Islamabad: The Supreme Court on Monday reserved its judgment in a case pertaining to the constitutional status of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) – a news source reported.
A seven-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Saqib Nisar, was hearing the case pertaining to Gilgit-Baltistan Order, 2018, and Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self Governance Order, 2009.
Residents of the northern area had demanded the government to declare GB as part of Pakistan. Currently, the area is being administered through presidential orders.
The larger bench was given a draft of the Gilgit-Baltistan Governance Reforms, 2018. The federal government had prepared the said document in order to ensure political empowerment and good governance in GB.
As per the draft, the federal government intends to grant GB the status of a provisional province. This status, however, will be subject to a plebiscite conducted under the requisite UN resolutions.
As it lacks a two-thirds majority in parliament, the government has decided to give fundamental rights to GB residents as an interim measure.
