ISLAMABAD: A delegation of a key coalition partner has met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad, Sharif’s office said on Saturday, as the ruling coalition intensified its efforts to get a contentious constitutional amendment package approved by parliament.
Sharif’s administration has been attempting to introduce a set of constitutional changes since last month, which the country’s opposition and prominent lawyers argue are aimed at granting more power to the executive in making judicial appointments.
The proposed amendments initially suggested establishing a federal constitutional court, raising the retirement age of superior judges by three years and modifying the process for appointing the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
On Saturday, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) that supports Sharif’s government, led a delegation of the PPP members to a meeting with the prime minister.
“Peoples Party delegation meets with the prime minister,” Sharif’s office said in a statement. “Discussions and consultation on the current political situation took place at the meeting.”
The development came a day after Bhutto-Zardari expressed optimism that the constitutional amendments would soon be adopted as political parties were close to reaching a consensus to secure the required majority.
However, Gohar Khan, chairman of Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) opposition party, said a fourth draft of the constitutional amendments, containing 26 points, was shared with his party on Friday, adding that the PTI was still deliberating on it.
The PTI has previously said the amendments are intended to grant an extension to Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, who is widely thought to be aligned with the government and opposed to its chief rival, ex-PM Khan, though the ruling administration denied the allegation.
Different political parties prepared various drafts of the constitutional amendments during several rounds of negotiations before announcing their agreement on the proposed judicial reforms and submitting it to a parliamentary committee, comprising government and opposition politicians, on Friday.
“The special parliamentary committee has unanimously approved the draft of the 26th Constitutional Amendment today, Friday,” Syed Khursheed Shah, the committee chairman from the PPP, told the media on Friday.
“It will now be presented to the cabinet for approval before being submitted to both houses of parliament.”
Khan’s PTI said its leadership was due to meet their leader today, Saturday, who has been imprisoned in a high-security jail for over a year on multiple charges. The PTI had also given a nationwide protest call for Friday against the constitutional amendments, though its supporters only came out in small numbers in various Pakistani cities.
Key ally meets Pakistan PM as efforts to pass contentious constitutional amendments gain pace
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Key ally meets Pakistan PM as efforts to pass contentious constitutional amendments gain pace
- PM Shehbaz Sharif’s administration has been attempting to introduce a set of constitutional changes since last month
- Opposition and prominent lawyers argue the amendments aim to grant more power to the executive in judicial appointments
US sees 18 percent rise in Pakistani students despite UGRAD pause, opens new USEFP headquarters
- USEFP inaugurates purpose-built campus in Islamabad as Fulbright program marks 75 years in Pakistan
- Undergraduate UGRAD program remains suspended but graduate scholarships and visas continue, US officials say
ISLAMABAD: The United States inaugurated a new purpose-built headquarters for the United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan (USEFP) this week, as American officials reported an 18 percent rise in Pakistani students studying in the US, despite the suspension of a major undergraduate exchange scheme earlier this year.
The launch comes as the Fulbright program completes 75 years in Pakistan, the world’s largest US-funded scholarship portfolio for master’s and PhD study. Officials said growing student mobility and stable visa issuance reflect continued academic engagement between the two countries, even after the UGRAD exchange program was paused in April.
USEFP Executive Director Peter Moran told Arab News that Pakistani students are still securing visas without unusual difficulty and enrollment levels remain strong.
“We are not finding that Pakistani students are facing undue difficulties getting their visas when they want to go and study on their own. The number of Pakistani students who are studying in the United States, actually based on data from the year before last, because you know there’s always a lag, it’s up 18 percent,” Moran said, citing 2023 figures.
He said nearly 10,000 Pakistanis are currently enrolled in US institutions, including self-funded students. While UGRAD, which previously sent 100–130 undergraduates per year, remains paused under US budget adjustments, Moran said there is hope it will return.
“So, the UGRAD program for now is on pause ... the UGRAD program sent undergraduate, actually high school students. That program ended in April. We don’t know when that will come back, but we sure hope that it will.”
USEFP clarified that no reductions have been applied to graduate programs.
“There is no cut on Fulbright… and we don’t anticipate there being any,” Moran added.
Around 65 Pakistani scholars left for the US through Fulbright this year, another 10–12 departed under the Humphrey Fellowship, and USEFP expects next year’s Fulbright cohort to rise to 75–80.
The inauguration of the new headquarters brought together US officials, scholarship alumni and education leaders.
US Embassy Minister Counselor for Public Diplomacy Andy Halus said the new facility reflects the depth of the bilateral academic partnership.
“We have over 9,000 students in Pakistan that have had experience in the United States on the Fulbright programs that started 70 years ago. Our commitment to sending more and more students to the United States on the Fulbright program is strong and it’s going to continue.”
Among attendees was Fulbright alumnus Aftab Haider, the CEO of Pakistan Single Window, the government-backed digital trade clearance platform. He credited the scholarship with shaping his career:
“I am a very proud Fulbrighter from 2008. I think it is one of the most transformational programs that can be offered to young Pakistanis to have the opportunity to be educated abroad, come back to Pakistan and contribute in public service delivery as well as in enhancement of the private sector.”
