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Constitution of Pakistan
| Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Jurisdiction |  Pakistan |
| Created | 20 October 1972 |
| Ratified | 10 April 1973[1] |
| Date effective | 14 August 1973 |
| System | Federal Parliamentary Constitutional Republic |
| Government structure | |
| Branches | Three (Executive, Legislature and Judiciary) |
| Head of state | President of Pakistan |
| Chambers | Bicameral (Senate and National Assembly) |
| Executive | Prime minister–led cabinet responsible to the lower house of the parliament |
| Judiciary | Supreme court, high courts and district courts |
| Federalism | Federation |
| Electoral college | Yes, for presidential elections |
| History | |
| Amendments | 26 |
| Last amended | 31 May 2018 |
| Location | Parliament House, Islamabad, Pakistan |
| Commissioned by | Parliament of Pakistan |
| Signatories | 5th Parliament (145 out of 150 members) |
| Supersedes | Constitution of Pakistan, 1962 Legal Framework Order, 1970 |
The Constitution of Pakistan (Urdu: آئینِ پاکستان ; ISO: Āīn-ē-Pākistān), 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.[2] 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.[3][4] 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.[4] The Constitution designates the President of Pakistan as a ceremonial Head of State who is to represent the unity of the state.[5] The first six articles of the constitution outline the political system as federal parliamentary republic system; as well as Islam as its state religion.[6] The Constitution also encapsulates provisions stipulating the legal system's compliance with Islamic injunctions contained in the Quran and Sunnah.[7]
The Parliament cannot make any laws which may be repugnant or contrary to the Constitution; however, the Constitution itself may be amended by a two-thirds majority in both the houses of the bicameral Parliament, unlike the previous legal documents of 1956 and 1962.[8] It has been amended over time, and most recent impulses for political upgrades and reforms has been amended. Although enforced in 1973, Pakistan, however, celebrates the adoption of the constitution on 23 March—when the first set was promulgated in 1956 each and every year as Republic Day.[9] Technically there are 26 amendments but 23 amendments were made in constitution and three were not passed by the parliament as the three amendments collapsed.
Currently the promulgated Constitution of Pakistan, in its amended form, stands as the 7th lengthiest constitution of the world with a word count of 56,240 Words.[10]
Origins and historical background[edit]
In a radio talk addressed to the people of Pakistan, broadcast in February 1948, Jinnah expressed his views regarding Pakistan's constitution-to-be in the following way:
The Constitution of Pakistan is yet to be framed by the Pakistan Constituent Assembly, I do not know what the ultimate shape of the constitution is going to be, but I am sure that it will be of a democratic type, embodying the essential principles of Islam. Today these are as applicable in actual life as these were 1300 years ago. Islam and its idealism have taught us democracy. It has taught equality of man, justice and fair play to everybody. We are the inheritors of these glorious traditions and are fully alive to our responsibilities and obligations as framers of the future constitution of Pakistan.
Pakistan was founded in 1947 as a Dominion (an independent realm or kingdom) within the British Commonwealth. The same was true in independent India. During its first few years of existence the British monarch was also Pakistan's head of state, as is still the case in Canada, Australia etc. Before writing a constitution, a Constituent Assembly passed the Objectives Resolution, on the insistence of the ulama and Jamaat-e-Islami, in March 1949 to define the basic directive principles of the new state and to declare state recognition of the sovereignty of Allah over the universe. The Objectives Resolution affirmed the role of democracy and contained religious provisions to enable society to adhere to the teachings of the Quran and Sunnah. The Objectives Resolution has henceforth been inserted as a preamble into each of Pakistan's subsequent constitutions.[12]
The country became a republic when its first constitution was approved in 1956 but this was abrogated in 1958 after a military Coup d'état.[13] Pakistan's second constitution was approved in 1962. It granted executive power to the president and abolished the office of the prime minister. It also institutionalised the intervention of military in politics by providing that for twenty years, the president or the defence minister must be a person who had held a rank not lower than that of lieutenant-general in the army.[14] The 1962 constitution was suspended in 1969 and abrogated in 1972.[13]
The 1973 constitution was the first in Pakistan to be framed by elected representatives. Unlike the 1962 constitution it gave Pakistan a parliamentary democracy with executive power concentrated in the office of the prime minister, and the formal head of state—the president—limited to acting on the advice of the prime minister.[14]
The Constitution states that all laws are to conform with the injunctions of Islam as laid down in the Quran and Sunnah.[7] The 1973 Constitution also created certain institutions such as the Shariat Court and the Council of Islamic Ideology to channel the interpretation and application of Islam.[15]
After another coup d'état in 1977, the constitution was held in abeyance until it was "restored" in 1985 but with an amendment (the Eighth) shifting power from the parliament and Prime Minister to the president. Another Amendment (Seventeenth) in 2004 continued this shift, but in 2010, the Eighteenth amendment reduced presidential powers, returning the government to a parliamentary republic.[citation needed]
References[edit]
- ↑ "Golden Jubilee celebrations of 1973 Constitution start today". 10 April 2023.
