Constitutional amendment bills for military courts' extension tabled in NA

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – The government has on Friday presented two constitutional amendment bills for the extension of military courts in the National Assembly on Friday. The bill was introduced by Law Minister Zahid Hamid. He also introduced The Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill 2017. The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) opposed the bills that seeks 28th constitutional amendment. These are "The Constitution (Twenty-eighth Amendment) Bill, 2017" to further amend the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and "The Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, 2017" to further amend The Pakistan Army Act, 1952. The House also adopted motions to consider these bills. The amendment authorizes the army to try any suspect on terrorism-related charges. A similar amendment adopted in 2015 allowed military courts to carry out trials of militant suspects under a two-year mandate. That initial mandate expired in January.