Dorab Framrose Patel (1924 – 15 March 1997) was a Pakistani jurist of

Parsi The Parsis or Parsees () are a Zoroastrian ethnic group in the Indian subcontinent. They are descended from Persian refugees who migrated to the Indian subcontinent during and after the Arab-Islamic conquest of Iran in the 7th century, w ...

descent, and lawmaker who served as a former justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and former chief justice of the

Sindh High Court The High Court of Sindh () ( Sindhi: سنڌ ھائي ڪورٽ) is the highest judicial institution of the Pakistani province of Sindh. Established in 1906, the Court situated in the provincial capital at Karachi. Apart from being the highest ...

. Patel was a prominent campaigner for human rights, and was a founding member of the

Asian Human Rights Commission The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is an independent, Non-governmental organization, non-governmental body that promotes human rights in Asia and mobilizes Asian and international public opinion to obtain relief and redress for the victims ...

(AHRC) in 1987 and the co-founder of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. A

by faith, he rose up the ranks of the judiciary to become one of Pakistan's most senior most judges, only to resign on principle after refusing to take an oath of allegiance to Chief Martial Law Administrator and Chief of Army Staff at that time, General Zia-ul-Haq in 1981. Patel died of

leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

on 1997 in Islamabad, and was buried in Karachi.

Early life

He attended various boarding schools before attending Bombay University in 1942. In 1944, Patel graduated with an LL.B. in Law and Justice from

Bombay University University of Mumbai is a public state university in Mumbai. It is one of the largest university systems in the world with over 549,000 students on its campuses and affiliated colleges. , the university had 711 affiliated colleges. It was est ...

. In 1945, Patel moved to Karachi where he began his legal practice in the Sindh High Court. In 1946, Patel went to the United Kingdom and attended the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

. In 1948, Patel received an MSc in economics, followed by an LLM in law and justice development in 1949. He wrote his master's thesis on the Pakistan economy and the legal system in Pakistan. In 1950, he was called to the bar from

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, commonly known as Lincoln's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for Barrister, barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister ...

where he was awarded BPTC in 1953. Following the completion of his doctorate, Patel returned to

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

, West Pakistan where he began practising law in the West Pakistan High Court.

Judicial career

He was elected secretary of the High Court Bar in 1964 and was raised to the bench of the then West Pakistan High Court in 1967. Patel was elevated to the Supreme Court on 7 January 1976.Supreme Court Annual Report 2002
pg 157 Retrieved 24 June 2010 On 24 March 1981, General Zia ul Haq issued a Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) and asked the Justices of the High Courts and Supreme Court to take oath on it. Patel refused to take oath and resigned. Had Patel not resigned, he would have become the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. After his resignation from the Supreme Court, he devoted the rest of his life to waging a crusade for the rights of the oppressed and downtrodden. In 1990, he became the second Pakistani to be elected a member of the exclusive

International Commission of Jurists The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) is an international human rights non-governmental organization. It is supported by an International Secretariat based in Geneva, Switzerland, and staffed by lawyers drawn from a wide range of jurisdi ...

(ICJ).

Important decisions

* Patel was in the minority in a split decision of 4–3 that upheld the decision of Lahore High Court that handed down the death penalty to former Prime Minister

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979) was a Pakistani barrister and politician who served as the fourth president of Pakistan from 1971 to 1973 and later as the ninth Prime Minister of Pakistan, prime minister of Pakistan from 19 ...

Publications

* ''1989'', Military Dictatorship in Pakistan and the role of Judges (in English and Urdu), by Dorab Patel. * ''1964'', Testaments of Liberals: Jinnah Papers (in English only), by Dorab Patel

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Patel, Dorab Lawyers from Karachi Pakistani judges Alumni of the London School of Economics Alumni of the Inns of Court School of Law Members of Lincoln's Inn Pakistani Zoroastrians Parsi people 1924 births 1997 deaths 20th-century Pakistani lawyers People from Karachi