LAHORE, Jan 22: The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) said on Monday that it would move the Supreme Court against President Musharraf’s any bid to get himself re-elected from the present assemblies.

Flanked by SCBA office bearers, the SCBA secretary Zulfiqar Ali Bokhari told a press conference that present assemblies having a five-year tenure were not entitled to elect a president for two terms or 10 years. “What will be next assemblies do if the present assemblies cast vote twice?” he asked.

He said the SCBA would organise a countrywide convention to restrain the government from holding presidential elections through the present assemblies.

The SCBA secretary said the lawyers community would never enter into a bargain over the killings of Arif Bhindar and Niaz Sindhu, saying that the lawyers were waiting for the LHC to take action.

“We will not withdraw our demand of arresting all nominated accused in the crimes. It is a matter of great concern for us. We will do everything possible for our deceased brothers.”

Mr Bokhari said the new SCBA body had taken certain steps for the betterment of its members. He added a new plan of life insurance for the elderly members was in process.

He said the former SCBA president had promised to hand over a government grant of Rs100 million to the body that would be utilised for the welfare of the bar’s members. Pending for two years around, he said the new body would also hold an audit of the bar’s accounts. “There have been many irregularities in the use of funds. We have taken up the matter to fix them.”

Ghurbat Mitao: A petition filed in the Lahore High Court on Monday challenged President Musharraf’s Ghurbat Mitao Scheme, alleging irregularities in it.

The petitioner said application forms for the scheme, now available at Rs20, had been sold at Rs200 and Rs500 initially.

He prayed to the court to direct the government to explain as to where the collected money was being deposited. The petitioner said the government should create jobs for people instead of lending them loans.