AJK constitution to be amended with consensus: Wattoo
Says PPP govt could do this with simple majority, but will take all parties along.
ISLAMABAD:
Minister for Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) and Kashmir Affairs Mian Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo said on Thursday that amendments in the Interim 1974 Constitutional Act of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) will be made after taking all political parties on board.
Addressing a press conference following a meeting to discuss the amendments, Wattoo said that while the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) AJK government could amend the AJK constitution with a simple majority, it was committed to achieving its objective through consensus.
He added that leaders of all parties in AJK were invited to attend the meetings, which will gather all recommendations and dispatch them to a parliamentary committee. The committee will finalise its report in two months and submit it to the Pakistani leadership for final decision on the amendments.
Replying to a question, the minister said the government was committed to introducing amendments in the Interim 1974 Constitutional Act. Terming it an important task, he said leaders from different political parties in AJK deserved appreciation for their cooperation.
The meeting was attended by AJK President Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob and Prime Minister Chaudhry Abdul Majeed along with former presidents Sardar Muhammad Anwar Khan and Raja Zulqarnain, former premiers Sardar Attique Ahmad, Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry and Raja Farooq Haider, senior minister Chaudhry Yaseen, Jamat-e-Islami AJK Ameer Abdul Rasheed Turabi and former AJK assembly speaker Shah Ghulam Qadir.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 31st, 2012.
Minister for Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) and Kashmir Affairs Mian Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo said on Thursday that amendments in the Interim 1974 Constitutional Act of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) will be made after taking all political parties on board.
Addressing a press conference following a meeting to discuss the amendments, Wattoo said that while the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) AJK government could amend the AJK constitution with a simple majority, it was committed to achieving its objective through consensus.
He added that leaders of all parties in AJK were invited to attend the meetings, which will gather all recommendations and dispatch them to a parliamentary committee. The committee will finalise its report in two months and submit it to the Pakistani leadership for final decision on the amendments.
Replying to a question, the minister said the government was committed to introducing amendments in the Interim 1974 Constitutional Act. Terming it an important task, he said leaders from different political parties in AJK deserved appreciation for their cooperation.
The meeting was attended by AJK President Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob and Prime Minister Chaudhry Abdul Majeed along with former presidents Sardar Muhammad Anwar Khan and Raja Zulqarnain, former premiers Sardar Attique Ahmad, Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry and Raja Farooq Haider, senior minister Chaudhry Yaseen, Jamat-e-Islami AJK Ameer Abdul Rasheed Turabi and former AJK assembly speaker Shah Ghulam Qadir.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 31st, 2012.