Azam Nazeer Tarar says constitutional changes remain off the table without consensus
Minister of Justice, Azam Nazeer Tarar. PHOTO: ARCHIVE
Justice Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said on Saturday that there was currently no sign of a 28th constitutional amendment, and stressed that any move towards constitutional changes would only proceed after consultation with coalition partners and other stakeholders.
Speaking to the media after attending the Justice AR Cornelius Lecture in Lahore, the law minister said the government was functioning under a coalition setup, where even ordinary legislation required consultation, making constitutional amendments impossible without consensus.
Tarar said the consultation process would move forward when the coalition parties gave a signal, adding that all stakeholders would participate because certain issues required national consensus.
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Referring to the 2009 constitutional reforms, he said that consensus at that time was achieved through national dialogue and that any future process would follow the same path. He clarified that no final draft of any constitutional amendment currently existed and said the contours of any proposed amendment could not be determined until a formal draft was prepared.
The justice minister said the federation faced multiple governance challenges and serious discussions were needed on constitutional and administrative issues.
He noted that population growth remained a key factor in the National Finance Commission formula, while various provincial and regional demands, including the issue of a Seraiki province, continued to appear in political discussions.
He further said that the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan had been advocating for stronger local governments, while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had commissioned efforts to build consensus on different constitutional and governance proposals.
