Ali Ahmed Fazeel
Encyclopedia
Ali Ahmed Fazeel (b. Fatehgarh
in Uttar Pradesh
, India
on September 5, 1922; died October 22, 2002) was a Pakistani Attorney General
.
was born in August 1947, and Mr Fazeel moved to Karachi
, Pakistan's capital city. There, he became Joint Secretary for Karachi Muslim League and Zonal Secretary for the Zonal Muslim League.
In the early phase of his career, Mr Fazeel temporarily acted as the Special Public Prosecutor. He was twice elected as President Sindh High Court Bar Association. He was Joint Editor of Pakistan Law Report and Editor for Weekly Progress. Abroad, he represented Pakistan at the Indian Science Congress in Nagpur. He acted as Custodian Karachi University. He was the Special Advisor to the Department that overlooked the disposition of properties for migrants and emigrants after the Partition. He assisted the Sindh High Court in the case concerning the resolution of Jinnah's estate after his death. He was appointed to the faculty at the SM Law College on Jan 8th, 1956.
Mr Fazeel reached the pinnacle of his career amongst Pakistani lawyers in the 1980s. He was counted amongst Pakistan's most eminent lawyers that included Khalid Ishaq, S M Zafar and Sharifuddin Pirzada. He was a member of the Karachi University Syndicate, Univeresity Grants Commission and the Vice-Chairman of the Pakistan Bar Council and hosted the All Pakistan Jurist Conference. He also represented his country in International conferences in Australia, Austria and the UK. During this period, he litigated for both sides in important political cases that included Air Marshal Asghar Khan, Nawabzada Nasarullah Khan, Nawab Akbar Bugti, Ghulam Mustafa Khar, Benazir Bhutto, Haji Saifullah and Ghous Ali Shah. On the corporate side, he appeared in some of the most important business litigations of the 80s and 90s concerning Byram Avari, Pakistan Burmah Shell, Jahangir Siddiqui & Co., Tibet Group, Amin Lakhani, Sultan Lakhani, Asharfi Brand Atta, Akbar Hashwani, Shahzada Citizen Watches, Bishop Lobo vs Cowasjee etc. In 1985, Muhammad Khan Junejo
(then Prime Minister of Pakistan) dismissed the Attorney General A. K. Munshi and offered Mr Fazeel to join his government as the chief law officer of the state. A few years later, Zia ul Haq, the military President in uniform dismissed Junejo due to political rivalry in May 1988. ul Haq wanted to retain Fazeel and offered him a place in his Zia's Majlis Shoora (the General's version of a technocrat advisory body. However, Fazeel chose to resign. He would often remark to his friends: "The Attorney General comes with the Prime Minister and goes with the Prime Minister." Consequently, he was named amongst Pakistan's 100 most influential citizens in a book published in 1989.
the legal fraternity as, inter alia, Chief Justices Muhammad Haleem and Nasim Hasan
Shah and former Attorney General Ali Ahmad Fazeel. In the wake of a newly reintroduced
Constitution,elements within judicial circles began to debate the question of
how the fundamental rights enshrined therein could be effectively enforced by a
population which was (and is) largely ignorant or unaware of their rights. Part of the
answer to this question was identified by Chief Justice Muhammad Haleem as a
“massification” of society; where citizens were “increasingly drawn together” on the
basis of rights and interests. Former Attorney General Ali Ahmad Fazeel and Former
Chief Justice of Pakistan Nasim Hasan Shah also recognized the phenomenon of
“massification” and, carrying the principle to its logical conclusion, were able to formulate
more concrete answers to the question: That the enforcement of the rights of groups of
people could be achieved if the law recognized the enforcement of rights beyond the
concept of the aggrieved person; that justice for all could be served if the rights of
groups of people could be enforced.
Fatehgarh
Fatehgarh is a cantonment town in Farrukhabad district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located on the right bank of the Ganges River. It is the administrative headquarters of Farrukhabad District. Fatehgarh derives its name from an old fort. It is a small city with no significant...
in Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
on September 5, 1922; died October 22, 2002) was a Pakistani Attorney General
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
.
Early life
Mr Fazeel was born to a lawyer. He followed his father's footsteps and attended Aligarh University in the early 1940s. He excelled in school. He passed his MsC (Masters in Science - Major: Geography)in First Division. It was in LLB that he had the honor of standing on top of his class of 1945 at AliGarh. The same year, he was the recipient of the Abdul Karim Khan University Medal from Aligarh University. At Aligarh, he was tutored by the eminent Sir Dr. Ziaduddin, namesake of Dr Ziauddin Hospital in Karachi. In the meantime, the Pakistan movement was gaining momentum, he became the Secretary-General of All India Muslim League Students Federation. He worked alongside Liaqat Ali Khan and Jinnah. Upon graduation, he started his law practice in Fatehgarh. Here, he was appointed Joint Secretary of All India Musliam League for Fatehgarh. PakistanPakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
was born in August 1947, and Mr Fazeel moved to Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
, Pakistan's capital city. There, he became Joint Secretary for Karachi Muslim League and Zonal Secretary for the Zonal Muslim League.
