ISLAMABAD: A proposed new administrative structure for the federal capital has been presented to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, with a recommendation to establish a 27-member Islamabad Capital Territory Assembly.
According to sources, the draft was prepared by a high-level special committee headed by Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal and presented to the prime minister.
The proposal includes an elected assembly, a chief executive and 27 administrative departments for Islamabad. Of the 27 assembly members, 21 would be directly elected by the public.
The draft also proposes seven assembly seats from each of Islamabad’s three National Assembly constituencies. Five seats would be reserved for women and one for minorities.
The chief executive of Islamabad could hold the position of chief minister or mayor and would be answerable to the elected assembly. The proposed Islamabad government would oversee 27 departments.
Under the draft, health, education, environment and civic services would fall under local governments, while law and order and master planning would remain under the federal government through the relevant ministry or governor.
The proposed assembly would have administrative and financial autonomy on the lines of a provincial government. Article 62 and 63 of the Constitution would also apply to members of the Islamabad Capital Territory Assembly.
Assembly elections would be conducted under the Election Commission of Pakistan.
Sources said the new structure would be established through an Act of Parliament rather than a constitutional amendment. The draft would first require approval from the federal cabinet, followed by legislation in the Senate and National Assembly.
The committee that prepared the proposal included Federal Ministers Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, Musadik Malik, Rana Sanaullah and Talal Chaudhry, along with Islamabad’s two National Assembly members and the interior secretary.
The proposed framework is aimed at giving Islamabad a separate elected administrative structure while retaining federal control over key matters such as security and master planning.
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