LAHORE, Aug 13: The PML-N would support lawyers’ movement for the restoration of democracy and rule of law, said party’s provincial chief Sirdar Zulfiqar Khosa here on Monday.

He was speaking at a function arranged by the PML-N Lawyers Forum to mark the Independence Day and welcome the release of acting president Javed Hashmi on the premises of the Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA).

“I admit that politicians did not play a role they were supposed to perform and helped dictators too,” he said.

Mr Khosa said the lawyers had cancelled the licences of their colleagues who sided with the dictatorship and he could never forget the bold step.

He said Nawaz Sharif had tried to forge a grand alliance against Gen Musharraf by inviting all parties to London but the PPP leadership walked away.

He added that the PPP fell out with all other parties and refused to agree to the most important point of tendering en bloc resignations in case Gen Musharraf tried to get himself re-elected in uniform.

Khosa said: “I am a worker of a political party. I ask you to lead the movement for the restoration of democracy and we are willing to follow you.”

He said the lawyers should not become inactive after the restoration of the Chief Justice of Pakistan because they still have miles to go to achieve the ultimate goal of rule of law.

The PML-N Punjab president said he knew lawyers were capable of achieving any goal on their own but he still felt that they needed to take the political forces on board.

“If we develop consensus on the demand of holding of free, fair and transparent elections under a caretaker setup, no one will be able to usurp our rights,” he said.

Speaking on the occasion, forum president Khwaja Mahmood Ahmad said if Gen Musharraf tried to get himself re-elected through the present assemblies, the lawyers would launch a peaceful struggle against him inside and outside the court.

LHCBA former president Ahmad Awais said converting Pakistan into an Islamic Republic was the ultimate goal of lawyers’ community.

“The state of Madina is our role model,” he said.

Mr Awais said the Constitution stipulated that the say of the people of the country would be supreme after the will of Allah, and there was no room for any dictatorship.

Malik Noor Muhammad Sarfraz advocate said the politicians did not fulfill their promises after assuming power and paved way for dictators by making mistakes. He said the lawyers faced worst kind of aggression on May 12 and May 17 by the police, but continued their struggle for the independence of judiciary against all odds.

Ijaz Ahmad Khan advocate said the lawyers’ movement bore fruit in the shape of the release of Javed Hashmi.