Career in Pakistan
Being a professional lawyer, Fazeel set up his law offices, "Fazeel & Co." in Karachi's Jehangir Kothari building. Later on, he would set up offices at Mohammadi House, located at Karachi's I.I Chundrigarh Rd. Liaqat Ali Khan, was assassinated in mysterious circumstances in 1951. Heartbroken at his mentor's murder, Mr Fazeel quit active politics.In the early phase of his career, Mr Fazeel temporarily acted as the Special Public Prosecutor. He was twice elected as President Sindh High Court Bar Association. He was Joint Editor of Pakistan Law Report and Editor for Weekly Progress. Abroad, he represented Pakistan at the Indian Science Congress in Nagpur. He acted as Custodian Karachi University. He was the Special Advisor to the Department that overlooked the disposition of properties for migrants and emigrants after the Partition. He assisted the Sindh High Court in the case concerning the resolution of Jinnah's estate after his death. He was appointed to the faculty at the SM Law College on Jan 8th, 1956.
Mr Fazeel reached the pinnacle of his career amongst Pakistani lawyers in the 1980s. He was counted amongst Pakistan's most eminent lawyers that included Khalid Ishaq, S M Zafar and Sharifuddin Pirzada. He was a member of the Karachi University Syndicate, Univeresity Grants Commission and the Vice-Chairman of the Pakistan Bar Council and hosted the All Pakistan Jurist Conference. He also represented his country in International conferences in Australia, Austria and the UK. During this period, he litigated for both sides in important political cases that included Air Marshal Asghar Khan, Nawabzada Nasarullah Khan, Nawab Akbar Bugti, Ghulam Mustafa Khar, Benazir Bhutto, Haji Saifullah and Ghous Ali Shah. On the corporate side, he appeared in some of the most important business litigations of the 80s and 90s concerning Byram Avari, Pakistan Burmah Shell, Jahangir Siddiqui & Co., Tibet Group, Amin Lakhani, Sultan Lakhani, Asharfi Brand Atta, Akbar Hashwani, Shahzada Citizen Watches, Bishop Lobo vs Cowasjee etc. In 1985, Muhammad Khan Junejo
Muhammad Khan Junejo
Muhammad Khan Junejo was the tenth Prime Minister of Pakistan.-Early life:He was born at Sindhri in Tharparkar of Sindh. He belongs to Sindhi Muslim Rajput family of Junejo clan. Junejo started his political career at the age of twenty one...
(then Prime Minister of Pakistan) dismissed the Attorney General A. K. Munshi and offered Mr Fazeel to join his government as the chief law officer of the state. A few years later, Zia ul Haq, the military President in uniform dismissed Junejo due to political rivalry in May 1988. ul Haq wanted to retain Fazeel and offered him a place in his Zia's Majlis Shoora (the General's version of a technocrat advisory body. However, Fazeel chose to resign. He would often remark to his friends: "The Attorney General comes with the Prime Minister and goes with the Prime Minister." Consequently, he was named amongst Pakistan's 100 most influential citizens in a book published in 1989.
Junejo Case
Following the dismissal of the Junejo government, Fazeel was retained by the Former Prime Minister, to contest the dismissal in the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The Supreme Court invalidated Zia's action terming it illegal. However, it allowed the Federation of Pakistan to continue with the announced dates of general elections in Pakistan.THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF PIL (Public Interest Litigation) IN PAKISTAN
The seeds of PIL were planted in Pakistan in the mid to late-1980s by such luminaries ofthe legal fraternity as, inter alia, Chief Justices Muhammad Haleem and Nasim Hasan
Shah and former Attorney General Ali Ahmad Fazeel. In the wake of a newly reintroduced
Constitution,elements within judicial circles began to debate the question of
how the fundamental rights enshrined therein could be effectively enforced by a
population which was (and is) largely ignorant or unaware of their rights. Part of the
answer to this question was identified by Chief Justice Muhammad Haleem as a
“massification” of society; where citizens were “increasingly drawn together” on the
basis of rights and interests. Former Attorney General Ali Ahmad Fazeel and Former
Chief Justice of Pakistan Nasim Hasan Shah also recognized the phenomenon of
“massification” and, carrying the principle to its logical conclusion, were able to formulate
more concrete answers to the question: That the enforcement of the rights of groups of
people could be achieved if the law recognized the enforcement of rights beyond the
concept of the aggrieved person; that justice for all could be served if the rights of
groups of people could be enforced.