Amendments to the Constitution of Pakistan

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This is a list of all the amendments to the Constitution of Pakistan .

#AmendmentsProposal dateEnactment dateFull text
1 stRedefined the boundaries of Pakistan and removed references to East Pakistan.4 May 1974 Full Text
2nd Defined a Muslim and declared the status of Ahmadis as minority and 'non-Muslim'.17 September 1974 Full Text
3rd Extended the period of preventive detention.18 February 1975 Full Text
4th Decreed additional seats for minorities, it also deprived courts of the power to grant bail to any person detained under any preventive detention.21 November 1975 Full Text
5th Widened the scope of restriction on the High Courts.5 September 1976 Full Text
6th Provided that Chief Justice of Supreme Court will be retired at the age of 65 and High Court judges at age 62.22 December 1976 Full Text
7th Enables the prime minister to obtain a vote of confidence of the people of Pakistan.16 May 1977 Full Text
8th Changed Pakistan's government from a Parliamentary system to a Semi-presidential system by giving the President a number of additional powers.11 November 1985 Full Text
9th Bill to impose Shariah law as the supreme law of land. The bill was passed by Senate but could never be passed by National Assembly owing to the latter's dissolution.1985Not passed Full Text
10th Fixed the interval period between sessions of the National Assembly to not exceed 130 days.25 March 1987 Full Text
11th Revision of the reserved seats for women in the National and the provincial assemblies. The bill was withdrawn in 1992.1989Not passed Full Text
12th Created Speedy Trial Court for 3 years.1991 Full Text
13th Stripped the President of Pakistan of his reserve power to dissolve the National Assembly of Pakistan, and thereby triggering new elections and dismissing the Prime Minister.1997 Full Text
14th Allowed members of parliament to be dismissed if they defect.3 July 1997 Full Text
15th Bill to impose Shariah law as supreme law of land. Was never passed.1998Not passed Full Text
16th Increased the term appointed for quota system as per 1973 Constitution from 20 to 40 years.1999 Full Text
17th Made changes dealing with the office of the President and the reversal of the effects of the Thirteenth Amendment.2003 Full Text
18th Removed the power of President of Pakistan to dissolve the Parliament unilaterally. Gave more authority to the provinces. Province of North-West Frontier Province(NWFP) was renamed as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa(KPK)8 April 2010 Full Text
19th Provided for the appointment of the Judges of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and made amendments in the number of members of the parliamentary committee for the appointment of Chief Electoral Officers at Election Commission of Pakistan.22 December 2010 Full Text
20th For Free and Fair Elections. [1] 14 February 2012 Full Text
21st In the aftermath of APS Peshawar Attack, Military Courts were established for speedy trials of terrorists and their sponsors.7 January 2015 Full Text
22nd ECP powers deputed to Chief Election Commissioner [2] 8 June 2016 Full Text
23rd The 23rd Amendment was passed to re-establish the military courts for further two years till 6 January 2019. [3] In 2015, National Assembly passed the 21st Amendment and created the military courts for the period of 2 years. The period of two years was expired on 6 January 2017 hence this 23rd Amendment was passed to re-establish the military courts for further two years till 6 January 2019. At the end of this period all the amendments will be expired/removed automatically.7 January 2017 Full Text
24th Reallocation of National Assembly seats among federating units and allowing election authorities to update boundaries of constituencies based on provisional results of 2017 Census of Pakistan.22 December 2017 Full Text
25th Merges Federally Administered Tribal Areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.31 May 2018 Full Text
26thIncreasing the National Assembly seats to 12 and of provincial assembly to 24 of the erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas13 May 2019 [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitution of Pakistan</span> Supreme law of Pakistan

