It has been seven decades since the independent state of Pakistan was carved out of British India, yet the country is still in pursuit of a suitable constitutional framework. Over this period of time, no other country has experimented with so many different constitutional forms, from parliamentary democracy to presidential form of government, to outright military regimes.

This book analyses constitutional development in Pakistan from its inception to present times. It provides a case-by-case account of constitution-making in Pakistan, with the inclusion of all pertinent documentation. Constitutional developments have been explained in the context of social and political events that shaped them. The book focuses on constitutional and political history, and constitutional development concurrently. It includes a liberal humanitarian reading of the travails of lawmakers and the role of generals, judges, politicians, and bureaucrats in the implementation of law.
Students of law, political science, and history, as well as lawyers, judges, and professors will find this book of particular value. Being grounded in a socio-political context, this book is also of interest to the general reader.
The third edition is updated to cover the constitutional and political developments up until 2013.

About the Author
Hamid Khan is Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and a founding partner of a leading Pakistani law firm, Cornelius, Lane & Mufti. He is former President of the Supreme Court Bar Association of Pakistan (2001-3), and the Lahore High Court Bar Association (1992-3). He regularly lectures on various legal subjects at the University of the Punjab, Civil Services Academy, Administrative Staff College, and the National Institute of Public Administration. He is an Ebert and DAAD Fellow, and a member of The Hague Academy of International Law. His other publications include The Islamic Law of Inheritance (OUP 2007), Principles of Administrative Law (OUP 2012), and A History of the Judiciary in Pakistan (OUP 2016).