KARACHI: Lawyers to stay away from all courts in city: Processions planned
KARACHI, April 2: Lawyers fraternity continued the campaign against the suspension of Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry with token hunger strike being observed at all courts in the city on Monday.
Three members of Sindh High Court Bar Association (SHCBA), Aqil Lodhi, Nadeem Qureshi and Ismail Memon, observed token hunger strike in the Bar Room. Lawyers also boycotted SHC proceedings from 10.30am to 11.30am in line with the fraternity’s call for a one-hour boycott daily during the campaign.
SHCBA General Secretary Munir-ur-Rehman said that seven members of the association, Ms Shehnaz, Ms Zahida Khatoon Naqvi, Ms Saeeda Siddiqui, Ms Tayyaba Jabeen, Ms Wajiha Mehdi, Ms Shaheen and Ms Nausheen, would observe hunger strike on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, lawyers held a gathering in the Bar Room where SHCBA President Ibrar Hassan, Munir-ur-Rehman and Moin Azhar spoke to condemn the action against CJP as unconstitutional. They announced a complete strike on Tuesday, adding that future course of action would be decided by the SHCBA and KBA (Karachi Bar Association) in their joint general body meeting at 10.30am on Tuesday. It was also announced that the two bodies would also take out a joint procession which would pass through the roads housing the Supreme Court Registry, Sindh Assembly and Karachi Press Club.
Fifteen KBA members observed a token hunger strike at the City Courts on Monday. They were Naheed Afzaal, Riaz Effendi, Atiq Qureshi, Shujaat Ali Khan, Nadir Shah, Nisar Ahmed Khan, Abdul Wasi Kakar, Irfan Ahmed Siddiqui, Shah Faisal Qureshi, Sufi Muzafar Iqbal, Mohammad Ashraf Bhatti, Shoaib Wakil, Tanzim Ali, Abdul Khaliq and Rashid Mushtaq.
Lawyers boycotted the court proceedings for one hour and gathered around the hunger strikers’ camp to express their support to the campaign against the suspension of the CJP and the formation of the Supreme Judicial Council. Later, they took out a big procession and staged a sit-in on a section of M.A. Jinnah Road, disrupting the traffic movement for 40 minutes. KBA General Secretary Naeem Qureshi, Riaz Commander, Salahuddin Gandapur and Javaid Memon addressed the protesters and criticised General Pervez Musharraf for resorting to suspending the CJP. They said the action was illegal and unconstitutional.
The endorsed the call for a complete strike on Tuesday, declaring that no lawyer would appear in any court of the city that day. They also resolved to continue the campaign until acceptance of their demands.
They also condemned the Sindh chief minister’s remarks against the CJP and protesting lawyers as ‘baseless’. Asking the chief minister to stop propaganda against the legal fraternity and judiciary, the lawyers’ leaders warn of laying a siege of the CM’s House if he continued with it.
They said the campaign was aimed at restoration of the supremacy of law, independence of judiciary and strengthening of democratic institutions on which the legal fraternity could never compromise.
Naeem Qureshi told protesters that Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly Nisar Ahmed Khuhro would welcome participants of the Tuesday procession at the Assembly gate before they would move towards the press club.
At the Malir District Courts, four members of the Malir Bar Association (MBA), Mohammad Riaz Tanoli, Ali-ur-Rehman, Abdul Waqar and Abdul Sami, observed a token hunger strike whereas lawyers boycotted the court proceedings for one hour.
MBA President Zahoor Hassan Mahar endorsed the fraternity’s protest programme for Tuesday.
ARD: The Alliance for Restoration of Democracy, Sindh, will hold a protest demonstration outside the Karachi Press Club on Tuesday to express solidarity with the legal fraternity and condemn the filing of presidential reference against Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the ARD’s provincial leadership at the residence of Syed Qaim Ali Shah, President of the Pakistan People’s Party, Sindh, the other day.
The meeting also decided to invite other opposition parties, particularly the Awami National Party and Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf to join in the protest.
The meeting urged government functionaries to tender their resignations in order to pave the way for the establishment of a caretaker government that would hold free, fair and transparent elections.
PTI: The Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf has announced holding of a demonstration outside the press club here on Tuesday to express solidarity with the legal fraternity in its struggle for the supremacy of judiciary.
Addressing a press conference, city chief of the party Ashraf Qureshi condemned suspension of the Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and demanded his immediate reinstatement. He said that by resorting to taking this unconstitutional action, the rulers had tried to bring the judiciary under their control.
He reiterated his party’s full support to the lawyer community in their struggle against Gen Pervez Musharraf’s ‘dictatorial’ action.
