LAHORE, March 7: Deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry will address all bars in the country by telephone on March 13.

This was announced at a press conference on Friday by Punjab Bar Council vice-chairman Mohammad Aslam Sindhu, Supreme Court Bar Association vice-president Ghulam Nabi Bhatti, Lahore High Court Bar Association secretary Rana Asadullah Khan, Lahore Bar Association president Manzoor Qadir and SCBA media coordinator Mohammad Azhar Siddiqui.

They said the lawyers’ community had launched a campaign to mobilise the people for protests and the response had been ‘very positive’.

Mr Sindhu said SCBA president Aitzaz Ahsan would address all the bars on March 10. He said Justice Iftikhar would address all bars in the country from his residence in Islamabad.

He said lawyers would hold rallies and meetings to condemn the actions taken on Nov 3 last year and boycott courts throughout next week. He said lawyers would hoist black flags on their homes, offices and bar rooms and the general public, including traders, students, members of civil society and professionals, would join them.

The bar leaders said independence of the judiciary was the slogan of every Pakistani as they felt that the country could not be put on the track of real democracy and their problems would not be solved without a neutral and impartial institution to keep a check on people in power. They said the lawyers’ movement had infused a new spirit in the masses whose participation would bring about a rapid change in the situation.

They said the legal fraternity all over the country was united and in high spirits to observe the week to press the demand for reinstatement of the deposed judges and restoration of the Constitution of 1973.

Mr Sindhu said the masses and the lawyers strongly believed that the judiciary would be independent and impartial and independent judges would rise above all temptations and fear to administer justice as per the Constitution and the law even if it annoyed a president or prime minister. He said the deposed judges were tested people and the masses had reposed full confidence in them.

He said the bar would soon take up the matter of violation of the boycott of the courts by some lawyers.