KARACHI: The Pak­is­tan Peoples Party (PPP) and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) reached an agreement on Tuesday regarding the proposed 26th constitutional amendment.

Although the key points of the constitutional package were not disclosed, JUI-F leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman made it clear that he had rejected the previous draft and would not compromise on parliamentary supremacy or the essence of the Constitution.

Apparently, the Mau­lana showed some flexibility during his meeting with PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhu­tto-Zardari, where both leaders agreed on a joint draft for the proposed amendment and committed to building consensus among other parliam­entary parties. The two are scheduled to meet PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif in Raiwind today (Wednesday) to seek his blessings for the draft.

The meeting, viewed as a breakthrough by PPP leaders, took place at Bilawal House and lasted over four hours. Afterwards, the leaders addressed the media, sharing the “good news” of the emerging consensus on the amendment while expressing hope that more parties, including Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), would join the fold.

Bilawal, Fazl set to meet Nawaz in Raiwind today to secure his endorsement

“I think it’s not appropriate to share the details of the consensus or the key points of the draft before meeting Mian Sahib [Nawaz Sharif] tomorrow,” the PPP chairman said in response to a question.

“Maulana Sahib is meeting Mian Sahib tomorrow. We are also invited for lunch at Raiwind, so we hope that once this process of understanding and consensus is complete, we can share the details with you in a much better way,” he added.

To the same query, Mau­lana Fazl came forward and gave the imp­ression that he had not made any compromise over his party’s stance, which had been resisting the proposed Federal Constitutional Court since day one, and said that he had not agreed on the previous draft for the proposed amendment.

“Let me be very clear that we rejected the first draft and we would rej­ect it again even today,” he said. “However, we kept engaging with each other in the larger interest,” he said, adding that the PPP and the JUI-F prepared their separate drafts and looked into the areas where consensus could be built.

“We successfully rem­o­ved the differences bet­ween the two sides. Now we expect the PML-N to agree on these points, which do not compromise parliamentary sup­re­macy or the essence of the Constitution,” he said.

Mr Bhutto-Zardari highlighted that the concept of a constitutional court was part of the Charter of Democracy, envisioned by Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif in 2006. However, Maulana Fazlur Rehman clarified that his party was not a signatory to the charter but supported initiatives that strengthened democracy and the parliamentary system.

“The PPP has fought every election since 2007 with the pledge to implement judicial reforms, including the establishment of federal constitutional courts. Please see relevant sections of the 2006 Charter of Democracy, 2013 manifesto and 2024 election manifesto,” Mr Bhutto-Zardari said.

Earlier in the day, the PPP chairman took to social media to share his thoughts that opposition to proposed amendments was based on personal likes and dislikes.

In a message on X (formerly Twitter), Mr Bhu­tto-Zardari mentioned that the establishment of a Federal Constitutional Court had been part of the party manifesto since 2007, after the Charter of Democracy was signed on May 14, 2006.

“Many of today’s opponents have supported this reform in the past. Their opposition today is based on personal likes and dislikes or partisan positions on the politics of the moment. Our permanent party position for almost two decades now has remained consistent,” he tweeted.

“Our representatives elected in every election under my chairmanship of this party have been given the mandate by the people of Pakistan to establish a federal constitutional court with equal representation for all,” he added.

Published in Dawn, October 16th, 2024