Fata lawyers vow to continue efforts for amendment to Constitution

PESHAWAR: The lawyers from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) vowed hereSunday that efforts for amendments to the Constitution regarding extension of the superior courts’ jurisdiction to the tribal region would continue.
The Supreme Court had dismissed the Peshawar High Court’s verdict advising the Parliament to amend the Constitution in this matter.“We have continued our efforts to pass a bill from the National Assembly regarding extension of superior courts’ jurisdiction to Fata to check the violation of fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution. The bill has already been passed by the Senate,” the Fata Lawyers Forum (FLF) President Muhammad Ijaz Mohmand told The News.
He said it would have been better if the Supreme Court had endorsed the Peshawar High Court’s decision in the larger interest of the people of Fata.In April 2014, a larger bench of the PHC had advised the parliament to make suitable amendments in Article 247(7) of the Constitution so that the jurisdiction of superior courts is extended to Fata. This was later challenged by the PML-N-led federal government in the Supreme Court.
The FLF president said the National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq and Abdul Qadir Baloch, federal minister for States and Frontier Regions (Safron), had assured the Fata lawyers that a bill regarding extension of the superior courts’ jurisdiction to Fata would be passed from the National Assembly.
He said the parliamentarians from the tribal areas would table a resolution in the National Assembly and Senate to seek the extension of jurisdiction of the superior courts to Fata.
He said the FLF and Fata MNAs had started efforts to seek support for the resolution from the MNAs of the ruling and opposition parties including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and Awami National Party (ANP).
PPP Senator Farhatullah Babar had moved a bill in the Senate for extending the jurisdiction of the Peshawar High Court and the Supreme Court to the tribal areas for protection of fundamental rights.
In March 2015, the Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice had unanimously approved a constitutional amendment bill moved by Senator Farhatullah Babar seeking to extend the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and the High Court to tribal areas to protect the fundamental rights of its people.
The bill seeks to delete clause 7 of Article 247 of the Constitution which bars the superior courts from enforcing fundamental rights of the people of tribal areas.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly had also passed a resolution demanding representation of the people of Fata in the provincial assembly and extension of superior courts’ jurisdiction to the tribal areas.
Former provincial minister for law, parliamentary affairs and human rights Arshad Abdullah had moved the resolution, asking the government to abolish the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) tribunal and establish a proper judicial forum.
The resolution demanded deletion of clause (7) of Article 247 of the Constitution for being in violation of fundamental rights of tribal people. It also called for extension of the jurisdiction of the higher courts to Fata.
FLF secretary general Taj Mahal Afridi said though constitutionally the parliamentarians from Fata were barred from legislating for Fata, they would move the resolution with help from other parliamentarians to amend Article 247 of the Constitution to facilitate extension of the jurisdiction of the superior courts to the tribal areas.
He said the extension of the courts’ jurisdiction would restrain the political administration from violating the fundamental rights of the tribal people under the FCR.The FLF has forwarded the draft of the resolution to Fata parliamentarians for its passage from both the Houses of the parliament. It states: “Article 1 of the Constitution has defined the territories of Pakistan, which includes Fata. Despite being an integral part of Pakistan, more than 10 million inhabitants don’t enjoy the protection of their fundamental rights as guaranteed by the Constitution.”