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Relief for government as Pakistan top court rejects 2022 ruling on lawmakers’ defection clause

Policemen sit beside the Pakistan's Supreme Court building during a hearing in Islamabad on April 6, 2022. (AFP/File)
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Updated 03 October 2024
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Relief for government as Pakistan top court rejects 2022 ruling on lawmakers’ defection clause

  • Pakistan’s top court barred lawmakers in 2022 from voting against their parliamentary party’s lines
  • Ruling comes ahead of government’s move to table key constitutional amendments in parliament 
Updated 03 October 2024
Aamir Saeed

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top court unanimously accepted a review petition against its 2022 judgment related to a defection clause in the constitution that barred lawmakers from voting against party lines in parliament, with the decision expected to bring major relief to the government as it plans to introduce a set of constitutional amendments in parliament. 

Pakistan’s top court ruled in May 2022 that votes cast by lawmakers opposed to their parliamentary party in four instances mentioned in the constitution’s Article 63-A would not be counted and the lawmaker found guilty of doing so could be disqualified from holding membership of parliament. These four instances include the elections of a prime minister and chief minister, a vote of confidence or no confidence, a constitutional amendment bill, and a money bill.

Pakistan’s ruling coalition government is planning on introducing a set of constitutional amendments in parliament that lawyers, opposition parties and independent experts allege are aimed at increasing the government’s power in making key judicial appointments and dealing with the defection of lawmakers during house votes. 

However, the government had deferred its move to table the amendments last month, admitting it did not have the required two-thirds majority in parliament required for their approval. Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has warned that if the Supreme Court struck down its 2022 ruling, it would pave the way for floor crossing in parliament. 

“I strongly condemn this, I just heard that the decision of [Article] 63-A has been issued,” former president and PTI leader Arif Alvi told reporters, shortly after a five-member bench of the apex court led by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa accepted the review petition. 

“What was the need for this? They just want to pass these amendments through this fake assembly which was rejected by even Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman, which can’t even pass a law let alone an amendment,” he added.

‘UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND UNJUST’ 

Khan’s lawyer in the case Ali Zafar had objected to the formation of the five-member bench and sought a meeting with the former prime minister in prison. 

Khan’s PTI has accused the government of attempting to grant an extension in tenure to Isa, who is widely viewed to be aligned with the ruling coalition and in opposition to its chief rival, the PTI, through the constitutional amendments.

The government denies these allegations and says the amendments are aimed at providing speedy justice to thousands of litigants in the country. 

Zafar later boycotted the court’s proceedings on Thursday, saying the ruling would open the door for “horse-trading” in parliament. 

Pakistan’s coalition government has criticized the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling, with Information Minister Attaullah Tarar saying last month that it was akin to rewriting the constitution. 

Tarar had argued that no institution has the right to interpret the constitution as it pleases. 

“The Supreme Court finally admits its previous ruling on Article 63-A was unconstitutional and unjust,” the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party wrote on social media platform X. 

“They have corrected the blunder made by selected judges.”

Topics: Pakistan Article 63-A defection clause PTI Supreme Court of Pakistan

Pakistan mulls routes as it eyes new ferry service between Gwadar and Gulf region

Updated 4 sec ago
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Pakistan mulls routes as it eyes new ferry service between Gwadar and Gulf region

  • The country has been looking to capitalize on its geostrategic location to boost transit trade and investment
  • Five private firms submit proposals as officials review technical and financial aspects of ferry operations
Updated 4 sec ago
Ismail Dilawar

KARACHI: Pakistan has been mulling routes for a ferry service it plans to launch to connect its southwestern Gwadar port with the Gulf region, the country’s maritime affairs ministry said on Friday.

The statement came after a meeting presided over by Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Junaid Anwar Chaudhry to review matters relating to the proposed ferry service.

Officials at the meeting reviewed technical and financial aspects of ferry operations, according to the ministry. Five privately-owned firms submitted their proposals, showing growing interest of the private sector.

