LAHORE, March 21: Around 4,000 lawyers and workers of various political parties rallied on The Mall on Wednesday to protest against the suspension of chief justice of Pakistan.

Carrying banners and placards and chanting slogans, including “Go Musharraf Go”, and “We will fight till the last drop of our blood,” the lawyers demanded the government should restore the non-functional CJP. They also demanded that President Prevez Musharraf should step down.

Before getting onto The Mall, the lawyers held meetings and boycotted all court proceedings. They wore black armbands, and hung banners on court premises inscribed with slogans showing solidarity with Justice Chaudhry.

Despite preemptive raids and detentions by police, political activists and some others from NGOs also joined the protesting lawyers.

The lawyers, however, did not allow the political workers to mix up with the rally, and only allowed them to march at its tail. “We fear the workers could cause trouble. We want to be peaceful, and we do not want any violence,” said a lawyer.

Hundreds of riot police had been deployed on The Mall and its adjacent roads. Most of the businesses remained closed till the lawyers got back to the high court after holding the rally at 1pm.

The lawyers on reaching Faisal Chowk staged a sit-in, and beat their chests to `mourn’ what they termed the darkest time in judicial history. “Our struggle will continue till the CJP’s restoration to his office.

“Let me announce that the government’s days have been numbered. It is time for the government to exit,” said the Lahore High Court Bar Association President Ahsan Bhoon while addressing the lawyers. The nation had joined hands against the government, he added.

The lawyers remained peaceful, and no untoward incident was reported except the one in which a group of lawyers caught an intelligence official impersonating as a lawyer.

The official was taking photographs of the protesting lawyers.

The lawyers, before getting back to the high court, again staged a sit-in at the GPO Chowk. They also raised slogans against a private TV channel for ‘damaging’ their cause.