Legal Framework Order (1970)

After becoming the Chief Martial Law Administrator in 1969, Yahya Khan announced to conduct
free and fair elections and gave an assurance that a new constitution would be made soon. In
March 1970 he announced the Legal Framework Order that determined principles for the future
constitution of Pakistan and on 1st July 1970 he dissolved the One-Unit scheme.

The salient features of the LFO 1970 are as below:

1: The National Assembly of Pakistan will consist of 313 seats with 13 seats reserved for women.
Out of 313, 169 seats were reserved for East Pakistan, 85 for Punjab, 28 for Sindh, 19 for NWFP, 5
for Baluchistan, and 7 seats were allotted to the tribal areas.

The distribution of seats was to be as follows:

▪ East Pakistan: 162 general and 7 reserved seats

▪ Punjab: 82 general and 3 reserved seats
▪ Sindh: 27 general and 1 reserved seat
▪ N. W. F. P.: 18 general and 1 reserved seat
▪ Baluchistan: 4 general and 1 reserved seat
▪ Centrally Administered Tribal Areas: 7 general seats

2: Each province will have a provincial assembly consisting of elected members. East Pakistan
provincial assembly will have 400 members, Punjab 186, Sindh 62, Baluchistan 21, and NWFP 42.

3: The elections for National Assembly will be held on 5 October 1970 and for provincial assemblies
not later than 22 October.

4: The new constitution of Pakistan will follow these principles:

a: Pakistan will be the Federal Republic and will be known as the Islamic Republic of Pakistan b: The
head of the Pakistan state would be a Muslim and the divinity of Islam will be preserved in the
constitution.

c: The principles of democracy will prevail by holding free elections for federal and provincial
legislatures based on adult franchise. Independent judiciary will be made possible along with
fundamental rights for the citizens.

d: The center will remain strong while all provinces will be given maximum autonomy.

e: The state will try to eliminate economic disparities in the society and the citizens of the country
will be able to participate actively in the affairs of the state.
f: The constitution of the country will enable the Muslims of Pakistan to live their lives according to
the teachings of Islam. The minorities will be free to follow their faiths and will be able to enjoy the
benefits of citizenship along with their fellow Pakistanis.

g: The LFO clarified the status of national and provincial assemblies. The National Assembly would
either be the only legislature provided that federal legislature consisting of one house or it would
be the lower house if the federation has two houses. Its tenure would be for the full term in both
cases. The same went for provincial assemblies.

h: The Constituent Assembly was to stand dissolved if it was unable to frame the Constitution
within 120 days.

5: After the elections of the National Assembly, provisions will be made to arrange its meetings.

6: The LFO specified the number of conditions and qualifications. Any contesting political party
failing to fulfill the requirement will not be allowed to participate in the elections.

The L. F. O. also defined the qualifications of people who would be allowed to contest in the
elections. The Constituent Assembly was to stand dissolved if it was unable to frame the
Constitution within 120 days. Actually, the Legal Framework Order was to act as an interim
Constitution.

The primary function of the L. F. O. was to provide a setup on which elections could be
conducted. It was then the duty of the elected Constituent Assembly to draft the Constitution
of Pakistan. However, the L. F. O. defined the directive principles of State policy and made
it clear that the future Constitution should not violate these basic principles. The directive
principles demanded an Islamic way of life, observation of Islamic moral standards, and
teaching of the Quran and Sunnah to the Muslims.

The Legal Framework Order also urged the Constituent Assembly to frame a Constitution in
which Pakistan was to be a Federal Republic and should be named Islamic Republic of
Pakistan. It also called for the preservation of Islamic Ideology and democratic values. The
Constituent Assembly was also supposed to frame a Constitution in which all citizens of
Pakistan were to enjoy fundamental human rights. Judiciary should remain independent
from the Executive and provincial autonomy is protected.

The President was given the power to reject any Constitution framed by the Constituent
Assembly if the document did not fulfill the above-mentioned requirements. The President
also had the power to interpret and amend the Constitution, and his decision could not be
challenged in a court of law.