The president of the party says that the CCA supports article 243, the Constitutional Court and the transfers of judges
Pakistan People’s Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari addresses a press conference in Karachi, Friday, November 7, 2025. Screenshot
Pakistan People’s Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said the party’s Central Executive Committee decided to support the proposed 27th Amendment, with conditional approval of provisions related to the establishment of Constitutional Courts and reforms in the judicial transfer process.
At a press conference after the CEC meeting in Karachi, Bilawal said: “Yesterday I also made it clear that the PPP will support Article 243 and will also vote in favor of it.” He reiterated that the PPP is considering supporting three key changes, including Article 243, Constitutional Courts and transfers of judges, ensuring that the reforms align with democratic principles and judicial independence.
He said: “There are mainly three points in the constitutional amendment that the PPP is considering supporting. The first is amendment 243, which has been under discussion for some time and is considered a key step in strengthening parliamentary oversight. The second relates to the establishment of Constitutional Courts, particularly in light of the ongoing consultations with the government on what aspects of the Charter of Democracy it is willing to implement at this stage. The third relates to the transfer of judges, provided that both the presidents of the Court “Incoming and outgoing Supreme Court members remain members of the commission in charge of supervising these decisions.”
He added that the idea of the Constitutional Courts arose from the PPP itself. “This initiative has been part of all the PPP manifestos, and was also included in the Charter of Democracy, which mentions the establishment of Constitutional Courts,” he said.
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The PPP chairman further said that the party’s CEC deliberated on the matter for two days and concluded that while the PPP supports the principle of establishing Constitutional Courts, other components of the Charter of Democracy must also move forward to ensure balance. “We will communicate with the government to see where greater consensus can be achieved,” he said.
Addressing the proposal to change the process of transferring judges, Bilawal said the government’s suggestion seeks to divert authority from the current system that requires consultations with the chief justices concerned and the consent of the judge, transferring that power to the parliamentary committee that oversees judicial appointments.
He said the PPP proposes an alternative mechanism. “We believe it would be more appropriate if the president initiates the process, and if the Judicial Commission is given a role, that would be a suitable forum for a serious discussion as it includes the chief justices and senior members of the judiciary,” he said.
Bilawal added that both the presidents of the transferring and receiving high courts should be part of the voting process, and the judge concerned should be given the opportunity to present his position before any final decision. “This would make the process more transparent and address criticisms raised about the amendment.”
On other components of the proposed 27th Amendment, including issues related to dual nationality and executive judiciary, he said internal consultations were still taking place. “At this time, I am not in a position to announce the PPP’s vote or support regarding the remaining proposed constitutional amendments,” he said.
Read more: PPP rejects key proposals in 27th amendment
A day earlier, the PPP had rejected the proposed amendment when the party’s highest policy-making body made it clear that there would be no compromise on provincial autonomy or provincial participation in the National Finance Commission (NFC). Bilawal told reporters on Thursday night that the CEC would continue its deliberations on Friday, adding that final decisions would be announced after the meeting.
The PPP-CEC met to discuss the proposed 27th amendment, with President Asif Ali Zardari and party leader Faryal Talpur also present. The main agenda was to determine whether the party should support the constitutional changes proposed by the government.
Bilawal said a delegation from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, had approached the PPP seeking support for the 27th Amendment. “In response, we called a meeting of the Central Executive Committee to deliberate on the matter,” he said. “The PPP will support only the amendment relating to Article 243, while all other points have been rejected,” he added.
“The government has proposed an amendment to Article 243 to change the name of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and introduce a new National Strategic Command post. The PPP Central Executive Committee has authorized me to announce that the party supports only this amendment. All other points have been completely rejected or discussions on them will continue tomorrow.”
Commenting on the proposal to establish a Constitutional Court, Bilawal reiterated the party’s long-standing position that such a body should ensure equal representation of all provinces. “Even in the context of the Charter of Democracy, our party’s position remains that we are not willing to commit to equal representation of the four provinces,” he said.
He noted that while the Charter of Democracy referred to the formation of a Constitutional Court, “other issues were also included in the Charter.” He said the PPP CEC would meet again on Friday to continue discussions and reach a final decision on the proposed Constitutional Court.
Fazl warns against reducing provincial powers
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman strongly opposed any attempt to reduce provincial powers, stressing the importance of the 18th Amendment.
Speaking to the media on Friday, he said the 18th Amendment, which had been passed with cross-party consensus, strengthened provincial autonomy, and any attempt to restrict these powers would face strong opposition. “We will not allow provincial rights to be undermined. The focus must be on increasing, not diminishing, provincial authority,” he said.
Fazl noted that efforts to forcibly secure a two-thirds parliamentary majority for constitutional changes would be damaging and disrespectful to democracy and Parliament.
Addressing the ongoing debate over the proposed 27th Constitutional Amendment, the JUI-F leader said that during a parliamentary meeting of the party, the government was yet to present any official draft.
However, he warned that any attempt to restore the clauses withdrawn by the government in the 26th amendment, would not be accepted. “In the 26th Amendment, the government had removed 35 clauses. If the 27th Amendment restores these clauses, we will oppose it,” he warned.
Criticizing the government for trying to speed up the process, the JUI-F leader said the previous amendments had been carefully reviewed and unanimously approved by Parliament, with input from all parties. He noted that the 18th Amendment had taken a month to pass despite pressure to complete it in just three days, adding that the scope of the proposed 27th Amendment would determine the timeline for its passage.
