September 24, 2008	Wednesday	Ramazan 23, 1429

ISLAMABAD, Sept 23: Sindh High Court Bar Association president Rasheed A. Razvi has accused Law Minister Farooq H. Naek and Attorney General Sardar Mohammad Latif Khan Khosa of manipulating the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) to sabotage lawyers’ struggle for the independence of judiciary.

“The PBC is being forced by the law minister and the attorney general to change the path followed for the last eight years and to deviate from its stand for rule of law and independence of judiciary,” said a statement issued by Mr Razvi on Tuesday.

Mr Razvi was replaced as PBC’s executive committee chairman by Yaseen Azad at a meeting presided over by the attorney general on Aug 23 that also revoked the membership of Hamid Khan.

Mr Razvi was in the panel of lawyers defending deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry in the reference filed against him by former president Pervez Musharraf and he addressed a number of bars on the issue of judicial independence along with Justice Iftikhar.

Mr Razvi also condemned the special requisition meeting of the PBC being held on Wednesday and described it as an attempt to sabotage the lawyers’ movement.

Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar is expected to attend a meeting on Sept 24 requisitioned by eight members of the council and is likely to hand over the keys of the rooms adjacent to the PBC office to enable it to spread out.