The lawyers and bar associations observed ‘Black Day’ on Friday against the unlawful steps General Pervez Musharraf took against the judiciary on March 9, 2007. The lawyers wore black armbands and hoisted black flags on the bar offices. Meetings were also held to criticise the dictator for the damages he inflicted against the judiciary, constitution and legal community to prolong his regime. Five years ago, Musharraf deposed Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry when he refused to support Musharraf’s unconstitutional regime and re-election as president in military uniform.
The Punjab Bar Council had called for the observation of the Black Day. The Lahore High Court bar Association held a general house meeting at the Kiyani Hall of the bar, which was attended by a large number of lawyers gathered at the bar meeting to register their protest, wearing black armbands. Addressing lawyers here on Friday, former president of Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Asma Jahangir condemned sacking of CJP Iftikhar Chaudhry by Musharraf and appreciated historic sacrifices made by lawyers’ community for restoration of independent judiciary and end of the dictator.
Paying tribute to CJP Iftikhar Chaudhry for his bold stand against the military dictator, Asma urged him to solve the problems faced to ordinary litigants and the public as people are looking towards him with hope. Asma said, “‘ lawyers are ready to give every sacrifices for independence of judiciary only if judges and the courts work within the parameters of constitution and law and give justice to the common man, instead of politicized cases”. She regretted that still common people can not get justice easily from the courts. She said after a long struggle for independent judiciary the masses and the lawyers had pined high expectations on judiciary. About working of the judicial commission of Pakistan regarding appointment of judges, Asma said it needs to be made partial and depoliticized so that honest judges may come in courts for giving justice to people.
SC demands medical
report of citizen injured by twine: A two-member bench of the Supreme Court’s Lahore Registry asked the Punjab government on Friday to file a report about the treatment facilities being provided to a citizen whose throat was slashed by kite twine.
The SC bench comprising of Justices Tassaduq Hussain Jillani and Mian Saqib Nisar, was hearing a suo motu notice against the incident in which Faheem, a citizen, was injured.
The SC imposed a ban on kite flying in 2005 in the wake of the deaths caused by glass-polished twine used in kite-flying. The ban was regularly violated before Fahim got injured, leading to the SC taking a special notice of it. During the hearing, the Punjab Additional Advocate General told the bench that manufacturing kites and twine in Punjab is completely banned and that the government has also passed legislations regarding the matter.
The bench adjourned the hearing after issuing directions for the submission of a report on the condition of the victim as well as the details of the medical treatment being provided to him.
