The gazette notification for the 26th Constitutional Amendment was issued on Monday after President Asif Ali Zardari signed the bill approved by Parliament the previous night.
The National Assembly released the gazette notification, officially making the 26th Constitutional Amendment Bill 2024 an Act of Parliament. With this issuance, the amendment is now in effect.
The first significant step following the amendment will be forming a particular parliamentary committee responsible for appointing the new Chief Justice of Pakistan. This appointment process will follow Article 175A, Clause 3 of the Constitution.
According to the procedure, the Chief Justice of Pakistan will send the names of three senior judges to the parliamentary committee. The committee will then select one judge for the appointment, and its decision will be forwarded to the Prime Minister, who will advise the President to make the final appointment.
The special parliamentary committee will have 12 members, 8 from the National Assembly and 4 from the Senate, as outlined in Article 175A, Clause 3A. The Chief Justice will also submit a panel of three senior judges to the committee three days before his retirement, following Article 175A, Clause 3C.
It is important to note that the day before, both the Senate and National Assembly passed the 26th Constitutional Amendment by a majority vote.
