, without any removal of judges. In 1971, after the war with India and the consequent fall of Dhaka, West Pakistan saw Zulfikar Ali Bhutto become president and the first civilian CMLA.

The martial law imposed in 1969 continued, with many government officers being dismissed and retired on grounds of misconduct, without a mandatory inquiry. However, some were retired following scrutiny of their record and in consultation with the chief justices of the high courts.

In 1977, General Ziaul Haq imposed martial law, suspending the Constitution instead of abrogating it as was done on two previous occasions. The Supreme Judicial Council was approached to investigate whether any judges in the high courts were selected for political reasons and, after an inquiry and the right of personal hearing, several were retired as political appointees.

As if this was not enough, the 1981 PCO was promulgated after the Supreme Court granted validation to the martial law, empowering the CMLA to amend the Constitution.

As a result, many judges were retired from the Supreme Court and the high courts without having their say. This PCO came after a delay of four years as the Supreme Court had granted conditional validation that required all orders and regulations passed by the regime to be subject to judicial review by superior courts. Hence, such orders were often challenged in the courts, much to the chagrin of the martial law authorities.

The martial law administration also wanted the courts cleared of non-cooperative, independent judges; hence a list from the federal ministry of law ensured that the selected ones were not invited to take oath.

In 1981, I was a judge in the Sindh High Court. The Chief Justice was instructed by the federal law secretary in Islamabad to meet the governor of Sindh, and he returned from the meeting to announce that two judges from the Sindh High Court, Abdul Hafeez Memon and G.M. Shah, would not be allowed to take oath. All other judges were asked to appear before the governor at 2 pm.

Some in the Sindh High Court argued that if all judges boycotted the oath-taking and bowed out, other pliant ones would replace them and therefore it was far wiser to fight from within. Meanwhile, events in other high courts were kept under wraps. After the oath, it transpired that countless judges had not been called and all those who declined to take the oath became heroes, garnering much admiration from members of the bar and the public.

In fact, despite attempts to conceal the events in the Supreme Court, certain proceedings did come to light. Chief Justice Maulvi Mushtaq of the Lahore High Court, who headed the bench of five judges and sentenced Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto to death, had fallen out with President Zia.

Maulvi Mushtaq had been elevated to the Supreme Court but, although ready to take oath, he was not invited. Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Anwar-ul-Haq invited all the judges of the apex court to his chamber to discuss this matter and the fact that the PCO barred the jurisdiction of the courts.

The CJP began with the junior-most on the list, ad hoc Judge Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim, who replied that although he was not party to the judgment in Nusrat Bhutto’s case, he had followed it and since the PCO curtailed the jurisdiction of the court and nullified the effect and object of the judgment, he would not take oath.

For similar reasons, Justice Dorab Patel also refrained but all other judges agreed and lastly the CJP declared that since he was the author of the judgment, he too would opt out.

The actual facts remain with the federal ministry of law but rumour has it that only Maulvi Mushtaq was not invited. If this is true then apart from Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim, hats off to Dorab Patel who refused to become the CJP. It is worth a mention here that Dorab Patel, Mohammad Haleem and G. Safdar Shah had acquitted Mr Bhutto. It thus became clear that General Zia believed that under the PCO of 1981, he had the right to pick and choose judges favoured by the government and axe others.

On Oct 12, 1999 General Pervez Musharraf suspended the Constitution. Another PCO replaced the Constitution. One of the seven points in the speech the general gave shortly after taking over was his pledge to rebuild institutions. Interestingly, the Supreme Court came under attack again. Finally after a delay of three months, 15 judges were not given an oath under the PCO. These included five judges

of the Supreme Court who chose to stay out.

However, General Pervez Musharraf has the unique distinction of imposing ‘martial law’ twice in the same tenure. On Nov 3, 2007 he imposed emergency-plus with the suspension of the Constitution and promulgated the PCO under which he sent home 13 out of 17 judges of the Supreme Court, including Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, and prevented about 50 judges of the high courts from taking oath.

This is how the entire judicial system was demolished to avoid a judgment from the apex court that restricted Musharraf from holding dual office — that of the army chief and the president’s — and denied him eligibility in the elections if he chose to stay in uniform. President Musharraf succeeded in obtaining an interim order to proceed with the polls. Apprehending a judgment against him, the president introduced the PCO to turn the judiciary around and the new Supreme Court issued a judgment in his favour on the basis of the law of necessity.

It is surprising how the western powers have been able to digest this unconstitutional and malafide action of dismantling the judiciary, an essential pillar of democracy. How this issue has been sidelined in favour of the elections is amazing. If the elections are held, President Musharraf may have a hung parliament of his choice and the issue of restoration of judges will certainly recede into oblivion.

The writer is a former Chief Justice of Pakisan.

http://www.dawn.com/news/841674/pco-and-its-victim-judges

Pakistan’s ‘Sustainable Democracy’: Army as the Political Architect

pakistans-sustainable-democracy

 

The Constitution of 1962

With the aim of investigating the reasons of failure of the parliamentary system in Pakistan, and to make recommendations for a new constitution, Ayub Khan appointed a Constitution Commission under the supervision of Justice Shahab-ud-din. After a number of considerations, the Commission submitted its report on May 6, 1961. Ayub Khan was not satisfied with the report and had it processed through various committees. As a result the Constitution, which was promulgated on March 1, and enforced on June 8, 1962, was entirely different from the one recommended by the Shahab-ud-din Commission.

The Constitution of 1962 consisted of 250 Articles, which were divided into 12 Parts and three Schedules. It advocated presidential form of government with absolute powers vested in the President. The President was to be a Muslim not less than 35 years of age. The term of the President was for five years and nobody could hold the post for more than two consecutive terms. The President was the head of the state as well as the head of the Government. The President had the power to appoint Provincial Governors, Federal Ministers, Advocate General, Auditor General and Chairmen and Members of various administrative commissions. As the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of Pakistan, the appointment of the chiefs of the forces was also his duty.

