A Legal Research Guide to Pakistan

By Omar Sial. Update by Omar Sial & Farah Khan

(http://www.nyulawglobal.org/globalex/Pakistan1.html)

Table of Contents

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Location
• 3. Constitutional and Parliamentary History
• 4. Government
o 4.1. National Assembly
o 4.2. Senate
o 4.3. President
o 4.4. Prime Minister
o 4.5. Provincial Governments
o 4.6. Local Governments
• 5. Administration of Law and Justice
• 6. The Court System
o 6.1. Supreme Court of Pakistan
o 6.2. High Courts of Pakistan
o 6.3. Shariat Court
o 6.4. Civil Courts
o 6.5. Criminal Courts
o 6.6. Special Courts and Tribunals
o 6.7. The Ombudsman (Wafaqi Mohtasib)
o 6.8. Jirga
• 7. Legal Research

1. Introduction

Pakistan emerged as an independent State on August 14, 1947. Pakistan is divided into four
provinces - Khyber Pukhtoonkhwa, Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan. The tribal belt adjoining
Khyber Pukhtoonkhwa is managed by the Federal Government and is named FATA, i.e.,
Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan have their own
respective political and administrative machinery, yet certain subjects are taken care of by the
Federal Government. Islamabad is the federal capital. Over 97 per cent of the country's
population is Muslim. Basic Facts on Pakistan.

2. Location

Located in South Asia, Pakistan shares an eastern border with India and north-eastern border
with China. Iran lies along the country’s southwest border, and Afghanistan runs along its
western and northern borders. The southern boundary of Pakistan is made up of the 1,064 km
coastline of the Arabian Sea.

1
The total area of the country is 796,095 square km, which is nearly four times the size of the
United Kingdom. From Gwadar Bay in its southeastern corner, the country extends more than
1,800 km to the Khunjerab Pass on China’s border. See the Pakistan’s Political Map.

3. Constitutional and Parliamentary History

The Muslims of India had, since the middle of the nineteenth century, begun the struggle for a
separate homeland on the basis of the two Nation theory. The British rulers realized that the
Hindus and Muslims of India remained two separate and distinct nations and socio-cultural
entities. The British rulers were left with no option but to eventually accept the demand of the
Muslims of India.

On 3rd June 1947, Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India, called the conference of all the
leaders of the Sub-continent and communicated to them his Government's Plan for the transfer of
power. At that time, a notification was issued in the Gazette of India, published on 26th July
1947 in which the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was given shape with 69 Members
(later on the membership was increased to 79), including one female Member.

The State of Pakistan was created under the Independence Act of 1947. The Act made the
existing Constituent Assemblies, the dominion legislatures. These Assemblies were allowed to
exercise all the powers which were formerly exercised by the Central Legislature, in addition to
the powers regarding the framing of a new Constitution, prior to which all territories were to be
governed in accordance with the Government of India Act, 1935.

The first session of the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was held on 10th August 1947 at
Sindh Assembly Building Karachi. On 11th August 1947 Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah
was elected unanimously as the President of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan and the
National Flag was formally approved by the Assembly.

On 12th August 1947, a resolution was approved regarding officially addressing Mr. Muhammad
Ali Jinnah as "Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah". On the same day, a special committee
called the "Committee on Fundamental Rights of Citizens and Minorities of Pakistan" was
appointed to look into and advise the Assembly on matters relating to fundamental rights of the
citizens, particularly the minorities, with the aim to legislate on these issues appropriately. On
14th August 1947, the Transfer of Power took place. Lord Mountbatten, Governor General of
India, addressed the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. The Quaid gave a reply to the address in
the House, on which the principles of the State of Pakistan were laid. On 15th August 1947,
Quaid-i-Azam was sworn in as the first Governor General of Pakistan. Mian Sir Abdur Rashid,
Chief Justice of Pakistan, administered oath of office from him. The Quaid remained in this
position till his death i.e. 11th September 1948.

The foremost task before the first Constituent Assembly is of framing the Constitution for the
nation. On 7th March 1949, the Objectives Resolution, which now serves as the ground norm of
Pakistan, was introduced by the first Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan,
and later adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 12th March 1949. On the same day, a Basic
Principles Committee comprising of 24 Members was formed to prepare a draft Constitution on

2
the basis of the Objectives Resolution. On 16th October 1951, Prime Minister Nawabzada
Liaquat Ali Khan, mover of the Objective Resolution, was assassinated and Khawaja
Nazimuddin took over as the Prime Minister on 17th October 1951.

The final draft of the Constitution was prepared in 1954. By that time, Muhammad Ali Bogra
had taken over as the Prime Minister. However, just before the draft could be placed in the
House for approval, the Assembly was dissolved by the then Governor General Ghulam
Muhammad on 24th October 1954. The Prime Minister was, however, not dismissed and was
asked to run the administration, with a reconstituted Cabinet, until such time as the elections
were held.

Maulvi Tamizuddin, President of the Assembly, challenged the dissolution in the Sindh Chief
Court, and won the case. The Government in return, went to the Federal Court, where the famous
judgment was given by the then Chief Justice Muhammad Munir, according to which Maulvi
Tamizuddin lost the case.

The second Constituent Assembly of Pakistan was created on 28th May 1955 under Governor
General's Order No.12 of 1955. The Electoral College for this Assembly was the Provincial
Assemblies of respective Provinces. The strength of this Assembly was 80 Members, half from
East Pakistan and half from West Pakistan. One of the major decisions taken by this Assembly
was the establishment of West Pakistan (One Unit), with the aim to create parity between the two
wings (East and West Pakistan). This Assembly also achieved its target by giving the first
Constitution to the nation i.e. the Constitution of Pakistan 1956. Choudhary Muhammad Ali was
the Prime Minister at that time. The draft of this Constitution was introduced in the Assembly on
9th January 1956 and was passed by the Assembly on 29th February 1956. The assent was given
on it by the Governor General on 2nd March 1956. This Constitution was enforced with effect
from 23rd March 1956. Under this Constitution, Pakistan became an Islamic Republic, hence
23rd March became our Republic day. It was the same day in 1940 that the historic Pakistan
Resolution was adopted at Minto Park, Lahore.

On 5th March 1956, Major General Sikandar Mirza became the first elected President of
Pakistan. The 1956 constitution provides for Parliamentary form of government with all the
executive powers in the hands of Prime Minister. President was Head of the State and was to be
elected by all Members of the National and Provincial Assemblies. He was to hold office for 5
years. The President was to act on the advice of Prime Minister, except where he was
empowered to act in his discretion.

Under 1956 Constitution, Parliament was unicameral. Legislative powers vested in the
Parliament, which consisted of the President and the National Assembly comprising 300
Members divided equally between East and West Pakistan. In addition to these 300 seats, five
seats were reserved for women for each of the two wings, for a period of ten years: thus bringing
the total membership of the House to 310.

However, in the absence of any law to control the Political Parties and the problem of floor
crossing, political instability perpetually ensued. Although the first general election was
scheduled for early 1959, President Sikandar Mirza abrogated the Constitution, dissolved the

3
National and Provincial Assemblies, and declared Martial Law, on 7th October 1958. He
appointed General Muhammad Ayub Khan, Commander-in-Chief of the Army, as the Chief
Martial Law Administrator.

On 27th October 1958, General Muhammad Ayub Khan took over as a second President of
Pakistan. One of the first major steps taken by General Ayub Khan was the appointment of a
Constitution Commission on 17th February 1960. The objective of this commission was to
submit proposals, as to how best democracy can be strengthened and molded according to the
country’s socio-political environment and Islamic principles of justice. The Commission
submitted its report to the government on 29th April 1961. On the basis of this report a new
Constitution was framed and given to the nation on 1st March 1962. General elections under the
new Constitution were held on 28th March 1962 and elections to the special seats reserved for
women were held on 29th May 1962. The first session of the third National Assembly was held
on 8th June 1962 at Ayub Hall, Rawalpindi.

The Constitution of 1962 envisaged a Federal State with Presidential form of government, with
National Assembly at the centre and the Provincial Assemblies in the Provinces. The
Legislatures, both at centre and in provinces were unicameral. The Federal system had been
curtailed by allowing the Provincial Governors to be appointed directly by the President. All
executive authority of the Republic of Pakistan, under the Constitution, vested in the office of the
President. President appointed his Cabinet members who were directly responsible to him.

