Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court Bar Association of Pakistan (SCBA) on Monday threatened to stage a protest and stop the proceedings of the Panamagate case if NOC was not issued by the government for the lawyers’ housing scheme near Chak Shehzad.

.The General Secretary SCBAP told Daily Times that the association was all set to stop the leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the PML-N and legal teams of both parties. He said that the association was also considering locking down the court room no. 2 where the Panamagate proceeding is being conducted on a daily basis. Bajwa said that the federal government had approved the housing scheme for the legal fraternity of the Supreme Court adding that more than three thousand lawyers had paid the amount for allotment of land, which collectively makes six billion rupees. The General Secretary of SCBAP further said that the representatives had arranged meetings with the minister for Capital Administration and Development Division Tariq Fazal Chaudhary and Director General Housing but they paid no heed.

He said that rupees six billion had been credited to the account of the Ministry of Housing which is receiving rupees 200 million per month as interest. Bajwa alleged that the Minister for Housing, Akram Khan Durrani and the DG Housing were deliberately delaying the matter and not issuing the NOC in order to get benefits from interest. He further alleged that the DG Housing is the son-in-law of the chief election commissioner; therefore, the government is not taking action against him because of the pending cases against PTI’s Imran Khan in the election commission. He said that the bar representatives had talked to the Attorney General of Pakistan Ashtar Ausaf who assured to resolve the problem but he is not materialising his commitment despite more than a month. Aftab Bajwa said if the NOC is not issued on Tuesday (today) the lawyers will start agitation in top court and will stop the proceedings of the Panamagate case.