President of the Karachi Bar Association, Advocate Aamir Nawaz Warraich, has warned that the proposed 27th constitutional amendment is a highly dangerous piece of legislation that will create chaos across the country and could lead the nation towards a major disaster.
Speaking to journalists on Monday during a visit to Thatta, Mr. Warraich, who is also a newly elected member of the Sindh Bar Council, cautioned the government about potential public backlash, stating that the amendment could prove detrimental to the administration itself.
He contended that the government’s claim of creating “administrative units” is, in fact, a deceptive use of terminology for creating new provinces. Mr. Warraich emphasized that the people of Sindh and other provinces are staunchly opposed to the division of existing regions.
The bar association president cited the example of the 26th constitutional amendment, where the concept of “constitutional courts” was changed to “constitutional benches” due to public outcry, while the underlying objective remained the same.
Mr. Warraich revealed that the 27th amendment would also grant the power to transfer judges between provinces without their consent, with the penalty for any objection being dismissal from service. He described this as a “divide and rule” policy aimed at weakening the nation by pitting citizens against each other.
He called for unified opposition to the amendment and the creation of administrative units, urging citizens to protest on the streets. He argued that after the 26th amendment, the courts are no longer in a position to halt the government’s “anti-people” decisions.
To illustrate the judiciary’s diminishing authority, Mr. Warraich referenced the Ghani Aman and Sarmad Mirani case, where he claimed police facilitated the escape of detained individuals from court, demonstrating a disregard for judicial orders.
On a separate matter, the Karachi Bar president announced a complete rejection of corporate farming. He criticized the committee established for government-lawyer negotiations on the issue, stating that its head, Zia-ul-Hassan Lanjar, has become a controversial figure following the “Moro tragedy.”
Mr. Warraich declared that due to a loss of public trust, Mr. Lanjar is no longer acceptable to lead any negotiations for the people of Sindh. He stipulated that any future talks on corporate farming must be conducted by a new committee headed by the Chief Minister of Sindh or a credible senior minister.
During his visit to offer condolences to local leaders Noor Hassan Sarki and Imdad Sarki, Advocate Warraich was accompanied by a delegation that included senior jurist Abdul Haseeb Jamili and Thatta Bar General Secretary Saddam Abbasi, among others.