The electoral system was made indirect, and the “Basic Democrats”, for both wings were
declared Electoral College for the purpose of electing the Assemblies and the President. Basic
democrats were 80,000 in number (40,000 from each East & West Pakistan). The total
membership of the National Assembly was 156, one half of whom were to be elected from East
Pakistan and other half from West Pakistan, also three seats were reserved for women from each
province. The term of this Assembly was three years. The norm was established that if the
President was from West Pakistan, the Speaker was to be from East Pakistan and vice versa. One
of the major achievements of this Assembly was the passage of Political Parities Act, 1962.

On 25th March 1969, the second Martial law was imposed and General Agha Muhammad Yahya
Khan took-over as the President of Pakistan and Chief Martial Law Administrator (CMLA). He
later issued a Legal Framework Order (LFO), under which the first ever general elections were
held on 7th December 1970. This was the first Assembly elected on the adult franchise and
population basis. It consists of 313 members, 169 from East Pakistan and 144 from West
Pakistan including 13 reserved seats for women (6 were from West Pakistan and 7 from East
Pakistan). Soon after the elections, due to grave political differences, the Province of East
Pakistan seceded from West Pakistan and became Bangladesh. On 20th December 1971, Mr.
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto took over as the President of Pakistan as well as the first civil Chief Martial
Law Administrator.

The first session of the National Assembly, due to the delay caused by the separation of East
Pakistan, was held on 14th April 1972 at the State Bank Building, Islamabad, in which all 144
Members from West Pakistan and two from former East Pakistan (Mr. Noor-ul-Amin and Raja
Tridev Roy who had chosen to join Pakistan) participated. On April 17, 1972, an Interim

4
Constitution was adopted by the National Assembly, which provided for a Presidential form of
Government. Under this Constitution, the National Assembly was not to be dissolved earlier than
14th August 1973. The Interim Constitution dealt in detail with the distribution of powers
between the Centre and the Provinces.

The Assembly also formed a Constitution Committee on 17th April 1972 to prepare the first
draft for framing a Constitution. The report of the Committee was presented with a draft
Constitution on 31st December 1972. It was unanimously passed by the Assembly in its session
on 10th April 1973 and was authenticated by the President on 12th April 1973. This
Constitution, called the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan 1973, was promulgated
on 14th August 1973. On the same day, Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto took oath as the Prime Minister,
while Mr. Fazal Illahi Choudhary took oath as the President of Pakistan.

The 1973 Constitution provides for a parliamentary form of government where the executive
authority of the state vests with the Prime Minister. The President, according to the Constitution,
is at the apex, representing the unity of the Republic.

From 1947 to 1973, the country had a unicameral system of legislature. Under the 1973
Constitution, Pakistan adopted bicameral system at the center, called “The Parliament”,
composing the President, the National Assembly and The Senate. Originally, the general seats of
the National Assembly were 200 with additional 10 seats reserved for women, bringing the total
strength to 210. The newly created Upper House i.e. the Senate had 63 members. Later in 1985,
through a Presidential Order (P.O. No. 14 of 1985), seven seats were added to the general seats
and ten to the reserved seats for women in the National Assembly. Ten seats were exclusively
reserved for minorities to be filled through separate electorate system. Thus, the total strength of
the lower house reached to 237 members. Similarly, the strength of Senate was also increased
from 63 to 87.

Under the 1973 Constitution the National Assembly is elected for five-year term, unless sooner
dissolved. The seats in National Assembly, unlike the Senate, are allocated to each province and
other units of the federation, on the basis of population. The Constitutional provision of 20
special seats for women lapsed in 1990, thus decreased the Assembly strength from 237 to 217.
Under the Constitution, elections to the 10 seats reserved for minority were held on separate
electorate basis.

Despite the tenure of the Assembly being five years, as prescribed in the Constitution, Mr. Z. A.
Bhutto, on 7th January 1977 announced the holding of elections before time. Consequently, on
10th January 1977, he advised the President to dissolve the National Assembly. Elections were
held on 7th March 1977. The opposition charged the government with rigging the elections to the
National Assembly and thereafter boycotted the Provincial Assemblies elections. Since the
opposition had not accepted the National Assembly elections result, they did not take oath. This
resulted in severe political crisis and Martial Law was imposed by the then Army Chief, General
Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, on 5th July 1977.

On 24th December 1981, under Presidential Order (P.O.15 of 1981) a Federal Council (Majlis-e-
Shoora) was constituted by the President. Its members were nominated by the President. The first

5
session of this Council was held on 11th January 1982. In this way, limited and controlled
political activities were resumed, as a result of which general elections were later held for the
National and Provincial Assemblies on 25th February 1985, on non-party basis.

On 2nd March 1985, the revival of Constitution Order (P.O.14 of 1985) was issued in which a
large number of amendments were made in the Constitution. The first session of the National
Assembly was held 20th March 1985. Mr. Muhammad Khan Junejo, was nominated as the Prime
Minister of Pakistan by the President (General Zia-ul-Haq). He received vote of confidence on
24th March 1985.

In November 1985, the 8th Constitutional Amendment was adopted by the Parliament. Besides
changes in other Articles in the Constitution the significant Article 58(2)(b) was added,
according to which the President acquired discretionary powers to dissolve the National
Assembly. On 29th May 1988 the Assembly was dissolved by the President by using the power
acquired under Article 58(2)(b).

The General elections for the eighth National Assembly was held on 16th November 1988. The
first session was convened by the President on 30th November 1988. Mr. Miraj Khalid was
elected as a Speaker National Assembly on 3rd December 1988. Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto was
nominated as Prime Minister of Pakistan and took the oath of the Office on 2nd December 1988.
The Assembly was dissolved by the President, Ghulam Ishaq Khan under Article 58(2)(b) on 6th
August 1990.

The General elections for the ninth National Assembly was held on 24th October 1990. The first
session was held on 3rd November 1990. Mr. Gohar Ayub Khan elected as Speaker National
Assembly and he took oath on 4th November 1990. Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif took oath as
Prime Minister of Pakistan on 11th November, 1993. The Assembly was dissolved by the then
President, Ghulam Ishaq Khan, under Article 58(2)(b) on April 18, 1993. The dissolution of the
National Assembly was challenged in the Supreme Court of Pakistan and after hearing the case
the Assembly was restored by the apex court on May 26, 1993. The Assembly was dissolved on
the advice of the Prime Minister on July 18, 1993.

The elections for tenth National Assembly was held on October 6, 1993. The first session was
held on October 15, 1993. Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani took oath of the office of the Speaker
National Assembly on October 17, 1993. Mohtarma Benizar Bhutto administered the oath as
Prime Minister of Pakistan on October 19th October 1993. The Assembly was dissolved by the
President Farooq Ahmad Khan Laghari on November 5, 1996.

The elections for eleventh National Assembly was held on 3rd February 1997. The first session
was held on 15th February 1997. Mr. Illahi Bukhsh Soomro took oath of the office of the
Speaker National Assembly on 16th February 1997. Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif took oath
as Prime Minister of Pakistan and Leader of the House on 17th February 1997. The new
Assembly came into power with an overwhelming majority. The Article 58(2)(b) was later on
omitted from the Constitution vide 13th Amendment in the Constitution in April 1997.

6
It may be pertinent to note at this point that while, ostensibly, sixteen amendments have been
made in the Constitution so far, the ninth and the eleventh Constitutional Amendments were,
however, passed by the Senate alone and fifteenth by the National Assembly alone, hence these
amendments lapsed. The fourteenth Amendment in the Constitution empowered a check on floor
crossing of legislators.

Chief of Army Staff General Pervaz Musharraf, who was also Chairman Joint Staff Committee,
took over the government from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and declared himself as Chief
Executive through a Proclamation of Emergency, on October 12, 1999. Through Provisional
Constitutional Order (PCO) issued on October 14, 1999, he held the Constitution in abeyance,
suspended the Senate, National and Provincial Assemblies, Chairman and Deputy Chairman
Senate, Speaker, Deputy Speaker National and Provincial Assemblies and dismissed the Federal
and Provincial governments. The President Mr. Muhammad Rafiq Tarar was, however allowed
to continue in his office. Under PCO (order No. 6) 29th October 1999, (as amended by C.E.
Order No.5, 4th July 2001), the National Security Council was established for the purpose to
tender advice to the Chief Executive (later on President), on matters relating to Islamic ideology,
national security, sovereignty, integrity and solidarity of Pakistan so as to achieve the aims and
objective as enshrined in the Objectives Resolution 1949.

