May 06, 2007	Sunday	Rabi-us-Sani 18, 1428

GUJRAT, May 5: Law enforcers removed banners, baton-charged and harassed lawyers, political leaders and activists, traders, and even newspaper hawkers in a bid to thwart the CJP’s reception.

Earlier, the police picked up over 350 activists of different political parties in various parts of the district during the last 24 hours.

Reports said that police with the help of TMA workers removed banners inscribed with slogans in favour of the CPJ. Link roads leading to Gujrat on GT Road near Rahmania bridge, the venue where the CPJ will stay, were blocked and sealed. Former MNA Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar hosted a luncheon being arranged by the Gujrat bar under the supervision of its president, Tahir Sadiq Butt.

In Lalamusa, the police sealed outhouses of MNA Qamar Zaman Kaira and MPA Tanvir Ashraf Kaira and also removed banners and flags from there.

In Kharian, police thrashed two employees of lawyers when they were busy displaying banners. A large number of lawyers and their supporters gathered there and got the two men released after a brawl with the police. Gen Hameed Gul (retired) and JI central leader Hafiz Husain Ahmad also addressed the camp set up by the Kharian Bar Association.

In Sarai Alamgir, the police sealed the offices of former MPA Malik Hanif Awan. Mr Malik told Dawn by telephone that police had locked his outhouses and shred to pieces the banners displayed by the PML-N and PPP.

Police also forcibly closed all shops and restaurants on GT Road from Jhelum bridge to Chenab bridge. They beat the traders and harassed them.

Several hawkers said that police thrashed them and did not allow them to sell newspapers on GT Road. Some of them complained that their stalls were closed under duress.

Police also uprooted the camp set up by students to welcome the chief justice in Jhelum.

SARGODHA: As many as 100 lawyers proceeded towards Lahore in two buses to join the reception team at Kala Shah Kaku for according a warm welcome to the CJP.

A general meeting was also held at the DBA office to review the pardon tendered by the lawyers who were expelled for meeting with the Punjab chief minister. Lawyers went berserk when police asked them to remove the buses parked outside the DBA office. Angry lawyers damaged the police vehicle with stones. A heavy police contingent was later called out to bring the situation under control.

Although the police had a plan to arrest the bar president and the secretary-general, the lawyers’ unity refrained them from taking this extreme step.

The police continued its crackdown on political leaders, but they managed to set off towards Lahore in taxicabs leaving their cars at places out of police approach.

In Khushab, lawyers blocked Mianwali Road in protest against the suspension of the CJP.

Police did not allow lawyers in Malikwal to proceed to Lahore.

A 50-member delegation of lawyers arrived Lahore from Mianwali.

GUJRANWALA: Police arrested 34 people, including activists of the PML-N and the PPP, in an old case and sent them to jail on judicial remand on Saturday to bar them from participating in CJP’s reception.

Reports said that a police team conducted raids on their residences and arrested them for dumping garbage in the office of district nazim Fiaz Ahmad Chattha some one month ago.

Several people, including workers of political parties, were injured when police baton-charged and fired teargas on them in Kamoki.

Police also manhandled some media persons and activists of political parties in Gakkhar Town for protesting against uprooting of camps set up for CJP’s reception.

Meanwhile, lawyers took out a protest rally in Gujranwala against the police for pulling up reception camps in Wazirabad, Gakkhar, Rahwali, Kamoki, and injuring three activists of a political party.

According to reports reaching here, police also arrested a number of workers of political parties who were on their way to GT Road from link arteries.

Police were deployed in force on all important towns and cities along the GT Road from Wazirabad to Sadhoke.

Around 250 lawyers reached Gujranwala from Sialkot to greet the CJP.

OKARA: More than 200 lawyers succeeded in reaching Lahore to express solidarity with the dysfunctional chief justice.

Reports said that a police team, led by DSP Malik Dawood Khan, rushed to the district courts complex and forcibly took away the two buses arranged by lawyers for their journey to Lahore. This provoked lawyers who screamed slogans against the police and Gen Pervez Musharraf.

Lawyers later reached Lahore by cars under the leadership of DBA president Malik Maqbool Husain Shakir, secretary-general Sagheer Harni and Punjab Bar Council member Mahmoodur Rehman Lashari.

On the level crossing at Central Benazir Avenue, police locked up the gate without the schedule of any train. Enraged lawyers snatched the keys from the railway crew, opened the gate and managed their access to the GT Road.

The DBA decided to observe a complete strike on Monday to express their solidarity with the Sahiwal bar. The police had on Friday baton-charged the torch-bearing rally of lawyers causing injuries to 46 lawyers, including about a dozen senators.

Meanwhile, police continued its crackdown and arrested more leaders of the PML-N, the MMA and the PPP.

Prominent among those arrested were: MMA district president Dr Liaquat Ali Kausar and JI district amir Shaikh Azhar Mehmood.

Two PPP leaders were arrested in Deepalpur as well.

KASUR: Police registered cases against 28 activists of the PML-N, the JI and the PPP and arrested 24 of them under the 16 MPO in Kasur district.

At least 16 arrests were made in Pattoki and most of them were workers of the PML-N.

TOBA TEK SINGH: Dozens of lawyers and activists of the MMA, the PML-N and the PPP left for Lahore by different vehicles.

Policemen were deployed on different roads to check the departure of delegations of lawyers and political activists. However, police failed to prevent them from going to Lahore.

Meanwhile, lawyers continued hunger strike to condemn the suspension of the CJP.

MMA district secretary-general Mian Abdul Basit and Awami Tehrik leader Chaudhry Niamat Ali observed the hunger strike.

In Kamalia, lawyers also stayed away from court proceedings.

A caravan of lawyers from Faisalabad was stopped by police at Sheikhupura bypass.

In Jaranwala, a caravan of lawyers set off for Lahore to greet the CPJ.

A delegation of around 100 lawyers intended to go to Lahore was stopped by the police in Hafizabad, and in Sangla Hill, the PML-N activists were intercepted by the police. About 400 lawyers reached Lahore from Sheikhupura.

The Pind Dadan Khan bar president condemned the arrest of lawyers.

The Chakwal bar secretary pledged to reach Lahore from some alternative route as police barricaded all the main roads.

VEHARI: More than two dozen activists of different political parties were arrested in Vehari, Mailsi and Burewala on Saturday morning when they were on way to Lahore to attend the Chief Justice of Pakistan’s reception there.

According to reports reaching here on Saturday evening, some of the workers were arrested from Arifwala, Sahiwal and Okara. They belonged to the PPP, the PML-N, the MMA and others.

About a dozen arrested in Vehari include Shaukat, Bashir, Shabbir, Anwarul Haq, Siddique, Sajid Ali, Yaqoob, Yasin, Ishfaq, Arshad, Abdul Hameed, Hasan Raza, Fiaz and others.

It is learnt that some local leaders, who had gone in hiding to avoid arrest, have reached Lahore to attend the reception. Moreover, a group of more than 150 lawyers, belonging to Vehari, Burewala and Mailsi also reached Lahore on Saturday evening.

Earliar, when these lawyers reached Sahiwal, they protested against the police in front of the DPO’s office and condemned baton charge on their colleagues by the Sahiwal police.

Meanwhile, the Vehari Bar has announced a complete strike against the police action in Sahiwal on Monday.