After the 26th Constitutional Amendment, the bloc managed to appoint members of the CS
ISLAMABAD:
The Independent Group, a pro-government lawyers group, won the annual elections of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA).
Led by Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar and advocate Ahsan Bhoon, the group scored a crucial victory when its candidate, Haroon-ur-Rasheed, was elected the new SCBA president by a huge margin of over 400 votes.
The Independent Group candidates also won other seats on the SCBA executive body.
Since 2010, the Independent Group has won 13 SCBA presidential elections, while only three presidents belonging to the Professional Group have been elected in the last 15 years.
Lawyers are debating the reasons behind the Independent Group’s continued success. The result reflects that the majority of lawyers in the SCBA elections preferred welfare issues, indicating that the 26th Constitutional Amendment is not a major concern for them.
Many lawyers give credit to Minister Tarar and Bhoon, whose agenda focuses on the welfare of lawyers. They have engaged the legal community through various wellness programs. The Independent Group is well organized throughout the country.
Thirdly, government departments are also fully available to the Minister of Justice to address lawyers’ issues. Following the 26th Constitutional Amendment, the Independent Group has managed to get several members appointed to the higher courts.
Fawad Chaudhry, who is a Supreme Court advocate, said personal relationships, campaign skills and group dynamics play an important role in lawyer choices.
“Ahsan Bhoon and Azam Tarar possess exceptional campaigning skills, while the PTI relies solely on the name of Imran Khan. However, the leadership of the PTI lawyers is extremely weak.
“Individuals like Salman Akram Raja and Gohar Ali Khan have no real roots in lawyer politics, and Hamid Khan’s influence has long since faded,” he said.
Some Professional Group lawyers believe their presidential candidate, Toufiq Asif, could have had a greater impact on voters. The SC Registration Committee registered 457 new voters in the last ten months.
The committee is headed by Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail and includes Ahsan Bhoon and Syed Qulbi Hasan. Members of the Professional Group also allege that newly registered lawyers voted for the Independent Group candidates.
The success of the pro-government lawyers group may have an impact on the 26th Constitutional Amendment case, which is currently being tried by a constitutional chamber of the Supreme Court. The Independent Group fully supports the 26th Constitutional Amendment.
