Lawyers boycott courts to protest colleague’s murder

PESHAWAR: Lawyers in the provincial capital stayed away from court proceedings on Tuesday on the call of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council in protest against the killing of a senior lawyer.

The strike led to the suspension of legal proceedings in both the Peshawar High Court and lower courts, causing significant disruption to judicial affairs. No lawyers appeared before the courts on the day of the protest, forcing the adjournment of all scheduled hearings. Litigants, many of whom had traveled from remote areas for their cases, were turned away and asked to return on rescheduled dates.

The newly elected president of the Peshawar High Court Bar, Ameen-ur-Rehman Advocate, Ashfaq Daudzai, Qaiser Zaman, Zahidullah Zahid, Yasir Khattak and others condemned the murder of Mian Jamal Shah, a senior lawyer.

They expressed concern over the increasing incidents of violence targeting members of the legal fraternity and criticised the police and administration for their failure to ensure the safety of lawyers despite repeated demands. The bar leaders urged the government to immediately arrest those involved in the killing of Mian Jamal Shah. They warned that the law and order situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, particularly in Peshawar, is deteriorating rapidly.