The Constitution of Pakistan — The Nation That Has Never Completed a Full Term.
Pakistan — Constitution Profile
| 📅 Active Since | August 14, 1973 |
| 🏛️ Government | Federal Parliamentary Islamic Republic |
| 🌍 Capital | Islamabad |
| 📄 Total Articles | 280 Articles in 12 Parts |
| ✏️ Total Amendments | 26 Amendments |
| ☪️ State Religion | Islam |
The Nation That Has Never Completed a Full Democratic Term — And Written Three Constitutions
Pakistan has been independent since 1947.
In that time, it has written three complete constitutions — in 1956, 1962, and 1973.
Every single one of them has been suspended, abrogated, or fundamentally rewritten by military rulers.
Since its creation, Pakistan has spent several decades under military rule — including the periods 1958 to 1971, 1977 to 1988, and 1999 to 2008.
No elected Prime Minister of Pakistan has ever completed a full term in office.
Not one. In over 75 years of independence.
The First Constitution That Lasted Less Than Two Years
When Pakistan finally adopted its first constitution in 1956 — nine years after independence — the celebrations were short-lived.
Due to lack of consensus among ethnonational groups, the 1956 constitution failed to arrest the political instability that engulfed the entire country following its promulgation, ultimately leading to its abrogation and imposition of the first martial law in the country on 7 October 1958.
Two years. That is all the first constitution lasted.
General Ayub Khan seized power, tore up the constitution, and imposed martial law. Pakistan's first democratic experiment was over before it had properly begun.
The Second Constitution — Written By a Dictator
After abolishing the first constitution, General Ayub Khan did not restore democracy. He wrote his own constitution.
The military dictator General Ayub Khan, who had taken over the reins of power, enacted the 1962 constitution to the country through an executive order.
The 1962 Constitution removed the office of Prime Minister entirely. All executive power was concentrated in the President — who happened to be Ayub Khan himself.
It also contained one of the most extraordinary provisions ever written into any national constitution — it institutionalised the intervention of military in politics by providing that for twenty years, the president or the defence minister must be a person who had held a rank not lower than that of lieutenant-general in the army.
A constitution that legally required the head of government to be a military general. Written by a military general. For a country that was supposed to be a democracy.
The Third Constitution — The One That Was Supposed to Last Forever
The 1973 constitution was the first in Pakistan to be framed by elected representatives. Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto brought together all major political parties and achieved something remarkable — a unanimous vote in the National Assembly.
For the first time in Pakistan's history, every major party agreed on a constitutional framework. The document established a parliamentary democracy, guaranteed fundamental rights, and declared Islam the state religion.
It also included Article 6 — which declared that anyone who abrogated or suspended the Constitution would be guilty of high treason.
It was a direct warning to future military rulers. It was meant to make coups constitutionally impossible.
It did not work.
The Man Who Made the Constitution — And Was Hanged By It
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was the architect of the 1973 Constitution. He personally oversaw its drafting. He celebrated its unanimous passage as the greatest achievement of his political career.
Four years later, General Zia-ul-Haq staged a coup against Bhutto, and later oversaw his execution.
The man who wrote Article 6 — the clause designed to punish those who overthrow the constitution — was himself overthrown, arrested, tried, and hanged by a military general who simply suspended the constitution and rewrote the rules.
The constitution could not save its own creator.
Suspended Twice — Rewritten Each Time It Came Back
The current constitution was twice suspended by military coups of General Zia-ul-Haq (1977-1985) and General Musharraf (1999-2002), and at the time of its restoration, both in 1985 and 2002, the military regimes amended it in ways that fundamentally changed its Islamic and federal character.
Each time the constitution was restored, it came back weaker — with more powers transferred from the elected Prime Minister to the President, and from Parliament to the military-backed executive.
A constitution suspended is one thing. A constitution restored in a fundamentally different form is something else entirely.
The Amendment That Declared a Minority Non-Muslim
In 1974, just one year after the constitution came into force, Pakistan's parliament passed the Second Amendment.
It constitutionally declared the Ahmadiyya community — a Muslim minority sect — to be non-Muslims.
For the first time in the history of any modern nation, a parliament used its constitutional powers to officially define who was and was not a member of a religion.
The Ahmadiyya community — who consider themselves Muslim — suddenly found themselves constitutionally excluded from their own faith by an act of parliament.
This amendment remains in force today.
The 18th Amendment — The Reform That Gave Power Back
After decades of military-dominated constitutionalism, Pakistan achieved something historic in 2010.
In April 2010, Pakistan adopted comprehensive reforms through the passing of the eighteenth amendment that restored many of the provisions of the 1973 constitution. It limited the powers of the president and restored power to the provinces. It reversed constitutional changes made by former military chief and president Pervez Musharraf by transferring presidential powers to the parliament and the prime minister.
It was the most significant democratic reform in Pakistan's constitutional history — a parliament reclaiming the powers that military rulers had taken away over three decades.
Constitution at a Glance
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| First Constitution | 1956 — Lasted less than 2 years |
| Second Constitution | 1962 — Written by military dictator |
| Current Constitution Adopted | April 10, 1973 |
| Current Constitution Active | August 14, 1973 |
| Total Articles | 280 |
| Total Parts | 12 |
| Total Amendments | 26 |
| Times Suspended | Twice — 1977 and 1999 |
| Military Rule Periods | 1958-71, 1977-88, 1999-2008 |
| Chief Architect | Zulfikar Ali Bhutto |
| State Religion | Islam |
| Official Language | Urdu |
📥 Download the Full Constitution of Pakistan
Read and download the complete, official text of the Constitution of Pakistan:
👉 Download Constitution of Pakistan — Full Text PDF
Three constitutions in 75 years. Every Prime Minister removed before finishing a term. A constitution that could not protect its own creator. Which part of Pakistan's constitutional story surprised you the most? Tell us in the comments below.
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