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ABBOTTABAD: Deputy Commissioner, Abbottabad, Sarmad Saleem on Wednesday visited the District Bar Room along with District and Sessions Judge Abid Sarwar and held talks with the legal fraternity in an effort to defuse the prolonged standoff between the district administration and lawyers.
The deputy commissioner expressed regret over the circumstances surrounding the recent confrontation and stressed the need for reconciliation, removal of misunderstandings and restoration of working relations between the administration and the Bar.
The DC met a large gathering of lawyers from Abbottabad and other parts of Hazara Division and discussed the recent differences between lawyers and revenue officials, as well as possible ways to resolve the dispute through dialogue and mutual understanding.
District and Sessions Judge Abid Sarwar, members of the district judiciary, District Bar Association president Imran Younis, office-bearers of the Peshawar High Court Bar Association Abbottabad Bench, members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council, presidents and office-bearers of Haripur and Mansehra bars, and a large number of senior and junior lawyers attended the meeting.
District and Sessions Judge Abid Sarwar said efforts were being made by the administration and Bar associations to resolve the matter, stressing that all outstanding issues should be settled through mutual consultation and understanding in the larger interest of the legal fraternity and the public.
The deputy commissioner said misunderstandings between lawyers and revenue officials needed to be removed. He also called for a comprehensive examination of the incidents that had occurred in recent days to prevent their recurrence in the future.
The DC emphasised that the administration and the legal fraternity should work together to ensure effective and uninterrupted public service delivery. He said such institutional coordination was in line with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government’s Good Governance Roadmap, particularly its emphasis on improved governance, institutional coordination and efficient district-level service delivery.
The presidents of the District Bar Association and Peshawar High Court Bar Association Abbottabad Bench also addressed the gathering and presented their views on the prevailing situation.
Later, the deputy commissioner visited the Abbottabad Water Filtration Plant, which is at the centre of the controversy, and offered Dua there.The developments came after several days of lawyers’ strike and boycott of court proceedings in Abbottabad and other parts of Hazara Division following the confrontation involving lawyers during the demolition of the water filtration plant at the district courts.
Meanwhile, the District Bar Association has not issued a fresh notification regarding continuation of the strike on Thursday. However, it has convened a general body meeting for today (Thursday) at 11:30 am in the main hall of the Bar Association.
