After the government postponed presenting the “controversial” constitutional package in Parliament, Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari announced on Tuesday that Justice Mansoor Ali Shah will be the next Chief Justice of Pakistan.
“On October 26, Justice Mansoor will take office as chief justice — there’s no doubt about it,” the former foreign minister stated during an interview with a private news channel.
Although the government claimed to have the necessary support to advance the bill, it has yet to introduce the amendments due to a lack of backing from JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
Current CJP Qazi Faez Isa is set to retire this October, prompting the government to intensify efforts to introduce constitutional amendments that allegedly aim to extend CJP Isa’s tenure and raise judges’ retirement ages.
However, after failing to persuade Maulana Fazlur Rehman, senior PML-N leader Senator Irfan Siddiqui told that the government’s attempt to table the constitutional package had been “postponed indefinitely.”
Bilawal expressed concern over the dysfunction in both Parliament and the judiciary, lamenting, “We waited nearly 50 years for justice in Shaheed [Zulfiqar Ali] Bhutto’s murder case.” He highlighted that political cases account for 15% of the Supreme Court’s workload but consume 90% of its time, underscoring the urgent need for judicial reform.
“Under the Charter of Democracy, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission is still not formed,” he added, noting their commitment to reforming the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and the judiciary.
Bilawal also expressed a desire for the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to take a constructive role as the Opposition but regretted that Imran Khan’s recent remarks on X (formerly Twitter) hindered this engagement.
“It’s challenging for the government to discuss constitutional amendments with PTI and incorporate its input,” he remarked.
During his appearance on Geo News’ ‘Capital Talk,’ the PPP Chairman acknowledged that the government lacks sufficient support in Parliament.
“PPP will draft a proposal for the formation of a constitutional court and share it with Maulana Fazl,” he said, adding that JUI-F is also working on its own draft. “We will strive for consensus on a joint proposal.”
He noted that Fazl insists on involving opposition parties, particularly PTI, in discussions regarding the package.