“The ferry service will promote regional connectivity and trade,” Chaudhry was quoted as saying by his ministry. “It is expected to ease movement of passengers and goods from Gulf countries.”

Gwadar, situated along the Arabian Sea, lies at the heart of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), under which Beijing has funneled tens of billions of dollars into massive transport, energy and infrastructure projects in Pakistan.

Pakistani officials say the geostrategic location of the southwestern Pakistani coastal town in the Balochistan province offers the shortest trade route to the Gulf and landlocked Central Asian states, highlighted its potential as a regional transshipment hub.

During the meeting, Chaudhry telephoned Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti and discussed provincial cooperation with him, according to the maritime affairs ministry. Bugti assured his full cooperation for the project.

“The ferry service will highlight Gwadar on the international maritime map,” Chaudhry added.

The development comes amid Pakistan’s efforts to capitalize on its geostrategic location to boost transit trade as it slowly recovers from a macroeconomic crisis under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) program.

The country also plans to cut container dwell time at its seaports by up to 70 percent to improve trade competitiveness and ease congestion, while it last month reduced port charges for exporters by 50 percent at the second largest Port Qasim.

Topics: Gwadar Port

Pakistan says mobilizing all resources to ensure public safety after rains kill nearly 190

Updated 19 min 20 sec ago
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Pakistan says mobilizing all resources to ensure public safety after rains kill nearly 190

  • Heavy rains this week flooded several cities as Pakistan braces for a tough monsoon amid erratic and extreme weather changes
  • PM Shehbaz Sharif has called for formulating a coordinated plan to prevent losses in view of growing intensity of weather events
Updated 19 min 20 sec ago
KASHIF IMRAN

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Thursday that the government was mobilizing all resources to ensure public safety as rain-related death toll jumped to 178 since late June.

The statement came after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited the NDMA’s the National Emergencies Operation Center and called for formulating a coordinated plan to prevent losses in view of growing intensity of cloud bursts, heavy monsoon showers and flash floods.

Pakistan’s most populous Punjab province has been the hardest hit with 103 deaths, followed by 38 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 20 in Sindh, 16 in Balochistan and one in Azad Kashmir since June 26, according to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

“Despite the challenges posed by the ongoing rains, we’re working round the clock to ensure everyone’s safety,” Naqvi said on X.

“Rescue teams are on alert, drains are being cleared, and all resources are being mobilized.”

He urged people to follow adviseries and promptly report any emergencies to authorities.

On Thursday, Army Aviation helicopters carried out rescue operations, evacuating 40 people from in hard-to-reach areas in Punjab’s Jhelum district.

“Widespread thunderstorm with isolated heavy falls and torrential rains were expected Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Sargodha, Lahore, Sahiwal, Bahawalpur, Multan and DG Khan divisions, according to the NDMA.
The authority said the wet spell was likely to subside by Saturday.

Monsoon season brings South Asia 70 to 80 percent of its annual rainfall, arriving in early June in India and late June in Pakistan, and lasting through until September.

The annual rains are vital for agriculture and food security, and the livelihoods of millions of farmers. But increasingly erratic and extreme weather patterns are turning the rains into a destructive force.

In 2022, record-breaking monsoon rains combined with glacial melt submerged nearly a third of Pakistan, killing more than 1,700 people and displacing over 8 million. In May, at least 32 people were killed in severe storms, including strong hailstorms.

 

Topics: pakistan monsoon Monsoon 2025 flash floods

US designates Pakistani group’s offshoot as ‘terrorist’ over Kashmir attack

Updated 56 min 22 sec ago
Reuters
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US designates Pakistani group’s offshoot as ‘terrorist’ over Kashmir attack

  • The attack sparked heavy fighting between nuclear-armed Asian neighbors India, Pakistan in the latest escalation of a decades-old rivalry
  • India is an increasingly important US partner in Washington’s effort to counter China’s rising influence in Asia, while Pakistan is a US ally
Updated 56 min 22 sec ago
Reuters

WASHINGTON: The US government designated The Resistance Front, considered an offshoot of the Pakistani group Lashkar-e-Taiba, as a “foreign terrorist organization” over the April 22 militant attack in India-administered Kashmir that killed 26 people, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday.

