June 9, 2002	Sunday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 27,1423

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GILGIT, June 8: The five lawyers of Northern Areas along with a leader of Karakoram National Movement (KNM), who were arrested on Tuesday for protesting against the chairman of Northern Areas Chief Court, have been shifted to Gilgit Central Jail, police sources said.

The lawyers were produced before a local court on Wednesday from where they were sent to the jail.

Ghazi Anwer, a KNM leader, was also arrested for joining the lawyers’ protest, police officials said. The police added that Mr Anwar was taken into custody on Tuesday along with Asadullah Khan, Amjad Hussain, Muhammad Farooq, Manzoor Ahmed and Muzaffaruddin, all members of Northern areas Young Lawyers Forum.

The Forum demanded of the government to initiate an impartial inquiry into the controversy between the NACC chairman and the lawyers.

PROTEST: The members of Northern Areas Legislative Council belonging to Gilgit, Nagar and Hunza have protested against the indifferent attitude of the authorities over the reshifting of the newly-built bus terminal.

In a joint declaration distributed to the newsmen on Wednesday, the members stated that the authorities were helpless before the agents of land mafia, who had lobbied to shift the bus terminal to promote their vested interests.

They added that the present terminal was in no way in the interest of the passengers and business community but it had multiplied the woes of the passengers for they had to pay additional fare to reach their destinations. They said that following the setting up of new terminal, its hard-hit were children, women, students, government employees and patients as the offices, schools and hospitals were located far away from the terminal which had been shifted to a secluded place.