ISLAMABAD, Nov 4: The president and 12 other office-bearers of the Pakistan Services Bar Association (PSBA) have been elected unopposed.

According to an announcement made by the coordinator of the PSBA election commission, Javed Salim Shorish, Advocate Abdul Rehman Siddiqi was elected unopposed as the new PSBA president when the nomination papers of his sole opponent, Mohammad Siddiq Qureshi, were rejected on technical grounds.

Advocate Abdul Rashid and Advocate Shireen Saeed had already been elected unopposed as joint-secretary and executive council member respectively.

Other candidates who were elected unopposed, included, vice- president (Punjab) Chaudhry Khalid Farooq, vice-president (NWFP) Abdul Latif Yousafzai, vice-president (Balochistan) Ayaz Swati, vice-president (Sindh) Fahim Riaz Siddiqi, secretary (finance) Farooq Haq and executive council members Mohammad Sadiq Javed (Rawalpindi), Mohammad Amin Javed Chaudhary (Lahore), Ayaz Zahoor (Quetta), Jamal Mandokhel (Quetta), Arshad Jadoon (Karachi) and Hamid Durrani (Peshawar).

The election for the key post of secretary-general will be contested by Advocate Asif Taufiq and Advocate Abdul Qayum Niazi and that for the office of the vice-president (Rawalpindi, Islamabad) by Syed Nasir Ahmed Shah and Asif.

Some 80 lawyers from different parts of the country are expected to cast their votes in the elections on November 17.