The lawyers said that in 2007, a military dictator had challenged the Supreme Court of Pakistan and now the Punjab cabinet was following the line. PHOTO: FILE
LAHORE:
The Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) has rejected the government’s decision to establish five new territorial benches of the Lahore High Court, calling it a move to dent lawyers’ unity.
In an emergency meeting, the LHCBA vowed that they would not allow dividing the LHC at all costs.
They requested the LHC chief justice to abstain from giving any recommendations to the government on the issue.
They said the LHCBA would consider filing a petition against the government on this issue.
The Punjab cabinet has approved the setting up of new LHC benches in Faisalabad, Sargodha, Sahiwal, Gujranwala and Dera Ghazi Khan.
The lawyers said that in 2007, a military dictator had challenged the Supreme Court of Pakistan and now the Punjab cabinet was following the line.
A resolution passed by the bar said if the Punjab government was sincere in its claim for speedy justice, it should immediately recruit judges to end their shortage in districts, because thousands of cases remained unheard due to a scarcity of judgers.
LHCBA President Abid Saqi said that on March 4, the government had formed a five-member committee consisting of former bar presidents to consult stakeholders on new territorial benches and give its recommendations to the LHCBA.
He said while the committee was still deliberating, the Punjab cabinet had dropped a bombshell by announcing five new LHC benches.
He requested the committee to prepare its recommendation on new High Court benches as soon as possible.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 13th, 2013.
COMMENTS (1)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
The LHCBA's resolution on the announcement of five new benches of the Lahore High Court is unprincipled and despicable. The sole motivation for the LHCBA's opposition to new benches being established is the fear of losing their dominance. Establishing new benches will allow lawyers of those districts to represent their clients in the new benches of the Lahore High Court and the lawyers of Lahore will lose their monopoly over matters that previously came to the principal seat of the Lahore High Court from other districts. The bar association of the Rawalpindi bench of the Lahore High Court for similar reasons opposed the establishment of the Islamabad High Court in 2006. The only reason the bar association of the Rawalpindi bench is not opposing this decision is because they are not affected by it - their territory remains intact, for now. The LHCBA has no concern for the impact the new benches will have on the dispensation of speedy and efficient justice to the people of these regions.