Islamabad/IBNS, Nov. 15 -- In a major jolt to Pakistan's judiciary, two senior Supreme Court judges stepped down after denouncing the newly enacted 27th Constitutional Amendment as an attack on judicial independence.

President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday formally accepted the resignations of Justice Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Athar Minallah, both of whom submitted detailed letters outlining why they believed the amendment undermines the country's constitutional order.

The judges tendered their resignations soon after Parliament approved the amendment.

In their letters, they argued that the 27th Amendment represents a "grave assault on the Constitution of Pakistan", while the federal government dismissed their objections as "political ...