Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, CJ.--This order shall dispose of Civil Petition Nos. 1976 & 1977 of 2013.
2. We have heard learned counsel for the petitioner at some length.
3. Petitioner was elected as Member of the Punjab Bar Council and during the incumbency of the said office he was appointed as Deputy. Attorney General on 31.7.2012. Respondent-writ petitioner sought' a declaration that petitioner in view of his appointment as Deputy Attorney General ceased to be a Member of the Punjab Bar Council and since respondent-writ petitioner secured the next highest votes in elections, he be declared to be the Member of Punjab Bar Council.
4. The question raised before the High Court was as to whether he could still retain the membership of the Bar Council in view of the mandatory provision of Section 5C of the Legal Practitioners & Bar Councils Act, 1973, which reads as follows:-- "5C. Cessation of membership of Provincial Bar. Council.-A member of a Provincial Bar council shall cease to be such member if he;--
(a) is appointed to an office of profit in the service of Pakistan; or
(b) is suspended or removed from practice under the provisions of Chapter VII; or
(c) incurs any of the disqualifications specified in Section 5 B."
5. In accepting the writ petition of the respondent, the learned High Court has held that since petitioner was appointed to an office of profit in the service of Pakistan he ceased to be a Member of the Punjab Bar Council. The said finding is in accord with the mandate of law as Section 5C of the legal Practitioners & Bar Councils Act, 1973 which specifically provide for secession of membership of Bar Council in three circumstances and the case of the petitioner was hit by Section 5C(a) i.e. "is appointed to an office of profit in the service of Pakistan". In a similar case relatable to the post of Assistant Advocate General, this Court in Muhammad Khursheed Khan vs. Returning. Officer (1998 SCM R 425) had candidly held as follows:-- "The post of Assistant Advocate General cannot be equated with Advocate-General which is a Constitutional appointment under Article 140 of the Constitution. Besides, Article 260 of the Constitution specifically grants protection by excluding said office from service of Pakistan. It is pertinent to mention that omission in the Constitution provisions cannot be supplied by drawing analogies as rightly held in the impugned judgment."
6. The nature of appointment of Deputy Attorney General is no different inasmuch as both are offices of profit i.e. The office of Deputy Attorney General is an office of profit in the Federal Government whereas the post of Assistant Advocate General is an office of profit in the Provincial Government. Reiterating the ratio of the afore-referred judgment, we do not find any merit in these petitions, which are dismissed and refuded.
(R.A.) .