Following the ratification of the 26th constitutional amendment by President Asif Ali Zardari, a gazette notification has been issued to officially enforce the new law.
The amendment sets the groundwork for the appointment of the next Chief Justice of Pakistan, and the process of forming a parliamentary committee tasked with this responsibility has already commenced.
Sources reveal that the Speaker of the National Assembly has requested parliamentary leaders to submit names for the 12-member committee, which will comprise 8 members from the National Assembly and 4 members from the Senate. Once the committee is formed, a three-member panel of senior judges will be presented by the Ministry of Law for consideration. The parliamentary committee will then select the new Chief Justice from this panel.
The development follows the completion of the amendment’s approval process in Parliament earlier today, just after the Fajr prayer. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif promptly sent the summary to the President, leading to the swift ratification of the constitutional amendment.
