The government has sought a three-year extension in the term of military courts, read a document obtained by DawnNews on Thursday.

The government has formulated a draft to carry out legal amendments that aim to extend the tenure of military courts — they had ceased to function after expiry of tenure earlier this year.

A meeting of parliamentary leaders was convened by the government in which it distributed the copy of draft among the attendees; a copy of the draft is also available with DawnNews.

According to the new definition of ‘terrorist’, revealed in the new draft, now anyone can be termed a terrorist regardless of the matter that whether he is motivated by religion or not.

Commenting on the matter, Pakistan People’s Party Leader Naveed Qamar said they have not supported the extension of military courts yet.

Addressing a press briefing following the meeting, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi asked, “What surety is there that situation will get better if military courts are granted extension?”

He said that the meeting was briefed on the implementation of National Action Plan (NAP) by National Security Adviser Nasir Janjua.

“The security adviser also informed about the necessity of amending laws to try more terrorists,” Qureshi added.

The PTI leader said that the government wants to pass the bill immediately but “doing anything in haste will not do any good”.

The meeting of parliamentary leaders is yet to decide whether an all parties conference will be called under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to settle this matter.

“Ishaq Dar believes that if a consensus is reached in the meeting of parliamentary leaders, then there will be no need of calling any APC with the premier in chair,” said Qureshi.

Opinion

Who bears the cost?

Who bears the cost?

This small window of low inflation should compel a rethink of how the authorities and employers understand the average household’s

Editorial

Internet restrictions
Updated 23 Dec, 2024

Internet restrictions

Notion that Pakistan enjoys unprecedented freedom of expression difficult to reconcile with the reality of restrictions.
Bangladesh reset
23 Dec, 2024

Bangladesh reset

THE vibes were positive during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s recent meeting with Bangladesh interim leader Dr...
Leaving home
23 Dec, 2024

Leaving home

FROM asylum seekers to economic migrants, the continuing exodus from Pakistan shows mass disillusionment with the...
Military convictions
Updated 22 Dec, 2024

Military convictions

Pakistan’s democracy, still finding its feet, cannot afford such compromises on core democratic values.
Need for talks
22 Dec, 2024

Need for talks

FOR a long time now, the country has been in the grip of relentless political uncertainty, featuring the...
Vulnerable vaccinators
22 Dec, 2024

Vulnerable vaccinators

THE campaign to eradicate polio from Pakistan cannot succeed unless the safety of vaccinators and security personnel...