Lawyers hold strike in K-P
The strike was held against the growing numbers of incidents of violence against lawyers and kidnapping for ransom.
PESHAWAR:
Lawyers in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) observed a province-wide strike against the growing numbers of incidents of violence against lawyers and kidnapping for ransom on Monday. The provincial capital lawyers boycotted all proceedings of the Peshawar High Court (PHC) and subordinate courts and staged a rally from PHC building to Justice Kiyani Chowk, chanting slogans against the police and government.
Earlier, addressing a meeting at the PHC, the Peshawar High Court Bar Association (PHCBA) President, Syed Mohamamd Attique Shah, announced
that lawyers would no longer fight cases of alleged kidnappers in courts.
Shah hoped that all lawyers who were presenting cases of kidnapping suspects would return the case fee and refuse to contest their cases in courts.
He asked the K-P Police Chief, Fiaz Ahmad Khan Toru, to replace the police officers in the provincial capital, including the chief of the capital city police, as they had failed in curtailing the growing incidents of kidnapping.
Attique Shah said that the kidnapers released Hamid Shehzad, resident of Peshawar on Sunday, after receiving
Rs1 million in ransoms from his family.
He said that providing protection and security to citizens is the states constitutional responsibility and if the provincial government unable to protect its citizens then it should resign.
He pointed out that in the case of Zain Khan Khalil’s kidnapping, the PHC chief justice summoned the city police chief, but instead an investigation officer turned up at the court in place of police chief, which showed his lack of interest in the case.
Another meeting, he said, would be held after Eid on November 23 in which they will review the progress in these cases and would decide whether to go on indefinite strike or not.
Released lawyers, Hamid Shehzad and Jamroz Khan, said that kidnappers and police have developed links and that was why citizens were being kidnapped without resistance.
Lawyers from different parts of the province, in a meeting held on Saturday, had decided that lawyers would no longer plead cases of suspects arrested under charges of kidnapping for ransom.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 16th, 2010.
Lawyers in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) observed a province-wide strike against the growing numbers of incidents of violence against lawyers and kidnapping for ransom on Monday. The provincial capital lawyers boycotted all proceedings of the Peshawar High Court (PHC) and subordinate courts and staged a rally from PHC building to Justice Kiyani Chowk, chanting slogans against the police and government.
Earlier, addressing a meeting at the PHC, the Peshawar High Court Bar Association (PHCBA) President, Syed Mohamamd Attique Shah, announced
that lawyers would no longer fight cases of alleged kidnappers in courts.
Shah hoped that all lawyers who were presenting cases of kidnapping suspects would return the case fee and refuse to contest their cases in courts.
He asked the K-P Police Chief, Fiaz Ahmad Khan Toru, to replace the police officers in the provincial capital, including the chief of the capital city police, as they had failed in curtailing the growing incidents of kidnapping.
Attique Shah said that the kidnapers released Hamid Shehzad, resident of Peshawar on Sunday, after receiving
Rs1 million in ransoms from his family.
He said that providing protection and security to citizens is the states constitutional responsibility and if the provincial government unable to protect its citizens then it should resign.
He pointed out that in the case of Zain Khan Khalil’s kidnapping, the PHC chief justice summoned the city police chief, but instead an investigation officer turned up at the court in place of police chief, which showed his lack of interest in the case.
Another meeting, he said, would be held after Eid on November 23 in which they will review the progress in these cases and would decide whether to go on indefinite strike or not.
Released lawyers, Hamid Shehzad and Jamroz Khan, said that kidnappers and police have developed links and that was why citizens were being kidnapped without resistance.
Lawyers from different parts of the province, in a meeting held on Saturday, had decided that lawyers would no longer plead cases of suspects arrested under charges of kidnapping for ransom.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 16th, 2010.