While holding a press conference in Islamabad, JUI chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman announced that his party completely rejects the 27th Constitutional Amendment. He said that the government wants to increase its influence over the judiciary through this amendment, while this constitutional process is neither in the public interest nor meets the requirements of reforms.
According to Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the 26th Constitutional Amendment presented last year is still pending in court; despite this, a new and more controversial amendment has been brought. He said that JUI has always been in favour of the Constitutional Court and the constitution has always been made in consultation, but the current government has violated this tradition.
The JUI chief said that the 27th Amendment includes points like “lifetime immunity” that even judicial experts themselves do not clearly understand. Referring to President Asif Ali Zardari, he said that after the new amendment, no case will be filed against him in the future, who had to face cases for years.
According to Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the government held negotiations for more than a month but ignored the opposition till the end. He said that the 26th Amendment was passed in consultation, while the 27th Amendment is a manifestation of hasty and unilateral decisions.
According to political experts, the lack of consultation on the amendment could create a further rift between the government and the opposition. Experts say such decisions can weaken the political system and increase judicial disputes.
