LAHORE, Dec 10: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has awarded the first Dorab Patel Award to advocate Hamid Khan for his services for the promotion of the rule of law.

Advocate Khan is the president of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA).

The award will be presented at a ceremony during the annual general meeting (AGM) of the HRCP in March 2003. It carries a modest award honorarium to support the recipients committed work for human rights.

The award was announced on Universal Human Rights Day on Tuesday, after careful deliberations by the HRCP Council, says a press release issued here.

It said “the Bar associations of Pakistan have played a pivotal role during very trying times. Their consistent struggle to uphold the spirit of the 1973 Constitution and to call for an independent judiciary is remarkable.

“In his context, Mr Hamid Khan, in his capacity as the president of the apex Bar, has taken lead in denouncing the Legal Framework Order (LFO) and the eroding values of the judiciary.”

The Dorab Patel Award for the promotion of the rule of law was instituted in 1998. The HRCP Council, consisting of 31 people elected from all provinces, unanimously decided to award Hamid Khan as the first recipient.

Hamid Khan is one of the leading lawyers of the country and author of several books on administrative law, constitutional and political history and the judiciary.

He began his career after completing his L.L.M. from the College of Law, University of Illinois, Chicago, in 1973. He has also imparted legal education at premier institutions in the country and been involved with research at international fora.

Hamid Khan has served as president of the Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) and vice-chairman of the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) before being elected as president of the SCBA in 2001.