The Resistance Front, also known as Kashmir Resistance, initially took responsibility for the attack in Pahalgam before denying it days later.

Lashkar-e-Taiba, listed as a “foreign terrorist organization” by the United States, is a group accused of plotting attacks in India and in the West, including the three-day deadly assault on Mumbai in November 2008.

TRF’s designation by Washington as a “foreign terrorist organization” and “specially designated global terrorist” enforced President Donald Trump’s “call for justice for the Pahalgam attack,” Rubio said in a statement.

Rubio called TRF, which emerged in 2019, a “front and proxy” for Lashkar-e-Taiba. It is considered an offshoot of Lashkar-e-Taiba, according to the South Asia Terrorism Portal, a Delhi-based think tank.

The attack sparked heavy fighting between nuclear-armed Asian neighbors India and Pakistan in the latest escalation of a decades-old rivalry. New Delhi blamed the attack on Pakistan, which denied responsibility while calling for a neutral investigation. Washington condemned the attack but did not directly blame Islamabad.

Michael Kugelman, a Washington-based South Asia analyst and writer for Foreign Policy magazine, said in designating TRF, “Washington is flagging its concern about the terrorist attack that provoked the recent India-Pakistan conflict, and siding with New Delhi’s view that the group is linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba.”

He added: “This can be a shot in the arm for a US-India relationship looking to rebound after a few tough months.”

On May 7, Indian jets bombed sites across the border that New Delhi described as “terrorist infrastructure,” setting off an exchange of attacks between the two countries by fighter jets, missiles, drones, and artillery that killed dozens until a ceasefire on May 10.

The ceasefire was first announced by Trump on social media after Washington held talks with both sides, but India has differed with Trump’s claims that it resulted from his intervention and his threats to sever trade talks.

India’s position has been that New Delhi and Islamabad must resolve their problems directly and with no outside involvement.

India is an increasingly important US partner in Washington’s effort to counter China’s rising influence in Asia, while Pakistan is a US ally.

Both Hindu-majority India and Islamic Pakistan claim Muslim-majority Kashmir in full while ruling only parts of the Himalayan territory, over which they have also fought wars.

Topics: Pahalgam attack Pakistan India standoff The Resistance Front

Pakistan seeks deeper UK health ties, targets reform in disease control, maternal care

Updated 18 July 2025
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Pakistan seeks deeper UK health ties, targets reform in disease control, maternal care

  • Syed Mustafa Kamal meets high-level British High Commission delegation to discuss Pakistan’s health challenges
  • Minister calls for need to address waterborne diseases in Pakistan, saying they account for 68 percent of all illnesses in country
Updated 18 July 2025
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal this week reaffirmed the government’s commitment to reform the health sector, eyeing greater collaboration with the United Kingdom (UK) in line with Islamabad’s health priorities, state media reported. 

The UK remains a key funder of global development efforts in Pakistan. According to the UK government’s website, it is supporting control and eradication of communicable diseases in Pakistan through its contributions in Global Health Initiatives, including Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM), Global Alliance for Vaccination (GAVI) and Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI).

A delegation led by Acting British High Commissioner Jo Moir met Kamal on Thursday to discuss Pakistan’s health challenges, including a high burden of both communicable and non-communicable diseases.

“A delegation from the British High Commission on Thursday met with Federal Minister for Health, Syed Mustafa Kamal to explore avenues for aligning the United Kingdom’s support portfolio with Pakistan’s national health priorities,” state-run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported. 

