LARKANA, Feb 10: The election of the Larkana District Bar Association will be held on Saturday (today) after about five years.

A tough fight is expected between the PPP-backed People's Lawyers Forum (PLF) and Intellectual Lawyers Forum (ILF), a conglomerate of different groups of lawyers.

The PLF's Abdul Hamid Bhurgri, additional advocate-general at the SHC, Larkana circuit bench, faces Saleem Jessar of the ILF for the post of president.

Ms Leela alias Kalpna Devi is the PLF's candidate for vice-chairperson against the ILF's Ghulam Rasool Abro.

Senior lawyers of various anti-PPP groups have put their weight behind Rashid Mustafa Solangi of PPP (SB), who is contesting against Shahid Iqbal Siyal of the PLF for the post of general secretary.

Mr Solangi enjoys the support of young lawyers and lawyers' forums of the Sindh National Front, Sachal Ittehad and Pakistan Muslim League (N).

Of the 835 members, about 500 expected to cast their votes. A tough contest has been forecast.

The PPP-backed lawyers have been winning most of the bar elections for about four decades. This time not a single candidate has returned uncontested.

COURT: The Larkana circuit bench of the Sindh High Court refused on Friday to grant a stay to a petitioner and said that bar elections would be held on schedule on Saturday.

The petitioner Irshad Ali Chandio had sought a stay till the release of re-verified list of the DBA members.

He alleged in the petition that names of government officials, deceased advocates, judicial officers and non-practising lawyers had been included in the final list issued by Sindh Bar Council at the behest of Provincial Law Minister Ayaz Soomoro.

He said that the votes cast by such members would be in contravention of article 5(c) of the council rules.

Mr Chandio said some government officials had filed nomination papers for the bar's offices.

He said he had submitted an appeal to the vice-chairmen of the Pakistan and Sindh bar councils but it was ignored.

The SHC bench, comprising Justice Shahid Anwar Bajwa and Justice Mohammed Ali Mazhar, said that the elections would be held on Saturday and the lawyers whose membership faced objections may cast their votes which should be counted separately,.

The result may be declared but would be subject to the verdict on the petition, the judges said.

The court adjourned hearing for March 9 and issued notices to the additional advocate-general and the vice-chairman of the Pakistan and Sindh bar councils. The elections in 2009 were stayed by the Sindh Bar Council three days before the polls on the basis of appeals regarding finalisation of bifurcation of lists of Larkana and Qambar-Shahdadkot lawyers. The council again stayed the polls in 2011 when a lawyer objected to dual membership of some lawyers.

The Pakistan Bar Council asked Sindh Bar Council to decide the issue by Sept 10, 2011. The elections were scheduled for Jan 21 but due to a strike of lower staff of courts, these could not be held and were postponed to Feb 4, and again to Feb 11. Feb 4 was a holiday.