Army Act Amendment: Govt forms committee to hold talks with opposition
The government committee will hold meeting with the opposition on Jan 2.
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – The federal government formed a negotiating committee on Wednesday to consult on the Army Act Amendment Bill with the opposition.
According to sources, the committee consists of Defence Minister Pervez Khattak, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Mohammad Khan, Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Senator Azam Swati and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker Amir Dogar. The government committee will hold meeting with the opposition on Jan 2.
Talking to Dunya News, Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry said that the issue of extension in the tenure of the Army Chief will be raised in the Parliament. He expressed hope saying that there could be consensus with the opposition on extending the term of Army Chief and the Election Commission matters.
Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired an emergency meeting of Federal Cabinet and approved amendment in Army Act for an extension in the tenure of all military chiefs.
According to Dunya News sources, the cabinet meeting proposed a three-year extension in the tenure of all military chiefs – Army, Navy and the Air Force. The retirement age of three armed forces will be 64 years. The proposed bill stated that the Prime Minister of Pakistan can advise an extension in the tenure of any service chief.
The President Arif Alvi approved the extension of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa’s (COAS) service tenure on the recommendation of PM Imran. The proposed bill also amended Section 176 and Rules 155 of the Army Act 1952.
According to details, the amendment bill will be presented in the parliament after approval.
