Pak NA adopts amendment bills to create military courts

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Pakistan National Assembly today passed unopposed two key amendment bills aimed at setting up military courts for the speedy trial of terrorists in the aftermath of the Peshawar school massacre by Taliban.
The lower house of parliament adopted the 21st Constitutional Amendment Bill and the Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill 2015 after 247 members, more than a two- thirds majority, voted in favour of the amendment.
Speaker Ayaz Sadiq said the constitutional amendment was passed without any member opposing it.
However, the two major religious political parties Jamaat- e-Islami (JI) and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) abstained from voting.
Imran Khan's Tehreek-i-Insaf did not attend the session as its members are boycotting the house since August last year when the cricketer-turned-politician launched a movement to topple the government over alleged electoral fraud.

The bills will be presented in the Senate, the upper house, tomorrow where they are also expected to be passed without any opposition and become part of the law when signed by the president.

The courts are being set up for two years and will become dysfunctional at the end of constitutional limit.
They will be staffed by serving military men but only federal government will be authorised to send a case for trial in these courts.
The two bills were expected to be passed yesterday but voting was deferred after the government fell short of the required two-thirds majority as only 218 members were present in the National Assembly of 342 members.

The decision to set up the military court was taken by the political parties after pressure mounted on the government and army to take solid action against militants in the wake of the Peshawar school attack last month which killed 150 people, mostly school children.