Syed Zafar Ali Shah, MNA and Illahi Bukhsh Soomro, Speaker National Assembly, challenged
the suspension orders in the Supreme Court. The Court in its judgment on 12th May 2000
validated the military takeover by giving three years’ time frame to the government, starting
from October 12, 1999. The Court in its judgment asked the government to complete its agenda
and then hand over powers to the elected government. The court also allowed the military
government to bring necessary Constitutional Amendments, provided that those should not
change the basic feature of Federal Parliamentary democracy, independence of judiciary and
Islamic provisions in the Constitution. The court reserved the right of Judicial Review and power
of validity of any act or any action of the government, if challenged, in the light of State
necessity.

On 20th June 2001, through a notification (C.E. Order No.1) the Chief Executive assumed the
office of the President of Pakistan under President's Succession Order, 2001. On the same day,
through another Order (C.E. Order No. 2, 2001), the President converted the orders of
suspension of legislative bodies and their presiding officers, in to dissolution.

The elections for twelfth National Assembly was held on 10th October 2002. The inaugural
session of the National Assembly was held on November 16, 2002 and Ch. Amir Hussain and
Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob were elected Speaker and Deputy Speaker respectively on
November 19, 2002. Mir Zafar ullah Jamali was elected Leader of the House on November 21,
2002. Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain gave the ruling on June 14, 2003 that LFO is the part of
the Constitution of Pakistan. On this issue, Opposition Parties submitted a resolution for vote of
no confidence against Speaker National Assembly on June 20, 2003 which was rejected on June
28, 2003.

National Assembly of Pakistan expressed confidence in the leadership of President General

Pervez Musharraf through the resolution on January 1, 2004. President General Pervez

7
Musharraf addressed the Joint Session of the Parliament on January 17, 2004. Prime Minister
Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali resigned from his office on June 26, 2004. Chaudhry Shujaat
Hussain was elected the 21st Prime Minister of Pakistan on June 29, 2004 and obtained a vote of
confidence from the National Assembly on June 30, 2004. Mr. Shaukat Aziz was elected the
Leader of the House on August 27, 2004 and was administered oath of the Prime Minister of
Pakistan on August 28, 2004. National Assembly of Pakistan completed its Constitutional tenure
on November 15, 2007. After the resignation from the post of Chief of Army Staff, Mr. Pervez
Musharraf administered the oath of President of Islamic Republic of Pakistan on November 29,
2007. More on constitutional history of Pakistan, see Constitutional History of Pakistan,
ZKLawAssociates (last visited November, 26, 2017).

More on Mushraff era in Pakistan, see History of Pakistan (Sept. 8, 2009). In 2008, he resigned
from the office of the President to escape the impeachment. One of the major reasons for the
resignation of the then President was the Lawyers Movement which was headed by the ex-Chief
Justice of the Pakistan, Mr. Ifthkhar Choudhry. He was removed from his office
unconstitutionally by Mr. Pervaiz Musharraf in his tenure. The unconstitutional removal of the
Chief Justice followed by another PCO, which resulted in removal of all the judges in the
Supreme Court and the High Courts, refused to take oath under the PCO.

These judges were also house arrested for a period of one year. The situation got worst when the
Supreme Judicial Council declared the removal of the Chief Justice arbitrary and
unconstitutional; despite of that he was not reinstated at his position. The lawyers of the
community came out on the roads for the supremacy of constitution and law. The pressure was
built on the government, and there was no option left for Pervaiz Musharraf to reinstate the Chief
justice and resign as the President.

In the year 2014 the State of Pakistan, after a judgment of the Sindh High Court filed a Petition
in the Supreme Court of Pakistan to initiate proceedings of High treason against Pervaiz
Musharraf, as the Martial law imposed by Gen. Musharaf was declared to be unconstitutional by
the Supreme Court of Pakistan, therefore his acts of putting the constitution in abeyance is an act
of treason. This Petition was accepted and a special bench consisting of members of judges from
each province was constituted. Pervaiz Musharaff on account of his continued absences and
prolonged stay abroad was declared a proclaimed absconder. The proceedings are still pending.

The date of next General Election was fixed for January 28, 2008. After the assassination of
Muhatarma Benazir Bhutto on December 27, 2007, date of election was rescheduled for
February 18, 2008. The first session of the National Assembly was held on 17th March 2008. Dr.
Fehmida Mirza and Mr. Fasial Karim Kundi were elected Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the
National Assembly respectively on March 19, 2008. Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani was elected the
Prime Minister of Pakistan by the House on March 24, 2008 and unanimously obtained the Vote
of Confidence from the House on March 29, 2008. Mr. Pervez Musharraf submitted his
resignation from his office to the Speaker National Assembly on August 18, 2008 and Mr. Asif
Ali Zardari was elected 13th President of Pakistan for next five years on September 6, 2008. He
addressed the Joint Session of the Parliament on September 20, 2008.

8
During his address to the Joint Session of the Parliament on March 28, 2009, President Asif Ali
Zardari asked the Speaker National Assembly to form a Committee of both Houses for the
purpose of proposing amendments in the Constitution in the light of Charter of Democracy
(COD). After consultation with the leadership of all political parties in the Parliament, Speaker
National Assembly announced the Constitutional Reforms Committee (CRC) on April 29, 2009.

After the marathon consultation in 77 meetings, CRC under the Chairmanship of Senator Raza
Rabbani presented report of the Committee on 18th Amendment in the Constitution to the
Speaker National Assembly on March 31, 2010. The historic 18th Constitutional Amendment
was presented and passed by the National Assembly on April 8, 2010 and Senate on April 15,
2010 respectively. After the assent of the President on April 19, 2010, 18th Amendments became
part of Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. 19th Amendment was passed by the
National Assembly on December 22, 2010 and Senate on December 30, 2010, respectively. 19th
Amendment became part of the Constitution after the assent of the President Asif Ali Zardari on
January 1, 2011. 20th Amendment was passed unanimously by National Assembly and Senate
on February 20, 2012.

Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani was disqualified from April 26, 2012 by the Order of the Supreme
Court of Pakistan on June 19, 2012. Raja Pervez Ashraf was elected the Prime Minister of
Pakistan on June 22, 2012 by the National Assembly and administered oath of the Office of the
Prime Minister of Pakistan on same day.

On June 4, 2013, Mian Nawaz Sharif was elected the Prime Minister of Pakistan for a five-year
term. Mr. Mamnoon Hussain was elected President of Pakistan on July 30, 2013 and took charge
of office on August 9, 2013. These elections were accused of being rigged, Pakistan Tehreek-e-
insaf, which emerged as the second most successful political party in the elections. Imran Khan,
Chairman Pakistan tehreek-i-insaf announced protest throughout the country and demanded re-
election. While these protests were ongoing, the Panama papers were leaked in 2016. This leak
has changed the face of politics in Pakistan, demands of re-elections took a drastic change and
the slogan of Go Nawaz Go was being chanted in every street of Pakistan. This was the first time
in the history of Pakistan that a sitting Prime Minister was involved in corruption charges, a
movement against the Prime Minister was initiated across Pakistan, which was mainly headed by
the Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-insaf, the manifesto of the movement was that the Prime
Minister should resign.

This however was not an easy fight for Imran Khan and his alliance, a petition against the Prime
Minister’s disqualification was filed by Jamat-i-islami (another religious-political group in
Pakistan) wherein it was prayed to the Court that Supreme Court disqualify the Prime Minister as
he does not fulfill the Qualifications of being the member of the house as provided under the
Article 61 and 62 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

After this petition, several other petitions were filed in the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice of
Pakistan amalgamated all the petitions and a larger bench was constituted for deciding whether
the Prime Minister should be disqualified or not. The bench of Supreme Court was a five-
member bench, after a lengthy hearing, two of the members were of the opinion that the Prime
Minister should be disqualified under the charges of corruption, whereas the remaining three

9
were of the opinion that a commission should be constituted where both the parties can bring
evidence for their claim and then the Supreme Court makes any judgment. Due to the majority
opinion a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) was constituted, where the petitioners and defendants
adduce their evidence, the JIT in the conclusion declares the Prime Minster and other Defendants
guilty of corruption, misuse of power, forgery and fabrication of evidence.

