June 29, 2007	Friday	Jamadi-us-Sani 13, 1428

LAHORE, June 28: Thousands of lawyers, political workers and civil society organisations’ activists took part in a rally on The Mall for the seventh consecutive week on Thursday to register their protest against the presidential reference against Chief Justice of Pakistan.

Holding placard and banners, a large number of lawyers boycotted court proceedings at Aiwan-i-Adl and then came out on The Mall to march up to the Charing Cross. At GPO Chowk, workers of political parties, including PPP, PML-N, Jamaat-i-Islami, Tehrik-i-Insaaf, Labour Party, Khaksar Tehrik, Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party and members of teachers and doctors unions and NGOs joined them. They were followed by Lahore High Court Bar members.

All the protesters marched up to the Charing Cross under the sizzling sun where leaders of the Lahore High Court Bar Association and Lahore Bar Association and others addressed them.

They assured the protesters that their campaign was about to bear fruit within a couple of weeks. A group of lawyers also chanted slogans against the LHC chief justice.

Communist Party workers, though handful and wearing red party flags, introduced some new slogans.

Earlier, a general body meeting of the Lahore High Court Bar Association unanimously adopted a resolution tabled by its secretary Sarfaraz Ahmad Cheema to condemn provincial education secretary Khalid Ikhlaq for terming the ongoing lawyers’ struggle a treason.

The secretary had issued termination notices to Punjab Professors and Lecturers Association president Prof Nazim Husnain Shah, Lahore chief Prof Majid Wazir and Prof Shafee Sabir for supporting the `anti-state movement’. The resolution demanded his removal from service for using unbecoming language against lawyers.

The association decided to serve a legal notice on the secretary.

Talat Husain, director news of a private TV channel, also spoke at the LHCBA meeting. He said the March 9 event had changed everything, including journalism and judiciary, in the country. He said before the event viewers liked the TV channels presenting good plays but after it news channels became more popular.