PESHAWAR: The lawyers’ community boycotted courts in different towns of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and held rallies on Monday against spiralling prices of daily use commodities and petroleum products in the country.

The Peshawar High Court Bar Association (PHCBA) had given call for the strike, directing the bar associations in its jurisdiction to observe boycott of courts and hold meetings against growing prices of daily use commodities.

In this regard, the PHCBA and the Peshawar District Bar Association held a joint general body meeting, condemning the unbearable price hike, which had pushed the middle and low income groups against the wall.

Pakistan Bar Council’s vice-chairman Khushdil Khan, member of Pakistan Bar Council Tariq Afridi, PHCBA’s President Bahlol Khattak, general secretary Qaiser Zaman, Peshawar District Bar Association’s President Amjid Ali Marwat and other senior lawyers attended the meeting.

The lawyers stated that economic policies of the present government were a complete failure, due to which the people were suffering.

Through a unanimously adopted resolution, the lawyers condemned the devastating price hike, which had directly affected the common people.

The meeting demanded of the government to immediately reduce prices of all items to reasonable level.

The PHCBA, Supreme Court Bar Association, Pakistan Bar Council and KP Bar Council constituted a 17-member committee for launching a lawyers’ movement against price hike.

Later, the lawyers took out a rally up to the KP Assembly building. They were carrying banners and raising slogans against the government over rising inflation.

In Charsadda, the lawyers staged a protest rally against skyrocketing inflation and frequent increases in rates of petroleum products and electricity. The protesting lawyers started marching from the judicial complex, and after passing through various roads, reached the Mardan Road where they blocked it to vehicular traffic.

The lawyers holding placards chanted slogans against the unbridled increase in prices of essential food items.

In Mardan, members of district bar association held a protest demonstration against price hike at the Kutcheri Chowk.

The protesting lawyers were led by district bar president Asif Iqbal.

In Mansehra, the legal fraternity took out a rally against high inflation and demanded of the government to withdraw the increase in oil, gas and electricity prices.

The participants of the rally, which started from Kutcheri, assembled at the Khatma-i-Nubowat Chowk after marching through Kashmir and Abbottabad roads. Holding banners and placards, the protesters chanted slogans against the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government.

In Abbottabad, a rally was taken out by the district bar and the local chapter of PHCBA to record their protest against unbridled price hike.

Sabir Tanoli Advocate, president of PHCBA, local chapter, and Abdus Sattar Khan, president district bar, spoke on the occasion, expressing concern over steep rise in rates of petroleum and daily use commodities.

In Bajaur, the lawyers’ community held a protest rally against increase in prices of petroleum products and other essential commodities.

The rally led by district bar association president Arab Gul Advocate started from district judicial complex and turned into a public meeting outside the deputy commissioner’s office in the Civil Colony Khar.

In Swabi, the district bar association staged a protest demonstration against increasing prices of essential commodities and recent surge in rates of petroleum products.

The protesting lawyers led by district bar president Daniyal Khan took out a procession from Shahmansoor Judicial Complex to the Karnal Sher Khan Chowk.

Meanwhile, PPP workers and leaders also held a rally against high inflation. The party activists were holding banners inscribed slogans against inflation. During the protest, traffic on the Swabi-Mardan, Swabi-Maneri and Swabi-Jehangira rods remained suspended.

In Lower Dir, the legal fraternity boycotted court proceedings in protest against the rising inflation and unemployment.

Addressing the protesting lawyers in Timergara, district bar president Shah Faisal Advocate said increase in prices of petroleum products had caused massive inflation.

Legal fraternity also held protest demonstrations against price hike in Nowshera, Dera Ismail Khan, and other parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2021