The 26th Constitutional Amendment and the Future of the Justice System -
|
|
Posted on: 10/27/2025
|
The 26th Constitutional Amendment and the Future of the Justice System -
During my 337th study circle on TikTok on October 25, I asserted categorically that it is imperative to anull the 26th Constitutional Amendment forthwith. The constitutional bench that was formed under this unlawful amendment should be dislodged, and the Supreme Court’s full bench should hear this most crucial constitutional case. Members of the National Assembly are predestined to make laws, and hence the National Assembly is also called the Legislative Assembly. Any amendment, addition, or deletion to the Constitution requires a two-third majority in Parliament. First, a proposed amendment is presented as a resolution in the National Assembly. After approval by a two-thirds majority, it is sent to the Senate. Once the Senate passes it and then the President approves and promulgates it, it officially becomes part of the Constitution. In October 2024, the 26th Constitutional Amendment was approved by both the National Assembly and the Senate, and thus it became part of the Constitution. However, this amendment was challenged in the Supreme Court, and petitions against it are now being heard daily before the Court’s constitutional bench. Some of the most senior lawyers of the country are presenting arguments in defense of or against this amendment. A valid question before the Supreme Court is whether the same constitutional bench should hear the petitions against the 26th Amendment or whether a full court should be constituted to decide this issue once for all. The petitioners have argued that the passing of the 26th Amendment was a blunder. If the same constitutional bench which was itself formed under this amendment, continues to hear these petitions, it would be precinvinced that justice is denied. Senior lawyers also maintain that this amendment is extremely harmful to the nation, the people, and the system of governance. So far, the proceedings show that the judges of the Supreme Court have not been able to give satisfactory answers to the objections raised by senior lawyers. The bench repeatedly asks for opinions on whether the case should be heard by sixteen judges of the constitutional bench or by all twenty-four judges of the full court, including those on the constitutional bench. I have presented my arguments so that people may judge for themselves whether the 26th Amendment should remain valid or be declared void. I am astonished that through an amendment, the judges of the Supreme Court have been divided. Is there any clause in the Constitution that allows discrimination among Supreme Court judges? Every citizen of Pakistan can see that the 26th Amendment is the first in world judicial history to divide the Supreme Court into two groups, one called the constitutional bench and the other non-constitutional. Under this amendment, the Chief Justice has been given the power to form a separate constitutional bench for constitutional matters. Legal experts rightly ask: What is a constitutional bench, and what is a non-constitutional bench? Are those judges who are excluded from the constitutional bench incapable of understanding the Constitution? If that is true, how can they continue to serve as judges of the Supreme Court? This amendment casts doubt on the competence of the other judges, implying that they are unfit to hear constitutional cases. Any constitutional amendment that divides judges or promotes discrimination cannot be legitimate. If only a few judges are declared constitutional, will the rest handle cases about water, electricity, and gas? Is that justice? The 26th Amendment has shattered the principle of merit. It has given the government the authority to appoint judges at will and even allowed it to appoint the Chief Justice of its choice, ignoring the principle of seniority that has long been established. Can such an act be called fair or constitutional?
The current Parliament that passed the 26th Amendment was formed after the February 8, 2024 elections, and the legitimacy of that Parliament itself is highly disputed. The whole world knows that those elections were not fair. The largest political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, was stripped of its electoral symbol, the bat. When PTI went to the Supreme Court, the Court under Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa upheld that unconstitutional and oppressive decision. That ruling was illegal, unconstitutional, and dictatorial. The judge responsible for such a decision should be tried under Article 6 of the Constitution. During the vote count, PTI candidates had clearly won by majority, as proven by Form 45 signed by polling agents. Yet when the Election Commission issued Form 47, the results were completely changed. Winning candidates were shown defeated, and losing candidates were declared winners.
This was not a mistake; it was a deliberate criminal act. How can a Parliament formed through such fraud be called legitimate? Even though PTI had the largest number of seats, a minority coalition was artificially turned into a majority government through manipulation. This too was unconstitutional. A Parliament that came into existence through unlawful means has no authority to amend the Constitution. Any amendment passed by such a Parliament is invalid from the very beginning. The 26th Amendment was forced through Parliament and the Senate under pressure, threats, and political coercion. The entire process was unconstitutional. If tomorrow Parliament amends the Constitution to divide Pakistan into two parts, will such an amendment be acceptable? Then how can an amendment that divides the Supreme Court into two groups, constitutional and non-constitutional, be justified? The Supreme Court is the last hope of justice in any country. If this institution itself becomes divided, justice will die. It is beyond comprehension that the same constitutional bench formed under the 26th Amendment is now hearing petitions filed against it. This is a direct conflict of interest. According to international judicial standards, this bench cannot hear this case.
The only fair and transparent solution is for the full bench of the Supreme Court to hear the case and declare the unconstitutional amendments, the appointment of the Chief Justice under those amendments, and the constitutional bench itself null and void. If the 26th Constitutional Amendment is not struck down, it will not only destroy the justice system but will also become a great tragedy for the country.
#ConstitutionalAmendments
#26thConstitutionalAmendments
|
10/28/2025 1:46:45 PM
|
|