NA defers bill regarding increase in number of SC judges from 17 to 23

Treasury member of the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) Daniyal Aziz Chaudhry has introduced the Supreme Court Judges Amendment Bill 2024 in the National Assembly to increase the number of judges but the speaker deferred the legislation aftre the Opposition objected to it.. 

According to the 24NewsHD TV channel, the bill suggests amendments to the Supreme Court Act of 1997, specifically to Section 2, with the goal of expanding the number of judges from the current 17 to 23. This includes the Chief Justice of Pakistan and 22 other judges.

While laying the bill in the National Assembly, Daniyal Chaudhry argued that when the original law (Supreme Court Act 1997) was enacted, Pakistan's population was 160 million, but it has now increased to 250 million, necessitating more judges to handle the growing number of cases. 

He noted that there are over 54,000 cases currently pending in the Supreme Court. Highlighting the backlog issue, Daniyal Aziz Chaudhry shared an example of a convict sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment whose appeal was heard 35 years later.

Addressing the assembly, Federal Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar said that judicial reforms are the top priority of the present government. He said the government is actively working on it over the last five months.

Tarar said the Senate has discussed the bill in detail and highlighted the need for judicial reforms in the country. The bill also faced objections from Gohar Ali Khan of the Sunni Ittehad Council.

As many as eight bills were referred to the concerned committees on Tuesday for further deliberation and consideration as well.

The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2024 (Article 184) introduced by Noor Alam Khan, this bill seeks to amend the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.  It pertains to suo motu powers and proposes that a bench of nine judges should decide on such cases. The bill was referred to the committee.

The Criminal Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024 introduced by Sohail Sultan, this bill seeks to amend the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860, and the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898. It proposes increasing the punishment for cheque bounce cases. The bill was referred to the committee.

The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2024 (Amendments to Articles 51, 59, and 106) Noor Alam Khan introduced this bill to allocate reserved seats for overseas Pakistanis in the national and provincial assemblies.

Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Azam Nazeer Tarar acknowledged that the government is working on this issue, emphasizing the significant role of overseas Pakistanis in the country’s development.

The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2024 (Articles 177, 193, and 208) Noor Alam Khan also introduced this bill, which seeks to prevent individuals with dual nationality from being appointed as judges of the courts.

The Contempt of Court (Repeal) Bill, 2024 Noor Alam Khan introduced a bill to repeal the Contempt of Court Ordinance, 2003 (V of 2003).

The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2024 (Article 198) introduced by Changaze Ahmed Khan, this bill proposes amendments to Article 198 of the Constitution.

The Civil Servants (Amendment) Bill, 2024 Noor Alam Khan introduced this bill, which proposes that bureaucrats should not hold dual nationality.

The Allocation of Special Seats for Deserving Persons in Universities Bill, 2024 introduced by Syed Rafiullah, this bill aims to reserve special seats for deserving students in universities and higher education institutions.

The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) (Amendment) Bill, 2024 Introduced by Danyal Chaudhary, this bill seeks to amend the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1997, by increasing the number of judges to address the growing number of cases. However, the bill was deferred by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq after Opposition objected to it, Gohar Ali Khan argued that such a bill can only be introduced by the government.

Meanwhile, the National Assembly today passed a resolution recommending the government to take immediate steps for the provision of state-of-the-art medical facilities in federal capital hospitals and high-quality healthcare for all patients. It was moved by Ms Aliya Kamran.

Responding to a calling attention notice, Minister for Water Resources Musadik Malik said under Green Pakistan Initiative, a plan has been devised to bring barren land in the country under cultivation and enhance per acre crop production. He pointed out that Punjab and Sindh provinces have so far identified land for this scheme.

The house has now been adjourned to meet again tomorrow at 11:00 am.

Reporter: Usman Khan