ALBAWABA- Pakistan’s parliament on Wednesday passed the 27th Constitutional Amendment, a sweeping set of changes that significantly expand the powers of the military while curbing the authority of the Supreme Court, deepening concerns about the erosion of democratic governance in the country.
The lower house approved the measure by a two-thirds majority following its rapid passage through the Senate two days earlier. The military-backed government pushed the legislation through with little debate after the opposition boycotted the session, an unusually swift process for a constitutional amendment that typically takes weeks or months of deliberation. Once signed by the president, the amendment will formally become law.
Under the new framework, Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir will be elevated to Chairman of the Defense Forces, granting him command over the navy and air force in addition to the army.
Upon retirement, Munir will retain his rank and enjoy lifetime legal immunity, marking an unprecedented consolidation of military privilege. The amendment also introduces a Federal Constitutional Court, whose judges will be appointed by the government and which will assume jurisdiction over constitutional cases previously handled by the Supreme Court.
This change effectively sidelines a judiciary that has repeatedly challenged executive and military decisions in recent years, including rulings that unseated prime ministers and blocked controversial policies.
The restructuring extends deeper into Pakistan’s defense hierarchy. The long-standing position of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee will be abolished as of November 1, 2025, to be replaced by a new post, Commander of the National Strategic Command (CNS), appointed by the prime minister on the recommendation of the defense chief.
Senior officers promoted to Field Marshal or equivalent naval and air force ranks will now retain their privileges, ranks, and uniforms for life, alongside full constitutional immunity similar to that enjoyed by the president under Article 248.
Opposition parties, particularly Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), denounced the move as a “civilian capitulation” to military dominance. PTI lawmakers said they were not consulted during the process, accusing the government of institutionalizing military supremacy.
Khan, still imprisoned but politically omnipresent, has long blamed the army for destabilizing Pakistan’s fragile democracy and orchestrating his ouster.
The amendment also carries significant regional implications. It comes on the heels of the Saudi-Pakistani strategic pact, which deepened defense and intelligence coordination between Riyadh and Islamabad, strengthening the military’s central role in regional security policy.
Meanwhile, renewed friction between India and Pakistan along the Kashmir border, coupled with escalating tensions with Afghanistan over cross-border militancy, has fueled Islamabad’s perception of a heightened security environment, one that the military has leveraged to justify its expanded powers.
Domestically, however, the amendment underscores a decisive retreat from democratic norms. With the judiciary weakened, the military institutionally entrenched, and the country’s most popular civilian leader behind bars, Pakistan appears to be entering a new era of managed democracy. As one Islamabad-based analyst put it, “the uniform now defines both the security and the sovereignty of the state.”
