Islamabad:
Friday, the chief judge of the high court of the capital had to clarify after different organizations of actors and lawyers “condemned” his conduct during a case concerning the abolition of the name of a Baloch rights activist, Dr. Mahrang Baloch, of the exit control list (ECL).
On Thursday, the chief judge of the High Court of Islamabad (IHC), Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar, and the lawyer for Dr. Mahrang, Imaan Mazari, had engaged in a verbal altercation during which the judge had warned the lawyer that she could face with a state of contempt.
“You should keep your mouth closed and stay within the limits,” said Dogar chief judge in Mazari, who would have called the Dogar judge “a dictator” at another forum.
IMAAN had insisted that his personal opinions were protected by freedom of expression and should not affect the case of his client. “I am here with a [legal] In short, not personally. “”
During the stormy exchange, the chief judge, judge Dogar, had warned IMAAN of a possible outrage procedure. Adding fuel to the fire, he had turned to the husband and his colleague lawyer of Imaan, the lawyer Hadi Ali Chatta, and said: “Hadi Sahib, explain it … If I catch it one day …”
Imaan then took X to reiterate that she was present in the IHC on behalf of her client, and not as an “Imaan Mazari activist”. She stressed that she was performing “according to the professional label (and a courtyard should do the same)”.
On Friday, a number of lawyers’ organizations published declarations of conviction with the Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) demanding the dismissal of the Dogar judge from his post.
In a press release – which Mazari shared on X – the LHCBA declared that the president, vice -president and secretary of the body “firmly condemned” the exchange of Dogar judge with Mazari.
The press release indicates that lawyers were “officers[s] of the court “and their respect and their dignity had to have priority as to those of the respected judges who worked within the limits of the law and the constitution.
The Karachi Bar Association (KBA) also published a declaration, “strongly condemning the very inappropriate conduct” of judge Dogar.
“The association in depth notes the concern that instead of maintaining judicial dignity and impartiality, the chief judge has resorted to derogatory remarks and threats of procedural procedure against the Council. Such behavior undermines the sacredness of the judicial forums, intimidated the members of the bar and is contrary to the principles of justice,” he said.
The Balutchistan Balutchistan Bar Council also published a similar declaration, calling for the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) to reject the Dogar judge from his post. In addition, a group of women lawyers also became a signatory to a conviction of the remarks, calling them “sexist, threatening and improper of a judge”.
The press release indicates that the remarks of judge Dogar “reflect a deeply patriarchal attitude, and threats are a source of concern. The aim of the laws on the outrage is to maintain the administration of justice, and not for the judges to hold a sword on the head of the lawyers”.
On Friday, during a case, judge Dogar clarified his remarks, declaring that Imaan Mazari was “like a girl for him”. “Yesterday, I advised her as a year and as a chief judge, but my words were withdrawn from her context and bare proportion,” he said.
The judge said that he had only warned him of not making personal comments on the judges and that he had denied having threatened to “catch it”. He added that when he mentioned the outrage procedure, it was only because repeated distrust could harm his career.
