Thuggery: Lawyers lock up ‘absentee’ sub registrar’s office

Say sub registrar is always absent, many registrations pending.

LAHORE:

A group of lawyers expelled staff from the sub registrar’s office at the Model Town Court and locked the room in a protest against the “absentee” sub registrar on Wednesday.

Around 10 lawyers barged into the office in the morning and told staff that there would be no more work done and they must leave, said witnesses.



“They pushed the staff out, telling them that if they came back in and resumed their work, there would be dire consequences for them,” said Muhammad Wajid, a witness. The lawyers then locked the office, saying said that they would not unlock it until all pending property transfers were registered.

Lahore Bar Association Vice President Irfan Basra intervened and the doors were unlocked after around one hour.

Advocate Syed Farzand Ali, one of the lawyers involved in the action, said that it was meant as a protest against the sub registrar, whose “constant absence” from the office meant that the registration of property transfers in Nishtar Town and Gulberg was being delayed.

“He is never in the office and as a result, we can’t get our clients property transfers registered. I’ve been visiting the office every day and he is never here,” he said. “I’ve been waiting two months just to get a number from him. Hundreds of litigants visit every day, but he is always absent.”



Ali said that he and other lawyers had met with Additional District Collector General Asfat Yar Baloch to complain about the sub registrar, and been assured that the matter would be addressed, but the situation had not improved. Court officials and litigants also told The Express Tribune that Dogar often did not show up for work, and when he did he spent long periods away from the office.

Sub Registrar Dogar denied that he was absent for long periods. He said that he had recently been busy with election duty. He said that he had returned to his office and the pending property transfers would be registered in a few days.

Basra, the LBA vice president, said that using force to resolve the matter was a bad idea. He said that the action had tarnished the reputation of lawyers. However, he added that the matter was now closed. There was no suggestion that the lawyers who had locked up the registrar’s office would be in for any kind of punishment, as has been the case when lawyers have previously taken this kind of action.

On February 26, some two dozen lawyers manhandled staff and locked up the offices of five magistrates at the district and sessions court for the whole day, in protest against a change in the procedure by which traffic fines are paid. No action was taken against the lawyers.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 16^th, 2013.