The Supreme Court considering the report of the JIT declares that the Prime Minister cannot be
the member of the Parliament, as he does not fulfill the qualifications stated in the Article 62 and
63 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan and therefore disqualified as the member
of the National Assembly. As such, he is no longer competent to remain the Prime Minster of the
Country. This historical decision of the Supreme Court was announced just a year before the
general elections. For more information, see Sune Engel Rasmussen, Pakistani Court Removes
PM Nawaz Sharif from Office in Panama Papers Case, The Guardian (July 28, 2017). The
cabinet was dissolved, and a new cabinet took oath under the Prime Minister of Mr. Shahid
Khaqan Abbasi.

4. Government

The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan provides for a Federal Parliamentary
System of government, with the President as the Head of State and the popularly elected Prime
Minister as Head of government. Pakistan has a three-tier structure of government i.e. Federal
(consisting of the National Assembly and the Senate); Provincial (consisting of the Provincial
Assemblies of each Province) and Local (consisting of local governments at the grass root levels
in each Province).

Pakistan Government: This is the official portal website for the Government of Pakistan and acts
as a services gateway for citizens, non-citizens and businesses dealing with the Government.
Information about the Government's ministries, divisions and departments, official publications
like the Gazette of Pakistan, downloadable and printable forms for the citizens, and a
government directory are some of the features of this site. It also features news updates, tender
notices and job vacancies. Categories of its information and services gateways include
agriculture, business, citizenship and immigration, culture, district governments education,
employment, environment, health, housing and real estate information and media, law, overseas
Pakistanis, public utilities, regulations, religious affairs, safety and security, science and
technology, sports, tourism and travel, weather and women.

4.1. National Assembly

The National Assembly has an edge over the Senate by legislating exclusively on money matters.
With exception to money Bills, however, both Houses work together to carry out the basic work
of the Parliament, i.e. law making. The Bill relating to the Federal Legislative List can be
originated in either House. If the House passed the Bill through majority vote, it shall be
transmitted to the other House. If the other House passes it without amendment, it shall be
presented to the President for assent.

10
If the Bill, transmitted to the other House, is not passed within ninety days or rejected, it shall be
considered in a joint sitting to be summoned by the President on the request of the House in
which the Bill was originated. If the Bill is passed in the joint sitting, with or without
amendments, by the votes of majority of the members of the two Houses, it shall be presented to
the President for assent.

If the Bill is presented to the President for assent, he shall assent to the Bill in no later than ten
days. If it is not a Money Bill, the President may return the Bill to the Majlis-e-Shoora with a
message requesting that the Bill be reconsidered and that an amendment specified in the message
be considered. The Majlis-e-Shoora shall reconsider the Bill in a joint sitting. If the Bill is passed
again, with or without amendment, by vote of the majority of the members present and voting, it
shall be presented to the President and the President shall give his assent within ten days; failing
which such assent shall be deemed to have been given.

Under the Constitution, the Parliament may also legislate for two or more Provinces by consent
and request made by those Provinces. If the Federal Government proclaims State of Emergency
in any province, the power to legislate about that province is vested in the Parliament. But the
Bills passed by the Parliament during the State of Emergency, shall cease to be in force after the
expiration of six months from the date Emergency is lifted. Nevertheless, the steps already taken
under these Acts shall remain valid.

In exercises of its constitutional role, the Parliament also has other very important duties to
perform. The President, who is at the apex, is elected by members of both Houses of the
Parliament and the Provincial Assemblies. The Prime Minister, who heads the Cabinet and is
meant to aid and advise the President in his functions, belongs to the National Assembly. He
enjoys the confidence of the majority of the members of the National Assembly. Members of the
Cabinet are appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.

In the formation of the Cabinet, the major portion (75%) goes to National Assembly while the
rest (25%) are taken from the Senate.

There is a democratic procedure to remove the Prime Minister from his office if he loses
confidence of the majority of the members of the National Assembly. In this respect, a resolution
for a vote of no-confidence is moved by not less than 20% of the total membership of the
National Assembly. If the resolution is passed by majority of the total membership of the
National Assembly, the Prime Minister immediately relinquished powers.

Similarly, for the removal or impeachment of the President, not less than one-half of the total
membership of either House may give in writing its intention to do so, to the Speaker National
Assembly, or, as the case may be, to the Chairman Senate, for moving a resolution for the
purpose. In a joint sitting of the two Houses, convened for the purpose, and after the
deliberations, if the resolution is passed by the votes of not less than two thirds of the total
membership of the Parliament, the President shall cease to hold office immediately on the
passing of the resolution.

11
In case emergency is proclaimed, the Parliament holds the authority to extend the term of the
National Assembly. Under the Constitution, the Parliament may also, on the request of the
Federal Government, by law, confer functions upon officers or authorities subordinate to the
Federal Government.

4.2. Senate

The main purpose for the creation of the Senate of Pakistan was to give equal representation to
all the federating units since the membership of the National Assembly was based on the
population of each province. Equal provincial membership in the Senate, thus, balances the
provincial inequality in the National Assembly and dispels doubts and apprehension, if any,
regarding deprivation and exploitation.

The role of the Senate is to promote national cohesion and harmony and to alleviate fears of the
smaller provinces regarding domination by any one province because of its majority, in the
National Assembly. The Senate, is a body which represents the provinces/territories of the
country and promotes a feeling of equality, peace and harmony, which is so essential for the
growth and prosperity of a nation. Thus, the Senate in Pakistan, over the years, has emerged as
an essential organ and a stabilizing factor of the federation.

4.3. President

The President is elected by members of both Houses of the Parliament and the Provincial
Assemblies. The President may be removed from office or impeached through a resolution,
passed by not less than two-thirds of the total membership of the Parliament in a joint sitting of
the two Houses, convened for the purpose. The President in Pakistan is the symbol of Federation
unity. The President is not the member of the Parliament. He is the head of the state, the
commander of the armed forces, a symbol of national integrity and honor.

In case the office of the President becomes vacant for any reason, the Chairman, or if he is
unable to perform the functions of the office of the President, the Speaker, acts as President till
such time that a President is elected. Same is the case when the President by reason of absence
from Pakistan or any other cause is unable to perform his functions.

Unless both Houses pass a Bill and it receives President's assent it cannot become a law except in
the case of a money bill which is the sole prerogative of the National Assembly. Through an
amendment, the role of a Mediation Committee, comprising of eight members of each House,
has been introduced to evolve consensus on Bills, in case there is a disagreement between the
two Houses. The President under the constitution also has the power to legislate which is termed
as an Ordinance. In situations of urgency when the Parliament is not in session a situation arises
for which immediate legislation is required, the President can legislate/pass Ordinance. Such
Ordinance shall remain in force for a period of 6 months, after the expiration of 6 months if the
Ordinance gets approval of the Parliament, it shall automatically become an Act, otherwise if the
Parliament does not approve it at the end of the 6 months, it automatically ceases to exist.

12
4.4. Prime Minister

The Constitution provides that there shall be a Cabinet headed by the Prime Minister which is
collectively responsible to the National Assembly. The Prime Minister is chosen from the
National Assembly. The Federal Ministers and Ministers of State are appointed from amongst
the members of Parliament. However, the number of Federal Ministers and Ministers of State
who are members of the Senate, shall not at any time, exceed one fourth of the numbers of
Federal Ministers.

4.5. Provincial Governments

The government of each Province is empowered under the Constitution to deal with all subjects
that are listed in the Provincial Legislative List of the Constitution.