The Constitution of 1962 provided for a unicameral legislature. The National Assembly was to consist of 156 members, including six women. The Eighth Amendment later increased this number to 218. Principle of parity was retained and seats were distributed equally between the two wings of the country. Principle of Basic Democracy was introduced for the first time in the country and the system of indirect elections was presented. Only 80,000 Basic Democrats were given the right to vote in the presidential elections. The Eighth Amendment later increased this number to 120,000.

Half of them were to be from the Eastern Wing, the rest from the Western Wing of the country.

According to the Constitution of 1962, the Executive was not separated from the Legislature. The President exercised veto power in the legislative affairs and could even veto a bill passed by the National Assembly with a two-third majority. He had the power to issue ordinances when the Assembly was not in session. The ordinance needed the approval of the National Assembly within 48 days of its first meeting or 108 days after its promulgation. However, if the President enforced emergency in the country, which according to the constitution was within his jurisdictions, then the ordinances needed no approval from the legislative body.

The President had the power to dissolve the National Assembly. Federal form of government was introduced in the country with most of the powers reserved for the Central Government. There was a federal list of subjects over which the provinces had no jurisdiction. Principle of One Unit for West Pakistan was maintained and the number of seats for Punjab was curtailed to 40 percent in the Western Wing for the initial five years. Provincial Governors were to enjoy the same position in the provinces, which the President was to enjoy in the center.

Islamic clauses were included in the Constitution. These could not be challenged in any court of law. The state was named the Republic of Pakistan, but the first amendment added the word “Islamic” to the name. The word “Islam” and not “Quran and Sunnah” was used in the Islamic clauses to give a liberal touch to the Constitution. The Advisory Council of Islamic Ideology was introduced whose job was to recommend to the government ways and means to enable Muslims to live their lives according to the teachings of Islam.

The Constitution of 1962 was a written Constitution upholding the fundamental rights of the citizens. Under the Constitution, the Judiciary had little independence and the appointment of the Chief Justices and Judges of the Supreme and High Courts was in the hands of the President. The President also had the power to remove a judge after an inquiry on misconduct or on the basis of mental or physical illness.

Both Urdu and Bengali were made the national languages of Pakistan and English was declared as the official language of the country for the first ten years. The Constitution was flexible in nature and could be amended by a two-third majority in the National Assembly and with the approval of the President. In its short life of seven years, eight amendments were made in the Constitution.

When Ayub Khan handed over power to Yahya Khan, Martial Law was enforced in the country and the Constitution was terminated on March 25, 1969.

This article was last updated on Sunday, June 01, 2003

The Constitution of 1962

The Constitution of 1956

After assuming charge as Prime Minister, Chaudhry Muhammad Ali along with his team worked day and night to formulate a constitution for Pakistan. His efforts led to the first constitution that was enforced in the country on March 23, 1956. Pakistan’s status as a dominion ended and the country was declared an Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Thereupon the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan became the interim National Assembly and Governor General Iskander Mirza was sworn in as the first President of Pakistan.

The Constitution of 1956 consisted of 234 articles, which were divided into 13 parts and 6 schedules. One of the main features of the Constitution was its Islamic character. The Islamic provisions were contained in the directive principles of the state policy. Along with other Islamic provisions in the Constitution, the president, who was required to be a Muslim of at least 40 years of age, was to set up an organization for Islamic research with the aim of establishing a true Islamic society. The Objectives Resolution was, however, only made the preamble of the Constitution and not included in its main text.

The Constitution vested the executive authority of the President in the Federation. The President had the discretionary powers to make the appointment of the Chairman and members of the Election Commission, Delimitation Commission and Public Service Commission. He also had the power to appoint the Prime Minister from amongst the members of the National Assembly. However, his appointee had to take a vote of confidence from the Assembly within two months of his appointment. The President also had the power to remove the Prime Minister if he felt that the Prime Minister had lost the confidence of the majority of the National Assembly members.

The Constitution of 1956 provided for parliamentary form of government with a unicameral legislature. The only house of parliament, the National Assembly, was to consist of 300 members. The Constitution recognized the concept of One Unit, and the seats were divided equally between the two wings of the country. Thus the principle of parity was introduced. For the first ten years, five additional seats were reserved for women for each wing. National Assembly was to meet at least twice a year with at least one session at Dhaka. The Constitution offered direct elections under adult franchise. Every citizen of Pakistan with minimum age of 21 was allowed to vote in the elections.

The Constitution provided for federal form of government in the country. The provincial structure was similar to the one in the center. The pattern for the center-province relations was the same as it was in the Government of India Act, 1935. There were federal, provincial and concurrent lists of subjects. There were 30 items in the federal list, 94 items in the provincial list and 19 items in the concurrent list. The federal legislation was to get precedence over provincial legislation regarding the concurrent list. Residuary powers were vested in the provinces. In case of a conflict between center and provinces or between the two provinces, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court was to act as the mediator.

The Constitution of 1956 was a written and flexible constitution. It advocated the fundamental rights of the individual. However, the President had the power to suspend these rights in case of an emergency. Judiciary was to remain independent. Urdu and Bengali were both accepted as state languages, while English was to remain the official language for the first 25 years. After ten years’ passage of the Constitution, the President was to appoint a commission with the task to make recommendation for the replacement of English as the official language.

The Constitution of 1956 proved to be short lived as on October 7, 1958, Marital Law was promulgated and the constitution was abrogated.

This article was last updated on Sunday, June 01, 2003

The Constitution of 1956

Constitution of 1956

After assuming charge as Prime Minister, Chaudhary Muhammad Ali and his team worked hard to formulate a constitution. The committee, which was assigned the task to frame the Constitution, presented the draft Bill in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan on January 9, 1956. The bill was opposed by the Bengali autonomists. Bhashai, the leader of Awami League in East Pakistan, even used the threat of secession to press for autonomy and his party staged a walkout from the Assembly on February 29, when the Assembly adopted the Constitution. Later on, Awami League boycotted the official ceremonies celebrating the inauguration of the Constitution. However, in spite of their opposition, the Constitution was adopted and was enforced on March 23, 1956. With this Pakistan’s status as a dominion ended and the country was declared an Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Constituent Assembly became interim National Assembly and Governor-General Iskander Mirza sworn in as the first President of Pakistan.

