The gap within the legal fraternity has widened as the majority of the lawyers’ bodies are not endorsing the Supreme Court Bar Association’s (SCBA) plan to observe a complete strike on Sept 14 (Thursday) against the problems faced by the PTI and its leadership.
There is a severe division between two groups of the legal fraternity – the ‘Independent’ and the 'Professional’ – at the start of the lawyers’ movement announced at an SCBA convention last week.
The lawyers, who closely observe the bar politics, believe that both groups are trying to take hold of the popular stance for an effective campaign in the upcoming SCBA elections, which will be held in last week of next month.
They also say that parties always use the bars to achieve their political objectives.
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It was witnessed that the representatives of the Independent Group – also known as the Asma Jahangir Group – played a key role in completing the process of the no-confidence motion against deposed premier Imran Khan under Article 95 of the Constitution.
Later, it remained aligned with the government led by the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) until its tenure lasted.
The Professional Lawyers Group, which is known as Hamid Khan Group, has a ‘soft corner’ for the PTI. Some senior members of this group have already joined the party.
SCBA President Abid Zuberi belongs to this section.
The representatives of the Professional Lawyers Group are raising their voice against the troubles being faced by the PTI leaders and activists after the May 9 mayhem.
An Independent member said their group had a majority in all the country’s bar councils, which were the regularity bodies to announce the nationwide strike.
He maintained that the Professional Group was currently following the narrative of the PTI, which was not acceptable to the Independent members.
He ruled out the possibility of the start of a new lawyers’ movement.
The Independent Group member added that if the SCBA president was so keen to proceed with the move, he should ensure that the strike was observed in the apex court – where the majority of the judges delivered rulings in favour of the PTI.
Interestingly, both groups of lawyers are supporting the holding of the general elections within 90 days.
Earlier, both sections were united against the presidential reference for the removal of Justice Qazi Faez Isa.
The Independent Group has a majority in the Pakistan Bar Council as well provincial bar councils. The Lahore High Court Bar Association president and the SCBA president belong to the Professional Group.
The majority of the lawyers believe that the influence of key political parties in the bars must come to an end.
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It was also learnt that the PML-N Lawyers Forum is organising a seminar on Wednesday (today) on the topic of the rule of law and independence of the judiciary.
Peshawar High Court Bar Association Finance Secretary Nida Khan said strikes might be called if lawyers within a particular association felt that their interests, rights, or ethical concerns were not being adequately addressed by their leadership.
"However, it's important to note that lawyers’ strikes can also be influenced by broader societal, legal, or economic factors, and not solely related to bar politics. Recently, the legal associations called for a strike for addressing the intolerable price hike and to express their concerns about the economic challenges that affect both lawyers and the general population,” she added.
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