No ‘external hand’ behind latest amendment: Dar

• Insists proposed 27th Amendment to be tabled ‘soon’, won’t be rushed
• Says bill may originate in Senate instead of NA
• Stresses govt will consult allies as opposition warns of ‘constitutional crisis’
• PTI’s Ali Zafar brands move a ‘conspiracy’, claims devolution at risk
• Upper house passes Asaan Karobar Bill, extends Virtual Assets Ordinance by 120 days

ISLAMABAD: As the opposition in the Senate raised alarm over the proposed 27th constitutional amendment, Deputy Pri­me Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday confirmed the bill would be brought bef­o­re parliament “soon” but insisted it would not be rus­hed and denied “external hand” in the amendment.

“We will try to present it in accordance with the Constitution. I assure this will not be put to a vote in a flash,” he told the upper house while responding to PTI parliamentary leader Barrister Syed Ali Zafar.

Mr Dar’s remarks came amid a sustained protest by opposition senators over the delay in appointing the leader of the opposition. He said that after the PPP, the government would take all allies on board, including the MQM, ANP, IPP and BAP. “A standard process is being followed,” he said.

The deputy prime minister noted that such amen­dments typically originate in the National Assembly, but added that if senators wis­hed to see the draft fir­st, he could request that the bill be moved in the Senate.

Brushing aside suggestions that the amendment was coming from “somewhere else”, he said it was being brought by the government. He also suppor­ted the opposition’s dem­a­­nd for the immediate app­o­­i­­n­tment of the opposition leader, but said the Se­n­ate chairman was supposed to satisfy himself on who commanded a majority.

‘Conspiracy against Constitution’

Earlier, PTI’s Ali Zafar termed the forthcoming 27th Amendment a “conspiracy against the Constitution”.

He said key ministers in television appearances he had taken part in had claimed there was no such amendment in the works.

“This only means either they were telling a lie or were unaware of it. In both cases, it means that someone else is drafting the 27th Amendment for them,” he said, warning that an imminent constitutional crisis had effectively been announced and must be taken up by the Senate.

“Constitutions are not murdered by bullets, but by mala fide amendments made under the guise of reform,” Mr Zafar said.

Calling the Constitution a sacred document, he recalled that on April 10, 1973, when the Consti­tut­ion was adopted, the then prime minister Zulfi­kar Ali Bhutto declared that it was “the Constitu­tion of the people of Pakis­tan, not of one man or one party”.

He said dictators had distorted the 1973 document over the next 37 years, until parliament passed the 18th Amendment in April 2010, restoring the democratic spirit of the Constitution, reviving the parliamentary form of government, strengthening provincial autonomy and safeguarding the independence of the judiciary and the Election Commission.

However, he warned that the proposed 27th Amendment threatened to undo those gains.

The senator alleged it would undermine judicial independence through the creation of constitutional courts, tamper with presidential powers and appointments relating to the armed forces under Article 243, alter the provincial share in the NFC Award by removing the constitutional minimum, and give devolved functions such as education, health and population planning back under federal control.

“All these proposals, as suggested in PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s own tweet, strike at the very foundations of our constitutional order, reversing the principles of provincial autonomy, parliamentary supremacy and judicial independence.”

He expressed surprise that, instead of rejecting such proposals, Mr Bhutto-Zardari had outlined them, arguing they contradicted the spirit and legacy of the PPP, whose founders had given Pakistan the 1973 Constitution.

“The question before us is not merely legal, it is moral,” he said. “Will the Peoples Party honour the word it gave to the people in 1973, or once again erase it in the name of expedience?”

He reminded the Senate that JUI-F had previously opposed the creation of any constitutional court and said he hoped both JUI-F and Jamaat-i-Islami would stand with the PTI in opposing the 27th Amendment.

The row over the opposition leader’s appointment surfaced at the outset of proceedings when PTI-backed Senator Azam Swati raised the matter.

The protest over the issue later escalated as PTI senators gathered before the chair’s podium and tore up copies of the agenda. The house echoed with chants of “Go PM go.”

Presiding officer Manzoor Kakar of BAP said the issue did not fall within his jurisdiction. He asked members to return to their seats and assured them of time to speak.

Asaan Karobar Bill

Separately, the House passed the Asaan Karobar Bill, 2025, which aims to streamline the regulatory framework for business, trade and investment by removing cumbersome procedures and outdated requirements.

Already cleared by the National Assembly, the legislation provides for the establishment of a Pakistan Regulatory Registry and a Pakistan Business Portal to serve as a national one-window for government registrations, licences, certifications, and permits.

The bill was moved by MNA Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh, chairman of the Board of Investment.

According to the statement of objects and reasons of the bill, “The modernised regulatory requirements will be integrated through a Pakistan Business Portal, which will serve as a National One-Window facility for the identification and issuance of all government registrations, licences, certifications, and permits.”

The implementation of this initiative “will have several benefits for the economy, including increased investment, job creation and economic growth,” the statement said. “It will also help improve Pakistan’s competitiveness in the global market and attract foreign investors seeking a stable and predictable regulatory environment.”

The Senate also extended the Virtual Assets Ordinance, 2025, for another 120 days. The ordinance, in force since July 8, 2025, establishes a legal framework for regulating cryptocurrencies and other digital assets, including the creation of the Pakistan Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (PVARA).

The authority’s mandate includes licensing crypto-related entities, issuing and implementing regulations, investigating suspicious transactions, ensuring consumer protection and imposing penalties, suspensions or legal action against non-compliant companies.

Published in Dawn, November 5th, 2025

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