The Constitution of 1956 consisted of 234 articles, divided into 13 parts and 6 schedules. Following were the chief characteristics of the Constitution:

1. Pakistan was declared as an Islamic Republic and it was made mandatory that only a Muslim could become the President of the country. President would set up an Organization for Islamic Research. Good relations with the Muslim countries became the main objective of the Foreign Policy. Objectives Resolution and Quaid’s declaration that Pakistan would be a democratic state based on Islamic principles of social justice were made the preamble of the Constitution. Steps were to be taken to enable the Muslims individually and collectively to order their lives in accordance with the teaching of Quran and Sunnah and to implement Islamic moral standards. The sectarian interpretations among the Muslims were to get due regard. Measures were to be taken to properly organize zakat, waqfs, and mosques. However, one clause relating to the elimination of riba, which was the part of the draft was eventually dropped.
2. The constitution provided for the federal form of government with three lists of subjects: federal, provincial and concurrent. The federal list consisted of 33 items, provincial of 94 items and concurrent list of 19 items.  The federal legislation was to get precedence over provincial legislation regarding concurrent list. In case of a conflict between federal and provincial governments, or between the provincial governments, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court was to act as a mediator. Federal government exercised wider control in provincial matters in case of emergency.
3. Though the constitution provided for the Parliamentary form of Government, yet it declared that the executive authority of the Federation would be in the president.
4. Any Muslim citizen of Pakistan, who was at least forty years old, could be elected as the President of Pakistan for the term of five years. No one was entitled to hold this office for more than two tenures. 3/4^th members of the Assembly could impeach the president.
5. President could appoint from amongst the MNAs a Prime Minister who had to take the vote of confidence from the house in two months. The Prime Minister had to inform the president about all the decisions of the cabinet.
6. Ministers could be taken from outside the National Assembly but they were to get themselves elected within six months.
7. President had the power to summon, prorogue, and dissolve the Assembly on the advice of the cabinet. No bill imposing taxes or involving expenditure could be moved without his consent. He had partial veto power. He could give or withhold his assent to a bill passed by the Assembly.
8. Prime Minister and his cabinet were to aid and advise the president. The president was required to follow the advice of the cabinet except where he was empowered to act in his own discretion.
9. The Constitution entitled for a Unicameral Legislature. The National Assembly was to consist of 300 members. Age limit of a candidate for a seat in National Assembly was 25 years.
10. Principle of parity was accommodated in the Constitution. West Pakistan was treated as one unit and seats were divided equally between the two wings of the country. National Assembly was to meet at least twice a year. Minimum of one session should be held at Dhaka.
11. Members of the Assembly were to be elected on the basis of Direct Elections conducted on the basis of Adult Franchise. However, for the first ten years five additional seats were reserved for women from each wing. Every citizen, who was more than 21 years in age was considered as an adult.
12. The provincial structure was similar to that of the center. There were 300 members in both provincial assemblies. Ten additional seats were reserved for women. Punjab was given 40% seats in the West Pakistan Assembly.
13. It was a Written Constitution.
14. It was a Flexible Constitution and two third members of the Assembly could bring amendment in the constitution.
15. Fundamental Rights were made justiciable. However, the President had power to suspend the fundamental rights in case of emergency.
16. Elaborate provisions were made for the higher judiciary to ensure its independence.
17. Urdu and Bengali were declared as the state languages. However, for the first twenty years English was to continue as an official language. After ten years, the president was to appoint a commission to make recommendations for the replacement of English.

The constitution was never practically implemented as no elections were held. It was eventually abrogated on October 7, 1958 when Martial Law was enforced.

Constitution of 1956

2nd Constituent Assembly

The Federal Court’s decision in the Reference by the Governor General cleared the way for summoning the second Constituent Assembly. The verdict of the Federal Court in Usif Patel’s case had put to an end the effort of Ghulam Mohammad and his nominated Cabinet to make a Constituent to make a Constitution by executive decrees.

The Federal Court unanimously declared that the task of framing a Constitution had to be performed by a Constituent Assembly. That decision was made on 13^th April and two days later, the Governor General, Ghulam Mohammad, by proclamation, summoned a sixty-member ‘Constituent Convention’ to meet on 10^th May 1955. The Convention was to be elected from the existing provincial assemblies and its function would be to replace the first Constituent Assembly.

The Convention, unless dissolved earlier, would stand dissolved at the expiry of six months and would be presided over by a person appointed by the Governor General. Of its sixty members, seven were to e reserved for non-Muslims in East Pakistan. The number of the seats was allocated as follows:

East Pakistan        30

Punjab                  16

North-West          3

Sindh                    4

The remaining seven would be nominated by the Governor General on the basis of one from Baluchistan, Frontier State, Khairpur State, Bahawalpur State, and Karachi. The Tribal Areas had two representatives. The proclamation of the Governor General was amended by subsequent orders. Within fifteen days, two new orders were issued. The first was related to the method of election to the Constituent Convention. It provided that the procedure for the election would be the same as had been adopted for the Constituent Assembly elected in 1947 that is, by the method of proportional representation with the a single transferable vote. The Governor General issued a second amendment Order on 27 April under which the Convention would have eighty members and would also function as the federal legislature. The new Constituent Convention would now have all powers which were exercised by the first Constituent Assembly under the provisions of Section 8 of the Indian Independence Act. The composition now stood as follow:

East Pakistan         40(9 for non-Muslims)

Punjab                   21(1 for non-Muslims)

NWFP                   4

Sindh                     5(1 for non-Muslims)

The Governor General would nominate ten members as follows:

Baluchistan                            1

Baluchistan States Union       1

Frontier States                        1

Tribal Areas                           3

Khairpur State                        1

Bahawalpur State                   2

Karachi                                   1

 

The composition of the Convention was based on the principle of parity of representation between East and West Pakistan. In East Pakistan, the leader of the united front, A.K. Fazlul Haq, was threatening to boycott the Constituent Convention on the ground that did not give East Pakistan a majority of seats on the basis of population. Subsequently, as a result of deal with the Prime Minister, Mohammad Ali, under which parliamentary institutions suspended since 1954 were restored in the East Pakistan, United Front accepted its representation. Law Minister Suhrawardi already accepted it. Party position in the second Assembly was very different. In the first Constituent Assembly the Muslim League had an absolute majority since it had captured almost all the Muslim seats. It was clear that from the beginning that the Muslim League would not enjoy that position in the new Assembly. It was in East Pakistan that out of 309 members in the East Pakistan provincial legislature the League only had 10 members and it could get one seat from province. In West Pakistan the League captured all the Muslim seats from Sindh and NWFP. In the Punjab internal divisions prevented it from having monopoly. It lost three seats to the dissident group led by Malik Feroz Khan Noon. With twenty-five members in the house eighty the Muslim League was still largest single party in the new Assembly.

