Constitution Of 1956

Outline:

• Background
• Salient Features Of Constitution Of 1956
i) Preamble
ii) Written Constitution
iii) Semi-rigid Constitution
iv) Federal System
v) Unicameral Legislature
vi) Parliamentary System
vii) Independent Judiciary
viii) Basic Rights
ix) National Language
x) Islamic Provisions Of The Constitution Of 1956
• Critical Analysis/Drawbacks Of The constitution
• Causes Of The Failure Of The Constitution

Background:

Chaudary Mohammad Ali was a sincere politician and an experienced parliamentarian. He took personal interests in the constitution-making process. He presented the draft of the first Constitution of Pakistan in the second assembly. It was approved by the assembly on 29th February, 1956. Then this draft was sent to the Governor-General Major-General Iskander Mirza who ratified it on 2nd March, 1956. Thus, the first constitution of Pakistan was formed nine years after the independence of the nation. Finally, the first constitution was enforced on 23rd March, 1956 and Pakistan was declared as Republic.

Salient Features Of The Constitution Of 1956:

i) Preamble:

Objective Resolution was made a part of the constitution of 1956 which declared that the all sovereignty belonged to Allah.

ii) Written Constitution

The Constitution of 1956 was a written document. It consisted of 234 Articles, 3 Parts and 6 Schedules.

iii) Semi-rigid Constitution:

It was a semi-rigid constitution. Unlike the constitution of USA, it was not very difficult to make amendment to it; only one-third majority of the assembly could make an amendment to it.

iv) Federal System:

The Constitution of 1956 provided a federal system in the country which consisted of the following institutions:
a) The President
b) The Government
c) The Parliament

a) President:

According to the constitution of 1956, President was the head of the State. He was a Muslim who was elected by the National Assembly and all the four provincial assemblies by a majority vote for a period of five years. He enjoyed the following powers:

• He could nominate the Prime Minister.
• He could appoint the provincial governors, judges of Supreme and High Courts, Auditor General and Advocate General.
• He could call a session of the National Assembly and was authorized to dissolve it.
• He was authorized to promulgate ordinance during the period when the National Assembly was not in session.
• H was authorized to reduce or condone the punishment given by the Courts.
• He could declare emergency in the country.

b) Federal Government:

Federal Government comprised the President, the Prime Minister, the National Assembly, and the Federal Cabinet. The Chiefs Of Army, Navy and Air Force and the Supreme Court. The federation of Pakistan comprised four provinces, federal and tribal areas. There were three lists of subjects viz, the federal list, the provincial list and the concurrent list.

c) The Parliament:

The constitution of 1956 provided a unicameral legislature called the National Assembly which consisted of 300 members. Out of these, 150 members were elected from East Pakistan and 150 from West Pakistan. It enjoyed full authority over the federal list of subjects. It was compulsory to call two sessions of the assembly in a year one to be held in Decca while the other was to be convened in Karachi.

v) Independence Of Judiciary:

the constitution of 1956 established an independent judiciary which consisted of the following Courts:

a) The Supreme Court
b) The High Courts (One each in East and West Pakistan)
c) The Lower Courts.

The Supreme Court was the highest court of the country. It not only heard appeals from the Lower Courts but also interpreted the Constitution at the request of Federal or the Provincial authorities. Similarly, two High Courts were established in Decca and Karachi. Judges of these courts were appointed by the President of Pakistan.

vi) Basic Rights:

The Constitution of 1956 provided the following Basic Rights to Its people irrespective of religion, caste or creeds.

a) Safeguard against arrest and detention
b) Security to person and property
c) Safeguard against forced labour
d) Freedom of movement
e) Freedom of speech
f) Freedom of assembly
g) Freedom of association
h) Freedom to hold property
i) Freedom to profess religion
j) Freedom to earn livelihood

vii) National Language:

Both Urdu and Bengali were grated the status of national languages. However, it was decided that English would be the official language for 25 years.