• The Official Website of the Government of Punjab: This website depicts various aspects
of life in Punjab. Its rich history, flourishing economy, centuries-old cultural heritage, the
psyche of the people, colorful fairs and festivals, delightful arts and crafts, ancient
folklore and soul-stirring music are all detailed on this site. The complete text of the 1974
Rules framed under Article 139 of the Constitution for the conduct of business of the
provincial government is also available online. Information on the government's main,
attached departments and autonomous bodies are also accessible here. The "SAAF"
model of government and other departmental documents can also be downloaded, in
addition to links to various Pakistani institutional websites.
• The Official Website of the Government of Balochistan: This website contains
information on the Province of Balochistan.
• The Official Website of the Government of NWFP: This website contains information on
the Province of NWFP.
• The Official website of the Province of Sindh: This website contains useful information
and links on the Province of Sindh.
• The Official website of Gilgit Baltistan: This website contains useful information and
links on Gilgit-Baltistan.
• The Official website of Azad Jammu & Kashmir: The website contains useful
information and links on Azad Jammu & Kashmir.
• The Official website of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas: The website contains
useful information and links on Federally Administered Tribal Areas.

4.6. Local Governments

Currently all provinces are drafting legislation to implement local governments in their
respective provinces.

5. Administration of Law and Justice

The Law and Justice Division is an advisory and consultative body to the Federal Government.
There is a Law Department operating under the supervision and control of the Law and Justice

13
Division in each province. The Law and Justice Division is generally called upon, from time to
time, to tender advice on various important and controversial constitutional and legal issues.

Drafting ordinances and bills is a major function and responsibility of the Law and Justice
Division, which is looked after by the Drafting Wing. The other major function and
responsibility of the Division is to be in charge of all litigation on behalf of the Government of
Pakistan. The Law and Justice Division is also involved in the appointment of Law Officers,
including Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General and Standing Counsel. It also approves the
appointment of legal advisers, with the assistance of a committee comprised of the Attorney
General, the Law and Justice Minister and the Law and Justice Secretary.

The Federal Judicial Academy was set up by the Law and Justice Ministry in September, 1988
for the adequate training of Judges, Government law officers, police officers and doctors dealing
with medical legal cases.

6. The Court System

There is a Supreme Court the principle seat is in the capital of the Country Islamabad, and each
province has a registry, a High Court in each province, and other courts exercising civil and
criminal jurisdiction. The Supreme Court and High Courts were established under the
Constitution, and other Courts have been established by or under the Acts of Parliament or Acts
of Provincial Assemblies.

6.1. Supreme Court of Pakistan

The Supreme Court is the highest court in the judicial system of Pakistan. It consists of as the
Chief Justice of Pakistan and such number of other judges as may be determined by Acts of
Parliament. The Chief Justice of Pakistan is appointed by the President. Other Judges are also
appointed by the President after consultation with the Chief Justice. The Supreme Court has
original, appellate and advisory jurisdiction.

The Supreme Court, to the exclusion of every other Court in Pakistan, has the jurisdiction to
pronounce declaratory judgments in any dispute between the Federal Government and a
provincial government or between any two or more provincial governments. The Supreme Court
also has the power to make any appropriate order necessary to ensure the protection and
provision of fundamental rights.

The Supreme Court has jurisdiction to hear and determine appeals from judgments, decrees, final
orders or sentences passed by a High Court, the Federal Shariat Court and the Services Appellate
Tribunals. An appeal to the Supreme Court can be made as a matter of right for certain cases,
while for the rest the Court must grant permission to hear an appeal.

If, at any time, the President considers that it is desirable to obtain the opinion of the Supreme
Court on any question of law which he considers of public importance, he may refer the question
to the Supreme Court for consideration. The Supreme Court considers the question so referred
and reports its opinion to the President.

14
The permanent seat of the Supreme Court is at Islamabad, but it also runs circuits at Lahore,
Karachi, Peshawar and Quetta. The Supreme Court may, if it considers it expedient to do so in
the interest of justice, transfer any case, appeal or other proceedings pending before any High
Court to any other High Court. The practice and procedure of the Court is regulated by rules
made by the Court. All executive and judicial authorities throughout Pakistan are required to act
in aid of the Supreme Court. Any decision of the Supreme Court, to the extent that it decides a
question of law or is based upon or enunciates a principle of law, is binding on all courts in
Pakistan. The Supreme Court has the power to review any judgment pronounced by or any order
made by the Court.

6.2. High Courts of Pakistan

There is a High Court in each of the four provinces of Pakistan. On December 14, 2007, a High
Court for the Islamabad Capital Territory was established through an Executive Order made by
the (now former) President Pervez Musharraf. A High Court consists of a Chief Justice and as
many other Judges as may be determined by law or as may be fixed by the President. High
Courts have both original and appellate jurisdiction.

A High Court has, under the Constitution, original jurisdiction to make an order:

• Directing a person within the territorial jurisdiction of the Court to refrain from doing
anything which he is not permitted to do by law, or to do anything which he is required to
do by law;
• Declaring that any act done by a person without lawful authority is of no legal effect;
• Directing that a person in custody be brought before the Court, so that the Court may
satisfy itself that he is not being held unlawfully;
• Giving such directions as are necessary to any person or authority for the enforcement of
any of the fundamental rights conferred by the Constitution.
• Besides the original jurisdiction conferred by the Constitution, a High Court has original
jurisdiction in many other matters conferred by or under various laws.

High Courts have extensive appellate jurisdiction over the judgments, decisions, decrees and
sentences passed by the civil and criminal courts. High Court also has the power to approve
death sentence passed by Sessions Court. High Courts also have the power to make rules
regulating their practice and procedure, as well as the practice and procedure of lower courts.
Each High Court supervises and controls all courts subordinate to it and any decision of a High
Court binds all courts subordinate to it.

• Lahore High Court: The website of Lahore High Court gives information about the
history of the Lahore High Court. It provides links to the constitution, jurisdiction, cause
list, judges, roster, history, IT at LHC, administration, rules and orders, announcements,
and other links.
• Sindh High Court: The website of the High Court of Sindh gives information about the
history of the Sindh High Court. It provides links to the constitution, jurisdiction, cause
list, judges, roster, history, IT at SHC, administration, rules and orders, announcements,
other links.

15
 • Peshawar High Court: The website of the High Court of Peshawar gives information
about the history of the Peshawar High Court. It provides links to the constitution,
jurisdiction, cause list, judges, roster, history, IT at SHC, administration, rules and orders,
announcements, other links.
• Balochistan High Court: The website of the High Court of Balochistan gives information
about the history of the Balochistan High Court. It provides links to the constitution,
jurisdiction, cause list, judges, roster, history, IT at SHC, administration, rules and orders,
announcements, other links.
• Islamabad High Court: The website of the High Court of Islamabad gives information
about the history of the Islamabad High Court. It provides links to the constitution,
jurisdiction, cause list, judges, roster, history, IT at SHC, administration, rules and orders,
announcements, other links.

6.3. Shariat Court

The Federal Shariat Court is comprised of eight Muslim Judges, including the Chief Justice, who
is appointed by the President. Of the Judges, four are persons qualified to be Judges of the High
Courts, while three are Ulema (scholars well-versed in Islamic Law). The Federal Shariat Court
has original and appellate jurisdiction.

The Court may examine and decide questions regarding whether or not any law or provision of
law is repugnant to the injunctions of Islam as laid down in the Holy Quran and Sunnah of the
Holy Prophet. If the Court decides that any law or provision of law is repugnant to the
injunctions of Islam, it sets out the extent to which such law or provision of law is so repugnant,
and specifies the day on which the decision shall take effect. Where any law is held to be
repugnant to the injunctions of Islam, the President, in the case of Federal law, or the Governor,
in the case of a Provincial law, is required to take steps to amend the law so as to bring it in
conformity with the injunctions of Islam, and such law ceases to have effect from the specified
date.

The Court has exclusive jurisdiction to hear appeals from the decision of criminal courts under
any law relating to enforcement of Hudood Law, i.e. laws pertaining to offences of intoxication,
theft, Zina (unlawful sexual intercourse), and Qazf (false imputation of Zina).

6.4. Civil Courts

In every district of a Province, there is a Court of District Judge, which is the principal court of
original jurisdiction in civil matters. Besides the Court of District Judge, there are courts of Civil
Judges. Civil Judges function under the supervision and control of the District Judge, and all
matters of civil nature originate in the courts of these Judges. The District Judge may, however,
withdraw any case from any Civil Judge and try it himself if he sees fit. Appeals against the
judgments and decrees passed by the Civil Judges, in cases where the value of the suit does not
exceed some specified amount, are brought to the District Judge.

