Fact-check: Did Lahore High Court grant lawyers in Punjab gazetted officer status?

A post circulating online claims that the Lahore High Court (LHC) has directed the Punjab government to grant all lawyers, both private and public, the status of civil servants in Basic Pay Scales (BPS) 17 and 18. The posts further suggest that this means lawyers will now be entitled to the same salary and medical benefits as gazetted officers.

This claim is misleading and omits critical context.

Claim

A TikTok post from February 6 reads: "A big decision of the high court for the lawyers in Punjab. Lawyers have been given the status of grade 17 and 18." The post includes the alleged order number (1778/24) associated with the LHC’s decision.

The post goes on to say: "Now, lawyers can get treatment in any government tehsil or district headquarters hospital in the grade 17/18 officers’ ward by showing their membership card." As of writing, the post has garnered over 132,100 views, 419 shares, and over 2,190 likes.

Similar claims were also shared here, here and here.

Fact

The claim misrepresents the LHC's order. The ruling applies to lawyers who hold a membership with the Punjab Bar Council. These lawyers are entitled to receive free medical treatment, equivalent to BPS 17 and 18 officers, at government hospitals, provided they present their Punjab Bar Council membership card, states the court order.

Geo Fact Check has reviewed the LHC’s January judgment referenced in the claims. Authored by Justice Jawad Hasan, the order notes that a May 21, 2018, notification from the Punjab health department directed all district and tehsil hospitals in the province to provide free medical treatment to practicing lawyers and their dependents upon presentation of a valid Punjab Bar Council membership card.

The judgment further dismissed the petition, stating that the 2018 notification already mandated the provision of medical facilities to lawyers and their dependents on par with BPS 17 and 18 officers. The benefits are also extended to advocates on the government’s legal panel.

The ruling does not grant civil servant status to lawyers across the province.

Additionally, Malik Sohaib Ahmed Bherth, the Punjab Law Minister, also refuted the online claims, stating: "There is nothing like this [lawyers being granted gazetted officer status] in the law department, and no such notification has been issued by the Lahore High Court."

Verdict: The claim that lawyers in Punjab have been granted the status of gazetted officers is misleading. While certain lawyers are entitled to free medical treatment at district and tehsil hospitals, as well as rural health centers, on par with BPS 17 and 18 officers, they have not been officially granted gazetted officer status.

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