ISLAMABAD: Acting President Yousuf Raza Gilani has signed six bills that were recently passed by both the National Assembly and the Senate, officially making them law.
According to media report, with the Acting President’s signature, the six bills have now been enacted and will soon be published in the Gazette of Pakistan.
Earlier, these bills were sent to Acting President Gilani for his formal approval after being passed by both houses of Parliament.
Sources revealed that the Senate Secretariat had forwarded the bills concerning the extension of the tenure of the Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Air Staff, and Chief of Naval Staff from 3 to 5 years. Additionally, two bills to increase the number of judges in the Supreme Court and High Courts were also sent to the Acting President. The Practice and Procedure bill was also part of the documents forwarded for signature.
It was expected that Acting President Yousuf Raza Gilani would sign the six bills into law on the same day.
It is important to note that on November 4, after the National Assembly, the Senate had also passed the amendment bills concerning the tenure of the armed forces chiefs, raising it to five years, and increasing the number of judges in the Supreme Court from 17 to 34, as well as in the Islamabad High Court from 9 to 12. During this process, the opposition staged a protest and tore up copies of the bills.
The six bills passed are as follows:
- Supreme Court Number of Judges (Amendment) Bill, 2024
- Supreme Court Practice and Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2024
- Islamabad High Court (Amendment) Bill, 2024
- Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, 2024
- Pakistan Air Force (Amendment) Bill, 2024
- Pakistan Navy (Amendment) Bill, 2024
