ISLAMABAD:
Political parties will once again play a crucial role in the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) deputy chairman election scheduled to take place tomorrow (Tuesday) as competing lawyers’ groups battle for a narrow majority in the 23-member body.
The first meeting of the newly elected members of the PBC will be held on Tuesday, where the vice-chairman of the apex regulatory body of lawyers will be elected.
The position is hotly contested amid intense behind-the-scenes negotiations, with both major groups seeing support from political parties whose votes could tip the balance.
The Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP) is the former chairman of the PBC. The total number of members of the PBC is 23.
Among those elected as members of the PBC for the next five years are Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, Ahsan Bhoon, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, Farooq H. Naek, Barrister Salahuddin Ahmed, Abid Zuberi, Maqsood Buttar, Masood Chishti, Syed Qalbi Hasan and others.
Advocacy policy within the PBC is divided into two main groups. One is the trade group, which is strongly against the 26th and 27th constitutional amendments. PTI Senator Hamid Khan is known as the leader of this group.
The other faction is the Independent Group, widely considered to be the section of pro-government lawyers, which has occupied the highest regulatory body of lawyers for nearly 15 years. Currently, Ahsan Bhoon leads this group.
Members of the independent group claim to have secured 15 seats out of the 23 successful candidates. “We will decide on the candidate for the post of vice-chairman today (Monday),” said a senior member of the independent group.
On the other hand, the trade group is still active in the efforts to secure a majority in the PBC election. The group currently has eight votes out of 23.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has three votes while Awami National Party (ANP) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazl) have one vote each.
These five votes are considered crucial for both groups in their bid to secure a majority in the PBC. Traditionally, the OPP’s legal wing has been associated with the independent group.
It is learned that the professional group is offering key positions in PBC to PPP, ANP and JUI-F in a bid to consolidate support.
However, senior lawyers believe that “powerful circles” take a keen interest in bar politics and have backed the independent group in almost every bar election over the past few years. For the sake of continuity in PBC affairs, it is therefore expected that work will be done to secure a majority for the independent group in the PBC.
It has also been observed that the legal wings of PPP and ANP have remained associated with the independent group for the last 15 years.
At the same time, the leadership of the Independent Group is expected to be forced to accommodate members of these parties in key positions.
Senior lawyers question why members belonging to the province of Balochistan have repeatedly been disqualified from becoming vice-chairman or chairman of the executive committee.
Over the past 25 years, only three
members from Balochistan have been elected as vice-chairman of the apex regulatory body of lawyers.
Senior lawyers are calling on both groups of lawyers to recognize that the PBC is a federal lawyer and that each province should have adequate representation in key posts.
Similarly, concerns have been raised that members belonging to opposition groups have little or no role in the work of the PBC, despite being the highest regulatory body in the legal community.
If a group of lawyers secures a majority with just a single vote among the 23 PBC members, that group would effectively assume complete control of the practice of law.
Lawyers also question that if opposition senators are properly represented in Senate Standing Committees, the same principle should apply to committees within the PBC.
The importance of the PBC can be gauged from the fact that the incumbent Law Minister, PTI’s General Secretary and a top legal consciousness from the PPP all contested the election.
The PBC is the apex statutory body representing the legal profession in Pakistan. Established under the Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils Act, 1973, it is responsible for regulating the conduct of advocates enrolled in the High Courts and the Supreme Court.
The PBC sets professional standards, lays down rules of legal ethics and ensures the independence of the judiciary and the legal fraternity. It also plays a key role in legal education by prescribing standards for law schools and overseeing the recognition of law degrees in coordination with provincial bar councils.
In addition to its regulatory functions, the PBC often serves as a collective voice of the nation’s lawyers on national legal and constitutional matters. It has historically addressed issues of the rule of law, constitutional supremacy and judicial independence, particularly during periods of political instability.
Through resolutions, declarations and engagement with government institutions, the Council seeks to uphold democratic norms and protect the rights of both the legal community and the public at large.