The Constitution of Pakistan, also known as the 1973 Constitution, is the supreme law of Pakistan. The document guides Pakistan's law, political culture, and system. It sets out the state's outline, the fundamental rights of the population, the state's law and orders, and also the structure and establishment of the institutions and the armed forces. Drafted by the government of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, with additional assistance from the country's opposition parties, it was unanimously approved by the 5th Parliament on 10 April and ratified on 14 August 1973. The first three chapters establish the rules, mandate, and separate powers of the three branches of the government: a bicameral legislature; an executive branch governed by the Prime Minister as chief executive; and an apex federal judiciary headed by Supreme Court. The Constitution designates the President of Pakistan as a ceremonial Head of State who is to represent the unity of the state. The first six articles of the constitution outline the political system as federal parliamentary republic system; as well as Islam as its state religion. The Constitution also encapsulates provisions stipulating the legal system's compliance with Islamic injunctions contained in the Quran and Sunnah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prime Minister of Pakistan</span> Leader of the executive branch of the Government of Pakistan

The prime minister of Pakistan is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen cabinet, despite the president of Pakistan serving as the nominal head of executive. The prime minister is often the leader of the party or the coalition with a majority in the lower house of the Parliament of Pakistan, the National Assembly where he serves as Leader of the House. Prime minister holds office by virtue of their ability to command the confidence of the National Assembly. The prime minister is designated as the "Chief Executive of the Islamic Republic".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Senate of Pakistan</span> Upper house of the Parliament of Pakistan

The Senate of Pakistan or Aiwān-e-Bālā Pākistān, constitutionally the House of the Federation, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Pakistan. As of 2023, It has a maximum membership of 100, of which 92 are elected by the provincial legislatures using single transferable vote. Four represent the Federal Capital and another four are representing former Federally Administered Tribal Areas, until membership expiration in 2024. Members sit for terms lasting six years, with half of the house up for election every three years. Unlike the National Assembly, the Senate is a continuing chamber and hence not subject to dissolution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Assembly of Pakistan</span> Lower house of the Parliament of Pakistan

The National Assembly of Pakistan is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Pakistan, with the upper house being the Senate. As of 2023, the National Assembly has a maximum membership of 342, of which 266 are directly elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past-the-post system to represent their respective constituencies, while 70 are elected on reserved seats for women and religious minorities from all over the country and six on reserved seats for former Federally Administered Tribal Areas, and the members hold their seats for five years or until the house is dissolved by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister. The house convenes at the Parliament House, Red Zone, Islamabad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parliament of Pakistan</span> Bicameral national legislature of Pakistan

The Parliament of Pakistan is the supreme legislative body of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. It is a bicameral federal legislature, composed of the President of Pakistan and two houses: the Senate and the National Assembly. The president, as head of the legislature, has the power to summon or prorogue either house of the Parliament. The president can dissolve the National Assembly, only on the Prime Minister's advice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">People's Majlis</span> Parliament of the Republic of Maldives

The People's Majlis is the unicameral legislative body of Maldives. The Majlis has the authority to enact, amend and revise laws, as outlined in the Constitution of the Maldives. The Majlis is composed of 87 members as of 2019.

The Women's Protection Bill which was passed by the National Assembly of Pakistan on 15 November 2006 is an attempt to amend the heavily criticised 1979 Hudood Ordinance laws which govern the punishment for rape and adultery in Pakistan. Critics of the Hudood Ordinance alleged that it made it exceptionally difficult and dangerous to prove an allegation of rape, and thousands of women had been imprisoned as a result of the bill. The bill returned a number of offences from the Zina Ordinance to the Pakistan Penal Code, where they had been before 1979, and created an entirely new set of procedures governing the prosecution of the offences of adultery and fornication. Whipping and amputation were removed as punishments. The law meant women would not be jailed if they were unable to prove rape and their complaints of rape would not be seen as confession of adultery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federally Administered Tribal Areas</span> Former semi-autonomous region in north-western Pakistan (1947–2018)

The Federally Administered Tribal Areas was a semi-autonomous tribal region in north-western Pakistan that existed from 1947 until being merged with neighbouring province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2018 with the Twenty-fifth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan passed by the Parliament as well as Provincial Assembly of KPK. It consisted of seven tribal agencies (districts) and six Frontier Regions, and were directly governed by Pakistan's federal government through a special set of laws called the Frontier Crimes Regulations.

