Bilawal affirms PPP support for key 27th Amendment provisions

Party chairperson says CEC backs Article 243, Constitutional Court, and judges' transfers

Pakistan Peoples Party Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said the party’s Central Executive Committee has decided to support the proposed 27th Amendment, with conditional approval for provisions related to establishing Constitutional Courts and reforms in the judicial transfer process.

Speaking at a press conference following the CEC meeting in Karachi, Bilawal stated, “I made it clear yesterday as well that the PPP will support Article 243 and will also vote in its favour.” He reiterated that PPP is considering supporting three key changes, including Article 243, Constitutional Courts, and judges' transfers, ensuring reforms align with democratic principles and judicial independence.

He said, “There are primarily three points in the constitutional amendment that the PPP is considering supporting. The first is the 243 amendment, which has been under discussion for some time and is seen as a key step in strengthening parliamentary oversight. The second concerns the establishment of Constitutional Courts, particularly in light of ongoing consultations with the government over which aspects of the Charter of Democracy it is prepared to implement at this stage. The third relates to the transfer of judges, provided that both incoming and outgoing chief justices remain members of the commission tasked with overseeing these decisions.”

He added that the idea of Constitutional Courts originated from the PPP itself. “This initiative has been part of every PPP manifesto, and it was also included in the Charter of Democracy, which mentions the establishment of Constitutional Courts,” he maintained.

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The PPP chairperson further said the party’s CEC deliberated on the matter for two days and concluded that while the PPP supports the principle of establishing Constitutional Courts, other components of the Charter of Democracy must also move forward to ensure balance. “We will engage with the government to see where further consensus can be built,” he noted.

Addressing the proposal to change the process of transferring judges, Bilawal said the government’s suggestion seeks to shift authority away from the current system that requires consultation with concerned chief justices and the consent of the judge, transferring that power instead to the parliamentary committee that oversees judicial appointments.

He said the PPP proposes an alternate mechanism. “We believe it would be more appropriate if the president initiates the process, and if a role is to be given to the Judicial Commission, that would be a suitable forum for serious discussion since it includes the chief justices and senior members of the judiciary,” he stated.

Bilawal added that both the chief justices of the transferring and receiving high courts should be part of the voting process, and the judge concerned should have the opportunity to present their position before any final decision. “This would make the process more transparent and address the criticisms raised about the amendment.”

On other components of the proposed 27th Amendment, including matters relating to dual nationality and executive magistracy, he said internal consultations were still ongoing. As far as the question of dual nationality is concerned, there is the Election Commission’s proposal and the executive magistracy’s proposal, on which we could not develop consensus within the PPP,” he added. “At this stage, I am not in a position to announce the PPP’s vote or support regarding the remaining proposed constitutional amendments.”

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Answering a question, he said that criticism of the 18th Constitutional Amendment and the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award is based on “misleading narratives,” adding that the real issue lies in the performance of federal institutions rather than provincial autonomy.

“Compare the National Institute of Cardiology before the 18th Amendment and the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases after it — the difference speaks for itself,” he said. “This false impression is being created that the 18th Amendment and the NFC Award had negative effects, whereas the reality is that some federal institutions, such as the FBR, have failed to perform and are now trying to hide their failures behind the rights of the provinces.”

Bilawal stressed that the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award is constitutionally protected and cannot be altered to reduce the provinces’ share.

“As long as we are in this Parliament, the Pakistan Peoples Party will safeguard the NFC. If the government manages to secure a two-thirds majority from elsewhere, that is another matter — but the PPP will not support any move that undermines the provinces’ rights,” he added.

PPP chairman said that the party had made its stance on Article 243 clear and emphasized that support is conditional on the amendment not undermining civil supremacy or democratic principles. “I am backing this because it does not cause any harm,” he stated.

He highlighted that following the decisions taken after the previous government’s tenure, Pakistan had gained recognition, and the amendment now provides a constitutional and legal cover, which PPP fully supports.

A day earlier, the PPP had rejected the proposed amendment as the party's top policy-making body made it clear that there would be no compromise on provincial autonomy or the provincial share in the National Finance Commission (NFC). Bilawal told reporters late Thursday night that the CEC would continue its deliberations on Friday, adding that final decisions would be announced after the meeting.

The PPP-CEC convened to discuss the proposed 27th amendment, with President Asif Ali Zardari and senior party leader Faryal Talpur also in attendance. The main agenda was to determine whether the party should support the government's proposed constitutional changes.

Bilawal said a delegation from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, had approached the PPP seeking support for the 27th Amendment. "In response, we convened a meeting of the Central Executive Committee to deliberate the matter," he said. "The PPP will support only the amendment related to Article 243, while all other points have been rejected," he added.

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"The government has proposed an amendment to Article 243 to rename the position of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and introduce a new post of National Strategic Command. The PPP's Central Executive Committee has authorised me to announce that the party supports only this amendment. All other points have either been completely rejected or discussions on them will continue tomorrow."

Commenting on the proposal to establish a Constitutional Court, Bilawal reiterated the party's long-standing position that such a body must ensure equal representation of all provinces. "Even in the context of the Charter of Democracy, our party's position remains that we are not ready to compromise on equal representation of all four provinces," he said.

He noted that while the Charter of Democracy did refer to the formation of a Constitutional Court, "There were other matters included in the Charter as well." He said the PPP's CEC would meet again on Friday to continue discussions and reach a final decision regarding the proposed Constitutional Court.

Fazl warns against reducing provincial powers

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman strongly opposed any attempts to reduce provincial powers, emphasising the importance of the 18th Amendment.

Speaking to the media on Friday, he said that the 18th Amendment, which had been passed with consensus across all parties, strengthened provincial autonomy, and any attempt to curtail these powers would face strong opposition. “We will not allow provinces’ rights to be undermined. The focus should be on increasing, not decreasing, provincial authority,” he said.

Addressing the ongoing discussion on the proposed 27th Constitutional Amendment, JUI-F leader said that during a parliamentary party meeting, no official draft had yet been presented by the government. He noted that efforts to forcibly secure a two-thirds parliamentary majority for constitutional changes would be harmful and constitute a disrespect to democracy and the Parliament.

However, he cautioned that any effort to restore the clauses withdrawn by the government in the 26th amendment, would not be accepted. “In the 26th Amendment, the government had withdrawn 35 clauses. If the 27th Amendment reinstates these clauses, we will oppose it,” he warned.

Criticising the government for attempting to rush the process, the JUI-F leader said that previous amendments had been carefully reviewed and passed unanimously by the Parliament, with all parties contributing. He noted that the 18th Amendment had taken a month to pass despite pressure to complete it in just three days, adding that the scope of the proposed 27th Amendment would determine the timeline for its passage.