LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Monday placed the services of three district and sessions judges (D&SJs) at the disposal of the provincial government for their appointment as members of the Punjab Services Tribunal against the existing vacancies.

D&SJ Chaudhry Abdul Rashid Abid has been posted at the tribunal till the date of his superannuation on March 27, 2025 or until further orders whichever is earlier.

D&SJ Afaq Ahmad has been posted at the tribunal with a condition that unless directed otherwise, he shall stand repatriated to the LHC on completion of three years.

The LHC posted D&SJ Ghulam Abbas at the services tribunal till the date of his superannuation on April 30, 2025 or until further orders, whichever is earlier.

All three sessions judges have been directed to assume the charge of their new assignment on or before Oct 31.

SCBA election: The annual elections of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) for 2024-25 will be held on Tuesday (today) with Munir Ahmad Kakar and Mian Rauf Atta vying for the top slot of president.

Both candidates are from Balochistan as per rotation policy for the president’s slot. The turn of Punjab comes after every second year keeping in view the major strength of voters.

Kakar has been fielded by the Hamid Khan-led Professional Group while Atta is a candidate of the Independent Group, commonly known as Asma Jahangir group.

SCBA’s outgoing president Shahzad Shaukat belongs to the independent group, which supports the parliament’s present position on 26th Constitutional Amendment.

On the other hand, PTI Senator Hamid Khan has been accusing the government of clipping the powers of the judiciary by bringing the amendment. He also announced plans to launch a movement against the amendment.

The secretary position will see a one-on-one contest between Salman Mansoor and Malik Zahid Aslam Awan from Lahore.

Rana Bakhtiar and Rana Ghulam Sarwar are in the run for one seat of vice president from Punjab.

Seven other candidates are running for one each position of vice president from Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Sindh provinces.

Muhammad Aurangzeb Khan and Raja Zubair Hussain Jarral are candidates for the position of additional secretary, while Aurangzeb Mir and Chaudhry Tanvir Akhtar are running for finance secretary.

A total of 4,021 voters from across the country will cast their votes, with over 1,400 members from Lahore. Polling will take place from 8:30am to 5pm.

TRAINING: A three-day training programme commenced on Monday at the Punjab Judicial Academy (PJA) regarding implementation of the e-procurement system.

The programme’s aim is to educate accounts and internal audit officers and staff from the Lahore High Court and district judiciary across the province.

On the first day of the programme, the managing director of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) delivered a lecture on various aspects and benefits of the e-procurement system.

The three-day training will also feature practical workshops.

Published in Dawn, October 29th, 2024