ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) has expressed ‘shock’ over Supreme Court’s directions to PTI chief Imran Khan’s two counsel, requiring them to answer the federal government’s allegations that they had breached their undertakings about party marchers not reaching D-Chowk on May 25.

In a statement issued on Saturday, PBC Vice Chairman Hafeezur Rehman Chaudhry and its Executive Committee Chairman Pir Mohammad Masood Chishti regretted that both the counsel — Babar Awan and Faisal Fareed — had appeared before the apex court on May 25 to assist it “to the best of their experience and ability during very odd circumstances”.

The PBC said the council, being the parent body of the legal profession, urged the Supreme Court to withdraw this requirement of furnishing replies.

It said Mr Awan and Mr Fareed were not a party in the case of the Islamabad High Court Bar Association, nor did they file their powers of attorney or undertakings.

In its Oct 26 order, apex court sought PTI’s response to govt allegation of breach of undertakings

The lawyers throughout the country were deeply concerned about the bar’s independence as well as the working of lawyers in the judicial system, they said, adding that they were perturbed by the issuance of directions to advocates.

In its Oct 26 order, the Supreme Court asked Mr Awan and Mr Fareed to file their replies to answer the allegations levelled by Additional Attorney General Chaudhry Aamir Rehman in the light of the material referred through written replies filed on or before Oct 31. The case will be fixed again in the next week.

In the order, the apex court said Mr Rehman, referring to the contents of its May 25 and May 26 orders, pointed out that undertakings about the rally were given by the two counsel on behalf of former PTI chief Imran Khan for holding the party’s rally in the ground situated between Islamabad’s H-9 and G-9 sectors.

The undertakings said the rally would not cause any inconvenience at or blockage of Srinagar Highway; no inconvenience would be caused to the public and citizenry at large; and the rally would be conducted peacefully and lawfully without damaging any public or private property.

The order said the additional attorney general had also read out to the court the material from the reports filed by the Islamabad Capital Territory, Intelligence Bureau and Inter-Services Intelligence and argued that people who gave the undertakings and the person on whose behalf they were given attracted the same offence specified in Section 3 read with Section 2(a) of the Contempt of Court Ordinance, 2003.

Mr Rehman then urged that contempt proceedings be initiated against Imran Khan and the two counsel “for their role and liability as accessories”.

Published in Dawn, October 30th, 2022