Since no single party was in the position to command a majority the various groups lost no time in seeking alliances. A coalition of the Muslim League and the United Front was ultimately formed with Chaudhry Mohammad Ali the Former Finance Minister, as prime minister. Mohammad Ali Bogra quietly resumed his old assignment as Ambassador to the United States.

Chaudhry Mohammad Ali contributed a lot to the success of the new Assembly in framing a Constitution. Other prominent members of the New Assembly were H.S.Suhrawardy leader of Opposition, A.K Fazl ul Haq, Leader of the United Front. There was a complete absence of women from the Second Assembly. The immediate task before the Second Constituent Assembly was to revalidate those statues which had become null and void as a result of the legal disputes. The task was not too easy as it involved the delicate discussion of the merits of those statutes. The Assembly first met on 7 July 1955 and immediately passed the Validation of Laws Act of 1955.The first important and highly controversial task performed by the second Constituent Assembly was the unification of the West Pakistan. West Pakistan was established as One Unit. The Second Constituent Assembly also had the advantage of profiting from work of its predecessor. The draft provided for a strong center. Draft containing 245 Articles was finally approved by the Second Constituent Assembly.

http://historypak.com/2nd-constituent-assembly/

First Constituent Assembly of Pakistan (1947-1954)

The First Constituent Assembly of Pakistan came into existence under Indian Independence Act 1947, at the time of independence. Its roots went back to 1946 when elections for constituent assembly of United India were held to decide the destiny of All India Muslim League. First meeting of constituent assembly of united India was held on 19th December 1946, but Muslim League boycotted it since they demanded a separate constituent assembly for Pakistan. With the acceptance of 3rd June plan a separate constituent assembly was formulated for Pakistan.

The inaugural session of the first constituent assembly of Pakistan was held in Karachi in August 1947. Mr. J.N. Mandal was elected as temporary chairman of Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. Subsequently Jinnah was selected as the president of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, on 11th August 1947 and Maulvi Tamizuddin Khan as its Deputy President. The Constituent Assembly of Pakistan functioned from 1947 to 1954 and involved two major parties—the Muslim League representing all Muslims with the exception of few and The Congress Party representing the twelve million Hindus in Pakistan.

There were 69 members in the constituent assembly; this number was increased to 79 later in order to give representation to princely states and refugees. The mode of elections was on the basis of separate electorates. There was a clear majority of Muslim League in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, with 60 members out of the total 79. The second major party was Pakistan National Congress with 11 members; and the third party was Azad Group with 3 members, a number which later decreased to 1. The Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was not able to work properly because its seats remained empty and some members migrated to India. Members of Constituent Assembly of Pakistan were simultaneously allowed to take seats of Provincial assembly or they can be Chief Ministers or members of Central or Provincial Cabinet.

Under the Indian Independence Act Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was given two tasks – to prepare a Constitution and to act as the federal legislature. The functions of central legislature under the Government of India Act 1935 were granted to the Constituent Assembly. As a constitution making body it was completely independent. The Constituent Assembly of Pakistan could amend the independence act by a simple majority and pass laws; moreover, no law could be made without its approval. Every bill that was passed needed to be signed by the President of Constituent Assembly of Pakistan.

Though there was no opposition in the Constituent Assembly but there were groups that were critical of the League. On the left was Iftikharuddin a former congressmen and a communist. On right were the religious critics like Maulana Shabir Ahmad Ossmani.

The first constituent assembly setup several committees to carry out its tasks. Most important of these was the Basic Principles Committee; it was assigned the task to report in accordance with the Objectives Resolution on the main principles by which the constitution of Pakistan was to be framed. Basic Principles Committee setup three sub committees and a special committee named Talimaat-i-Islamia which consisted of scholars to advice on the religious matters arising out of Objectives Resolution. Basic Principles Committee submitted its interim report in September 1950 and the final report in December 1952.

Another important committee of the Constituent Assembly was on the ‘Fundamental Rights of the Citizens of Pakistan’ and on ‘Matters Relating to Minorities’. It divided itself into two sections, one dealing with fundamental rights and the other with matters relating to minorities. Interim report of this committee was adopted by Constituent Assembly in 1950 and the final report in 1954.

Others committees of the constituent assembly were the State Negotiating Committee, which dealt with the question of representation of princely states and the Tribal Areas Negotiating Committee, dealing with matters related to tribal areas.

The progress of the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan can be summed up as follows:

12 March 1949 – Objectives Resolution passed by the Constituent Assembly on aims and objective of future constitution. This report was well received by the citizens of Pakistan.
7 September 1950 – the interim report of Basic Principles Committee was presented to the constituent assembly. This step however marked as the beginning of decline in the popularity of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. This report was criticized mainly by East Pakistan.
6 October 1950 – interim report of the committee on Fundamental Rights of the Citizens of Pakistan matters relating to Minorities was adopted by Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. This report got a comparatively better response.
22 December 1952 – the final report of Basic Principles Committee was presented. This report was also criticized, because of opposition in the Punjab.
7 October 1953 – Constitutional impasse was over and formation of federal legislature was resolved by the ‘Muhammad Ali Formula’. This report was widely welcomed and helped the Constituent Assembly regain in popularity.
21 September 1954 – the Basic Principles Committees’ revised Report was approved by Constituent Assembly of Pakistan.

