Islamabad: After news of the government’s plans to amend the Pakistan Army Act (PAA) 1952 made headlines on Wednesday, the government clarified that it was not considering “any major change” in the said Act.
With this clarification, the government confirmed that a plan to amend the Act is on the cards.
In a report, the Daily Dawn had said the government “seems” to be considering amending the Army Act to empower the appointing authority — the Prime Minister — to retain “any candidate through a simple notification, rather than having to go through a complex, constitutional process”.
However, Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif tweeted that the “media hype” over amendments in the PAA was “uncalled for”.
Media hype over amendments in Pakistan Army Act is uncalled for. Government is not considering any major changes in the said Act. SCP had demanded review of relevant clauses of PAA in its judgement in CP 39/2019 which shall be complied with in due course.
— Khawaja M. Asif (@KhawajaMAsif) November 16, 2022
The Defence Minister explained that the Supreme Court of Pakistan, in a 2019 judgment, had asked to review relevant clauses of the Army Act. He added that the Supreme Court’s directions should be “complied with in due course”.
The report by the newspaper had further mentioned that after some changes, the amendment would be laid down before the Cabinet Committee for Disposal of Legislative Cases (CCLC) after the Ministry of Defence’s nod last month. Later, it will land before the parliament for legislation.
