CHINIOT: Local lawyers went on strike on Wednesday after their colleague was sentenced to 14-year imprisonment in a drugs smuggling case.

Advocate Syed Asad Abbas was also fined Rs400,000 on charges of selling drugs.

Giving strike call, District Bar Secretary Tasadaq Koli Advocate said Abbas was arrested a few months ago after registration of a “false and fabricated case” against him under section 9-c of Control of Narcotics Substance Act 1997.

He said the DBA had constituted a legal team to appeal before the Lahore High Court to get this sentence suspended and acquittal later.

Earlier, on Nov 30, 2025, city police had registered a case against Asad Abbas on the complaint of Umar Hayat, ASI of City police station, who stated that he was on patrol duty on Faisalabad Road when he spotted the lawyer selling charas.

He said a 5kg bag containing drugs was also recovered from his possession.

After seven months of trial, Additional District and Sessions Judge Qamar Zaman sentenced him to 14-year imprisonment and fined after the prosecution proved the charges.

Scores of lawyers gathered in the court room at the time of announcement of conviction.

However, former DBA secretary Imtiaz Hussain Taj reached there and requested lawyers to vacate the court room to avoid any untoward incident during conviction announcement.

As the lawyers moved out, the sentence was announced.

Published in Dawn, June 11th, 2026