Discuss the Federal Structure of 1973 Constitution of Pakistan after 18th Amendment. Why criticism on 18th Amendment started recently?

Introduction

The Preamble of the Constitution promises a federation "wherein the units will be autonomous with such boundaries and limitations on their powers and authority as may be prescribed." For nearly four decades this promise was only partly kept. The 18th Amendment, passed unanimously in April 2010, was the most far-reaching change to the 1973 Constitution: it restored parliamentary democracy, abolished the Concurrent List and gave the provinces new powers over resources. It was drafted by a committee representing every party in Parliament. Yet a decade later it came under criticism from the federal government and some state institutions, who argued that it had weakened the centre financially and administratively.

Overview

The 1973 Constitution created a federal parliamentary system with a Federal List and a Concurrent List of 47 subjects, and promised to review the Concurrent List after ten years. Military rule and the 8th and 17th amendments shifted power towards the president and the centre. The Charter of Democracy (2006) committed the major parties to restoring the Constitution and abolishing the Concurrent List. In 2009 a 27-member Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Reforms, chaired by Raza Rabbani, drafted the amendment, and it was signed into law on 19 April 2010. An Implementation Commission devolved 17 ministries to the provinces by June 2011.

The federal structure after the 18th Amendment

1. Division of legislative powers.

Parliament legislates on the Federal Legislative List (Part I and Part II of the Fourth Schedule), while all residual subjects belong to the provinces under Article 142(c). This makes the provinces the main lawmakers on most domestic matters. (Reference: Constitution of Pakistan, Articles 70, 142 and Fourth Schedule.)

2. Abolition of the Concurrent List.

The Concurrent List was abolished, transferring subjects such as education, health, labour, population welfare, environment, tourism and culture to the provinces. Some subjects, such as higher education standards and electricity, were moved to Part II of the Federal List under joint oversight. (Reference: Constitution (Eighteenth Amendment) Act 2010, sections on the Fourth Schedule; Report of the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Reforms, 2010.)

3. A stronger Council of Common Interests.

The CCI, chaired by the Prime Minister with all four Chief Ministers and three federal members, now oversees all Part II subjects. It must meet at least once every 90 days and report annually to Parliament, and it has a permanent secretariat. (Reference: Constitution of Pakistan, Articles 153 and 154.)

4. Fiscal federalism and Article 160(3A).

The NFC distributes revenue between the centre and provinces, and the new Article 160(3A) bars any reduction in the provinces' share below the previous award. Combined with the 7th NFC Award, this guaranteed the provinces about 57.5 percent of the divisible pool. (Reference: Constitution of Pakistan, Article 160(3A); 7th NFC Award, 2010.)

5. Shared ownership of natural resources. Article 172(3) vests mineral oil and natural gas jointly and equally in the province and the federation, and provinces may now impose sales tax on services and raise domestic loans within limits set by the National Economic Council. (Reference: Constitution of Pakistan, Articles 167(4) and 172(3); Fourth Schedule, Federal Legislative List, Entry 49.)

6. A stronger Senate and parliamentary system.

The amendment removed Article 58(2)(b), made the Prime Minister the real chief executive and gave the Senate a larger role, including a role in approving emergencies and the CCI's annual report. (Reference: Constitution (Eighteenth Amendment) Act 2010; Constitution of Pakistan, Articles 48, 58 and 91.)

7. Protection against emergencies and dissolution.

An emergency for internal disturbance now requires a resolution of the provincial assembly concerned, and governor's rule is subject to parliamentary approval within ten days. Provincial governments can no longer be dismissed at will from Islamabad. (Reference: Constitution of Pakistan, Articles 232 and 234.)

8. Local government and the National Economic Council. Article 140A obliges provinces to devolve power to elected local governments, and the reconstituted National Economic Council, with provincial representation, approves national development plans. (Reference: Constitution of Pakistan, Articles 140A and 156.)

Why criticism of the 18th Amendment started recently

1. The federal fiscal squeeze.

After the 7th NFC Award, the federal government keeps only about 42.5 percent of the divisible pool but still bears the full cost of debt servicing, defence and federal programmes. As deficits grew after 2018, federal ministers argued that the amendment and NFC formula had left the centre short of money. (Reference: Ministry of Finance, Annual Budget Statements 2019-20 and 2020-21; Dawn, reports on federal ministers' criticism of the NFC, 2019-2020.)

2. Rising debt servicing and defence costs.

Interest payments became the largest item of federal spending, and with defence needs rising, the federal government's net revenue after transfers was often insufficient. Critics argued that provinces should share these burdens. (Reference: Ministry of Finance, Debt Policy Statement 2021-22; State Bank of Pakistan, Annual Report 2020-21.)

3. Overlap and duplication.

Despite devolution, the federal government continued to run ministries and programmes in devolved areas, such as health and education, leading to duplication and disputes over who pays for what. (Reference: World Bank, Pakistan Development Update, 2023; Raza Rabbani, A Biography of Pakistani Federalism: Unity in Diversity, Leo Books, 2012.)

4. Weak provincial capacity.

Provinces received new subjects without matching capacity, delayed local government elections and collected little revenue from their own sources, such as agricultural income tax and property tax. Critics said this proved that devolution was premature. (Reference: Finance Division, Pakistan Economic Survey 2020-21, chapter on fiscal development; Constitution of Pakistan, Article 140A.)

5. Education and curriculum debates.

The federal government's push for a Single National Curriculum in 2020 clashed with provincial control over education, with Sindh refusing to adopt it. Supporters of re-centralisation argued that national unity required uniform education. (Reference: Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training, Single National Curriculum, 2020; Sindh Education Department statements, 2021.)

6. Health and the COVID-19 response.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, differences between Islamabad and Sindh over lockdowns highlighted coordination problems, and some argued that health should be returned to the centre. Others noted that the National Command and Operation Centre showed that coordination was possible without amending the Constitution. (Reference: National Command and Operation Centre, COVID-19 response reports, 2020-2021; Dawn reports on federal-Sindh lockdown differences, March-April 2020.)

7. HEC and higher education.

Disputes over the role of the Higher Education Commission and the creation of provincial higher education commissions in Punjab and Sindh raised concerns about standards and funding. The Supreme Court's judgment of 2011 kept the HEC intact as a federal body. (Reference: Supreme Court of Pakistan, judgment on the HEC's status, April 2011; Higher Education Commission Ordinance 2002.)

8. The politics of re-centralisation.

Reports in 2018-2020 suggested that some in the federal government and the security establishment favoured revisiting the amendment. Opposition parties and provinces saw this as an attempt to weaken provinces and parliamentary democracy, which turned the issue into a political battle. (Reference: Dawn and The News reports on debate over the 18th Amendment, 2018-2020; Senate of Pakistan debate on the 18th Amendment, 2020.)

Conclusion

K. C. Wheare defined federalism in Federal Government (1946) as "the method of dividing powers so that the general and regional governments are each, within a sphere, co-ordinate and independent." The 18th Amendment transformed Pakistan's federal structure by abolishing the Concurrent List, empowering the CCI, protecting provincial shares and resources and restoring parliamentary democracy. Much of the recent criticism stems from real problems, such as federal fiscal stress, duplication and weak provincial capacity, but these call for better implementation, a new NFC Award and stronger local government rather than a rollback. Undoing autonomy would revive the grievances that the amendment was designed to heal.