LAHORE: The annual elections for the district Bar Association, Lahore, were held at Aiwan e Adal yesterday, where as many as 7904 members of the Lahore Bar Association (the largest bar association of the continent) exercised their democratic right.
PTI-supported Mubashir Rehman Chaudhry of the Hamid Khan-led Professional Group was elected president of the Lahore Bar Association (LBA) for 2025-26 in the election held on Saturday. Mubashir is also a sitting member of the Punjab Bar Council, where he was elected for the term 2020-25 in the bar council’s elections held in November 2020.
Hailing from the Gujjar clan, he was a unanimous candidate of the Insaf Lawyers Forum (ILF). Mubashir secured 2,400 votes, enabling his group to reclaim the bar after a year’s gap.
Supporters of the winning president celebrated the victory with slogans and festivities, dancing to the drumbeats. They also chanted slogans in support of incarcerated PTI founding chairman Imran Khan. Some supporters of the winning candidates also resorted to aerial firing on Fane Road near the Lahore High Court.
Adeeb Aslam Bhinder, an independent candidate, once again stood runner-up with 2,088 votes.
He came second in last year’s election as well when Khurram Rafique Shad of the Professional Group could secure third position.
Interestingly, this year the presidential candidate of the Asma Jahangir Group, Mian Faiz Ali, stood third with 1,807 votes, while another independent candidate, Irfan Hayat Bajwa, secured 1,708 votes.
Mian Sharjeel and Saif Khokhar were elected as vice presidents.
Waqas Aslam Kahloon won the vice president seat for Model Town, and Aflatun Jhakkar notched the vice president position for Cantonment.
For two positions of the secretary, Naseer Ahmed Bhulla of the professional group and Malik Sharjeel Khokhar of Asma Jahangir’s Independent Group emerged victorious.
Shujaat Ali Khan won the joint secretary seat, and Ejaz Gujjar was elected as finance secretary, while Samina Khokhar secured the librarian position.
Prof. Attique Ahmad Khan won the seat of auditor.
The transition of power shall take place in a formal ceremony at the Civil Court’s Bar Room on Monday where, following the custom, the outgoing cabinet shall transfer the charge of the office to the newly-elected cabinet.