ISLAMABAD, March 2: The government has decided to use all its resources to scuttle the lawyers’ long march, including the sealing of the capital.

The decision was taken in a meeting between President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani at the President’s House.

The meeting was also attended by Prime Minister’s Adviser on Interior Rehman Malik and Law Minister Farooq H. Naek.Mr Malik said that his ministry had chalked out a plan to stop the march and seal the capital, a source close to the adviser said.

According to sources, the government fears that the protests could lead to a law and order situation.

The lawyers plan an indefinite sit-in in front of the Parliament House after the long march.

The march is slated to kick off from Lahore on March 12 and end in Islamabad on March 16.

A senior government official, who has attended several meetings on security matters, told Dawn that the meeting also reviewed the promulgation of a presidential ordinance regarding setting up of mobile courts in rural and remote areas of the country.

However, there is a general perception that these courts are being set up to torpedo the march. The government, however, denied that the ordinance had been promulgated to take action against the participants of the march.

“Mobile courts have nothing to do with law and order or political protests. These (matters) are being dealt with by police and district administrations, and not by judicial magistrates,” the president’s spokesman Farhatullah Babar said.

In a statement, Mr Babar said mobile courts would “move from place to place within the … jurisdiction assigned to them by session judges, and not by the administration”.

“They will take cognizance of offences and hear complaints about unreported offences and other violations,” he said.

According to Mr Babar, mobile courts will give directions for removal of “public nuisances (like) encroachments and issue instructions to public authorities for rectification of their working for public convenience like sanitation”.

“These courts will also carry out inspection of police stations … check traffic violations, prices, hoarding and profiteering and also checking weight and measures,” he said.The spokesman also described as misplaced and incorrect the assertion by some people that the ordinance, amending the CrPC of 1898, had been promulgated by the president when the National Assembly was in session and that mobile courts were being set up to curb political dissent.

“The President promulgated the ordinance on Friday the Feb 27 … one day before the National Assembly session. At that time, no decision had been taken to convene the session of the National Assembly … on Feb 28,” he said.

The ordinance makes it mandatory for sessions judges to send judicial magistrates to far-flung areas. Previously, it was left to the discretion of district magistrates whether and when to send magistrates to remote villages.

S.M. Zafar, a legal expert, said the timing of the decision seemed a bit ominous. “If it is a genuine act as stated, then it will help provide speedy justice to aggrieved parties at their doorsteps. I hope there is no ulterior motive behind this decision,” he said.

Hamid Khan, a prominent figure in the lawyers’ movement, said the decision was aimed at dividing lawyers.

Justice (retd) Tariq Mehmood said the ordinance would be used to “suppress PML-N and the lawyers’ movement”.
Tags: