Constitutional Amendments in 1973 Constitution

Officers promoted to the rank of Field Marshal, Marshal of the Air Force, or Admiral of the Fleet shall retain their rank and remain in uniform for life [61]. They are explicitly designated as 'national heroes' and enjoy lifelong privileges [61]. They also receive the same constitutional protections as the President under Article 248 [62].

A proviso to Article 175A(3) states that the President shall, on the advice of the Prime Minister, appoint the first Chief Justice of the FCC from among the Judges of the Supreme Court [63]. This is a transitional measure for the establishment of the new court [64]. Once this appointment is made, this specific proviso stands omitted [64].

Article 175B(1) mandates that the Federal Constitutional Court shall have an equal number of Judges from each Province [65]. It also requires at least one Judge from the Islamabad High Court [66]. This provincial balance is key to its role in managing federation-province disputes [53, 60].

The amendment added a definition to Article 260 stating that 'Chief Justice of Pakistan' means the senior amongst the Chief Justice of the Federal Constitutional Court and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court [67]. This provides legal clarity on seniority across the two top courts [51, 68]. It ensures the Constitution accounts for the new judicial structure [27].