16
6.5. Criminal Courts

In every district, there is a Court of Sessions Judge and Courts of Magistrates. The Courts of
Sessions is further divided into three classes; Court of District and Sessions Judge, Courts of
Additional Sessions Judge and Courts of Assistant Sessions Judge. The courts of District and
Sessions Judge and Additional Sessions Judge share same powers; the only difference in terms of
powers between the two is that the District and Session Judge is the administrative head of the
respective district. The Assistant Session Judge is subordinate to the Additional Session Judges
and District and Sessions Judges. The magisterial Courts are further classified into three classes,
Magistrate of First Class, Magistrate of Second Class and Magistrate of Third Class.

Criminal cases punishable by death and cases arising out of the enforcement of laws relating to
Hudood are only tried by Sessions Judges. The Court of a Sessions Judge is competent to pass
any sentence authorized by law, only death sentences are subject to approval of the High Court.
Offences punishable with imprisonment with 7 years are triable by the court of Assistant
Sessions judge whereas offences which are punishable with imprisonment for less than three
years are triable by the Magistrate in original jurisdiction, the provincial Government is however
competent to give special powers to the Magistrate of First Class to try cases punishable with
Imprisonment of 7 years. An appeal against the sentence passed by a Sessions Judge goes to the
High Court. An appeal against the sentence passed by a Magistrate goes to the Sessions Judge if
the term of sentence is up to four years, and otherwise goes to the High Court.

In Pakistan, there are general laws as well as special laws. For the purpose of administration of
justice and curbing crime, the investigating agencies are divided into two bodies: a) The general
investigating body and b) The special investigating body.

The General Investigating agencies operate under the procedure provided in the Police Rules
1934. Mainly, the Investigation which pertains to general criminal laws is conducted by the
Police. The Police Department in Pakistan is empowered to carry out investigation, cause arrest
of suspected and accused person, report a crime, and search and seize incriminating articles. The
Police Department is further divided into other departments such are: CTD-Counter Terrorism
Department and ACLC - Anti Car Lifting Cell.

The relevant information regarding the functions and structure of police is provided in the links
below;

• Sindh Police: The official website of the police department in the province of Sindh.
• Punjab Police: The official website of the police department in the province of Punjab.
• Balochistan Police: The official website of the police department in the province of
Balochistan.
• KP Police: The official website of the police department in the province of Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa.

The Special investigation agencies are created under the various special enactments intended to
curb certain crimes covered under a specific legislation. The Special Investigating agencies act

17
under their respective special enactments and their powers and procedures are specifically
provided under those statutes.

The list of Special investigating agencies is below:

• Federal Investigation Agency: The Federal Investigation Agencies is created under the
Federal Investigating Agency Act 1974, it operates in various crime circles which are
committed in connection with the Federation. Federal Investigating Agency has various
branches and each branch has a separate mandate. More about this agency can be read on
the official website of the federal investigation agency of Pakistan.
• National Accountability Bureau: In order to eradicate corrupt practices and ensure a free,
transparent government with across-the-board accountability, the National Accountability
Bureau (NAB) was established through a Presidential Ordinance on 16 November 1999.
NAB will take effective measures for detection, investigation, prosecution, and speedy
disposal of cases involving corruption, corrupt practices, misuse or abuse of power,
misappropriation of property and kickbacks etc., and for matters connected and ancillary
or incidental thereto. NAB is a statutory body enjoying total operational independence.
The Chairman is appointed for fixed tenure by the President in consultation with Chief
Justice of the Supreme Court. This site has information on the cases of corruption that
have been instituted by NAB and information on wanted individuals. It also contains the
text of the accountability laws in Pakistan.
• Anti-Narcotics Force: The Anti-narcotics Force is another special agency which has the
mandate to curb the crimes relating to Narcotics sale purchase, transportation,
importation and exportation.
• Pakistan Rangers: Pakistan Rangers is deployed in various cities of Pakistan for as a
counter terrorism Force. Under the special circumstances, they also have powers to arrest,
detain and investigate any criminal activity which has connections with the terrorist
organization. The official website is;
• The other portals of the official websites for other provinces are under construction.
• Federal Board of Revenue: The Federal Board of Revenue in Pakistan has duel function.
It is an administrative authority to regulate tax payments and taxation system. It also
monitors the customs duty and other functions relating to custom duties on import and
export. With these administrative functions the Federal Board of Revenue also acts as an
investigating agency and investigates into tax fraud, levies penalties in case of non-
payment of tax, monitors import, export and control smuggling.
• National Response Centre for Cyber Crime: NR3C is providing single point of contact
for all local and foreign organization for all matters related to cybercrimes. It is imparting
trainings and related security education to persons of government/semi-government and
private sector organizations. It has also conducted a number of seminars in different cities
of the country to educate sensitive government organizations regarding cyber-attacks on
their information resources, information breech and to make their systems secure against
all such threats.

18
6.6. Special Courts and Tribunals

Certain Special Courts and Tribunals have been created to deal with specific types of cases.
These are: Special Courts for Trial of Offences in Banks, Special Courts for Recovery of Bank
Loans, Special Courts under the Customs Act, Special Traffic Courts, Court of Special Judges
for Anti-Corruption, Commercial Courts, Drug Courts, Labor Courts, Insurance Appellate
Tribunal, Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, Accountability Courts, Anti-Terrorism Courts and
Services Tribunals. Appeals from the Special Courts go to the High Courts, except in case of
Labor Courts and Special Traffic Courts, which have separate forums of appeal.

There are separate fora provided for raising issues relating to the human rights as well as Special
Legislations pertaining to questions relating to Religion, these forums do not have judicial
functions, and may matter which directly or indirectly pertains to the human rights goes to the
high court of the country to a Constitutional petition is filed in the Supreme Court. However,
these fora do have administrative functions and they can draft polices.

Human Rights Commission of Pakistan: This is the official website of the Human Rights
Commission of Pakistan. It consists of an introduction, their press releases, events, media center,
publication and campaigns.

Pakistan International Human Rights Organization: This is the official website of the
Pakistan International Human Rights Organization. The Pakistan International Human Rights
Organization (PIHRO) was established in 1999 as an independent non-profit, non-political and
non-governmental organization. It is registered as an NGO under Social Welfare Agency
Ordinance 1961, Government of Pakistan. PIHRO endeavors to serve humanity, work for human
welfare and to help the downtrodden and the deprived. The website consists of an introduction,
their aims, objectives, missions, case studies, activities and projects.

Asian Human Rights Commission: This is the official website of the Asian Human Rights
Commission. It keeps a check on the human rights issue in the Asian countries. Its website
consists of an introduction, news, issues, campaigns, resources and opinions.

Insaf Network Pakistan: Insaf Network Pakistan is a national non-governmental organization.

It aims at providing a common and neutral platform to civil society organizations to work
together to help the indigent, vulnerable and minority communities in areas of gender justice and
legal empowerment across Pakistan. INP’s partnership with a variety of civil society
organizations and the government functionaries remains its distinguished feature; offering a
deeper and wider access to the development recipients at a massive scale across Pakistan. Its
mission is to promote professionally informed institutional networking and programming to
support civil society and the government organizations in fertilizing demand factors with supply
functions for dispensation of quality justice and social services to all members of the society,
especially the poor, disadvantaged and the vulnerable. Their website consists of an introduction
of their organization, their projects, publications, members and a justice bulletin.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Pakistan: UNDP is a part of the United
Nations and upholds the vision of the United Nations Charter. It is committed to the principle

19
that development is inseparable from the quest for peace and human security, and that the United
Nations must be a strong force for development as well as peace. UNDP's mission is to help
countries in their efforts to achieve sustainable human development, by assisting them in
building their capacity to design and carry out protections for women and the environment, and
giving first priority to poverty eradication. UNDP Pakistan addresses the issue of poverty
eradication and SHD through three program areas: (a) governance; (b) gender; and (c)
sustainable livelihoods. UNDP Pakistan Overview gives a quick overview of the Programme.
The interested user can check out each Thematic Programme Area. A Consolidated Project
Listing is also available. The site has links to the Sub Regional Resource Facility, Regional
Governance Programme, Country Cooperation Framework 1998-2003, and Human Development
Center. Moreover, a Media and Advocacy Page is also maintained on this site. Besides these,
Performance Indicators have been identified. The UNDP main site can also be accessed from this
website.