The final sketch of constitution was prepared and the Constituent Assembly was near to the completion of its purpose. But at this point the Constituent Assembly was suspended by the Governor General Ghulam Muhammad, on 24th October 1954. He stated that the Constituent Assembly had lost the confidence of the people; this ruined the efforts of the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan which had been working towards formulating a viable constitution for seven years.

First Constituent Assembly of Pakistan (1947-1954)

PARLIAMENTARY HISTORY

The Muslims of India had, since the middle of nineteen century, begun the struggle for a separate homeland on the basis of the two Nation theory. The British rulers realized that the Hindus and Muslims of India remained two separate and distinct nations and socio-cultural entities. The British rulers were left with no option but to eventually accept the demand of the Muslims of India.

On 3rd June1947, Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India, called the conference of all the leaders of the Sub-continent and communicated to them his Government’s Plan for the transfer of power. At that time, a notification was issued in the Gazette of India, published on 26th July 1947 in which the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was given shape with 69 Members (later on the membership was increased to 79), including one female Member.

The State of Pakistan was created under the Independence Act of 1947. The Act made the existing Constituent Assemblies, the dominion legislatures. These Assemblies were allowed to exercise all the powers which were formerly exercised by the Central Legislature, in addition to the powers regarding the framing of a new Constitution, prior to which all territories were to be governed in accordance with the Government of India Act, 1935.

The first session of the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was held on 10th August 1947 at Sindh Assembly Building Karachi. On 11th August 1947 Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was elected unanimously as the President of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan and the National Flag was formally approved by the Assembly.

On 12th August 1947, a resolution was approved regarding officially addressing Mr. Muhammad Ali Jinnah as “Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah”. On the same day, a special committee called the “Committee on Fundamental Rights of Citizens and Minorities of Pakistan” was appointed to look into and advise the Assembly on matters relating to fundamental rights of the citizens, particularly the minorities, with the aim to legislate on these issues appropriately. On 14th August 1947, the Transfer of Power took place. Lord Mountbatten, Governor General of India, addressed the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. The Quaid gave a reply to the address in the House, on which the principles of the State of Pakistan were laid. On 15th August 1947, Quaid-i-Azam was sworn in as the first Governor General of Pakistan. Mian Sir Abdur Rashid, Chief Justice of Pakistan, administered oath of office from him. The Quaid remained in this position till his death i.e.11th September 1948.

The foremost task before the first Constituent Assembly is of framing the Constitution for the nation. On 7th March 1949, the Objectives Resolution, which now serves as the grund norm of Pakistan, was introduced by the first Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan, and later adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 12th March 1949. On the same day, a Basic Principles Committee comprising of 24 Members was formed to prepare a draft Constitution on the basis of the Objectives Resolution. On 16th October 1951, Prime Minister Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan, mover of the Objective Resolution, was assassinated and Khawaja Nazimuddin took over as the Prime Minister on 17th October 1951.

The final draft of the Constitution was prepared in 1954. By that time, Muhammad Ali Bogra had taken over as the Prime Minister. However, just before the draft could be placed in the House for approval, the Assembly was dissolved by the then Governor General Ghulam Muhammad on 24th October1954. The Prime Minister was, however, not dismissed and was asked to run the administration, with a reconstituted Cabinet, until such time as the elections were held.

Maulvi Tamizuddin, President of the Assembly, challenged the dissolution in the Sindh Chief Court, and won the case. The Government in return, went to the Federal Court, where the famous judgment was given by the then Chief Justice Muhammad Munir, according to which Maulvi Tamizuddin lost the case.

The second Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was created on 28th May 1955 under Governor General’s Order No.12 of 1955. The Electoral College for this Assembly was the Provincial Assemblies of respective Provinces. The strength of this Assembly was 80 Members, half each from East Pakistan and West Pakistan. One of the major decisions taken by this Assembly was the establishment of West Pakistan (One Unit), with the aim to create parity between the two wings (East and West Pakistan). This Assembly also achieved its target by giving the first Constitution to the nation i.e. the Constitution of Pakistan 1956. Choudhary Muhammad Ali was the Prime Minister at that time. The draft of this Constitution was introduced in the Assembly on 9th January 1956 and was passed by the Assembly on 29th February 1956. The assent was given on it by the Governor General on 2nd March 1956. This Constitution was enforced with effect from 23rd March 1956. Under this Constitution, Pakistan became an Islamic Republic, hence 23rd March became our Republic day. It was the same day in 1940 that the historic Pakistan Resolution was adopted at Minto Park, Lahore.

On 5th March 1956, Major General Sikandar Mirza became the first elected President of Pakistan. The 1956 constitution provides for Parliamentary form of government with all the executive powers in the hands of Prime Minister. President was Head of the State and was to be elected by all Members of the National and Provincial Assemblies. He was to hold office for 5 years. The President was to act on the advice of Prime Minister, except where he was empowered to act in his discretion.

Under 1956 Constitution, Parliament was unicameral. Legislative powers vested in the Parliament, which consisted of the President and the National Assembly comprising 300 Members divided equally between East and West Pakistan. In addition to these 300 seats, five seats were reserved for women for each of the two wings, for a period of ten years: thus bringing the total membership of the House to 310.

However, in the absence of any law to control the Political Parties and the problem of floor crossing, political instability perpetually ensued. Although the first general election were scheduled for early 1959, President Sikandar Mirza abrogated the Constitution, dissolved the National and Provincial Assemblies, and declared Martial Law, on 7th October 1958. He appointed General Muhammad Ayub Khan, Commander-in-Chief of the Army, as the Chief Martial Law Administrator.

On 27th October 1958 General Muhammad Ayub Khan took-over as a second President of Pakistan. One of the first major steps taken by General Ayub Khan was the appointment of a Constitution Commission on 17th February 1960. The objective of this commission was to submit proposals, as to how best democracy can be strengthened and molded according to the country’s socio-political environment and Islamic principles of justice. The Commission submitted its report to the government on 29th April 1961. On the basis of this report a new Constitution was framed and given to the nation on 1st March 1962.

