The judge who sentenced to death the killer of slain Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer on Tuesday failed to show up at work and may be transferred after his courtroom was ransacked, lawyers said. Judge Pervez Ali Shah on Saturday convicted police bodyguard Malik Mumtaz Qadri over the January 4 assassination that exposed huge faultlines in Pakistan.
On Monday, dozens of furious Islamist lawyers ransacked Shah’s courtroom, smashing windows to protest against the judgement. “After yesterday’s protest and the attack on his office, the judge is not attending his office,” Malik Khalid Jawad, president of the district bar association in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, told AFP.
Asked about media reports that Shah has gone on indefinite leave, Khalid said: “What I know is that he is not coming to his office. The bar has also requested his transfer because it can create a law and order situation.” Lawyer Farooq Sulehria confirmed Monday’s attack and said lawyers would boycott Shah’s court because of the “unacceptable” sentencing.