The Eighteenth Amendment of the Constitution of Pakistan was passed by the National Assembly of Pakistan on April 8, 2010, removing the power of the President of Pakistan to dissolve the Parliament unilaterally, turning Pakistan from a semi-presidential to a parliamentary republic, and renaming North-West Frontier Province to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It also gave Self-governing, legislative and financial autonomy to the Provinces. The package was intended to counter the sweeping powers amassed by the presidency under former presidents General Pervez Musharraf and General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq and to ease political instability in Pakistan. The bill reversed many infringements on the Constitution of Pakistan over several decades by its military rulers. The amendment bill was passed by the Senate of Pakistan on April 15, 2010 and it became an act of parliament when President Asif Ali Zardari put his signature on the bill on April 19, 2010. It was the first time in Pakistan's history that a president relinquished a significant part of his powers willingly and transferred them to parliament and the office of the prime minister.

Officially known as The Constitution Act, 2016, this amendment introduced a national Goods and Services Tax (GST) in India from 1 July 2017. It was introduced as the One Hundred and Twenty Second Amendment Bill of the Constitution of India,

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan</span>

The Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan is a 2011 amendment reforming the judicial appointments procedure as well as expanding the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twentieth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan</span> Amendment regulating elections

The Twentieth Amendment Bill to the Constitution of Pakistan was passed by the National Assembly of Pakistan on February 14, 2012. It was then moved to upper house, Senate where it was passed on February 20, 2012 and signed by the President on February 28, 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan</span>

The Fifteenth Amendment bill to the Constitution of Pakistan was passed by National Assembly of Pakistan on 28 August 1998. It was then moved to the Senate, where it was never passed.

Twenty-first Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan was passed by both the National Assembly of Pakistan and Senate of Pakistan on January 6, 2015, and received the assent of the President on January 7, 2015. The Bill amended the Article 175 and the First Schedule of the Constitution. It also has a self-contained sunset clause, which causes the amendments to expire on January 7, 2017.

The Twenty-second Amendment of the Constitution of Pakistan, officially known as the Constitution Act, 2016, sets to amend the procedure for the appointment, qualifications and other prerequisites for the chief election commissioner (CEC) and four members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twenty-fifth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan</span> 2018 amendment to the Pakistani constitution

The Twenty-fifth Amendment of the Constitution of Pakistan, officially known as the Constitution Act, 2018, was passed by the Parliament of Pakistan and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly in May 2018. Under the amendment, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA) are to be merged with the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

The Twenty-fourth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan, officially known as the Constitution Act, 2017, allows for the adjustment of seats in the Parliament of Pakistan in response to the provisional results of the 2017 Census. The overall number of seats in the National Assembly of Pakistan will remain the same, with Punjab losing seats, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa gaining seats, and Sindh retaining the same number of seats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hazara Province Movement</span> Movement for a separate province in Pakistan

Hazara Province Movement is a movement aimed at creating the Hazara Province in the Hazara division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hindu marriage laws in Pakistan</span>

In Pakistan, there are two laws governing Hindu marriages. One is the Sindh Hindu Marriage act of 2016 which is applicable in the Sindh province of Pakistan and another is the Hindu marriage act of 2017 which is applicable in Islamabad Capital Territory, Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces. However, there are no laws and amendments made to register a marriage between two Hindus- one from Sindh and another from a different Province.

References

  1. "Zardari signs 20th Constitutional Amendment bill". DAWN.COM. DAWN MEDIA GROUP. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
  2. Wasim, Amir (3 June 2016). "Senate passes 22nd constitution amendment bill" . Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  3. "Constitution of Pakistan Amendment 23rd – Military Courts". Laws of Pakistan. 14 April 2017. Archived from the original on 21 May 2017.
  4. "NA unanimously passes 26th Amendment Bill". The Express Tribune. 13 May 2019. Retrieved 9 June 2022.