Pakistan Grants Lifetime Immunity To President, Army Chief

Pakistan’s parliament on Thursday approved a sweeping constitutional amendment granting lifetime immunity to the president and the current army chief, a move critics said undermines democratic checks and judicial independence.

The 27th amendment, passed by a two-thirds majority, also consolidates military power under a new Chief of Defence Forces role and established a Federal Constitutional Court.

The changes gave the army chief, Asim Munir, promoted to field marshal after Pakistan clashed with India in May, command over the army, air force, and navy.

Munir and other top military officials will now enjoy lifelong protections, including immunity from criminal proceedings, the right to remain in uniform, and retention of rank and privileges for life, protections previously reserved only for the head of state.

“This constitutional amendment will increase authoritarianism, and whatever little semblance of democracy existed in this country will fade away,” an Islamabad-based lawyer, Osama Malik said.

Malik warned that the amendment removes civilian oversight and disrupts the military hierarchy, where service chiefs were previously considered equal under the joint chief system.

The amendment also shields President Asif Ali Zardari from criminal prosecution, although this immunity does not apply if he or another former president later holds public office.

Zardari has faced multiple graft cases, though proceedings were previously stayed.
Opposition parties, led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), protested in both chambers, tearing up copies of the bill in recent days.

Critics argue that the amendment bars courts from questioning any constitutional change, establishes a Federal Constitutional Court with exclusive jurisdiction over constitutional cases, and permits the president to transfer High Court judges upon the recommendation of the Judicial Commission, raising concerns about the erosion of judicial independence.

“This is the final nail in the coffin of an independent judiciary and a functioning democracy,” PTI spokesman Sayed Zulfiqar Bukhari told AFP.

PTI Secretary General, Salman Akram Raja, described the amendment as “deeply undemocratic at its core,” adding that it concentrates power in one military office.

The Senate initially passed the bill on Monday. After minor adjustments, the National Assembly approved it two days later, before returning it to the upper house for final passage.

“Sixty-four members are in favour of the passage of the bill and four members are against, so the motion is carried,” Senate Chairman Yusuf Raza Gilani said on Thursday.

The 336-member lower house also cleared the bill with the required two-thirds majority. The amendment now awaits President Zardari’s signature to become law.