ISLAMABAD, April 22: The Pakistan Bar Council, the top body of legal practitioners, on Monday asked the lawyers throughout the country to hold protest meetings, rallies at their respective bars and take out processions on Thursday against the April 30 referendum.

The Pakistan Bar Council meeting, presided over by H. Shakil Ahmad, vice chairman, endorsed and adopted all the resolutions passed in the National Lawyers Representatives Conference held in Lahore on April 20.

The PBC also endorsed the decision of the Supreme Court Bar Association of filing a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the holding of referendum.

The PBC resolved that Conduct of General Election Order, 2002 and Election Commission (Amendment) Order, 2002, being contrary to the spirit of 1973 Constitution of Pakistan and aimed at concentrating all powers in one individual, was disapproved and it demanded that it be struck down forthwith.

The council also approved the recommendations of its Free Legal Aid Committee regarding constitution of Free Legal Aid Committees of the Pakistan Bar Council at high court and district courts levels in Punjab under the Pakistan Bar Council Free Legal Aid Rules 2001.

The meeting also elected unopposed Chaudhry Mohammad Ashraf Wahlah as Vice Chairman of Pakistan Bar Council for the current year.

The meeting, presided over by H. Shakil, was attended by Mohammad Ashraf Wahlah, Hamid Khan, Hafiz Abdur Rehman Ansari, Mohammad Kazim Khan, Rasheed A. Razvi, Abdur Rahim Kazi, Abdul Haleem Pirzada, Farooq H. Naek, Qazi Mohammad Anwar, Qazi Mohammad Jamil, Mian Abbas Ahmad, Malik Rab Nawaz Noon and Mohammad Arshad, Secretary of PBC.