General elections under the new Constitution were held on 28th March 1962 and elections to the special seats reserved for women were held on 29th May 1962. The first session of the third National Assembly was held on 8th June 1962 at Ayub Hall, Rawalpindi.

The Constitution of 1962 envisaged a Federal State with Presidential form of government, with National Assembly at the centre and the Provincial Assemblies in the Provinces. The Legislatures, both at centre and in provinces were unicameral. The Federal system had been curtailed by allowing the Provincial Governors to be appointed directly by the President. All executive authority of the Republic of Pakistan, under the Constitution, vested in the office of the President. President appointed his Cabinet members who were directly responsible to him.

The electoral system was made indirect, and the `Basic Democrats’, for both wings were declared Electoral College for the purpose of electing the Assemblies and the President. Basic democrats were 80,000 in number (40,000 from each East & West Pakistan). The total membership of the National Assembly was 156, one half of whom were to be elected from East Pakistan and other half from West Pakistan, also three seats were reserved for women from each province. The term of this Assembly was three years. The norm was established that if the President was from West Pakistan, the Speaker was to be from East Pakistan and vice versa. One of the major achievements of this Assembly was the passage of Political Parities Act, 1962.

On 25th March 1969 the second Martial law was imposed and General Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan took-over as the President of Pakistan and Chief Martial Law Administrator (CMLA). He later issued a Legal Framework Order (LFO), under which the first ever general elections were held on 7th December 1970. This was the first Assembly elected on the adult franchise and population basis. It consist of 313 members, 169 from East Pakistan and 144 from West Pakistan including 13 reserved seats for women (6 were from West Pakistan and 7 from East Pakistan). Soon after the elections, due to grave political differences, the Province of East Pakistan seceded from West Pakistan and became Bangladesh. On 20th December 1971 Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto took over as the President of Pakistan as well as the first civil Chief Martial Law Administrator.

The first session of the National Assembly, due to the delay caused by the separation of East Pakistan, was held on 14thApril 1972 at the State Bank Building, Islamabad, in which all 144 Members from West Pakistan and two from former East Pakistan (Mr. Noor-ul-Amin and Raja Tridev Roy who had chosen to join Pakistan) participated. On 17th April 1972 an Interim Constitution was adopted by the National Assembly, which provided for a Presidential form of Government. Under this Constitution, the National Assembly was not to be dissolved earlier than 14th August 1973. The Interim Constitution dealt in detail with the distribution of powers between the Centre and the Provinces.

The Assembly also formed a Constitution Committee on 17th April 1972 to prepare the first draft for framing a Constitution. The report of the Committee was presented with a draft Constitution on 31st December 1972. It was unanimously passed by the Assembly in its session on 10th April 1973 and was authenticated by the President on 12th April 1973. This Constitution, called the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan 1973, was promulgated on 14th August 1973. On the same day, Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto took oath as the Prime Minister, while Mr. Fazal Illahi Choudhary took oath as the President of Pakistan.

The 1973 Constitution provides for a parliamentary form of government where the executive authority of the state vests with the Prime Minister. The President, according to the Constitution, is at the apex, representing the unity of the Republic.

From 1947 to 1973, the country had a unicameral system of legislature. Under the 1973 Constitution, Pakistan adopted bicameral system at the centre, called “The Parliament”, composing the President, the National Assembly and The Senate. Originally, the general seats of the National Assembly were 200 with additional 10 seats reserved for women, bringing the total strength to 210. The newly created Upper House i.e. the Senate had 63 members. Later in 1985 through a Presidential Order (P.O. No. 14 of 1985), seven seats were added to the general seats and ten to the reserved seats for women in the National Assembly. Ten seats were exclusively reserved for minorities to be filled through separate electorate system. Thus the total strength of the lower house reached to 237 members. Similarly the strength of Senate was also increased from 63 to 87.

Under the 1973 Constitution the National Assembly is elected for five years term, unless sooner dissolved. The seats in National Assembly, unlike the Senate, are allocated to each province and other units of the federation, on the basis of population. The Constitutional provision of 20 special seats for women lapsed in 1990, thus decreased the Assembly strength from 237 to 217. Under the Constitution, elections to the 10 seats reserved for minority were held on separate electorate basis.

Despite the tenure of the Assembly being five years, as prescribed in the Constitution, Mr. Z.A.Bhutto, on 7th January 1977 announced the holding of elections before time. Consequently, on 10th January 1977, he advised the President to dissolve the National Assembly. Elections were held on 7th March 1977. The opposition charged the government with rigging the elections to the National Assembly and thereafter boycotted the Provincial Assemblies elections. Since the opposition had not accepted the National Assembly elections result, they did not take oath. This resulted in severe political crisis and Martial Law was imposed by the then Army Chief, General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, on 5th July 1977.

On 24th December 1981, under Presidential Order (P.O.15 of 1981) a Federal Council (Majlis-e-Shoora) was constituted by the President. Its members were nominated by the President. The first session of this Council was held on 11th January 1982. In this way, limited and controlled political activities were resumed, as a result of which general elections were later held for the National and Provincial Assemblies on 25th February 1985, on non-party basis.

On 2nd March 1985, the revival of Constitution Order (P.O.14 of 1985) was issued in which a large number of amendments were made in the Constitution. The first session of the National Assembly was held 20th March 1985. Mr. Muhammad Khan Junejo, was nominated as the Prime Minister of Pakistan by the President (General Zia-ul-Haq). He received vote of confidence on 24th March 1985.

In November 1985, the 8th Constitutional Amendment was adopted by the Parliament. Besides changes in other Articles in the Constitution the significant Article 58(2)(b) was added, according to which the President acquired discretionary powers to dissolve the National Assembly. On 29th May 1988 the Assembly was dissolved by the President by using the power acquired under Article 58(2)(b).

The General elections for the eighth National Assembly was held on 16th November 1988. The first session was convened by the President on 30th November 1988. Mr. Miraj Khalid was elected as a Speaker National Assembly on 3rd December 1988. Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto was nominated as Prime Minister of Pakistan and took the oath of the Office on 2nd December 1988. The Assembly was dissolved by the President, Ghulam Ishaq Khan under Article 58(2)(b) on 6th August 1990.

