Govt wants SC to stay its ruling on army chief extension case

• It requested SC to put a stay order in judgement until a decision on government's review petition on verdict has been made.
• It also sought formation of a larger bench comprising five judges to hear petition.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government filed on Thursday a petition in the Supreme Court (SC) regarding its verdict in the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) extension case.

The petition sought a stay order on the top court's verdict on November 28, regarding the extension of the COAS tenure, local media reported. The petition requested the SC to put a stay order in the judgement until a decision on the government's review petition has been made.

The plea also requests the apex court to include the previous application filed by the government in the current petition. It also asked for the formation of a larger bench to hear the review petition.

On November 28, the SC announced its verdict and allowed COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa to remain the army chief for another six months. The SC directed that the Parliament legislate on the extension and reappointment of an army chief.

In an emergency meeting on Wednesday chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan, the federal cabinet approved proposed amendments to the Army Act in order to give a three-year extension to the army chief.