Government fast-tracks bills in National Assembly on Supreme Court strength, fixed 5-year term for military chiefs

News | National Assembly

Government fast-tracks bills in National Assembly on Supreme Court strength, fixed 5-year term for military chiefs

National Assembly passed a bill to increase the number of judges in the Supreme Court, and the bill amending the Army, Air Force and Navy Acts, both of which were approved by a majority vote.

Islamabad: On Monday National Assembly of Pakistan approved six bills, of which one aims to increase the number of judges in the Supreme Court. On the other end, another bill approved to extend the tenure of  armed service chiefs to five years.

Six key bills passed by NA:

• The Supreme Court Number of Judges (Amendment) Bill, 2024 
• The Supreme Court Practice and Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2024 
• The Islamabad High Court (Amendment) Bill, 2024 
• The Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, 2024 
• The Pakistan Air Force (Amendment) Bill, 2024 
• The Pakistan Navy (Amendment) Bill, 2024 

The Supreme Court Number of Judges (Amendment) Bill, 2024: 

The bill, presented by Law minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, aims to increase the number of judges in the Supreme Court of Pakistan to 34. 

Despite of oppositions' protest, the bill was passed by the National Assembly on Monday.

Law minister stated that the bar associations, including Supreme Court Bar association, have been suggesting that the four court registries located in Karachi, Quetta, Peshawar and Lahore should assist in reducing the large number of pending cases.

Revisions to Armed-Forces related acts:

The amendments to Army, Air Force and Navy acts were also passed by the National Assembly with a majority vote.

The bill, presented by Defenses minister Khawaja Asif, aims to increase the tenure of  armed services chiefs to five years.