SUKKUR, April 18: The Sindh High Court Bar Association, Sukkur bench, is of the considered pinion that the appointment of district and session judges as assistant returning officers for the purpose of holding referendum, is unjust, improper and sabotaging the dignity of the court of district and session judge.

The members of the Bar Association, who met here under the chairmanship of its president, Gul Bahar Korai, sent telegrams to the chief justice of Pakistan and chief justices of the four provinces and the chief election commissioner of Pakistan.

In these telegrams, they said that the assistant returning officers (ARO) would have to work under the secretary of the election commission of Pakistan, who has been made the returning officer.

According to them, the people in general and the lawyers community in particular would not appreciate that the district and session judges should act as assistant returning officers under the command and direction from a civil servant.

They observed that the people were not interested in the referendum and had discorded the referendum as an alternate back door way, bypassing the proper and legal procedure, laid down in the constitution.

The Bar Association appealed to the chief justice of pakistan, chief justices of the four provinces and the representative bodies of the lawyers of the country to save the judiciary from this uncalled for exercise.

It demanded of the authorities concerned to withdraw the notification, regarding the appointment of district and session judges as assistant returning officers.

REFERENDUM The district and session judge/returning officer held a meeting with heads of various departments to discuss the arrangements for the ensuing referendum, at his office on Monday.