ISLAMABAD: The premier lawyers’ bodies -- the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) and the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) -- took exception at a joint meeting held here to a call for civil disobedience issued by PTI chief Imran Khan and urged him to recall it.

They asked lawyers to observe a strike on Thursday against the PTI and PAT’s marches and sit-in in the capital, saying the campaigns had imperilled the parliamentary democratic system.

The PBC’s Vice Chairman, Muhammad Ramzan Chaudhry, SCBA President Kamran Murtaza, rights activist Asma Jehangir, PBC executive committee chairman Ibrar Hassan, former SCBA chief Yasin Azad and others attended the meeting.

It urged the political parties to make all endeavours to resolve the political crisis without compromising the constitutional and legal norms.

It urged the parties to exercise restraint and democratic political will and wisdom to resolve political disputes through meaningful dialogue and build mutual confidence so that state institutions were strengthened and could effectively function under the constitution.

Any break in the transition to democracy by undemocratic forces will not be in the interest of the country.

“We are of the opinion that in order to obviate any allegations of rigging, it is necessary that not only the Election Commission of Pakistan be independent but it also should have full powers and its own budget. For free and fair elections legislation should also be made on the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court in the Workers Party case.

“The legal fraternity has always been struggling for the supremacy of the Constitution, rule of law and independence of the judiciary and will continue to do so,” the organisations said while vehemently opposing any “adventure through unconstitutional and undemocratic means”.

They asked the judiciary to remain independent and impartial as mandated by the constitution. “The judiciary should never be politicised and its neutrality as well as majesty and prestige should be maintained at all cost.”

The meeting also condemned the extra-judicial killing carried out in Lahore’s Model Town and called for bringing the perpetrators to book.

It unanimously endorsed a petition filed by Mr Murtaza in the Supreme Court in which he sought a restraining order against the state functionaries taking any extra-constitutional step and constituted a steering committee to monitor the political developments.

Published in Dawn, August 21st, 2014