Scraping of 19th amendment demanded: Judges’ appointments only on seniority, performance: Fazl

ISLAMABAD: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Friday, while demanding scraping of 19th constitutional amendment has said his party wants judges’ appointments based on seniority and performance.

Addressing a press conference here, he said that parliament must be empowered in appointment of judges by fully restoring the 18th constitutional amendment. He said that people at large have accepted the viewpoint of JUI and rejected the government’s proposals on constitutional amendments.

Rehman also urged the opposition to not stage protests during the all-important Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meeting, slated to happen in Pakistan. “The parliament’s role will be increased in terms of appointing the judges with the abolishment of the 19th amendment.”

“The government should know that our narrative has become popular in the public,” he said. He said: “The parliament’s role had been finished with the judicial reforms in the 19th Amendment.” The consensus can be reached on the suitable draft, but there is a condition of accepting our draft,” Maulana said.

He said that finally, the government, on Friday, shared the draft constitutional amendments in the special parliamentary committee meeting with other political parties, while the JUI and the PPP had already shared their drafts.

He urged the people not to divide the judiciary on account of political narratives; saying judges should only remain judges and not part of any political party. He said that morale boosting of judiciary is critical and all the political parties should have played their role in uplifting the confidence of the judiciary so that judges can dispense justice. “It is up to the judiciary and us to restore the confidence of the masses,” he added. He urged the need to keep the judiciary away from politics.

Responding to another question, Maulana said being parliamentarians “we respect the judiciary and the courts must also show respect for the masses.” He said that “the parliament should not need to sideline the priorities of the public.”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024