There should not any politics on constitutional amendments: Khawaja Asif

Islamabad: Defense Minister Khawaja Asif on Monday said that there should not be any politics in the matter of constitutional amendments and as parliamentarians, it is our first duty to legislate.

Speaking in the National Assembly, defense minister there was a new clarification in 63A that a vote should be taken but not counted if there is a draft proposal regarding the Constitutional Court. He added that it was also part of the Charter of Democracy (COD) and also practiced in many democratic countries.

Khawaja Asif said that it didn’t not mean Parliament would be overstepped.

Khawaja Asif said that a body will be created for a specific case that will look into constitutional matters.

He said people have been waiting for decades to get justice from the apex court while 2.7 million cases are pending in superior courts.

“The current constitutional amendment is an effort to reduce the burden of the courts and carries any political interest. This effort is being made to make life of the common man easy,” he added.

Khawaja Asif said after the judiciary restoration movement, the process of appointing judges was decided, at that time a senior judge was contacted by the judiciary, the role of the parliament is a ‘rubberstamp’.

He asked opposition to identify any clause that protects the interests of the government coalition.

“I don't think any person or organization disagrees with these things, we will try to bring the constitution back in a form that is compatible with COD,” he stressed.