‘Unconstitutional’ windfall tax—II
Discriminatory without intelligible differentia [Points 7 & 8] The Supreme Court of Pakistan in Federation of Pakistan through Chairman FBR and others v Hazrat Hussain and others (2018 SCMR 939)…
‘Unconstitutional’ windfall tax–I
Banks have regular windfall income from dealing in foreign currencies – oxymoronic treatment by SRO. 1588(I)/2023 dated 21.11.2023. In Pakistan, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is de facto legislature (sic)…
Constitutional breakdown
IT was in 19th-century Britain that A.V. Dicey wrote that the British parliament is sovereign, and no person or body has the right to override legislation of parliament. Since then,…
Constitutional crossroads
The 26th Amendment to Pakistan’s constitution is more than a procedural adjustment – it represents a seismic shift in the balance of power between parliament and the judiciary. Passed with…
Constitutional amendments
CONSTITUTIONAL office holders, including superior court judges and legislators, swear an oath when assuming office. The oath requires them to act in accordance with the Constitution. Does this mean they…
Legal advice: Understand your constitution
There is an old saying that goes as follows: “The only thing we learn from history is that we never learn from history”. I write this while I am visiting…
Land of constitutional frauds
“For my friends, everything. For my enemies, the law” — Óscar R. Benavides THE spectre of violence and chaos haunts Pakistan. Never before in Pakistan’s history have three types of…
Why Pakistan needs a Constitutional Court
Given the timing of the proposed constitutional amendment and our traditional rhetorical approach to constitutional discourse, it is certainly easy to look past the legitimate benefits of establishing a Constitutional…
Dismissing the Constitution
THIS is an extraordinary phase of Pakistan’s political life. None of the five directly elected legislatures are in place and both the federation and the four provinces are being governed…
Military’s constitutional role
WHILE expressing his innocent wonder over why our armed forces are “often made the subject of criticism”, Gen Bajwa, our former army chief, recently conceded that this may just have something to…
