Bills to formalise services chiefs' tenure to be tabled in NA today

National Assembly. Photo: File

The National Assembly is expected to pass the the three amendment bills pertaining to the tenure of the serving chiefs of the armed forces today.

The lower house of parliament will debate on the bills after the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Defence had unanimously approved the three amendment bills on Monday.

In order to pass the bills, lawmakers in the lower house of Parliament on Monday adopted a resolution to suspend private members day to take up government business, reported The News. 

The private members day was scheduled to be held today (Tuesday) but now has been deferred to Wednesday.

The National Assembly Standing Committee on Defence had been summoned on Monday to discuss amendments to the Army Act, Air Force Act, and Navy Act.

The committee had to reconvene just three days after it initially 'approved' the three bills aimed at regularising the tenure of the services chiefs.

Also read: COAS service extension: Army Act amendment bill to make future extensions airtight

The committee had to be summoned again after it was established that the rules and regulations of parliament were violated in the January 3 session of the committee.

After the National Assembly's approval, the bills will be approved by the Senate Standing Committee on Defence before bills are passed by the Senate.

The bills would become acts of Parliament once signed by the president.

Law Minister Farogh Naseem had said that all political parties including the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples Party have approved the amendment bills.

Changes sought in law

The proposed amendments set the maximum age limit of the three services chiefs — chief of army staff, chief of air staff and chief of naval staff — at 64 years. If the bills get passed, the prime minister will have the power to extend the tenure of any service chief and the president will give his final nod to the extension or reappointment.

Under clause 8B of Army Act Amendment Bill, the president, on the advice of the prime minister, may “reappoint the Chief of the Army Staff for an additional tenure of three (03) years, on such terms and conditions, as may be determined by the president on the advice of the prime minister, in the national security interest or exigencies, from time to time”.

“Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or any other law, or any order or judgement of any Court, the appointment, reappointment or extension of the Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), or the exercise of discretion by the appointing authority in this regard, shall not be called into question before any court on any ground whatsoever,” the bill states.

Also read: Cabinet approves amendment to Army Act

SC directs govt to legislate on COAS tenure

Back in November 2018, the Supreme Court had asked the government to legislate on an extension in the COAS's services within six months, allowing General Qamar Javed Bajwa to stay in office until then.

Prior to that, PM Imran in August had approved the extension in the COAS's services through an executive order. Former chief justice Asif Saeed Khosa had in late November taken up a petition challenging the extension in service of the COAS, deeming it 'in the public interest'.

The court had subsequently suspended the notification of the extension in General Bajwa's tenure.

Last month, after the top court issued the detailed verdict in the case, the government had filed a review petition in the SC, pleading the court to form a larger bench to hear the case, and requesting it to keep the proceedings in-camera.

Side by side, it had launched the formalities to formulate a bill formalising the rules governing the army chief's extension and have it passed through parliament.