KARACHI, April 24: Lawyers, politicians and representatives of trade unions, labour federations, doctors’ associations and non-governmental organisations took out processions that converged as a large rally on the Karachi Press Club on Tuesday as the Supreme Judicial Council heard a presidential reference against Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry in Islamabad.

Protesting against the suspension of CJP, lawyers in the Sindh High Court, City Courts, and Malir district courts stayed away from the court proceedings. Followed by leaders and workers of the Pakistan People’s Party, Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal, Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf, Awami National Party and Sindh Taraqi Pasand Party as well as representatives of the Pakistan Medical Association, National Labour Federation and National Trade Union Federation, the lawyers staged protest demonstrations on Hassan Ali Effendi Road.

They marched on Shahrah-i-Liaquat and Sir Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah Road where SHCBA and MBA members joined the procession and held a big demonstration in front of the Karachi Press Club.

Holding placards and banners inscribed with their demands and slogans, besides national flags and portraits of Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the protestors raised slogans in support of the media and the CJP.

The rally was addressed by Pakistan Bar Council members Abul Inam and Yasin Azad, Sindh Bar Council vice-chairman Mohammad Amin Lakhani, SBC member Zia Ahmed Awan, Sindh High Court Bar Association president Abrar Hasan, former general-secretary of SHCBA Moin Azhar, KBA president Iftikhar Javaid Qazi, general-secretary Naeem Qureshi, KBA members Mohammad Ali Abbasi, Naheed Afzaal, and Malir Bar Association vice-president Mohammad Ashraf Samoo.

The political leaders who addressed the rally included Nafees Siddiqui, Siddique Rathor, Dr Merajul Huda Siddiqui, Saleem Zia, Ali Hassan Chandio, Nasrullah Shaji, Shahi Syed, Mamnoon Hassan, Zubair Khan and Comrade Akhtar Hussein.

The speakers came hard on President General Pervez Musharraf saying that there was no logic for suspending the country’s top judge.

They alleged that the action was taken by the president only to prolong his tenure. They said the lawyers’ campaign would come to an end only after the removal of the president.

They said government employees dressed as lawyers were sent to disturb the processions, but failed to do so. Ironically, the tactics used by the government machinery united the lawyers against ‘unconstitutional acts’, they said.

The lawyers said despite its tall claims of press freedom the government was imposing restrictions on the media. The issuance of notice to a TV channel was a glaring example of the government’s anti-press freedom policies, they said, adding that they were ready to defend the media in the courts through a panel of senior lawyers.

They said the lawyers would not bow down to government pressure, adding that they were mentally prepared to run the campaign at least for one year.

They hailed the response of the political parties and other organizations, terming it a referendum for the independence of the judiciary.

The lawyers said the government should realise that they were not alone in the struggle for the supremacy of the judiciary. Most people in the country wanted the independence of the judiciary and reinstatement of Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry. They said the participation of High Court judges at his reception in Hyderabad and Peshawar was a clear reflection of the judiciary’s confidence in the CJP.

In solidarity with the lawyers, the ANP leaders including their provincial president also observed a token hunger strike in front of the Karachi Press Club.

Earlier, SHCBA members Ghulam Qadir Jatoi, Abdul Qadir Leghari and Naseer Khan observed a token hunger strike in the bar room. KBA members M. Noman Khan, Chaudhry Abdul Sattar, Sadat Hassan, A.D. Khaskheli, G.H. Niazi, Akhtar Saeed Shaikh, Inayat Bugti, Shahbaz Ali Shah, Mumtaz Ali, Tahir Hussain and Ihsan Ali also observed a token hunger strike in the City Courts.

Meanwhile, the Human Rights Committee of the Sindh Bar Council through a resolution condemned the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority for issuing a notice to Aaj TV. The resolution stated there was no need for such a department which was depriving the media of its constitutional rights. The committee’s chairman, Advocate Aaqil Lodhi, said the notice to the channel was sent in violation of the Human Rights Charter No 18-19 of the United Nations.