Pakistani government accused of bribing opposition leaders for support on constitutional amendments, alleges Imran Khan's party.

Islamabad [Pakistan], October 18 : Opposition leader Omar Ayub Khan has alleged that the Pakistan government is attempting to bribe opposition lawmakers to secure their support for proposed constitutional amendments, as reported by Geo News.

He stated that opposition lawmakers are being offered up to Rs 1 billion by the government to switch their allegiance. During a debate on the proposed amendments in the National Assembly, Ayub questioned, "Isn't this a matter of shame? Is democracy here for sale?"

The National Assembly commenced a debate on the proposed constitutional amendments on Thursday, initiated by Pakistan People's Party (PPP) lawmaker Naveed Qamar. Naveed emphasized the importance of opening the floor for debate to incorporate various proposals into a consensus document.

The constitutional changes aim to include the extension of judges' retirement age and the establishment of a constitutional court. These proposals have faced strong opposition from former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his party, as noted by Geo News.

Earlier, Pakistan's Supreme Court dismissed a plea challenging the proposed 26th Constitutional Amendment after the petitioner's lawyer requested its withdrawal. The petition was filed by Abid S Zubairi, former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association and current member of the Pakistan Bar Council, against the proposed constitutional amendments.

Headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, the three-member bench included Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan. The petition challenging the proposed amendment was dismissed by the apex court after Advocate Hamid Khan requested to withdraw the plea. During the hearing, the Chief Justice questioned whether the petitioners had exclusively hired Hamid, a leader of the PTI, to withdraw their petitions.

"Abid Zubairi could have withdrawn the petition himself [...] Six lawyers had filed the petition; they could have appeared before the court themselves to withdraw it," the Chief Justice remarked.

Zubairi initially filed the petition in the Supreme Court on September 16.