Kanrani defeats Kurd to become president of Supreme Court Bar Association

Amanullah Kanrani was elected to the highly coveted post of president, Supreme Court Bar Association (SBCA) on Wednesday after a tough contest between the Independent Group (Asma Jahangir’s panel) led by Ali Ahmed Kurd, and the Professional Group (Hamid Khan’s panel) led by Kanrani.

Kanrani obtained 1092 votes in total whereas Kurd received 950 votes.

Both Kurd and Kanrani were running for the SCBA presidency for a second time. The former had won the election and served as SCBA president in 2008 whereas the latter lost the election against Kamran Murtaza in 2013.

In Lahore, the vice president's election resulted in victory for Karamat Ali Malir, who secured 466 votes against his opponent, Tayyab Nasir Mohammad, who garnered 331 votes.

Azmatullah Chaudhry of the Asma Jahangir group was elected to the post of SCBA general secretary for Lahore after securing 438 votes, as opposed to the Hamid Khan panel hopeful Shamimur Rehman, who obtained 360 votes.

After the results were announced, Kurd walked over to Kanrani's camp to congratulate him on his victory.

"I thank all those who voted for me and showed me tremendous support," said Kanrani in jubilation. "I thank God for granting me victory and vow to work tirelessly for the betterment of the entire lawyers' community."

Kanrani also promised efforts on his part to resolve hurdles that lawyers are facing regarding the allotment of plots.

He also thanked the media for providing "excellent coverage" during the elections and promised to work for the freedom of the media and judiciary.