Lahore Bar Association: Election campaign underway

Nauman Qureshi and Chaudhry Ishtiaq contenders for bar president.

LAHORE:

Nauman Qureshi and Chaudhry Ishtiaq are to battle it out for the post of president of the Lahore Bar Association (LBA) in elections scheduled for January 12.

Qureshi, who ran and lost in last year’s polls, is considered the early favourite. He has the backing of the Friends Group, led by Asma Jahangir, as well as the Arain, Rajput and Jutt clans, and the Peoples Lawyers Forum. He is also popular among younger lawyers.

Ishtiaq has the support of the Professional Group, led by Hamid Khan. He is a strong supporter of an independent judiciary.



Supreme Court Bar Association President Mian Asrarul Haq, Pakistan Bar Council Executive Committee Chairman Burhan Muazzam Malik, Pakistan Bar Council member Ahsan Bhoon, Lahore High Court Bar Association President Shahram Sarwar, and former LBA presidents Shehzad Hassan Shaikh and Sajid Bashir are backing Qureshi.

Former LHCBA president Mian Quddoos and Azmatullah Chaudhry are supporting Ishtiaq.



Independent observers said that younger lawyers played a decisive role in the previous two elections, won by Sajid Bashir and Shahzad Hassan Sheikh, and they largely support Qureshi this time.

Saleem Ladi, Kamran Mughal and Hafiz Rashid are the main candidates for the seat of general secretary. Mian Shehzad, Tauqeer Sadiq and Mian Bashir Saif are the main contenders for vice president. Zamir Ahmed Jhedu, Shahid Mehmood Bhatti and Irfan Basra are campaigning for the Model Town seats.

Some 11,107 registered voters can vote in the elections at the Sessions Court on January 12.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 26^th, 2012.