KARACHI, April 11: President Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Munir A. Malik has asked lawyers to maintain unity in their ranks and be prepared to continue their campaign for the judiciary’s independence and the strengthening of democratic institutions in the country.

Speaking at a general body meeting of Malir Bar Association (MBA) on Wednesday, he said an important meeting of representative bodies of lawyers’ fraternity would be held today (Thursday) at Islamabad to decide a future line of action. He said lawyers from every nook and corner of the country were in contact with him and all of them were determined to run the campaign till the CJP’s reinstatement.

He said lawyers at the country level would observe a full day strike on April 13. He appreciated the MBA members for their struggle. Member Sindh Bar Council Mehmood-ul-Hasan and MBA Preident Zahoor Hussain Mehar also spoke on the occasion.

Four MBA members observed a token hunger strike in the bar room. They were Saeed-ul-Hasan, Zafar Nadeem, Bahadur Khan Khattak and Razaq Nawal. All members also stayed away from court proceedings from 10.30am to 11.30am.

Various associations of lawyers’ fraternity have decided to form human chain at Quaid-e-Azam mausoleum on Friday. This is the latest in their protest campaign against the CJP’s suspension.

Speaking at a general body meeting at the city courts, KBA General Secretary Naeem Qaureshi said lawyers were determined to continue their campaign and would not compromise on principles.

He said such unity was displayed for the first time in the country’s judicial history. He said the lawyers would achieve their goal at all costs.

He said members of Pakistan Bar Council (PBC), Sindh Bar Council (SBC) Sindh High Court Bar Association (SHCBA), KBA, and Malir Bar Association would take out processions from their respective bars on April 13 and meet at Saeed Manzil. He said lawyers would form a human chain at the Quaid-i-Azam mausoleum in order to inform the masses about the unconstitutional and illegal acts of President Pervez Musharraf.

Vice President KBA Qadir Khan said President Mushsrraf’s act against the CJP was condemned by lawyers at the international level which, he said, had further encouraged the legal fraternity in Pakistan. Criticising dictators, he said the people were fed up with military rulers and the government would be unable to control the people’s fury.

Fourteen members of KBA observed a token hunger strike in the city courts. They were Mohammad Munsif Jan, M.Peer Rehman Mehsud, Mohammad Ali Rana, Waqas Ahmed Khan, Amanullah Kakar, kifayatullah, Syed Shahid Bukhari, Haji Rana Akbar Ali, Mohammad Irfan Gujar, Shafiq Butt, Ilyas Awan, Anand Kumar, Ibrahim Shaikh and Abdul Qadir Syed. Lawyers in the city courts stayed away from the courts proceedings from 10.30am to 11.30am.

Three SHCBA members, Anjum Mahmood, Irshad Ahmed Qureshi and Sarwar Mohammad Khan observed a token strike on Wednesday. They were garlanded and felicitated by former federal law minister N.D. Khan, former provincial law minister Mazharul Haq, Pakistan Bar Council member Rasheed A. Razvi, Karachi Bar Association President Iftikhar Javed Qazi, Sindh Bar Council members Mustafa Lakhani, Mohammad Aqil and Ghulam Nabi Shaikh and Advocates Moshaffay Ahmed and Siraj Ahmed.