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Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry taking oath under PCO
ISLAMABAD: The Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Reforms reached agreement on Tuesday on proposed constitutional amendment over procedure for appointment of superior court judges in accordance with the Charter of Democracy (CoD).
Under the procedure, an eight-member committee with equal representation of the opposition and treasury in the National Assembly and Senate will accept or reject by a two-thirds majority any name referred to it by the prime minister for the office of a judge of high court or the Supreme Court.
A representative of the Pakistan Muslim League-Q told our correspondent his party had given up its opposition to the formation of the parliamentary committee after it was agreed that the name of a judge would be rejected only by a two-thirds majority.
He said the PML-Q accepted the proposal after the Pakistan People’s Party and Pakistan Muslim League-N agreed not to insist on formation of a constitutional court as envisaged in the Charter of Democracy.
Sources said the PPP and PML-N agreed that Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry would be the chairman of the Judicial Commission. Earlier they were insisting that a judge having taken oath under the Provisional Constitution Order should not head the commission. The commission will include two senior judges of the Supreme Court, the law minister, an eminent member of the Pakistan Bar Council and the attorney general.
A member of the committee told ‘The Statesmen’ that the parliamentary committee would now take up issues like provincial autonomy, enhancement of Senate’s powers and renaming the North-West Frontier Province. He expressed the hope that with the spirit of accommodation demonstrated on Tuesday the committee would complete its task by the end of the month.
Timeline: Musharraf’s Validity and Endorsements by Supreme Court
1- On 13 May 2000, Pakistan’s 12 member Supreme Court unanimously validated the October 1999 coup and granted Musharraf executive and legislative authority for 3 years from the coup date. Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry was one of the judges that validated. (Link)
2- On 7 October 2002, the 5 member bench of Supreme Court validated LFO and amendments to constitution. Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry was one of the judges that validated. (Link)
3- On 29 Dec 2004, PML-Q government passed the 17th constitutional amendment bill in National Assembly, with 2/3 majority, also approved by Senate that allowed President Musharraf to hold dual offices. (Link)
4- Constitution of Pakistan – Article 63 clause (1) paragraph (d), read with proviso to Article 41 clause (7) paragraph (b), allows the President to hold dual office.
5- On 13 April 2005, the 5 member bench of Supreme Court gave judgment in favor of 17th amendment and President’s uniform. Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry was one of the judges that validated. (Link)
6- On 28 September 2007, the Supreme Court cleared the way for President Pervez Musharraf to seek another five-year term, and stand for Presidential elections, when six of the nine judges, rejected a tangle of petitions against him and threw out a major legal challenge to his re-election plans. Presided by Justice Rana Bhagwandas. (Link)
7- President Musharraf was elected President of Pakistan, on 6th October 2007, by a combined electoral of the Senate, National Assembly and the FOUR Provincial Assembles.
8- President of Pakistan declared emergency on 3rd November 2007, as per Article 232 of the constitution.
9- The 10 member bench of Supreme Court (SC) on 24 November 2007 directed the chief election commissioner and the government to declare Pervez Musharraf president for a second term. (Link)
10- On 24 November 2007, the Pakistan Election Commission confirmed Musharraf’s re-election as President. (Link)
11- President Musharraf won by 58% votes, declared in November 2007, as the constitutional President of Pakistan!
12- On 28 November 2007, Musharraf relinquished the office of Chief of Armed Staff, as per November 2007 verdict of the Supreme Court.
13- On 15 Feb 2008, the Supreme Court validated the proclamation of emergency of 3rd Nov 2007, PCO 2007 and oath of the judges. This full court judgment was written by Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar. (Link)
