CCPO blows away lawyers’ fears, strike

Lawyers boycotted all court proceedings on Monday to protest poor security arrangements at the City Courts. The offices remained locked while lawyers took to the streets instead of the courts and shouted slogans against the security lapse that  enabled the terrorists to carry out the attack on Saturday, in which a police official was also killed.

Crowds of family members and relatives of prisoners, who were due in court for their hearings, were kept waiting since the prisoners could not be brought in. Shops of stamp vendors and oath commissioners were also closed.

However, the strike, initially called for an ‘indefinite period’, was put off when the Capital City Police Officer (CCPO), Waseem Ahmed, met the lawyers and assured them that the security measures were being put in place. For now, the lawyers’ fraternity has called off the strike till July 5, to see if the level of security was adequate.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Mehmoodul Hassan, President Karachi Bar Association, said that they had been assured by the CCPO of a foolproof security plan for the city courts. Fifty policemen have been deployed at the entry and exit points of the courts on a permanent basis, he said. Meanwhile, it is planned that the wall around the court will be raised to a height of eight feet. Other measures include installation of CCTV-cameras and walk-through gates.

During the meeting with the CCPO, it was also agreed that the City Court Police Station, which had been shifted off the premises earlier, would be brought back to the City Courts.

Moreover, court muharars, or clerks, have to wear uniforms. “If any muharar is found without his uniform then strict action will be taken against him,” Hassan warned.

He said that the lawyers had no other option but to go on strike because violence in the court has become a routine and lawyers and judges are constantly working in fear.

According to him, the CCPO has promised that the security plan will be implemented within 15 days. A meeting will be held between the police and lawyers to assess the situation later on. Briefing the media outside the courts, the CCPO said that  demands of the lawyers are genuine and they are trying to meet them as best as they could. “We have started meeting the demands by relocating the City Court Police Station from Risala to here,” he said.

He said that since the chief secretary is out of the city, work on the walk-through gates and construction of boundary walls cannot be started yet. However, once the secretary returns, these measures will be put in place as well. No vehicles will be allowed to enter the court premises without official stickers, which have to be issued by the Karachi Bar.

The court police’s SP Security, Rana Pervez, has been replaced by Dr Najeeb as the lawyers had demanded, added the CCPO.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 22^nd, 2010.