Pakistan: Supreme Court dismisses plea against 26th constitutional amendment

Islamabad [Pakistan], October 17 (ANI): Pakistan's Supreme Court has dismissed a plea challenging the proposed 26th Constitutional Amendment after the petitioner's lawyer requested its withdrawal, Geo News reported.
The petition was filed by former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association and current member of the Pakistan Bar Council, Abid S Zubairi against the proposed constitutional amendments.
Headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, the three-member bench also comprised of Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan.
The petition objecting over the proposed constitutional amendment was dismissed by the apex court bench after Advocate Hamid Khan requested for taking back the plea. During the hearing, lawyer Hamid Khan requested the bench to withdraw the petitions. At this, the CJP questioned whether the petitioners had only hired Hamid, a leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), to withdraw their pleas, Geo News reported.
"Abid Zubairi could have withdrawn the petition himself [...] Six lawyers had filed the petition; they could have appeared before the court themselves to withdraw it," the CJP said.
Notably, Zubairi had filed the petition in the Supreme Court on September 16.
The petitioners had urged the apex court to safeguard the country's constitutional foundation by declaring the separation of powers, judicial independence, and the court's authority to enforce fundamental rights as "sacrosanct under the Constitution and beyond the power of Parliament to withdraw, interfere with, or alter in any way."
The constitutional changes aims to include the extension of judges' retirement age and formation of a constitutional court. The moves have been staunchly opposed by former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, according to Geo News. (ANI)