PBC condemns target killing of 5 lawyers

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) has demanded of the government to immediately arrest the culprits of target killings of advocates and those involved in murder attacks on others, and try them in Anti-Terrorism Courts for awarding exemplary punishments.

In a statement issued here on Monday, Vice Chairman Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) Abid Saqi expressed grave concern on rapidly increasing lawlessness in the country and strongly condemned the successive target killings of more than five advocates and murder attacks on many others.

He said that five advocates have been subjected to target killings including Sami Ullah Bajwa, Advocate and his brother, who was law student from Sargodha; Iqbal Gujjar, Advocate, with his two friends, from Kasur; Ijaz Ahmed, Advocate, from Faisalabad, Zain Ghaffar, Advocate, from Lahore and Kausar Saqlain, Advocate, from Karachi.

Similarly, he said that victims of murder attacks included Malik Afzaal Awan, Advocate with his two brothers from Lahore; Shahzad Munir Bhatti, President, DBA, Pakpattan, Mst. Irshad Nasreen, Advocate from Depalpur; & Sohail Sherazi, Advocate, from Sialkot, who were also abducted and physically tortured.

He further said that Mst. Irshad Nasreen, Advocate, was abducted from tehsil courts, Depalpur on 14th August, and was continuously subjected to physical torture till 22nd August, 2020, when was found hands tightened in crops fields.

Abid Saqi said that it is deeply painful that in just three weeks of the current month, more than five advocates are victims of target killings whereas many more have been survived in murder attacks after being subjected to physical torture.