Bar calls judicial remarks linking it to arrests of Mazari, Hadi Ali baseless and misleading
Islamabad, Pakistan | Web Desk — The Islamabad High Court Bar Association (IHCBA) has rejected remarks suggesting its involvement in the arrests of lawyers Imaan Mazari and Hadi Ali Chatha, calling such statements “completely unfounded.”
Secretary IHCBA, Manzoor Jajja, stated that comments allegedly made by former judge Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani linking the Bar to the arrests were regrettable. He emphasized that the Bar operates independently, following the law, and has never used force, relying instead on “pen and argument” to defend its members.
Jajja detailed that both lawyers were present in the Islamabad High Court Bar office for two days, and upon the Bar’s request, Justice Azam Khan granted them interim bail. Subsequent judicial proceedings were handled by the Chief Justice Sarfraz Dogar, who prioritized the case. The Bar also actively resisted the arrests, staged demonstrations, and coordinated with the District Bar and Islamabad Bar Council to safeguard its members.
The IHCBA reiterated that any suggestion of complicity in these arrests is “baseless” and undermines the independent role of the Bar in Pakistan’s judicial system.
