Govt Concedes to Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s Demands on Constitutional Amendment Ahead of SCO Summit

After a month of intense political negotiations, the federal government has conceded to the demands of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to secure his backing for a constitutional amendment. According to parliamentary sources, discussions regarding the amendment will commence following the much-anticipated Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Pakistan.

The amendment process had stalled as Maulana Rehman demanded that any constitutional changes be delayed until after the SCO summit. Reports suggest that in the coming days, Maulana Fazlur Rehman will submit his draft of the constitutional amendment to the government. In return, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) will also share their proposals with the JUI-F chief for review.

Sources have revealed that changes related to the establishment of a constitutional court and the appointments of its judges will be the initial focus, while amendments to the judicial appointment process will follow in the second phase. Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, alongside Khawaja Saad Rafique, Nayyar Bukhari, Naveed Qamar, and Sherry Rehman, met with Maulana Fazlur Rehman to finalize his support. JUI-F leaders Abdul Ghafoor Haideri and Aslam Ghauri also participated in the meeting, where the current political landscape was reviewed.