Pakistan Affairs MCQs – Page 34 (Q331-340)

The retirement age for judges of the Supreme Court of Pakistan is 65 years, three years higher than the retirement age for High Court judges, reflecting the seniority and typically longer judicial careers of those who reach the country's apex court. Supreme Court judges are appointed through a Judicial Commission process, refined by the 18th and 19th Amendments, involving both senior judiciary members and parliamentary oversight. The Chief Justice of Pakistan, the most senior position on the court, is also subject to this same retirement age. This provision helps ensure a degree of institutional continuity while still allowing for regular turnover on the country's highest judicial body.

The retirement age for judges of the High Courts of Pakistan is 62 years, three years earlier than the 65-year retirement age set for Supreme Court judges. Pakistan's High Courts serve as the highest courts within each province, with additional courts for Islamabad and, more recently, the merged tribal districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Judges who perform well during their High Court tenure are often subsequently elevated to the Supreme Court, where the later retirement age then applies. This staggered retirement structure reflects the hierarchical nature of Pakistan's judicial system, with increasing seniority thresholds at each higher level of the courts.

The Supreme Court is the highest court of appeal in Pakistan, sitting atop the country's judicial hierarchy above the High Courts, Federal Shariat Court and subordinate courts. Headed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan, it has both appellate and original jurisdiction, including the power to hear cases of significant public importance under Article 184(3) of the constitution. The court has played a pivotal, and at times controversial, role in Pakistan's political history, including landmark rulings on the dismissal of governments and, more recently, on election disputes and constitutional interpretation. Its decisions are binding on all other courts in the country, making it the final arbiter of legal and constitutional questions.

The Election Commission of Pakistan is constitutionally responsible for conducting general elections in Pakistan, tasked with organising and overseeing free and fair elections to the National Assembly, Senate, and Provincial Assemblies. Established under the 1973 Constitution and strengthened by later amendments including the 18th and 20th, the Commission is also responsible for delimiting constituencies and maintaining accurate electoral rolls. It operates independently of the executive branch, headed by the Chief Election Commissioner appointed through a process involving both the Prime Minister and opposition leader. The Commission's independence and effectiveness have periodically been a subject of political debate, particularly regarding allegations of electoral irregularities in past general elections.

The Election Commission of Pakistan is headed by the Chief Election Commissioner, appointed under Article 213 of the constitution through a process involving consultation between the Prime Minister and the leader of the opposition. The Chief Election Commissioner oversees the Commission's work in organising general elections, delimiting constituencies and maintaining electoral rolls across the country. The office has grown in constitutional importance following reforms under the 18th and 20th Amendments, aimed at strengthening the Commission's independence from executive influence. The Chief Election Commissioner typically works alongside four other members, one from each province, to ensure balanced representation within the Commission's leadership.

After the 18th Amendment, local government became primarily a subject of the provincial governments, as the amendment's abolition of the Concurrent Legislative List transferred authority over local government structures entirely to the provinces. This meant each province could design its own local government system, leading to considerable variation in structure and powers across Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Local government elections have historically been irregular in Pakistan, with significant gaps between electoral cycles despite constitutional requirements for their regular conduct. The devolution of this subject to the provinces has been a recurring source of political debate, particularly regarding the balance of power between provincial governments and elected local bodies.

The Objectives Resolution, passed in 1949, is regarded as the foundational step towards Pakistan's constitution-making, setting out the core principles intended to guide the country's future constitutional development. Moved by Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan before the first Constituent Assembly, it declared that sovereignty belongs to Allah and that the state would exercise authority through elected representatives within limits prescribed by Islam, while also guaranteeing fundamental rights and minority protections. The resolution was later incorporated as a preamble to Pakistan's 1956, 1962 and 1973 constitutions. It was made a substantive, legally binding part of the constitution through the 8th Amendment in 1985.

The Objectives Resolution of 1949 declared that sovereignty over the entire universe belongs to Allah Almighty, and that the authority exercised by the state through its elected representatives is a sacred trust to be used within limits prescribed by Him. Moved by Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan before Pakistan's first Constituent Assembly, the resolution also guaranteed fundamental rights, an independent judiciary, and safeguards for minorities within the framework of an Islamic state. It laid the ideological foundation later incorporated into Pakistan's 1956, 1962 and 1973 constitutions as a preamble. The resolution's declaration of divine sovereignty remains a central reference point in ongoing debates over the relationship between Islam and the state in Pakistan.

The current 1973 Constitution was unanimously passed by the National Assembly under Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, following the political crisis and loss of East Pakistan in the 1971 war. Bhutto's government worked with opposition parties to craft a document that could achieve broad political consensus, resulting in a rare moment of unity across Pakistan's fractious political landscape. The constitution established a federal parliamentary system with Islam as the state religion, replacing the earlier 1956 and 1962 constitutions that had both been abrogated during periods of martial law. It has since been amended numerous times, most significantly by the 8th, 13th and 18th Amendments, while remaining Pakistan's foundational governing document to this day.

The 1973 Constitution came into effect on 14 August 1973, chosen deliberately to coincide with the anniversary of Pakistan's independence in 1947, symbolically tying the new constitutional order to the nation's founding. It was passed by the National Assembly under Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto following the loss of East Pakistan in 1971, replacing the earlier 1956 and 1962 constitutions that had both been suspended during periods of martial law. The document established a federal parliamentary system with Islam as the state religion, incorporating the 1949 Objectives Resolution as its preamble. It remains Pakistan's governing constitutional framework today, having been amended numerous times since its adoption.