LHCBA to observe weekly protest

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court Bar Association on Wednesday decided to launch weekly protest to denounce violence on lawyers on August 21—the day when a larger bench of the Lahore High Court issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Multan Bar President Sher Zaman Qureshi who is facing charges of attacking a courtroom at Multan Bench.

The bar leadership held a meeting and said that violence on lawyers was condemnable as it was not made even during the army rule. Bar’s Finance Secretary Zaheer Butt also fell injured during clash between police and lawyers on the premises of the bar, said a press release issued on Wednesday evening.

It said containers were never put on the LHC premises but now this had happened. The office-bearers of the bar said they condemned containers on the premises of the Lahore High Court. It said the litigants were suffering due to the containers, adding that the bar would hoist black flag every Thursday and wear black bands to condemn the violence.  

On August 21, over 100 lawyers clashed with security personnel and broke past the judges’ entry gate of the Lahore High Court when the Lahore High Court issued non-bailable arrest warrants for their colleague Sher Zaman Qureshi, LHCBA Multan president, who repeatedly refused to comply with the court orders regarding a contempt matter. The riot police deployed inside the high court premises were unable to contain the protesting lawyers and resorted to using water cannons and tear gas to disperse them. The charged lawyers mar­ched on The Mall and congregated outside the LHC judges’ gate in an attempt to restrict the exit of Chief Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and other judges. On Tuesday, a group of lawyers staged a demonstration to show their support for Sher Zaman Qureshi. The protesting lawyers also vented their anger on the media persons present on the premises of the court for coverage of the event.