The General elections for the ninth National Assembly was held on 24th October 1990. The first session was held on 3rd November 1990. Mr. Gohar Ayub Khan elected as Speaker National Assembly and he took oath on 4th November 1990. Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif took oath as Prime Minister of Pakistan on 11th November, 1993. The Assembly was dissolved by the then President, Ghulam Ishaq Khan, under Article 58(2)(b) on 18th April 1993. The dissolution of the National Assembly was challenged in the Supreme Court of Pakistan and after hearing the case the Assembly was restored by the apex court on 26th May 1993. The Assembly was dissolved on the advice of the Prime Minister on 18th July 1993.

The elections for tenth National Assembly was held on 6th October 1993. The first session was held on 15th October 1993. Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani took oath of the office of the Speaker National Assembly on 17th October 1993. Mohtarma Benizar Bhutto administered the oath as Prime Minister of Pakistan on October 19th October 1993. The Assembly was dissolved by the President Farooq Ahmad Khan Laghari on 5th November 1996.

The elections for eleventh National Assembly was held on 3rd February 1997. The first session was held on 15th February 1997. Mr. Illahi Bukhsh Soomro took oath of the office of the Speaker National Assembly on 16th February 1997. Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif took oath as Prime Minister of Pakistan and Leader of the House on 17th February 1997. The new Assembly came into power with an overwhelming majority. The Article 58(2)(b) was later on omitted from the Constitution vide 13th Amendment in the Constitution in April 1997.

It may be pertinent to note at this point that while, ostensibly, sixteen amendments have been made in the Constitution so far, the ninth and the eleventh Constitutional Amendments were, however, passed by the Senate alone and fifteenth by the National Assembly alone, hence these amendments lapsed. The fourteenth Amendment in the Constitution empowered a check on floor crossing of legislators.

Chief of Army Staff General Pervaz Musharraf, who was also Chairman Joint Staff Committee, took over the government from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and declared himself as Chief Executive through a Proclamation of Emergency, on 12th October 1999. Through Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) issued on October 14th 1999, he held the Constitution in abeyance, suspended the Senate, National and Provincial Assemblies, Chairman and Deputy Chairman Senate, Speaker, Deputy Speaker National and Provincial Assemblies and dismissed the Federal and Provincial governments. The President Mr. Muhammad Rafiq Tarar was, however allowed to continue in his office. Under PCO (order No. 6) 29th October 1999, (as amended by C.E. Order No.5, 4th July 2001), the National Security Council was established for the purpose to tender advice to the Chief Executive (later on President), on matters relating to Islamic ideology, national security, sovereignty, integrity and solidarity of Pakistan so as to achieve the aims and objective as enshrined in the Objectives Resolution 1949.

Syed Zafar Ali Shah, MNA and Illahi Bukhsh Soomro, Speaker National Assembly, challenged the suspension orders in the Supreme Court. The Court in its judgment on 12th May 2000 validated the military takeover by giving three years time frame to the government, starting from 12th October 1999. The Court in its judgment asked the government to complete its agenda and then hand over powers to the elected government. The court also allowed the military government to bring necessary Constitutional Amendments, provided that those should not change the basic feature of Federal Parliamentary democracy, independence of judiciary and Islamic provisions in the Constitution. The court reserved the right of Judicial Review and power of validity of any act or any action of the government, if challenged, in the light of State necessity.

On 20th June 2001, through a notification (C.E. Order No.1) the Chief Executive assumed the office of the President of Pakistan under President’s Succession Order, 2001. On the same day, through another Order (C.E. Order No. 2, 2001), the President converted the orders of suspension of legislative bodies and their presiding officers, in to dissolution.

The elections for twelfth National Assembly was held on 10th October 2002.

The inaugural session of the National Assembly was held on November 16, 2002 and Ch Amir Hussain and Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob were elected Speaker and Deputy Speaker respectively on November 19, 2002.  Mir Zafar ullah Jamali was elected Leader of the House on November 21, 2002 .Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain gave the ruling on June 14, 2003 that LFO is the part of the Constitution of Pakistan. On this issue, Opposition Parties submitted a resolution for vote of no confidence against Speaker National Assembly on June 20, 2003 which was rejected on June 28, 2003.

National Assembly of Pakistan expressed confidence in the leadership of President General Pervez Musharaf through the resolution on January 1, 2004.  President General Pervez Musharaf addressed the Joint Session of the Parliament on January 17, 2004. Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali resigned from his office on June 26, 2004. Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain was elected the 21st Prime Minister of Pakistan on June 29, 2004 and obtained a vote of confidence from the National Assembly on June 30, 2004. Mr. Shaukat Aziz was elected the Leader of the House on August 27, 2004 and was administered oath of the Prime Minister of Pakistan on August 28, 2004. National Assembly of Pakistan completed its Constitutional tenure on November 15, 2007. After the resignation from the post of Chief of Army Staff, Mr. Pervez Musharaf administered the oath of President of Islamic Republic of Pakistan on November 29, 2007. The date of next General Election was fixed for January 28, 2008. After the assassination of Muhatarma Benazir Bhutto on December 27, 2007, date of election was rescheduled for February 18, 2008

The first session of the National Assembly was held on 17th March 2008. Dr. Fehmida Mirza and Mr.Fasial Karim Kundi were elected Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly respectively on March 19, 2008. Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani was elected the Prime Minister of Pakistan by the House on March 24, 2008 and unanimously obtained the Vote of Confidence from the House on March 29, 2008. Mr. Pervez Musharaf submitted his resignation from his office to the Speaker National Assembly on August 18, 2008 and Mr. Asif Ali Zardari was elected 13th President of Pakistan for next five years on September 6, 2008. He addressed the Joint Session of the Parliament on September 20, 2008.

