Senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Saturday demanded repeal of the amendment to the Army Act, 1952, which allowed the extension of the tenure of former Army Chief General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa. had gone
The former prime minister, in an interview with a private television, said that the extraordinary process of enacting the extension legislation had become normal, highlighting that it should not have happened.
Abbasi also termed the extension of former Chief of Army Staff General (retd) Bajwa’s tenure through the Army Act 1952 in January 2020 as a “mistake”.
General (retd) Bajwa was scheduled to retire on November 29, 2019 at the end of his term, but the then Prime Minister Imran Khan extended his tenure by three years on August 19, 2019.
On November 28, 2019, the Supreme Court suspended the government order saying that there is no law to extend the tenure of the Army Chief.
However, the Supreme Court granted a six-month extension to General (retd) Bajwa after the government assured that Parliament would legislate for the extension/re-appointment of the Army Chief within six months.
The notification to extend the tenure of General (retd) Bajwa was finally issued on 28 January 2020, when Parliament passed a law to resolve the issue related to the extension of the army chief’s tenure.
Commenting on the Pakistan Army (Amendment) Act, 2020, a senior PML-N leader said he considered the amendment “a mistake from day one”.
According to the amendment in the Act, the serving Army Chief can be re-appointed for a period of three years and this appointment cannot be challenged in any court in future.
The former prime minister added that the extension “was already given and the former COAS had already accepted it when the legislation was enacted”.
“At that time, it was not in the interest of the country not to legislate the extension. But now, the amendment – the power of the Prime Minister to grant the extension – should be repealed,” he said.
He added that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief and then Prime Minister Imran Khan extended the former army chief’s tenure in August 2019 – three months before his retirement.
A senior PML-N leader said “the then prime minister – Imran Khan – gave the extension without consulting [anyone]. It was a mistake to amend the law after the extension”.
“The amendment cannot be done by one party. There should be a consensus among all the parties,” he said. Abbasi said the decision should have been taken in November 2019 and Khan said it was rushed. will demand.”
Talking about former army chief’s interference in politics, Abbasi said: “It was neither Bajwa’s nor Imran Khan’s responsibility to do politics in the country.”
The PML-N leader said that if you had done politics, the situation in the country would have been like it is today. The former prime minister said that it is important to present the truth and suggested forming a ‘Truth Commission’.
“The facts of the matter are bitter. A truth commission should be formed to bring the truth to the public, Abbasi said. He also insisted that politics is not animosity and everyone’s aim is to rectify the situation in the country.
When the establishment interferes in domestic affairs, the results are not good. Lessons should be learned from past outcomes of interventions, he said, adding that national affairs were interfered in various ways and damaged relations.
Abbasi said that institutions should remain within the limits given in the constitution, adding that violation of law and constitution causes problems in the country.
“Pakistan should learn from the past”
In response to a question, the PML-N leader said that Afghanistan is an independent country, adding that Islamabad and Kabul have a long and historic brotherly relationship.
He said that we should maintain relations with Afghanistan as an independent country. The former prime minister said that Pakistan should learn from the past, adding that negotiations and discussions go hand in hand.
Without naming Afghanistan, the PML-N leader said that a country whose territory is used against another country should take action [against criminals].
The former prime minister said that trade with India is not possible until New Delhi restores the special status of illegally occupied Kashmir.
Emphasizing the need to prioritize national interests over political ones, Abbasi said that the coalition government wants to import oil, gas and electricity from Russia.
He reiterated that former Prime Minister Khan had gone back on the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), adding that if the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government had not jumped in to “save the country”, So Pakistan would have defaulted.
He said that difficult decisions are made in the interest of the country but not of the IMF. Abbasi said that the mistakes made by Khan in the last four years could not be corrected in just one year.
He further said that a long time is required for the recovery of the country’s economy.
