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LAHORE A day before the Supreme Court Bar Association polls, the result of a closely fought election for the presidency of the association appears balanced on a knife edge.
The contest is effectively a straight fight between Asma Jahangir, the legendary human-rights activist, and Ahmed Awais, a candidate of the Hamid Khan-led 'Professional Group' which, according to legal circles, often courts right-wing support among the bar.
Most years, the election for the presidency of the SCBA, an annual event, is a quiet intra-body affair. This year, however, the election has attracted national interest because of the high-profile candidacy of Asma Jahangir and the tensions between the judiciary and the executive.
Jahangir is a virtual household name in many parts of Pakistan, first appearing on the national radar as the petitioner in a landmark constitutional case which declared illegal the military rule of Yahya Khan in 1972.
The diminutive Jahangir has not looked back since, publicly and forcefully protesting against subsequent military rules and building a reputation as a fearsome human-rights campaigner.
She is a founding member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and was its chairperson until earlier this year, resigning to contest the SCBA presidential election.
This year's presidential contest is also being viewed through the prism of the ongoing judiciary-executive tussle.
Jahangir's opponent, Ahmed Awais, and his main backer, Hamid Khan, are firmly in the pro-judiciary camp, arguing in separate interviews with Dawn that the main issue at stake in the election was the need to 'protect' and 'save' the superior judiciary from the government of President Asif Zardari.
The candidate and his powerful supporter were also clear they intend to continue the pro-judiciary stance of the SCBA if they win tomorrow's election.
Asma Jahangir, meanwhile, has been cast by her opponents, and privately even by some of her supporters, as the candidate the Zardari camp would be happy to see emerge victorious tomorrow. For her part, Jahangir prefers to cast her candidacy as a bid to return the SCBA to a less politicised and more neutral position in terms of the tussle between the executive and the judiciary, which would mean directing criticism at the judiciary when it is perceived to be overreaching and eschewing the bully pulpit the SCBA president has to shout down the government.
“Why must we act like any criticism of the judiciary by the bar is like blasphemy? Over the last couple of years, even a peep of criticism from the bar is treated harshly,” Jahangir said.
While the SCBA has no direct means or power to affect the judiciary-executive tussle, it does, in the words of a senior lawyer, have “symbolic value”. “They (the SCBA leadership) can file petitions, make speeches, try and turn public opinion,” according to the lawyer.
The more aggressive and politicised role of the SCBA has been particularly evident during the presidency of Qazi Anwar. Over the last year, Anwar has often lambasted the government for its stance on the NRO judgment and been a fierce supporter of the Supreme Court at all times.
What is relatively clear is Jahangir's candidacy has the support of lawyers aligned with the PPP. In Lahore, where nearly half of the SCBA's 2,200 members are based, Latif Khosa, chairperson of the People's Lawyers Forum and a close associate of President Zardari, is supporting Jahangir, while other PPP members of the SCBA, such as Law Minister Babar Awan, are also supporting her.
Jahangir, though, is dismissive of claims she is the 'government candidate' “If they (the government) think that I'm going to be their champion, they have another thing coming. I've always stood for principles. Much of this is because my opponents want to paint me a certain way.”
Despite the meta-narrative of pro-judiciary vs pro-government campaigns, however, the election could ultimately be decided by other factors.
Speaking from his corner office at the venerable Cornelius, Lane and Mufti off The Mall in Lahore, Hamid Khan suggested a major theme of the election was the opposition to his candidate by the so-called PCO-II judges — justices who took oath either under the November 2007 Emergency or under Chief Justice Dogar, and were subsequently pushed out by the present judiciary in a landmark judgment in July 2009.
“Because I opposed them, those judges want to settle a score with me,” Khan said.
The second issue is a dirty-tricks brigade which has quietly swung into action, pressing voters to reject Jahangir on various moral and religious pretexts. This week, a letter was delivered to lawyers across the country urging them to not vote for Jahangir. It was sent by the Khatm-i-Nabuwwat Lawyers Forum, a previously unheard of group, and contained anti-Ahmadi venom.
In legal circles, there is widespread suspicion Ahmed Awais is leveraging biases against Jahangir to gain an advantage in a close race. When asked about the allegations, Awais denied them “This is one of the conspiracies. The (SCBA) rules make no mention of religion and my campaign has no problem with this.”
But while Awais and Khan denied sponsoring or encouraging a smear campaign, both acknowledged its existence, blaming 'local operatives' and the 'local culture'.
A third complexity is that Jahangir's candidacy appears to have fractured the vote on the 'Left', i.e. those embracing more liberal and secular politics in the bar. While her candidacy has important backers in the form of Muneer Malik in Karachi, Abid Minto in Lahore and Latif Afridi in Peshawar — all consummate bar politicians — she has not been supported by Aitzaz Ahsan and others.
It appears the differences centre around another lawyer, Anwar Kamal, who was originally supported as the candidate of the Left, but was later dropped in favour of Jahangir. Broken promises and resentment over that affair continue to foster reluctance to support Jahangir's candidacy — a classic example of intra-caucus squabbling strengthening the other side.
The fourth complexity is the presence of a third candidate, Ikram Chaudhry. A veteran of bar politics with significant support in Rawalpindi and also some in Lahore, his presence in the field could funnel away some support from Jahangir.
Given these complexities, the result has become unusually difficult to predict, though both sides continue to project confidence.
Hamid Khan claimed his group had done its homework “Last year, we got a shock from Karachi and Qazi Anwar only won (overall) by about 50 votes. This time we've worked harder and left nothing to chance.” But the Professional Group still has cracks, with figures such as PML-N MNA Naseer Bhutta supporting Asma Jahangir.
For her part, Jahangir is campaigning relentlessly. Late Saturday evening, the candidate was in her camp office — a legal book store near the Lahore High Court — working with her aides and volunteers at a bare desk.
Personally making her way through city-wise lists of SCBA members, while aides dialled numbers and handed her phones, Jahangir appeared confident “I've done the numbers. I know we can do this.”
In private conversations, though, some of Jahangir's supporters fear the negative campaigning and dirty tricks may make the difference between victory and defeat.
However, Asma Jahangir, an iconic woman who has fought many battles in her life, remains unfazed “I think I will win. But win or lose, at least we have fought hard and fought fair. Where's the shame in that?”
Who are the candidates?
- Asma Jahangir, former chairperson of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.
- Ahmed Awais, former president of the Lahore High Court Bar Association and candidate of the Professional Group led by Hamid Khan.
- Muhammad Ikram Chaudhry, former vice president of the SCBA, president of the Rawalpindi District Bar and High Court Bar.
What is the SCBA electorate?
Members of the SCBA, approximately 2,100 in total. Half based in Lahore; over 300 each in Karachi and Islamabad/Rawalpindi; 200 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and 100 in Balochistan. An overall turnout in the region of 80 per cent is expected.
