October 26th, 2020
Bureau Report
PESHAWAR
The ongoing strike called by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council has been extended by one more week. The strike was called against the recent amendment to the Code of Civil Procedure (CCP) 1908 and the implementation of provincial anti-drug law and being observed in all the courts including Peshawar high court.
The KP Bar Council in its meeting has unanimously decided that the strike would continue until the controversial amendments to the CCP were repealed and reasonable amendments were made in the anti-drug law.
According to the bar council, the government has been reluctant to withdraw the amendments.
Litigants have been facing lots of difficulties due to the strike and they have demanded the lawyers’ to call off their strike. But lawyers claimed that they have been agitating to safeguard the rights of the appellants.
Shahid Raza, Vice Chairman of the KP bar council said that the amendments would increase the difficulties for the litigants.
“If you file a civil suit then you have to prepare two files whether it is of 1000 pages or 2000 pages and secondly they have diverted all work burden from district courts to the high court. One can say that these amendments are not legal and the government is intended to revive the Jirga system”, Raza added.
The lawyers said that through changes in the CCP, one forum of appeal against the orders of the civil judge has been abolished. Now, instead of the session court, the appeal against the civil judge’s ruling would be filed with the high court.
Shumail butt, KP’s advocate general said that the government is negotiating with the lawyers and the matter will be resolved soon.
“At least 10 sessions of talks between lawyers’ representatives and the government officials have been held and we are trying to bring such a draft of Code of Civil Procedure which should be equally useful for the litigants and the lawyers”, Butt said.