“The minister reaffirmed the government’s strong commitment to reforming the health sector and welcomed continued collaboration in critical areas such as maternal and child health, immunization, and health systems strengthening,” the report added. 

Kamal stressed the importance of shifting Pakistan’s focus from preventive and promotive health care by strengthening primary health care systems to reduce the strain on tertiary care facilities, APP said. 

He called for the urgent need to address waterborne diseases in Pakistan, saying they account for 68 percent of all illnesses in the country. The minister called for tackling the crisis by ensuring the provision of safe drinking water and improved sewage systems across Pakistan.

Kamal raised concerns about Pakistan’s high fertility rate, describing it as a “national issue requiring immediate attention.”

“He encouraged efforts to balance population growth through collaboration with stakeholders, including religious scholars and development partners,” the report added. 

Moir appreciated Kamal’s efforts and shared details of the UK’s ongoing support for Pakistan in the health and population sectors, the state-run media said.

She also highlighted plans to design a media campaign based on research findings, focusing on health and population awareness, APP said.

Topics: Pakistan UK Ties

Islamabad invites Chinese enterprises to invest in Pakistan’s agriculture sector

Updated 17 July 2025
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Islamabad invites Chinese enterprises to invest in Pakistan’s agriculture sector

  • Agriculture employs nearly 38 percent of Pakistan’s workforce, contributes around 19 percent to GDP
  • China, Pakistan discuss collaborating in research, cotton production, seed development, irrigation efficiency
Updated 17 July 2025
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Minister for Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain on Thursday invited Chinese enterprises to invest in the country’s agriculture sector, eyeing stronger collaboration with Beijing in irrigation technologies and modern farming techniques.

Pakistan has recently undertaken efforts to promote its agriculture sector, which include establishing a new regulatory body this week to reform the sector and bring domestic food safety standards in line with international requirements.

Agriculture remains a cornerstone of Pakistan’s economy, employing nearly 38 percent of the workforce and contributing around 19 percent to the country’s GDP. However, the sector has long faced challenges, including outdated practices, poor regulatory oversight, low export competitiveness and barriers in meeting international sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards.

Hussain met a high-level Chinese delegation including Jiang Zaidong, the Chinese ambassador to Pakistan, on the sidelines of the China-Pakistan Economic and Trade Exchange Conference in Islamabad.

“The Minister also underlined the importance of public-private partnerships and urged Chinese enterprises, including those from XPCC [Xinjian Production and Construction Corps] and China Xinjian Group, to explore investment opportunities in Pakistan’s agriculture and agri-business sectors,” the food security and research ministry said in a statement.

Hussain welcomed proposals for joint ventures, research exchanges and the establishment of demonstration farms and technology centers in Pakistan, the statement added.

The two sides discussed enhancing agricultural cooperation, particularly focusing on research, cotton production, seed development, irrigation efficiency and technological exchange.

The Pakistani minister highlighted the challenges Islamabad has faced in recent years, especially in cotton production, where declining yields and outdated seed varieties have created major setbacks, the ministry said.

“The Minister expressed keen interest in learning from Xinjiang’s remarkable progress in improving agricultural productivity, especially in regions with arid and semi-arid climates, which closely resemble many parts of Pakistan,” the statement said.

Zaidong reaffirmed China’s commitment to deepening agricultural cooperation with Pakistan, the food security ministry said.

“He appreciated Pakistan’s proactive approach and openness to collaboration and highlighted the potential for long-term partnership in food security, technology transfer, and rural development,” the statement added.

Pakistan has undertaken a reform drive to enhance its economic sectors via the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC). The SIFC is a civil-military hybrid body formed in 2023 to fast-track foreign investment and economic reform in strategic sectors, including agriculture, mining, IT and defense production.

Pakistan aims to attract international investment in its key economic sectors to ward off a prolonged macroeconomic crisis that has drained its resources and embroiled the country in a balance of payments crisis.

Topics: Pakistan China Ties

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