PML-N wants PPP to join hands for a Sharif cause

• National Assembly set to take up two crucial bills aimed at shaping ex-PM’s destiny

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is making last-ditch efforts to win the support of the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) over very important legislation that will shape up the political future of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. However, the PPP is reluctant to respond.

“Though the PML-N has been trying to cut a deal with the PPP, there is no breakthrough yet. But mutual friends are making contacts and a breakthrough may arrive soon,” said a source within the ruling party on condition of anonymity.

The PPP lawmaker and senator, Farhatullah Babar, told Pakistan Today that “there is no contact between the PML-N and the PPP for supporting the 24th Constitutional (Amendment) Bill”.

NAWAZ-LED HUDDLE REVIEWS SITUATION AHEAD OF AMENDMENT

Ahead of the 24th Constitutional (Amendment) Bill being tabled in the lower house, a PML-N huddle took place in Jati Umra with Nawaz Sharif in the chair.  During the meeting, the former premier expressed concerns over factions within the party, and discussed a strategy to overcome these fissures. The meeting also decided to hold a rally in context with imminent general elections on November 12 in Abbottabad.

BILLS TO BE TABLED IN NA

The National Assembly, in its ongoing session, is all set to take up the two crucial bills— an opposition-led bill seeking to amend Article 203 of the Constitution and the PML-N-led 24th Constitutional (Amendment) Bill.

The NA secretary has also provided copies of the Constitution (Twenty-Fourth Amendment) Bill, 2016, to the members of the house, informing them that the bill was to be tabled in the current session.

Moreover, the opposition bill to amend Article 203 is also set to be taken up at the National Assembly, which seeks to bar any citizen to become a member or party chief of a political party who has been already termed ineligible or disqualified by any court of law.

Nevertheless, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) reacted strongly to the bill, describing it as a bid to ease pressure on Sharif.

Talking to Pakistan Today, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) senior leader Dr Arif Alvi confirmed that the 24th Amendment Bill was being tabled. “Yes, Secretary National Assembly has provided us copies of the Bill and also informed this bill is being tabled in the current session,” he said.

Asked what would be the strategy of his party, Alvi said that the PTI believed that the bill was ill-timed and aimed at clipping the powers of the judiciary. He said that the bill was person-specific as Nawaz Sharif’s corruption had been caught by the court.

When asked whether the bill had a retrospective or prospective effects, Alvi said that the government had put an amendment that the aggrieved party could file an appeal in any verdict, in any case, decided on a petition under article 184/3 within three months’ time. He said that this bill could be tailored for a retrospective effect.

“Even its time limit could be omitted too. So if this bill is principally approved, the government may amend it again in next session to exclude the time limit. So this is a dangerous move (to clip wings of judiciary),” he maintained.

He said that under this Article 184/3, the courts may take up the issues of fundamental rights even if the matter is time-barred. So even if anyone does not appear in a court and the matter is time-barred, the court still may decide the matter under this law.

Arif Alvi said that the ruling party was hell bent to amend each and every law to save the corruption money of Nawaz Sharif.

WHAT IS 24TH AMENDMENT BILL?

National Assembly Standing Committee on Law and Justice in January this year passed the Constitution (Twenty-Fourth Amendment) Bill, 2016. The bill seeks provision of the right to appeal to an aggrieved party against a suo motu order under Article 184 (3) of the Constitution in the apex court.

The members of opposition parties including PTI, PPP and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) had opposed the Bill.

The bill proposes new clauses to Article 184 of the Constitution. According to the Bill, the new clauses are “(4) any person aggrieved by an order passed by the Supreme Court under clause (3) may, within thirty days of the passing of such order, prefer an appeal to the Supreme Court.” “An appeal preferred under clause (4) shall be heard by a bench larger than the bench, which had passed the order appeal,” says the Bill, moved by Minister for Law, Justice Zahid Hamid.

Farhatullah Babar told Pakistan Today that though the PPP had been supporting legislation for striking balance to unbridled powers given to judiciary under Article 184/3. However, the timing of tabling the bill was not right, he added.

“The party in recent past has said that the bill is ill-timed. But we would take a decision on the bill when and if it is tabled,” he added.

“When there were rumours that the bill was being tabled, the party had viewed that as ill-timed. Perhaps there was an intention to clip the wings of the judiciary as Nawaz Sharif sahib was in a tight spot during the proceedings of the Panama Papers case. However, once the bill is tabled, the Party would take a decision,” he added.

Asked why the PPP had vowed to support this bill in the past, Farhatullah Babar said that the PPP supported the idea long before the Panama case was heard.

Babar said, “We principally used to raise the issue in the parliament that the unbridled powers to the court under suo motu should be amended and there was a need to strike a balance”, adding “we will ponder the motives behind the bill along with a focus on its language.”

He said the Supreme Court had taken up the Panama Papers case against Nawaz Sharif under Article 184/3 of the Constitution which deals with the court’s suo motu powers. “We had said that we will read the language of the bill whether the effect of the legislation is retrospective or prospective.

OPPOSITION’S BILL SET TO BE TABLED IN NA

On the other bill, there was no indication when the bill was being tabled. The bill has already been passed by the Senate where the opposition enjoyed a majority. Now the bill would automatically be tabled in the NA.

Regarding the bill, Babar said that “we will definitely evolve a strategy along with other opposition parties to get this bill passed by the National Assembly”.

Asked whether there was any chance for the number-weak opposition to get the bill through NA where the ruling party enjoyed a comfortable majority, Babar said there is definitely a chance, as “the ruling party lawmakers don’t take interest in the legislation and most of the time there is a lack of quorum”. Even the government failed to maintain quorum on very important bills. So there is a chance,” he concluded.