President Asif Ali Zardari during his address to the Joint Session of the Parliament on March 28, 2009 asked the Speaker National Assembly to form a Committee of both Houses for the purpose of proposing amendments in the Constitution in the light of Charter of Democracy (COD). After consultation with the leadership of all political parties in the Parliament, Speaker National Assembly announced the Constitutional Reforms Committee (CRC) on April 29, 2009.

After the marathon consultation in 77 meetings, CRC under the Chairmanship of Senator Raza Rabbani presented report of the Committee on 18th Amendment in the Constitution to the Speaker National Assembly on March 31, 2010. The historic 18th Constitutional Amendment was presented and passed by the National Assembly on April 8, 2010 and Senate on April 15, 2010 respectively. After the assent of the President on April 19, 2010, 18th Amendments became part of Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.  19th Amendment was passed by the National Assembly on December 22, 2010 and Senate on December 30, 2010 respectively. 19th Amendment became part of the Constitution after the assent of the President Asif Ali Zardari on January 1, 2011.  20th Amendment was passed unanimously by National Assembly and Senate on February 20, 2012. 

Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani was disqualified from April 26, 2012 by the Order of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on June 19, 2012.

Raja Pervez Ashraf was elected the Prime Minister of Pakistan on June 22, 2012 by the National Assembly and administered oath of the Office of the Prime Minister of Pakistan on same day.

In pursuance of Article 52 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan the 13th National Assembly stands dissolved on the completion of its constitutional term of five years on 16th March 2013.

Justice (R) Mir Hazar Khan Khoso took oath as caretaker Prime Minister Islamic Republic of Pakistan on 25th March 2013 and completed his tenure on June 5, 2013 after conducting successful general elections in the country on 11th May 2013.

The first Session of the 14th National Assembly was held on June 1, 2013 and Speaker Dr. Fehmida Mirza administered the oath from the newly elected Members. Sardar Ayaz Sadiq was elected as Speaker of the 14th National Assembly of Pakistan and Mr. Murtaza Javed Abbasi as Deputy Speaker with more than two third majority of votes on 3rd June 2013. Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif elected as third time Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and took oath of the Office on 5th June 2013. The transition of power from one elected government to the newly democratically elected government was smooth and historic milestone achieved in a very transparent manner.

Mr. Asif Ali Zardari, the President Islamic Republic of Pakistan addresses both Houses Assembled together (Majlis-i-Shora) on 10th June 2013 under clause 3 of Article 56 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

The election for the President of Islamic Republic of Pakistan was held on 30th July 2013 and Mr. Mamnoon Hussain was elected to the office of the President. Mr. Asif Ali Zardari completed his tenure of five years on 9th September 2013 as President Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Mr. Mamnoon Hussain took oath of the office of the President Islamic Republic of Pakistan on 9th September 2013.

http://www.na.gov.pk/en/content.php?id=75

The Constituent Assembly

By the end of July 1946, British India elected its Constituent Assembly, consisting of 296 members. The Congress had won all the general seats except nine whereas the Muslim League had won all the Muslim seats except five. On 9 December the first meeting of the Assembly was to be held. But Muslim League refused to recognize the Assembly as a valid body until the Congress would accept the Muslim League’s interpretation of the clause regarding the grouping of the provinces. At first the Viceroy tried to convince the Congress to accept the demand of the Muslim League but Gandhi and Nehru started urging the British Government for the removal of the Viceroy. As a result the Viceroy issued the invitations for the meeting of the Constituent Assembly on 20th November under the Cabinet Mission Plan.

Quaid-i-Azam was of the opinion that the Viceroy was trying to appease the Congress and did not realize the serious situation. Therefore no Muslim League representative would attend the meeting of the Assembly on 9th of December. Trying to find an agreement between the Congress and the Muslim League, the British Government invited two Congress leaders, two Muslim League leaders and a Sikh representative for having talks in London.

Meanwhile the Congress was getting more and more aggressive and demanding the removal of the Muslim League from the Government if it would not agree to participate in the Assembly. Nehru who was already adamant to claim at a press conference at Bombay that the Congress would enter the Constituent Assembly “completely unfettered by (any) agreement and free to meet all situations as they arose” alleged that there was an alliance between the British high officials and the members of Muslim League. But Liaquat Ali Khan protested against these allegations and clarified that the Muslim League had never asked the Viceroy for his intervention. Quaid-i-Azam pointed out that Nehru’s statement represented the real mind of the Congress. He argued that if the Congress could change so many times while the British were still in the country and power had not come to its hands, what assurance would the minorities have that once the British left, the Congress would not again change and go back to the position taken up in Jawaharlal’s statement. He further stated that the interim government was nothing but the Viceroy’s Executive Council reconstituted on the political lines. The League Councilors refused to recognize Nehru as the head of the Interim Government. Quaid-i-Azam said that Nehru was nothing but the Vice-President of the Council who presided only in the absence of the Viceroy and enjoyed no more powers. So it was quite misleading to call the Interim Government a ‘National Government’ or to characterize the Council as the ‘Cabinet’.

On 2nd December 1946, Quaid-i-Azam, Liaquat Ali Khan, Nehru and Baldev Singh arrived in London for the talks with the British Government. As usual the talks failed to reach an agreed solution and on 6th December the British Government issued a statement for resolving the controversy about the grouping clause by giving their own authoritative interpretation.

On 22nd December the Congress Working Committee reiterated that the interpretation of the British Government was not in conformity with the basic proposal of the Cabinet Mission plan. When the All India Congress Committee met on 5th January 1947 and rejected the official interpretation, the Muslim League Working Committee passed a resolution on 31st January that took the notice of the British interpretation because it was the same as presented by Muslim League. The Muslim League also condemned the rejection of the official interpretation by Congress.

Finally it was decided that the Assembly should be dissolved. There was no need of calling the Muslim League Council to reconsider its decision of July 1946. Moreover Sir Stafford Cripps declared in the House of Commons that if the Muslim League could not be persuaded to attend the Constituent Assembly, then those parts of the country where they were in the majority could not be held together by the results. It was tantamount to negate the idea of Pakistan. But later developments proved what he had said in May 1946 was wrong.

This article was last updated on Monday, Jan 01, 2007

The Constituent Assembly