ISLAMABAD, June 30: The lawyers of Islamabad Bar Association (IBA) on Saturday ended their week-long strike after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rehman removed three judges of the subordinate judiciary from their posts and assigned them administrative responsibilities.

A senior IHC official told Dawn that additional sessions judge Pervaizul Qadir Memon has been given the charge of additional registrar original jurisdiction (OS), civil judge Ehtasham Alam Khan as deputy registrar OS and civil judge Qudratullah as deputy registrar, judicial.

According to Javed Akbar Shah, the president of the bar, the IHC administration headed by the Chief Justice Rehman, after five-hour-long meeting with the representatives of the IHC bar and the IBA, had also initiated inquiry against the judges adding that until or unless they found innocent, they would remain at the administrative posts.

He said the IHC Chief Justice also assured to address the bar’s concerns regarding the absorption of judges of subordinate judiciary as well as of those officers who joined IHC from other departments since its establishment in January 2011.

After meeting with the IHC administration, Syed Nayyab Hassan Gardezi, the president of IHC bar, while addressing the lawyers gathering at district courts, alleged that the IHC administration did not observe the quota in appointments made in the IHC during last one and half year.

He, however, assured the lawyers that the administration had expressed its willingness to review these appointments and asked the lawyers to submit their proposals in this regard.

Earlier on June 26, the lawyers’ bodies of Islamabad went on strike after their meeting with the district and sessions judges of both the sessions divisions of Islamabad failed to make headway.

They were demanding the removal of the three judges of the subordinate judiciary for allegedly being incompetent and corrupt.

Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry on Thursday, however, intervened and asked the IHC CJ to hold meeting with lawyers’ representatives to resolve the controversy, Chaudhry Khalid, media coordinator of the IHC bar, said.

The lawyers on June 23 passed a resolution against these judges and warned of strike and boycotting court proceedings if the actions against the incompetent judges are not taken.

The resolution also demanded removal of other civil judges and senior officials of the IHC who have been appointed in relaxation of rules.

It may be pertinent to mention that on May 29 Mohammad Waqas Malik, a senior advocate of high court along with about 150 lawyers of both the bar associations of Islamabad challenged the appointments and absorption of judges and officials in the subordinate judiciary as well as in IHC administration.

The petitioners stated that during the appointments of the judges and other staff in the subordinate judiciary as well as in the IHC the quota was not observed.

They alleged that majority of appointments had been made from single province, whereas the initial quota of ICT, Punjab, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir was grossly neglected.

The petitioners claimed that a brother of a sitting IHC Judge was appointed as deputy registrar and the vacant posts were filled without advertising them in the national press and the appointments were also made in relaxation of the criteria.