PESHAWAR: The lawyers’ community observed boycott of courts across the province and staged protest demonstrations on Monday against price hike.

The strike call was given by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council (KPBC), which had stated that the continuous hike in prices had badly affected the general public, whereas the government had turned a blind eye to their problems.

KPBC’s Vice-Chairman Naeemuddin Khan and its executive committee’s chairman Haji Zafar Iqbal had directed presidents and general secretaries of all the bar associations in the province to hold protest meetings to show solidarity with the general public, who had been passing through miserable times due to soaring prices of daily use commodities.

Lawyers mostly stayed away from courts, including the Peshawar High Court and the district courts.

The lawyers took out a rally from the PHC and marched up to the nearby provincial assembly building.

The procession was led by PHC Bar Association President Bahlol Khattak, general secretary Qaiser Zaman and others.

The protesting lawyers were raising slogans against the government.

They said the unbearable price hike had made life miserable for the middle class and low-income groups. They added that sky rocketing prices of petrol, flour, sugar, and other items had made it difficult for the people to make both ends meet.

In Shangla, the legal fraternity staged protests against inflation.

Members of the Shangla bar association staged a rally at the Alpuri Chowk led by its president Shah Fawad and general secretary Waqif Shah.

The lawyers chanted slogans against the incumbent government for its failure to control inflation.

Addressing the protesting lawyers, the speakers said historical inflation had put the poor in agony. They said Prime Minister Imran Khan was responsible for inflation.

The protesters also marched through the Alpuri Bazaar. Similarly, the tehsil bar associations of Puran and Chakesar took out rallies against inflation.

Separately, the lawyers held a protest meeting in Swabi against the soaring prices of eatables.

Bar president Daniyal Khan led the lawyers, who demanded slashing of prices of daily use items and petroleum products.

The lawyers said whenever Prime Minister Imran Khan announced to take notice of inflation prices of commodities jumped further the following day.

Published in Dawn, November 9th, 2021