- ↑ Abiad, Nisrine (2008). Sharia, Muslim states and international human rights treaty obligations : a comparative study. London: British Institute of International and Comparative Law. pp. 96–200. ISBN 978-1-905221-41-7.
- ↑ Enterprise Team (1 June 2003). "The Constitution of 1973'". The Story of Pakistan. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 15 October 2011.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Constitution of Pakistan. "Constitution of Pakistan". Constitution of Pakistan. Archived from the original on 12 July 2011. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
- ↑ "Part III. The Federation of Pakistan: Chapter 1; The President". Const. of Pakistan. Archived from the original on 7 April 2011. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
- ↑ "First Six Articles". Archived from the original on 21 May 2013.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Iqbal, Khurshid (2009). The Right to Development in International Law: The Case of Pakistan. Routledge. p. 189. ISBN 978-1-134-01999-1.
The constitution proclaims ... that all existing laws shall be brought in accordance with the injunctions of Islam as laid down in the Quran and Sunnah, and no law shall be enacted which is repugnant to such injunctions.
- ↑ Iftikhar A. Khan (24 June 2012). "Parliament can't make laws repugnant to Constitution: CJ". Dawn News. Archived from the original on 25 August 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
- ↑ "Constitutional history of Pakistan". National Assembly of Pakistan pr of Pakistan press. Archived from the original on 22 January 2013.
- ↑ "10 Lengthiest Constitutions in the World". WION. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
- ↑ Adamec 2016.
- ↑ Hussain, Rizwan. Pakistan. Archived from the original on 29 March 2016.
The first important result of the combined efforts of the Jamāʿat-i Islāmī and the ʿulamāʿ was the passage of the Objectives Resolution in March 1949, whose formulation reflected compromise between traditionalists and modernists. The resolution embodied "the main principles on which the constitution of Pakistan is to be based." It declared that "sovereignty over the entire universe belongs to God Almighty alone and the authority which He has delegated to the State of Pakistan through its people for being exercised within the limits prescribed by Him is a sacred trust," that "the principles of democracy, freedom, equality, tolerance and social justice, as enunciated by Islam shall be fully observed," and that "the Muslims shall be enabled to order their lives in the individual and collective spheres in accord with the teaching and requirements of Islam as set out in the Holy Qurʿan and Sunna." The Objectives Resolution has been reproduced as a preamble to the constitutions of 1956, 1962, and 1973.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - ↑ 13.0 13.1 Islamization of Laws and Economy, Case Studies on Pakistan by Charles Kennedy (Institute of Policy Studies, The Islamic Foundation, 1996, p.85)
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Backgrounder. Pakistan's Constitution Archived 7 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine Author: Jayshree Bajoria | Council on Foreign Relations | Updated: 21 April 2010
- ↑ Diamantides, Marinos; Gearey, Adam (2011). Islam, Law and Identity. Routledge. p. 198. ISBN 978-1-136-67565-2.
The 1973 constitution also created certain institutions to channel the application and interpretation of Islam: the Council of Islamic Ideology and the Shariat Court.