Voting in the annual elections for the Karachi Bar Association (KBA) finally began on Saturday morning at the Sindh High Court premises after being postponed multiple times over the past seven months. The elections are being conducted under the supervision of Chief Election Commissioner Barrister Zulfiqar Ali Jalbani.
Polling arrangements and candidates
Two polling booths have been established in the New Bar Room and the Old Bar Room of the high court. Candidates are contesting for the positions of president, vice president, general secretary, joint secretary, treasurer, librarian, and 11 seats on the managing committee.
For the post of president, the contenders are Aamir Nawaz Waraich, GM Korai, Waqar Alam Abbasi, and Asadullah Rashidi. The vice president race includes Amir Shahzad, Irfan Ali, Muhammad Haroon, Muhammad Irfan, Nazir Shar, Saeed Ahmad, Sher Bano, and Barrister Uzair Ghauri.
General secretary and other positions
Candidates for general secretary include Rehman Korai, Muhammad Arshad Shar, Imran Aziz, Asif Korejo, Muhammad Shahid, Tariq Arain, and Mumtaz Khan Tanoli. For joint secretary, the candidates are Riaz Korai, Liaquat Gabol, Hasina Tabassum, Fida Hussain, Waseem Awan, Salma Bibi, and Nizamuddin Channa.
Abdul Basit, Mukhtiar Sodhar, Kashif Baloch, and Salma Panja are competing for treasurer. The librarian position sees Faheem Ali Mangi, Imran Younus Awan, Ghulam Ishaq Chachar, Humera Farooqui, and Farhana Siddiqui as candidates.
Context and significance
The elections had been delayed several times over the last seven months due to various reasons. The KBA is a key professional body for lawyers in Karachi, and these elections determine its leadership for the coming term. The voting process is expected to conclude later in the day, with results anticipated soon after.
