QUETTA, March 22: Acting Chief Justice of Pakistan Javed Iqbal has appointed Justice Ahmed Khan Lashari of the Balochistan High Court to conduct an inquiry into Wednesday’s police baton-charge on a procession of lawyers in Quetta. Two lawyers were injured in the incident.

The acting chief justice passed the orders in his chambers in the BHC building on Thursday after hearing submissions of government officials and an applicant. He directed the inquiry officer to submit the report in seven days.

The short order on a suo motu notice stated that the inquiry should fix responsibility on delinquent police officials for the alleged brutality, ascertain causes and suggest means and measures to avoid such incidents in future.

The Balochistan chief secretary, provincial police chief, home department additional secretary, advocate-general, Quetta police chief and the applicant, Supreme Court Bar Association vice-president Imranullah Haq, were present. Meanwhile, lawyers boycotted the courts in Quetta and other district headquarters of the province in protest against the police highhandedness.

The protesters took out a procession from the bar room of the district courts and passed through Jinnah Road, Circular Road and Zarghoon before staging a sit-in at a chowk near the provincial assembly.

Balochistan High Court Bar Association president Hadi Shakeel said use of force couldn’t suppress the lawyers’ movement against the unlawful suspension of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry.