PBC calls for protection of lawyers

Warns of sit-in outside Parliament House if legislation not passed

PESHAWAR:

The Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) on Saturday demanded immediate approval of the Lawyers Protection Act from the National Assembly for the protection of the lawyers, threatening a sit-in outside the Parliament House in Islamabad if the government failed to do so.

The demand was made at a meeting called by the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council (KPBC) in Peshawar.

Representatives of the PBC also demanded amendment in Article 175 A of the Constitution in order to restore the 18th Amendment and remove the 19th Amendment.

The restoration of 18th Amendment would enable the appointment of fewer judges in the Judicial Commission of Pakistan and would restore the previous procedure of appointment of judges in the Supreme Court and high courts.

The meeting was chaired by PBC Vice Chairman Muhammad Ali Khan Jadoon and it was attended by lawyers from across the country including vice chairmen of the Punjab Bar Council, Islamabad Bar Council, Balochistan, and AJK Bar Councils.

Briefing journalists after the meeting, Vice Chairman PKBC and Member Judicial Commission Farooq Khattak said that senior lawyers Razaullah was killed in Peshawar Saddar at his office while police raided houses on the outskirts of Peshawar in Pishtakahra area to arrest the accused.

“The accused lived in Saddar but police tried to arrest him from somewhere else,” he said, adding that the attitude of police towards lawyers and journalists was not good.

He demanded of the government to pass the Lawyers Protection Act as soon as possible otherwise they would go for a peaceful sit-in.

“Those parties that are opposing the passing of this act, their leaders would not be allowed in Bar Associations,” he maintained.

Several resolutions have been passed at the meeting and it has been demanded of the inspector general of police (IGPs) in all the four provinces to appoint a DIG level officer focal person in each province who could be contacted on security matters by the lawyers community, he observed.

“The chairman of Judicial Commission of Pakistan should call a meeting so senior most judges from Peshawar High Court (PHC) could be appointed in Supreme Court on seniority basis on two vacant slots and judges could be appointed in Lahore, Sindh and Islamabad High Courts as well as the matter of appointment of judges on 10 vacant posts in PHC could also be decided,” he noted.

He also demanded of the Supreme Court and Balochistan High Court (BHC) to make functional Sibi, Khuzdar, Turbat and Loralai circuit benches of on permanent basis, adding that two circuit benches should also be approved for K-P and judges should be appointed in Sarghoda, Gujranwala, DG Khan, Sahiwal and divisional benches.

“The meeting also demanded that all the government employees including judges should not be reappointed after retirement in order to save the waste of resources,” he shared

 

Published in The Express Tribune, November 27^th, 2022.