NA session on constitutional amendments rescheduled for Monday; Senate meeting remains on standstill

Proposed amendments were not introduced during Saturday’s NA session and were expected to be tabled on Sunday

Both National Assembly (NA) and Senate sessions were delayed multiple times on Sunday as political meetings continued ahead of a potential ‘amendment package’ from the government. 

Following the delays in the NA, the Senate session also faced postponements and was set to start at 10 pm after being scheduled for 7 pm. However, it is still yet to begin whereas, according to reports, the NA session has been rescheduled for Monday (tomorrow).

The proposed constitutional amendments, including an increase in the retirement age of superior court judges—a move strongly opposed by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)—was not introduced during Saturday’s NA session and was expected to be tabled on Sunday.

The NA session was initially scheduled for 11:30 am but was rescheduled to 4 pm at the request of a Special Parliamentary Committee. However, even this revised time was not adhered to due to ongoing negotiations between the government and political parties.

For the passage of the amendment package, the government requires a two-thirds majority in both the National Assembly and the Senate. In the NA, the ruling coalition needs 224 votes to secure the amendment, while in the Senate, 64 votes are necessary.

Currently, the NA treasury benches consist of 211 members, while the opposition has 101 lawmakers. This means the government needs an additional 13 votes to pass the amendment package.