SCBA reposes trust in constitutional bench

ISLAMABAD: President Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Mian Muhammad Rauf Atta on Monday expressed full confidence in the formation of the constitutional bench and will not allow anyone to undermine the integrity and disturb the working of the constitutional bench for petty political whims.

Rebutting Senator Hamid Khan press conference, Atta said that being the apex representative body of the entire legal fraternity, the SCBA had already approved the amendment passed by Parliament.

He said that the recommendations of the legal fraternity have been fully enforced in the amendments and reiterated their full confidence in the constitution of a (the bench) and shall not allow anyone to undermine the integrity and disturb the working of the constitutional bench for petty political whims.

He said that Senator Hamid Khan has held the press conference that aligned with a specific political stance, adding that his averments do not reflect the legal fraternity position. “He went on to unduly criticize the legitimacy of the constitutionally passed 26th constitutional amendment (the amendment) by the democratically elected parliament and the formulation of the constitutional bench (the bench) and has further announced the 30th of November 2024 as a date to start so-called lawyers agitation against the amendment”, Rauf Atta said.

The SCBA president further said that authority to make a call for any lawyers strike/protest, or movement solely rests with the elected representatives of the legal fraternity, not with any unelected person, let alone any politically aligned personality such as Senator Hamid Khan, ASC.

“Such calls are only meant to create division with the legal fraternity, which is highly disgraceful and I want to assert that this Association cannot allow anyone to promote political agendas using the shoulders of legal fraternity”, he added.

He further said that the bench is working promptly, and hoped that it will contribute to reducing the substantial backlog of constitutional cases and will increase the efficiency of the Supreme Court. He said that aggrieved from the formation of the bench are those who do not want to see the efficient Supreme Court contributing speedy and expeditious dispensation of justice.