President Alvi’s revelation: PTI decides to move Supreme Court for inquiry

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has announced that it will approach the Supreme Court over the revelation made by President Dr Arif Alvi regarding the signing of Official Secrets Amendment Bill 2023 and Pakistan Army Amendment Bill 2023.

A day after reports that the president had signed the two bills, Alvi on Sunday revealed that he had not signed the bills and rather returned them within the stipulated time to make them ineffective, but the staff at the President House undermined his will and command.

Alvi’s statement spread like wildfire across the country, with some demanding action against the staff of the President’s House and others suggesting the president should resign in protest. Legal opinions remained mixed.

PTI, the party Arif Alvi belongs to, extended full support to the president over the matter and announced that it would move the Supreme Court to demand an inquiry.

“Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has decided to urgently move to the Supreme Court over the eye-opening tweet of the President,” a post from PTI’s official account on X (formerly Twitter) stated.

The party also expressed gratitude to the president for taking “a stance above fears and apprehensions, in order to uphold the Constitution, laws, fundamental rights of citizens, and preservation and safety of democracy and parliament.”

The statement vowed full support to President Alvi at the national and judicial levels.

“The President of the nation is a symbol of unity, a part of the parliament, and the supreme commander of the armed forces of Pakistan. Rendering the decisions of the President ineffective through manipulation and covert actions is shameful, unconstitutional, and unacceptable in every respect.

“We will present the matter before the Supreme Court and request the Chief Justice to initiate investigations from every aspect, leading to identification and accountability of those responsible,” PTI said.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Law and Justice expressed grave concern over Alvi’s statement, saying the president had not abided by the Article 75 of the Constitution regarding the approvals of the said bills.

“As per Article 75 of the Constitution, when a bill is sent for assent the President has two options: either give assent or refer the matter to the parliament with specific observations,” the Law ministry said in a press release.

“Article 75 does not provide for any third option.

“In the instant matter, neither of the requirements were fulfilled. Instead, the President purposely delayed the assent,” it said.

The ministry explained that returning the bills without any observations or assent is not provided for in Pakistan’s constitution.