In this episode, Uzair talks to Salahuddin Ahmed about the ongoing moves to amend Pakistan’s constitution and its drivers. We focused on the role of the Supreme Court, why the government is pushing through a new ordinance to change the court’s procedures, and the impact of political polarization on the superior judiciary.

We also talked about why these proposed changes matter to ordinary citizens, and the outlook for Pakistan’s democracy.

Salahuddin Ahmed is a lawyer and former president of the Sindh High Court Bar Association. He recently wrote a must-read piece on these proposed amendments which you can read here - https://www.dawn.com/news/1859376/constitutional-package-judicial-overhaul-or-national-suicide

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

2:10 Ordinance issued by government

19:10 What does the government want to achieve?

31:00 Politics and judiciary

36:50 Patronage and the courts

42:05 Why should citizens care?

56:30 Paving the way for authoritarian rule