LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Friday set aside an exemption from entrance test given to foreign law graduates to get licence by the Punjab Bar Council (PbBC) for being a discriminatory act.

A law graduate, Wajid Ali, challenged the exemption by filing a writ petition through Advocate Sheraz Zaka.

The counsel mainly pleaded that the PbBC had been treating the local law graduates in a discriminatory manner. He pointed out that rules of the PbBC did not provide for any such exemption enjoyed by the foreign law graduates and asked the court to terminate the impugned exemption.

The counsel for the bar told the court that the exemption had been given to foreign law graduates in the light of an administrative order by a judge of the LHC.

Pakistan Bar Council Vice-Chairman Azam Nazir Tarar, present in the court, said the bar would have no objection if the court passed any order in this matter.

Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah set aside the exemption from the entrance test for the foreign law graduates and disposed of the petition.

In another case, Justice Shah directed the management of the National Testing Service (NTS) to refund Rs15 million to law graduates for whom enrolment examination was not held.

Advocate Farhad Ali Shah filed a petition saying the Pakistan Bar Council had made it mandatory for fresh law graduates to pass Law-GAT for their enrolment as an advocate. He said 35,000 candidates deposited Rs3,000 each with the NTS to appear in exams but the LHC had stayed the exercise and the bar conducted the exams itself.

He said despite several attempts, the NTS administration was not returning the fee collected by the candidates.

The judge directed the NTS’ Lahore region manager to refund the fee deposited by the candidates without delay.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2015