The 27th Constitutional Amendment has sparked one of the most consequential debates in Pakistan’s constitutional history. Supporters regard it as an overdue structural reform intended to modernise governance, while critics view it as a constitutional capitulation that risks shifting power from elected institutions to unelected centres of influence. At the core of the controversy lie fundamental questions relating to the Preamble of the Constitution, the status of Islamic legal principles, the scope of immunity, and the implications of the amendment under international law and established legal maxims.

The Preamble of the Constitution of 1973 begins with a solemn declaration: “Whereas sovereignty over the entire Universe belongs to Almighty Allah alone, and the authority to be exercised by the people of Pakistan within the limits prescribed by Him is a sacred trust.” It continues to emphasise that the State must be run through the chosen representatives of the people. The spirit of the Preamble is clear: the locus of political authority lies with the electorate, exercised through elected civilian institutions.

The 27th Amendment challenges this constitutional architecture by creating a Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) with authority over all services, granting lifetime immunity to five-star military officials, and allowing such officials to retain rank and privileges for life, removable only by a two-thirds parliamentary majority. These provisions establish a class of individuals enjoying protections greater than those granted to elected representatives, raising concerns that the Preamble’s promise of civilian supremacy is being........

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