Pakistan Army Act 1952 amendment bill passed
Shares
ISLAMABAD: National Assembly has approved Army Act Amendment Bill 2017 on Tuesday extending tenure of the military courts for speedy trials of terrorists for two years.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif participated in the proceedings of the NA session today. The amendment bill was tabled today after parliamentary parties agreed over two-year extension in several meetings conducted earlier.
The Pakistan Army Act 1952 has been amended for the cause.
Pakistan People’s Party had expressed reservations over the extension however the stalemate ended this month.
The National Assembly has rejected recommendations of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl and Jamaat-e-Islami. JUI-F had recommended to expunge words relating to sectarian terrorists while JI had called for removal of word referring to religious terrorism.
The bill was previously tabled in Senate however, PPP that holds the majority there, rejected the draft.
The amendment bill is now to be tabled in Senate again, after approval by NA. The bill would reach the President seeking approval if it is approved in the Senate.
Military courts were established early 2015 after Taliban attacked Army Public School on December 16, 2014 claiming over 140 lives, mostly young students.