Draft of 26th Amendment reveals changes to Extension Rules for Services Chiefs

ISLAMABAD – The constitutional amendment remains in the limelight as it includes major amendments including extension of terms for the Chief Justice and Chief of Army Staff.

The proposed amendment includes sweeping changes, and proposed formation of a new court system, parallel to apex court. Among the 54 amendments being considered, Amendment 47 specifically addresses the terms and conditions related to the services chiefs.

The draft introduces a new clause to Article 243 of the Constitution, which stated “The appointment, re-appointment, extension, service limits, retirement, or removal of the service chiefs mentioned in clause (4) shall be governed by the provisions of the laws relating to the Armed Forces. These provisions, as they stand when the Constitution (Twenty-sixth) Amendment Act, 2024, comes into force, shall not be amended, altered, or repealed unless specifically authorized by an amendment to this clause.”

Article 243, part of the Constitution’s chapter on the Armed Forces, outlines that armed forces are under government control and that the President is the Supreme Commander. It grants the President the authority to appoint service chiefs based on the Prime Minister’s advice and to determine their salaries and allowances.

The new amendment integrates terms for appointment, re-appointment, and extension into the Constitution, whereas the previous article only covered appointments. Despite this change, any extensions will still be regulated by the Army Act, which remains subject to amendments through regular parliamentary procedures.

This development was dubbed controversial as PTI and allies warned PML-N led government of consequences for tweaks in constitutional framework governing the service chiefs, highlighting a significant change in how their terms of service will be managed going forward.