May 25, 2007	Friday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 08, 1428

QUETTA, May 24: Lawyers in the city and other district headquarters boycotted court proceedings, demanding the withdrawal of the reference against Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry.

Lawyers were protesting on the call of the Pakistan Bar Council and the Supreme Court Bar Association.

The lawyers took out a procession that passed through the Jinnah Road and the Circular Road. Protesters also staged a sit-in at the Assembly Chowk.

Qahir Shah, general secretary of the Balochistan High Court Bar Association, told newsmen that lawyers had boycotted court proceedings in Pishin, Chaman, Loralai, Zhob, Nushki, Kalat, Khuzdar, Hub, Panjgur, Turbat, Sibi and Dera Murad Jamali.

Hadi Shakeel Ahmed, president of the Balochistan High Court Bar Association, Hashim Khan Kakar, vice-chairman of the Balochistan Bar Council, and Senator Kamran Murtaza, executive member of the provincial bar council, addressed the rally.

Pledging to continue their struggle for judiciary’s independence, they said their movement would continue until military rulers stopped interfering in judicial affairs.

Terming the reference against the Supreme Court chief justice unconstitutional, they said that it had been filed to pressurise other judges of the apex court to endorse the government’s unlawful actions.

They said the only way to end the judicial crisis was through withdrawal of the reference against the chief justice. The judiciary should be deemed independent in all respects, they added.