President returns bill

President Arif Alvi has returned a bill to the parliament that aimed to limit the powers of the Chief Justice of Pakistan, and give the right to appeal in all suo motu cases with retrospective effect. The President returned the bill, citing it as “beyond the competence of the parliament” and therefore liable to be challenged as a “specious enactment.” The proposed legislation aimed to deprive the office of the Chief Justice of Pakistan of powers to take suo motu notices in an individual capacity.
The bill was approved by the federal cabinet on March 28, and later passed by the National Assembly as well as the Senate. The President said the need for consideration of various aspects of the bill was required after “vetting.” The President stressed that the proposed bill was beyond the jurisdiction of the legislative body and that any attempt to modify or tamper with the Supreme Court Rules 1980 could compromise the autonomy and independence of the court.