viii) Islamic Provision Of The Constitution:

The Constitution of 1956 included the following Islamic Provisions:
a) According to the Constitution of 1956, the country was named as “Islamic Republic Of Pakistan.”
b) The Objective Resolution was made a part of it which declared that Sovereignty of the universe belonged to Almighty Allah.
c) According to Article 32, the President of Pakistan would be a Muslim and of 40 years of age.
d) Article 18, provided that the all citizens would be free to profess and practice their religion.
e) The constitution put a ban on liquor, gambling and prostitution.
f) According to Article 198, no un-Islamic law would be enacted in Pakistan.
g) The constitution provided for brotherly relations with Muslim countries.
h) The constitution included a provision for the establishment of an Islamic Research Institute.
i) It also provided for setting up an Islamic Advisory Council.

Critical Analysis/Drawbacks Of The Constitution Of 1956:

The Constitution of 1956 was a great achievement but it was also criticized for its some flaws. We can pinpoint some of them as following:

i) Absence Of Islamic Provisions:

No provisions were made to make Islam as a state religion.

ii) Head Of A State:

In the absence of the President, the speaker of the National assembly might be acting president and a speaker might be a non-Muslim. In other words, Head of the state could be a non-Muslim.

iii) Authority Delegated To The People:

According to the Constitution, the authority was delegated to the people of Pakistan and the people of Pakistan could be Muslims and non-Muslims.

iv) Interpretation Of Quran And Sunnah:

Interpretation of the Quran and Sunnah was referred to the legislature rather than theologians. Hussain Shaheed Suharwardi said,” you are deluding the people by calling it an Islamic State.”

v) Response Of East Pakistan:

The people of East Pakistan were not happy with this constitution because they were demanding their share in the government according to their population because their population was more than that of West Pakistan. Moreover, they were demanding to declare the religion of the State as Islam. But the rulers of the day were not inclined to do. General Iskander Mirza said, “We cannot run wild on Islam.” So these controversies gave rise political and constitutional problems in the country and ultimately paved the way for military intervention.

Causes Of Failure Of The Constitution:

The Constitution of 1956 was abrogated in 1958. The causes of its failure were as under:

a) The multi-party system was one of the main causes of its failure.

b) General elections were not held up to 1956. Consequently, the parliamentary system did not strike roots in country.

c) The politicians were insincere and preferred their personal interests over national interests.

d) The eleven-year period from 1947 to 1958 was a period of political instability which witnessed the rise and fall of nine prime ministers. These circumstances were not conducive to democracy which was a hallmark of the constitution of 1956.

e) The constitution was modelled on the One Unit of West Pakistan.
Opponents of the One Unit created hatred against the Constitution.

f) Irresponsible and unpatriotic acts of Ghulam Mohammad destabilized the democratic process. He did not hesitate to dissolve the First Constituent Assembly. Similarly, the Federal Court was pressurized to give verdict against the Sindh High Court which was a mockery of democracy. Later on, Iskander mirza promoted the palace intrigues which led to frequent rise and fall of ministries.

g) In the early fifties, the political, geographical, military and administrative problems of Pakistan brought economic depression in the country. These circumstances led to unemployment, bribery, hoarding and dearness. The politicians exploited the situation at the cost of democratic values. Thus, people lost faith in the constitution of 1956.

h) At the time of Independence, Pakistan did not inherit any constitutional traditions because it had yet to frame its own constitution which suited its particular Islamic and democratic requirements. As an interim arrangement, the government Of India Act, 1935 was enforced with certain amendments. Subsequently, the First Constituent Assembly took nine years to give to the country its first constitution in 1956. The selfish politicians did not miss any opportunity to damage the image of democracy. The ministries continued to fall like nine pins even after the enforcement of the constitution of 1956. These circumstances convinced the military regimes that the Constitution of 1956 was incapable of meeting the challenges of the day.