LAHORE: Independence of the judiciary is possible if judges are appointed on merit, newly-elected Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Asma Jehangir said on Saturday.
“Presently most of the judges are good but a few have not been appointed on merit,” she said while addressing lawyers at the Lahore Bar Association (LBA) where she went to thank lawyers for their support in her victory. “If lawyers are tortured then it means that the judiciary is not independent. We respect judges and they should also follow suit. We are here to strengthen democracy and democracy,” Asma said.
The renowned human rights activist said there was a lot of talk about an independent judiciary, which was not possible without appointing judges on merit. She said that lawyers would resist any move to remove Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.
“It is not necessary for all of us to think in a same way, we are lawyers, our weapon is argument and argument could vary from person to person,” the newly-elected SCBA president said. “My colleagues held my hand in a difficult situation. I promise that I will not leave them alone in any case,” she said.
Asma said that it was up to the judges to maintain the dignity of bars. “We are here with a new mindset, we have changed the direction of our missile, we don’t want to be the cause of a clash between institutions,” the human rights activist said. “We are not here forever. People come and go but institutions are present forever for young ones,” she said while pointing towards young lawyers present in the audience.
Asma said that lawyers should not decide the procedure of appointing judges. “It is the duty of bars. In these circumstances our role should be stronger,” she added.
