PESHAWAR, Feb 12: Negotiations between the lawyers and Peshawar High Court judges over the issue of sealing of barrooms and registration of FIR against lawyers failed to make any major headway on Tuesday as both the sides stuck to their respective stands.

A delegation of lawyers has been engaged in meetings with the high court’s Chief Justice Mohammad Raza Khan and other judges since Friday last.

During the first meeting between both the sides the chief justice had assured that for the time being no action would be taken over the controversial FIR registered against 15 lawyers including two females.

Official sources informed that the judges had conveyed to the delegation that the concerned lawyers had to tender unconditional apology to the judge near whose courtroom an incident had taken place on Thursday last.

It is learnt that the judges conveyed to the delegation that the barrooms and cafeteria would only be de-sealed after the lawyers tender an apology to Justice Hamid Farooq Durrani.

Furthermore, they had sought assurance from the lawyers that they would not restrain any of their colleagues from appearance before the court. Similarly, the lawyers were also asked to assure that no action would be taken against those lawyers who appeared before the high court in violation to the decision of the NWFP Bar Council.

“The judges believe that stopping a lawyer from appearing before the court and taking action against such lawyers by the bar association or bar council, both amounted to contempt of court,” an official told Dawn.

The president of Peshawar High Court Bar Association, Abdul Lateef Afridi, told journalists that both the sides had not reached any decision in the series of meetings.

The cafeteria, barroom, library and office of the PHCBA’s president were sealed on Feb 7 after an FIR was registered against 15 lawyers.

The case was registered after a group of lawyers gathered near the courtroom of Justice Hamid Farooq Durrani in a bid to stop some of their colleagues from appearance before the court.

Witnesses had claimed that two of the lawyers had entered the courtroom and tried to convince an advocate present there.

The police claimed that the lawyers had broken lock of the courtroom.

They were charged under different sections of the Pakistan Penal Code mostly dealing with waging war against Pakistan, rioting armed with deadly weapons and obstructing public servant from official work.

The lawyers had denied the charges and claimed that none of them had violated decorum of the court.