ISLAMABAD: A meeting of the Joint Action Committee (JAC), which was constituted by the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) in the aftermath of filing of the presidential reference against superior court judges, has decided to observe a bla­ck day and a nationwide strike on Nov 28.

The purpose of the strike, an announcement made by PBC said, was to lodge protest against the government’s decision of granting extension in the service to the incumbent army chief.

The meeting, which was presided over by PBC vice chairman Syed Amjad Shah, was held at the Supreme Court building on Tuesday (Nov 19), decided that the lawyers throughout the country will wear black armbands and hold protest meetings.

The JAC also expressed grave concern over the prevalent system and procedure of appointment of judges to the superior courts which according to them lacks transparency.

The JAC also condemned the move of introducing a bill in the National Assembly to seek amendment to Article 179 of the Constitution, aiming at enhancing the retirement age of judges of the Supreme Court to 68 from the existing 65 years.

Published in Dawn, November 22nd, 2019