Law & Justice Commission of Pakistan: The main functions of the Commission include
suggesting reforms in laws and statutes, including their modernization, unification and
codification, removal of anomalies and inconsistencies in laws, repeal of obsolete provisions in
statutes, adopting effective procedures for administration of laws to ensure inexpensive and
speedy justice, simplifying laws for easy comprehension and suggesting steps to make the
society law-conscious, developing and augmenting human resources for efficient court
administration and case management, coordinating the judiciary and the executive, preparing
schemes for access to justice, legal aid and protection of human rights, administering and
managing the access to the justice development fund, introducing reforms in the administration
of justice and recommending measures for improvement in the standards and quality of legal
education. The site also has information on the laws of Pakistan and the judiciary.

The Council of Islamic Ideology: The Council of Islamic Ideology is a constitutional body that
advises the legislature regarding whether a law is repugnant to Islam, namely to the Qur'an and
Sunna. This website is designed to provide information about the activities of the Council in this
regard. It is updated every week. The website aims to provide visitors data about Islam, Islamic
law and research in this field in Pakistan, and contains links to:

• Major newspapers in the world, including Muslim countries

• Major libraries
• Online journals
• Bookstores
• Shari'ah and Islamic law in the news media

Databases on the website include:

• The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan

• Al-Qur'an al-Karim
• Important Fatawa
• Directory of scholars
• Research in progress in Pakistani universities

20
 • Bibliographies, and other lists of books and articles on current issues, e.g., rights of
women, human rights, etc.

Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP): The Election Commission of Pakistan is an

independent and autonomous constitutional body charged with the function of conducting
transparent, free, fair and impartial elections to the National and Provincial Assemblies. This
website provides details about its organizational policies and setup, including the electoral
system and rolls, demarcation and delimitation of constituencies, criteria for voter eligibility,
reports, news and events. A set of frequently asked questions and a detailed telephone directory
are also available on this information-rich site.

6.7. The Ombudsman (Wafaqi Mohtasib)

The concept of Mohtasib (Ombudsman) is an ancient Islamic concept, and many Islamic States
have established the office of Mohtasib to ensure that no wrong or injustice is done to the
citizens. In the 18th century, when King Charles XII of Sweden was in exile in Turkey, he
observed the working and efficacy of this institution in the Ottoman Caliphate. Upon regaining
his throne, the King established a similar institution in Sweden. Gradually, other developed
western countries also adopted this institution.

In Pakistan, at present, there are five Federal Ombudsmen, i.e., Wafaqi Mohtasib, Federal Tax
Ombudsman, Federal Insurance Ombudsman, Federal Ombudsperson for Women and Banking
Mohtasib.

Wafaqi Mohtasib. In Pakistan, a beginning was made with the appointment of Wafaqi Mohtasib
(Ombudsman). The primary objective of the Wafaqi Mohtasib was to diagnose, investigate,
redress and rectify injustices faced by the public from Federal Government Departments. The
measure of success achieved by the institution of Wafaqi Mohtasib led to the creation of
Provincial Ombudsmen in the provinces of Sindh, Punjab, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa,
Azad Jammu and Kashmir. For further information click here.

Federal Tax Ombudsman: The growing nature of corporate sector grievances, largely relating
to inequitable application of taxation laws, and the Government's desire to promote a just and
equitable business environment in Pakistan, prompted the Government to establish an
independent Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO). The FTO has brought considerable relief to
businesses during the last 11 years. Businessmen have now found a level of comfort, non-
existent in the past, which allows them to confidently and fearlessly make investment decisions
in the knowledge that an environment exists where they can expect equity, fair play and justice.
For further information click here.

Federal Insurance Ombudsman: In pursuance of the Insurance Ordinance 2000, the Office of
Federal Insurance Ombudsman (FIO) was established on 2nd May, 2006. The institution is
meant to provide analysis, investigation redressal and rectification of any injustice done to a
person through maladministration by any of the insurer in the private sector. The key role of the
FIO is to provide timely and cost free redressal of the public grievances against alleged
maladministration in an insurance company. The cases pertaining to life and general insurance

21
business are looked after by FIO as per the requirements of the Insurance Ordinance 2000 and
the Insurance Rules.

Federal Ombudsperson for Protection against Harassment of Women at Workplace: The

Federal Ombudsperson has been appointed on 13th January, 2011 for protection against
harassment of Women at Work place.

Provincial Ombudsman (Mohtasib) Sindh: The establishment of the Mohtasib Sindh

(Provincial Ombudsman Sindh) took place through the passage of Sindh Act No. 1 of 1992
(Establishment of the Office of Ombudsman for the Province of Sindh Act, 1991). This law
empowers Provincial Mohtasib (Ombudsman) Sindh to diagnose, investigate, redress and rectify
any injustice done to a person through maladministration of an Agency of the Government of
Sindh. The Ombudsman Sindh is the first institute in the country to have a Children's Complaint
Office (CCO) in the secretariat Provincial Ombudsman Sindh in collaboration with UNICEF,
which specifically looks after the rights of the children and young people. For further
information click here.

Provincial Ombudsman (Mohtasib) Punjab: The Institution of Ombudsman was established

by virtue of The Punjab Office of the Ombudsman Act, 1997, which provides for the
appointment of the Provincial Ombudsman for protection of the rights of the people, ensuring
adherence to the rule of law, diagnosing, redressing and rectifying any injustice done to a person
through maladministration and suppressing corrupt practices as enshrined in its preamble. For
further information click here.

Provincial Ombudsman (Mohtasib) Balochistan: The Ordinance for establishment of office of

Ombudsman for province of Balochistan, 2001 provides a comprehensive procedure to discharge
duty for redressal of grievances of needy people and to control the state functionaries to
implement the decisions against maladministration. The Provincial Ombudsman and United
Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) Balochistan has signed an agreement for establishment of a
children complaint office, on 21st October, 2009 in order to provide an opportunity to children to
be heard in judicial or administrative proceedings and decisions thereof which affect them and to
redress their grievances.

Provincial Ombudsman (Mohtasib) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: The Provincial Ombudsman

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been established under The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provincial
Ombudsman ACT, 2010 for protection of the rights of the people, ensuring adherence to the rule
of law, redressing and rectifying any injustice done to a person through maladministration,
suppressing corrupt practices and ensuring good governance.

Azad Jammu & Kashmir Mohtasib (Ombudsman): The Mohtasib (Ombudsman) Secretariat
was established in 1991 through an ordinance. It is a quasi-judicial institution. Its mandate is to
undo the injustice done through maladministration and to redress the grievance of an aggrieved
person/ persons. For further information click here.

22
6.8. Jirga

Jirga, a Persian word, means a gathering or a consultation. Tribes had recourse to Jirga to solve
their various problems, and hence jirga is now known as the tribal justice system. What started as
an informal, community-based body that was meant to settle small claims, the “Jirga”, or council
of tribal elders, has in Pakistan been allowed to emerge as a powerful force protecting the
interests of the powerful. A recent report by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP)
on jirgas traces their history, citing several published sources according to which a British
officer, Lt. Sandeman, introduced this system of resolving disputes among the Baloch tribes,
although it already existed in the Peshawar area.

On April 24, 2004, the Sindh High Court imposed a ban on holding jirgas in the province, but
government functionaries, ranging from chief ministers to union council nazims, continue to
participate in these meetings, according to the list compiled from newspaper reports by the
HRCP.

7. Legal Research

The Federal Laws of Pakistan are published by the government in a document called the Gazette
of Pakistan. The well-known law reporters, like the Pakistan Legal Decisions (PLD) and the
Pakistan Law Journal (PLJ), also contain the statutes in their statutes sections. The major
compilation of statutes, however, is the Pakistan Code. The current code is spread over twenty-
one (21) volumes dating from the year 1836 C.E. Volume twenty-one, the last published volume,
contains the laws passed up to the year 1988. Code volumes for the years after 1988 are yet to be
published and made publicly available. The Ministry of Justice, Law and Parliamentary Affairs
does publish individual Acts when they are amended, but this is done through the Official
Gazette. This means that the published Code may not contain the updated law, and hence one
must wait for the new edition of the Code in order to find the updated version. The latest
versions of the laws are available from the government documents (Official Gazette) outlets and
bookstores. The Acts sold by the bookstores are usually, but not always, the exact copies of the
laws published officially. Thus, in many cases, the Acts available from the market do not contain
the official notes added by the Ministry.

