Judicialization of Politics vs Separation of Powers: The 26th Amendment Test in Pakistan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70670/sra.v4i1.2130Keywords:
Judicialisation of Politics, Separation of Powers, 26th Constitutional Amendment, Judicial Independence, Judicial ActivismAbstract
This paper examines the dynamic aspect of judicialisation of politics and doctrine of separation of powers in Pakistan with specific regard to the 26th constitutional amendment. The research questions is to see whether the amendment has brought about a balance between institutional power amongst the judiciary, the executive and the parliament. It explores three basic areas, namely appointment to the judges, restriction of the exercise of the suo motu powers and institutionalizing the regulation of procedure through the use of the Practice and Procedure framework. Such reforms are also compared with international standards, particularly the international standards within the UN Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary. The study argues by the doctrinal and comparative study, the 26th Amendment is a significant step towards parliamentary supremacy that could restrain judicial enthusiasm and control the problem of judicial overreach. This paper ends by saying that this amendment can reduce judicialisation of politics, but raises new problems of checks and balances and institutional independence.
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