Senate to vote on services acts amendment bills today

Photo: file

ISLAMABAD: The Senate will take up the issue of three bills pertaining to the tenure of the three services chiefs today after the National Assembly and the Senate Standing Committee on Defence gave the go ahead to the three bills.

The bills are Pakistan Army (Amendment) bill, 2020, Pakistan Air Force (Amendment) bill, 2020 and Pakistan Navy (Amendment) bill, 2020.

On Tuesday the National Assembly had given its approval to the three bills formalising the length of tenure of the three services chiefs.

All the major parties lent their near unquestioning assent to them, however, some opposition lawmakers, including MNAs from the Jamaat-e-Islami, the Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl and representatives from erstwhile Fata walked out in protest over the bills. They had earlier announced they would not be supporting the bills on principle.

The bills will become law once Senate forwards them to the president and he signs off on them.

Read also: Senate committee, NA approve services acts amendment bills

Changes sought

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.

Once the bills are 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 the clause 8B of the bill, the president, on the advice of the prime minister, may “reappoint the Chief of the Army Staff for 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, 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.

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

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.

Read also: PML-N lends unconditional support to Army Act amendment