KARACHI, April 9: In response to a call for a province-wide protest given by the Sindh Bar Council (SBC), the legal fraternity on Saturday observed a 'black day' to mark the third anniversary of the April 9 attacks on courts and lawyers.

A lawyer, Altaf Abbasi, was burnt alive along with his clients in his Tahir Plaza office when the building was set on fire on April 19, 2008.

The office of the Malir Bar Association was also set ablaze while another lawyer, Shehryar Sheri, was shot dead outside the sessions courts (south) that day.

Responding to the protest call, lawyers at the lower courts wore black armbands, hoisted black flags on the bar office and held meetings to pay tribute to their slain colleagues. They also demanded a judicial inquiry into the tragic incidents.

A condolence reference was organised by the Karachi Bar Association at the Shuhada-i-Punjab Hall of the city courts.

Speaking at the meeting, leaders of the legal fraternity criticised the government for not exposing those who were behind the April 9 incidents. They also rejected the judicial inquiry conducted by the 'PCO-judiciary' into the tragic happenings.

KBA general-secretary Haider Imam Rizvi and some SBC members called for a fair judicial inquiry now when the judiciary's independent status had been restored.

Paying tribute to the April 9 victims, they urged the government to expose the culprits and bring them to justice.

The Malir Bar Association (MBA) also held a meeting to remember the April 9 tragedy. Meanwhile, the KBA and MBA observed a complete boycott of legal proceedings on Saturday as part of the protest.