September 18, 2008	Thursday	Ramazan 17, 1429

BAHAWALPUR, Sept 17: Lawyers are divided on lockout of courts on Thursday and Friday.

The Bahawalpur chapter of the high court bar association has declared there will be no lockout, while the district bar has announced lockout of local courts on Friday.

The Bahawalpur chapter of the high court bar association, through a notice circulated

to its members and displayed on its notice board, declared there was no lockout call from the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) or Punjab Bar Council (PbBC) and as such there would be no lockout of courts on Thursday.

Contrary to this, the district bar association at a meeting here on Tuesday with its president Yahyah Khan in the chair finalised the plan to lockout court and observe a complete strike on Thursday and Friday in connection with the ongoing lawyers movement. condemned: People from various segments of society, especially farmers, have criticised the government for hike in diesel and kerosene oil prices.

The Kissan Board secretary-general condemned the government for increasing diesel prices. He said the government had failed to protect farmers’ interests.

He said with the increase in diesel prices tube well water rates had also shoot up, creating problems for the farmers’ whose crops were in urgent need of water. He said rising diesel prices had made farming ‘very difficult’.

Transporters also took strong exception to the increase in diesel prices. They said the increase would force them to either raise fares or park their vehicles outside their homes. Divisional Transport Federation representative Sohail Ashraf Warraich rejected the new diesel prices.