January 20, 2008	Sunday	Muharram 10, 1429

ISLAMABAD, Jan 19: Feeling the heat in the face of mounting resistance and imminent split, the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) seems inclined to review its call of limiting earlier announced boycott of superior courts to one hour a day and a complete staying away from courts on Thursdays.

“PBC’s earlier decision was taken by majority but still we are ready to review if the lawyers are not happy with it,” Vice- Chairman PBC Mirza Aziz Akbar Beg said while talking to Dawn here on Saturday.

“In our cause we are one and united and the councils always take along with it the legal fraternity in all decisions and resolutions,” he emphasised.

Sitting in Peshawar on Sunday last, the council had decided to climb down the protest keeping in view the hardship being faced by litigants who were going unrepresented since the lawyers announced a complete boycott of courts on November 3 after President Pervez Musharraf in his capacity as the army chief proclaimed an emergency rule, suspended the Constitution and sacked judges.

However, the call was greeted with bitterness especially by the lawyers of Peshawar and Rawalpindi who announced to continue the complete boycott.

Explaining, Beg said the Peshawar decision was taken by a majority, “still we have decided to call a meeting of the council after Muharram, next week, to take stock of a host of suggestions coming from different bars and associations.”

He was also mindful of the fact that the continued boycott and protests have adversely affected the interest of the litigants as scores of people could be released on bail even on their single appearance before the court.

However, the decision to hold a convention in Islamabad on February 9 followed by a march to the residence of deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry is intact, he said, adding a seminar would also be held in Lahore in which Justice (retd) Rana Bhagwandas would be the chief guest.

“I was earlier committed to standing away from the superior courts and had to face huge financial loss also, but now I could not afford more as my struggle is also badly hurting the interest of my client,” said a senior lawyer on condition of anonymity when asked why he was attending the Supreme Court on Thursday, which was a boycott day, in violation of the PBC call.

Meanwhile, former Supreme Court Bar Association president Tariq Mehmood, who is still under detention, said decisions by a prestigious body like the PBC should always be taken keeping in view the ground realities in a way that it could also be enforceable.

“What is the purpose of asking for boycotts when the same was being violated in the Supreme Court as well as the high courts,” he said, adding decisions of sensitive nature should be taken after taking all the stakeholders into confidence.

Mere slogans or halfhearted decisions would not suffice, Justice Mehmood said, emphasising the need for giving calls that should be enforceable and complete.

Meanwhile, a pro-Musharraf Supreme Court lawyer, when contacted, said the belated decision of the bar council was in the interest of the legal profession, judiciary and the public.

“The bar council does not appear to have any mandate to give a call for permanent boycott of the judicial foras. In any case the legality and constitutionality of any statute can only be determined by a judicial forum existing at a given time. And the bar council cannot take a unilateral view about the available judicial fora,” he said.

On a general review of the whole situation, one can conclude that the decisions of the bar council after March 9 were lopsided and have hurt and divided the lawyers, he said.