Former Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa is set to attend a dinner at The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple on Tuesday, where he may encounter protests from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) UK chapter.
Jahanzeb Khan, former senior vice president of PTI UK, along with Sahibzada Jahangir, a close associate of party founder Imran Khan, confirmed to Geo News that a demonstration is planned at the Middle Temple in Central London to protest Isa’s presence and to condemn the society for inviting him and granting him a position within the Temple.
Jahanzeb indicated that former ministers and advisers, including Zulfi Bukhari, Maleeka Bokhari, and Shehryar Afridi, are also expected to join the protest.
In the meantime, the Middle Temple has confirmed that it has invited former CJP Isa for the bench call, a ceremony where benchers and members of the Inn call elected members to the Bench.
The invitees include Isa, Professor Adrian Briggs, Isabel Hitching KC, and Nikki Singla KC, who will be called to the bench and asked to sit at the high table before dinner. Isa is expected to deliver a short speech to the benchers and members, as confirmed by the Middle Temple.
Isa is notably the first Pakistani judge elected as a bencher at the Middle Temple, a prestigious legal institution in the United Kingdom (UK). After retiring as the top judge of Pakistan on October 25, he arrived in London to attend the ceremony in his honor.
Isa studied law at the Middle Temple, following in the footsteps of his father, Qazi Isa, who was also an alumnus. He had informed the Middle Temple administration that he could only participate in the event after his retirement, prompting the ceremony to be rescheduled for October 29.
The Middle Temple is one of four historic Inns of Court in London, which provide legal training to students and grant licenses for entry into the legal profession. The other three Inns are Gray’s Inn, Lincoln’s Inn, and Inner Temple.
Established in the 14th century, the Middle Temple has maintained a vital role in the British legal system for centuries. Notable individuals who have studied at this esteemed institution include former British Prime Ministers John Major, Boris Johnson, and David Cameron; Andrew Li, Hong Kong’s first Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal; Lady Diana, Princess of Wales; and various other prominent figures such as Lee Kuan Yew, and several global statesmen and judges.
In addition to the Middle Temple, the other Inns of Court have also produced influential personalities, including Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Allama Iqbal, former President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, and many other significant leaders in law and politics.
