Justice (Retired) Rasheed A. Razvi

Former Judge, High Court of Sindh.

Senior Advocate Supreme Court

Former Member Pakistan Bar Council

Former President Supreme Court Bar Association

Mr. Rasheed A. Razvi was born on the 18th of December 1947 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. His family migrated from Bombay to Karachi in the year 1956. He was brought up and educated in Karachi. He completed his B.A (Hons) in the year 1969 and M.A in Economics in the year 1970 both from the University of Karachi. He successfully completed his L.L.B from Government Islamia College in the year 1972-1973 where he stood First Class Second in the University of Karachi. He joined the legal profession in the year 1973 and now has a legal standing of over 48 years. During his student life he was very active and remained President of his Law College Students Union. He was also part of the students’ movement in the years 1967-1970 launched by National Students Federation.

In the month of November 1993, Mr. Razvi was appointed as Presiding Officer, Special Courts (Offences in Banks) Sindh at Karachi (with the status of a High Court Judge) which position he held till 7th April 1995, where after he was elevated as a Judge of the High Court of Sindh. However, on 26.01.2000, he stood retired along with other honorable Judges of the High Courts and Supreme Court who declined to take a fresh oath under the Provisional Constitution Order, 2000 promulgated by the then military dictator General Pervaiz Musharraf. Since then he has conducted hundreds of cases before High Court and Supreme Court.

As a Judge of the High Court, he has to his credit more than 300 hundred reported cases in the various fields including but not limited to Civil, Criminal, Labour, Constitution and Intellectual property laws which is a remarkable achievement. Mr. Razvi was conferred the status of ‘Senior Advocate of Supreme Court of Pakistan’ in the year 2008 by the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

As a lawyer his efforts have resulted in some leading judgments of the Supreme Court i.e. Supreme Court Bar Association case (PLD 2002 SC 939), Pakistan Bar Council case (PLD 2007 SC 394) Chief Justice of Pakistan’s case (PLD 2010 SC 61) Sindh High Court Bar Association (PLD 2009 SC 879), Justice Khurshid Bhinder case (PLD 2010 SC 483), Province of Sindh Vs. Rasheed A. Razvi (PLD 2010 SC 649), Baz M. Kakar (PLD 2012 SC 870), Watan Party (2012 SCMR 584), Gen. Pervez Musharraf’s case (PLD 2014 SC 585) and the case of 21st Amendment (PLD 2015 SC 401) and many other cases. In the case of Pakistan Bar Council (PLD 2007 SC 394), the Supreme Court issued directions how to regulate the Law Colleges. The Sindh High Court Bar Association case (PLD 2009 SC 879) is a 14 Member bench decision, which for the first time declared “Emergency” by General Pervez Musharraf in the year 2007, as illegal and unconstitutional. It was also held that keeping Constitution in “abeyance” amount to abrogation of Constitution. As a result of this decision more than 100 P.C.O Judges were relieved. Mr. Razvi was Petitioner in the said case being President of the S.H.C.B.A. as well appeared and argued the case.

Mr. Rasheed Razvi has also held several positions within the Bar Associations and Bar Counsels of the Country. He was elected as the General Secretary of the Karachi Bar Association in the year 1981 and it’s President in the year 1987. He was also elected as a member of the Sindh Bar Council for the term 1984-1989 and again for 1989-1994. During this tenure, he was twice elected as Vice Chairman of the Sindh Bar Council. He was elected President of the Sindh High Court Bar Association for four (4) terms in the years 2000, 2008, 2009 and 2010. He has remained a Member of Pakistan Bar Council (the apex regulatory body for all Supreme Court Lawyers of Pakistan) since the year 2000 till 2020. He has also remained the Vice Chairman and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Pakistan Bar Council. He was elected as the President of Supreme Court Bar Association for the terms 2016-2017.

Mr. Razvi has a long history of struggle for the rights of downtrodden people. He led the movement for restoration of democracy and independence of judiciary from the front during the era of Gen. Pervez Musharraf. He was incarcerated during the struggle for restoration of democracy against Gen. Zia-ul-Haq regime. He was adopted as “Prisoner of Conscience” in the year 1983-84 by the Amnesty International, U.K.

Mr. Rasheed A. Razvi has also participated in several International law conferences/human rights workshops and is a life member of the Common Wealth Judges and Magistrate Association (CMJA), U.K. as well as LAWASIA, which is a joint forum of Lawyers of South East Asia. He has also remained the President of the Pakistan Chapter of SAARC Law for more than 8 years, from 2009 till 2017. For last seven years, he is also President of the Board of Directors of PILER (Pakistan Institute of Labour Education & Research) which is one of the oldest and well organized N.G.O. in Pakistan engaged in the matter of workers/labour rights. He is life member of Pakistan Institute of International Affairs.