NA Standing Committee passes 24th Amendment Bill

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Law and Justice passed the 24th Amendment Bill with majority on Monday.

The amendment envisages giving right to appeal against any decision of the Supreme Court given under suo motu jurisdiction. In the standing committee meeting on Monday, the opposition parties – PPP, PTI and Jamaat-e-Islami – opposed the bill.

Naveed Qamar of the PPP said the right to appeal should be provided in suo motu cases but any amendment during the Panama Papers case hearing would lead to suspicion. His party, he added, could not support the amendment before the decision on the Panama Papers case.

PTI’s Arif Alvi supported the very objective of the bill but seconded Naveed’s views, saying it would give a wrong message to masses. Aisha Saeeda of Jamaat-e-Islami too raised questions over the timing.

MQM leader Iqbal Qadri said the appeal against Supreme Court decision in suo motu cases should be filed within seven days instead of 30 days as envisaged in the bill, with the verdict on the appeal issued in 60 days.