Judgments of the superior courts are reported in journals published by the following:

• All Pakistan Legal Decisions

• PakLawyer.com: launched by Pak-Lawyer Associates in 2019 to aid the need to find
legal advice.
• LawVision – Ultimate Law Resources – Database for Lawyers (fee based): contains a
wide range of e-books on law; database includes laws, case law, judgments, dictionaries,
etc.
• Pakistan Law Journal

Judgments of the superior courts and important enactments can be found online here:

23
• EastLaw.pk: contains all the enactments with latest amendments, Government Circulars,
notifications, Gazettes, latest judgments from all courts, research papers on legal topics.
This is a complete legal library available for a nominal subscription fee.
• Pakistan Lawyer: This is a Pakistani legal website containing a searchable database of
statutes and case law. This site also includes a directory of lawyers, links to court case
lists, and free online legal advice, among other useful features.
• Law Vision: This site has opened the door for actual comprehensive laws and legal
services on the internet. In addition, it provides information on legal consultancy, lawyer-
online, legal forums, etc. Some of the services provided through this website require a
subscription. Users need to purchase an account or a Scratch card to access the restricted
files of this legal data-base.
• PLJ Lawsite (fee based): has all Federal laws and since it is a Punjab based website it
also contains acts, ordinances, rules, SROS, regulations, Circulars of related to the
Province of Punjab. One section of the website contains judgments of all the courts in
Pakistan.
• Labour Unity: This site has information on labor laws of Pakistan.
• Guide to Law Online: This site contains various links to other websites, where
information on Pakistan, its Constitution, Economy, and laws can be obtained.
• Pakistan Board of Investment: This website contains information on the laws relating to
investment in Pakistan.
• Federal Board of Revenue – Revenue Division: This website contains information and
laws pertaining to Income Tax and Sales tax.
• Privatization Commission of Pakistan: This website contains information and laws on
privatization.
• Pakistan Telecommunication Authority: This website contains information and laws
relating to telecommunications.
• Private Power and Infrastructure Board: This website contains the policies governing
investment in the Power sector in Pakistan.
• Pakistan Law Site: This fee-based website is a one-stop resource for Statutes, Rules and
Cases relating to Pakistan. This site houses all federal and provincial statutes and cases
related to these statutes. Taxation, Service, Copyright, State planning, Labour and all
varieties of Fiscal statutes are covered in this site. There are more than 1200 Essays and
other legal documents available here. It also houses all Journals of PLD Publishers (PLD,
SCMR, CLC, PCrLJ, PTD, PLC, CLD, YLR).
• The Constitution of Pakistan: The site contains substantial information in the context of
Constitution. The amendments proposed or applied, orders affecting the constitution, and
other insights concerning this topic are included on the website. The site is updated with
recent information regarding the role of Constitution.
• Pakistan's Legislative History: This page contains Pakistan's legislative history,
ordinances, amendments, other documents including enforcement of the Shar'iah Act
(Act X of 1991).
• Punjab Laws Online: This website is the first online database of laws in Pakistan. It
contains all the laws of Punjab to date starting from 1860. The website is regularly
updated with the new laws that are passed or when amendments are made to the existing
ones.
• Vakil No. 1: This website contains laws of SAARC countries, including Pakistan.

24
 • NATLEX: This website contains national laws on labor, social security, and related
human rights. Information relevant to Pakistan may be found by locating Pakistan in the
countries section.
• Online newspapers of Pakistan: This site provides links to fifty newspapers circulated in
Pakistan.

Publishers and suppliers of law books:

• S.A. Salam Publications

• Petiwala Books International
• PLD Publishers: PLD Publishers is a publishing house based in Lahore, Pakistan. It was
founded in 1947 by the late Malik Mir Muhammad. It publishes the leading law journals
of Pakistan, including PLD, SCMR, CLC, PCrLJ, PTD, PLC, CLD, YLR and the GBLR.
The most comprehensive law book is the "Pakistan Law Decisions" (PLD), which
contains judgments from the Supreme Court of Pakistan, the various provincial High
Courts, the Service, Professional and Election Tribunals as well as the superior courts of
territories such as Azad Kashmir. PLD is augmented by other books, most notably the
"Yearly Law Reports" (YLR), and the "Monthly Law Digest" (MLD). The Supreme
Court also has its own law book, the "Supreme Court Monthly Review" (SCMR), which
lists more recent cases that the appex court heard. In addition, there are books dealing
with specific areas of law, such as the "Civil Law Cases" (CLC), which as the name
suggests deals with civil cases; the "Pakistan Criminal Law Journal" (PCrLJ), which
reports Criminal Cases; and the "Pakistan Tax Decisions" (PTD), on the Income Tax
tribunal cases and their appeals. Using the finest of technological innovations, PLD
Publishers has pioneered law information databases for making law easily accessible in
the electronic medium. This has appeared in a revolutionary form as
www.pakistanlawsite.com. This is one stop resource site for Statutes, Rules and Cases
relating to Pakistan. This site is one of its kind and houses all the federal and provincial
statutes and cases related to these statutes. Taxation, Service, Copyright, State planning,
Labour and all kinds of Fiscal statutes are covered in this site. Moreover there are more
than 1200 Essays and writing and other legal documents available here along with all the
Journals of PLD Publishers that are PLD, SCMR, CLC, PCrLJ, PTD, PLC, CLD, YLR.
• Paramount Books LTD.: online bookstore
• Kauser Brothers Law Book Publishers: books periodicals, and other legal publications
• Manzoor Law Books
• Federal Law House
• Unique Book House

Current important legal news in Pakistan may be accessed here:

• Mumtaz & Associates: A corporate law firm since 1971; offers access to all acts,
ordinances, rules circulars, and regulations.

25
Selected Important Government Websites:

• Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority [PEMRA]: This is the official website
for Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority established under the PEMRA
Ordinance of 2002. It regulates the private media and has the mandate to improve the
standards of information, education and entertainment and to enlarge the number of
choices available to the people of Pakistan including news, current affairs, religious
knowledge, art and culture as well as science and technology. All the Acts, Rules and
Codes of PEMRA to which all media groups have to abide by are found on this site.
Failure by any media group to abide by these may result in an action against them by
PEMRA.
• PAKISTAN: Economic Policy Analysis from MIEPA: The McKeever Institute of
Economic Policy Analysis (MIEPA) is a privately funded research institute, "dedicated to
the betterment of mankind through the promotion of sound economic policies." Their site
contains a description of recommended policies together with student evaluations of a
number of individual countries' economic policies. The linked section of the site presents
an analysis of the Pakistan government's economic policies compared to a list of 33
economic policies as prepared by MIEPA.
• Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan: The Securities and Exchange
Commission of Pakistan is the regulator of the corporate sector and the non-banking
financial institutions. It regulates the stock exchanges, public issue of securities, and
other intermediaries in the securities market. The site contains useful information on the
corporate laws of Pakistan.
• Pakistan Board of Investment: This website contains information on the laws relating to
investment in Pakistan.
• Privatization Commission of Pakistan: This website contains information and laws on
privatization.
• Pakistan Telecommunication Authority: This website contains information and laws
relating to telecommunications.
• Private Power and Infrastructure Board: This website contains the policies governing
investment in the Power sector in Pakistan.
• Pakistan Water Gateway: The Pakistan Water Gateway is intended to enhance access to
information regarding water resources and issues in Pakistan. It is a pioneering web-
based knowledge product, archiving information on a range of such issues pertaining to
Pakistan. The Pakistan Water Gateway is a reference repository for an evolving body of
knowledge. It hopes to link national stakeholders - government, civil society, media,
experts, donors and the general public - with their global counterparts, creating a web of
information and allowing for sharing of knowledge among these stakeholders. The
gateway addresses water as a resource in its many dimensions, serves to assess and
disseminate shared experiences, publicizes policies and guidelines, and facilitates
cooperation on water issues. It provides links to the current national and international
programs and resources on water, and serves as an interactive point for sharing and
browsing websites of water-related organizations, government bodies and NGOs. The site
also contains papers on critical issues and the learning of experts and institutions working
on water-related themes, as well as the experience of other communities regarding water
issues.

26