22/01/2026
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BREAKING NEWS!!!
Honourable Lahore High Court, Lahore Dismissed the Intra-Court Appeal of the Bishop of Lahore Election Case.
Lahore, January 20, 2026:
The Divisional Bench of the Honourable Lahore High Court, Lahore has dismissed the Intra Court Appeal No. 53042 of 2023 filed by the Church of Pakistan, Lahore Diocesan Council, thereby upholding earlier orders declaring the Lahore Diocesan Bishop election process unlawful and directing fresh elections in accordance with the constitution.
The appeal was heard by Honourable Justice Ahmad Nadeem Arshad & Honourable Justice Malik Waqar Haider Awan, who announced the judgment after hearing arguments from all parties. The appellant was represented by Advocates Qazi Zia Zahid and Muhammad Safdar Nadeem, while the Government of Punjab was represented by Assistant Advocate General Advocate Sattar Sahil.
The appeal challenged an order dated 17 August 2023, through which a learned Single Judge of the Honourable Lahore High Court, Lahore had dismissed the writ petition that sought to overturn an earlier decision dated 11 August 2023 of the Registrar Joint Stock Companies, Lahore. That decision, issued by the Registrar, Joint Stock Companies, had declared the election process for the President/Bishop of the Church of Pakistan, Lahore Diocesan Council, held on 18 January 2023, as illegal and unconstitutional.
The Registrar had found several serious irregularities in the election process, including non-compliance with the registered constitution, irregular composition of the electoral body, absence of valid election rules, and inaccurate minutes of meetings. Consequently, directions were issued to reconvene the election strictly in accordance with the registered constitution of the Church of Pakistan Lahore Diocesan Council and established past practice.
During the hearing, counsel for the appellant argued that the Registrar lacked jurisdiction to pass the impugned order. However, the Court observed that no such jurisdictional objection had been raised in the original writ petition. The Court further held that, as the Church of Pakistan Lahore Diocesan Council is a registered society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860, matters relating to its registration status and internal elections squarely fall within the authority of the Registrar.
The Court concluded that the Registrar was fully competent and had lawful jurisdiction to pass the order dated 11 August 2023. It also noted that the earlier order had attained finality, as it was not challenged by any party at the relevant time.
Upholding the findings of the Single Judge, the Court ruled that the direction to hold fresh elections in accordance with the registered constitution was neither illegal nor unconstitutional. As a result, the intra-court appeal was dismissed.
The judgment reinforces the principle that religious and charitable organizations registered under statutory law are bound to conduct their internal governance and elections strictly in line with their registered constitutions and applicable legal frameworks.
