KHANEWAL, April 22: Deposed Lahore High Court Judge Jahangir Arshad criticized on Tuesday Supreme Court’s judgment regarding striking down the condition of graduation for candidates to contest the general elections.

“The decision will facilitate a few individuals and not masses,” Mr Arshad said while addressing lawyers at the Khanewal Bar Association.

He said the government seemed least interested in making the judiciary an independent institution. “Lawyers will have to reorganise their struggle for a free, fair and independent judiciary,” he said.

He said the restoration of the judiciary without the reinstatement of (deposed) chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry would be against the judicial norms. He announced he would turn down his reinstatement if Justice Chaudhry was not reinstated.

He alleged Sharifuddin Pirzada, Attorney General Malik Qayyum, Latif Khosa, Babar Awan and Federal Law Minister Farooq H. Naik were creating hurdles to delay the reinstatement of deposed judges.

He criticized Mr Qayyum for his visit to Switzerland to urge courts to withdraw criminal cases against Pakistan People’s Party Co-Chairman Asif Zardari. He said the Swiss authorities had told the attorney general there was no tradition of withdrawing criminal cases from a court of law in Switzerland.

“He also visited London to negotiate other cases pending there to get favour for Mr Zardari,” he said.