KARACHI, April 12: The legal fraternity on Saturday asked the Sindh government to immediately arrest the perpetrators of the April 9 violence and punish them according to the law and pay compensation to the victims’ families.

The lawyers recalled that the April 9 incident was a link of the chain of events committed on May 12 by a political group to sabotage the lawyers’ struggle being waged for the restoration of the deposed judges.

Speaking at a general-body meeting of the Karachi Bar Association, held on Wednesday in the Shuhada-i-Punjab Hall of the City Courts, KBA president Mahmoodul Hasan rejected the allegation leveled by the MQM against KBA officials and said the legal fraternity’s peaceful struggle for the restoration of the Nov 2 judiciary, which was removed illegally, had no political or illegal motive.

He denied that the KBA lawyers had a tussle with the MQM-backed legal welfare action committee, adding that it was on the record that the lawyers had remained peaceful during their year-long struggle.

He also criticized the statement of President Musharraf that the April 9 violence was a reaction to the attacks on former federal minister Dr Sher Afgan Niazi and former Sindh chief minister Arbab Ghulam Rahim, and allged that presidency was hatching a conspiracy to derail the lawyers’ movement.

Pakistan Bar Council member Yaseen Azad said that lawyers were not involved in the manhandling of Dr Sher Afgan. In fact, he said, intelligence agencies were responsible for it as the presidency wanted to sabotage the lawyers’ movement.

The lawyers, he said, had never taken the law into their own hands throughout the movement.

“We hope that the judiciary would be restored to its Nov 2 position in accordance with the Murree declaration. The lawyers would launch a fresh movement if the ruling political parties failed to honour their promise. We would be ready to fight any power that tries to derail our struggle,” he added.

Sindh Bar Council member Salahuddin Gandapur said it was highly deplorable that one of the two men arrested in connection with the April 9 violence was released while the other was charged under 13-D of the Arms Ordinance by the Ferozabad police. He urged the government to arrest the culprits involved in the incident and expose them.

Prof Ghafoor Ahmed of the Jamaat-i-Islami condemned the violent acts against lawyers. He said the lawyers had set an example by sustaining the entire struggle in a very peaceful manner, and said he hoped that they would achieve their goal soon.

KBA secretary-general Naeem Qureshi alleged that the presidency was hatching conspiracies to sabotage the lawyers’ movement. He vowed to continue the struggle till the restoration of the deposed judges.

He demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident by the district and sessions judge, South.

The lawyers condoled with members of the bereaved families and offered fateha for the departed souls. The KBA also announced financial assistance for the families of Shehryar and Altaf Abbasi.

Meanwhile, Malir Bar Association president Amanullah Khan Yusufzai condemned the April 9 violence against the legal fraternity of Karachi and demanded an inquiry into the incident.

Speaking at a press conference at the Malir Courts, he urged the Sindh government to immediately arrest the elements involved in the incident.

Meanwhile, legal proceedings remained suspended on the third consecutive day at the City Courts and the District Court of Malir as the lawyers observed a boycott of court proceedings in response to the three-day mourning call given by the Sindh Bar Council and the Sindh High Court Bar Association to express solidarity with the victim of Wednesday’s violence. Under-trial prisoners were not brought to the police lockup at the City Courts.