Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, the Chairman of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), recently declared that Justice Mansoor Ali Shah will become the next Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) after Qazi Faez Isa retires in October. In an interview with a private news channel on Tuesday, Bilawal declared, “There is no doubt that Justice Mansoor will become the next chief justice on October 26.”
This declaration follows the government’s postponement of introducing a “controversial” constitutional package to Parliament. Rumour has it that the planned revisions would raise the retirement age for judges and prolong Chief Justice Isa’s term. Nevertheless, these revisions are still being considered because Justice Isa is about to retire.
Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari expressed his dissatisfaction with the status of the judiciary and the Parliament during the interview. “Neither the parliament is functioning properly, nor the judiciary,” he complained. In his reflections on Pakistan’s legal past, Bilawal emphasised the necessity for extensive judicial changes by recalling the lengthy legal proceedings surrounding the assassination of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. He emphasised that, despite accounting for only 15% of the Supreme Court’s caseload, political cases take up an excessive 90% of the court’s time.
Underscoring the need for changes in accordance with the Charter of Democracy, Bilawal pointed out that the much-awaited Truth and Reconciliation Commission remains unconstituted. In addition, he restated the PPP’s resolve to overhaul the judiciary and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
In her remarks about the state of politics today, Bilawal stressed the value of the opposition’s role in Parliament and specifically urged Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to make positive contributions. He did, however, take issue with PTI chief Imran Khan’s recent remarks about X, formerly Twitter, saying they undermined existing conversations. Given PTI’s current position, “it is difficult for the government to discuss constitutional amendments with PTI,” stated Bilawal.
Bilawal also acknowledged that the current administration faces difficulties in Parliament because it does not have the required majority to enact meaningful reforms. He revealed that the PPP is draughting a plan to establish a constitutional court, which it will present to its political ally Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman in the near future.
The political atmosphere in Pakistan is still tense as the country prepares for a significant shift in its judiciary, with judicial reforms and constitutional revisions dominating public discourse.