• Storm IHC, damage property
• Virtually hold Justice Athar Minallah hostage
• Lawyers’ bodies announce strike
• Senior members condemn incident

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) witnessed a dark day on Monday after it was stormed and damaged by angry lawyers protesting the demolition of their chambers by the city’s civic authority.

The violent lawyers laid siege to the courtroom and the chamber of IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah, virtually keeping him hostage for about three hours. They barged into the offices of the secretary to the IHC chief justice and his auxiliary staff, broke windows and even doors of the Chief Justice Block.

Following the incident, the high court ordered shutting down of the courts and the lawyers’ bodies issued a strike call against the razing of the ‘illegal’ chambers.

Police have registered First Information Report (FIR) against 21 lawyers under various sections of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA).

Besides, the lawyers will face contempt of court proceedings, a statement issued by the IHC said.

IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah also called on Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Gulzar Ahmed and apprised him of the situation.

According to sources, Justice Minallah discussed the pending suo motu notice pertaining to encroachment on a football ground where the lawyers had built their chambers in 2013.

The district administration, Capital Development Authority (CDA) as well as the local police had launched an anti-encroachment operation in the surroundings of the district courts in F-8 late Sunday night.

Dozens of illegally-constructed offices of the lawyers were demolished and around 10 lawyers were taken into custody for putting up resistance against the drive.

In response to the operation, some 400 lawyers gathered in the district courts on Monday morning. Later they left for the IHC in a convoy of 100 cars, reaching the court without any hindrance.

The lawyers stormed into the chamber of the IHC chief justice and damaged the property. They broke windows with flower pots and also hurled abuses at the judges.

The protesters manhandled the staff and even beat up the superintendent of police deployed at the Chief Justice Block. They forcibly stopped media from covering the unruly protest and also manhandled some journalists.

Justice Minallah as well as other IHC judges tried to calm them down but to no avail.

They continued the siege of the Chief Justice Block until the Rangers as well as police reinforcement took control of the premises.

The elected lawyers’ representatives held a session with the judges and tabled a charter of demands to end the standoff.

According to the demands, they sought reconstruction of the demolished chambers on state’s expense, removal of Deputy Commissioner Hamza Shafqaat and release of lawyers detained in the overnight operation. They also wanted the chief justice to announce acceptance of the demands before the lawyers in the bar room.

Sources said except the release of the detained lawyers, other demands were rejected outright by the judges.

They said the judges were of the view that those lawyers who had ruined the sanctity of the court must not go unpunished.

After the failed dialogue, the lawyers’ bodies – the Supreme Court Bar Association, Islamabad Bar Council, Islamabad High Court Bar Association and the District Bar Association of Islamabad – issued a strike call.

The security in-charge at the IHC, Inspector Mohammad Hayat, lodged the FIR under PPC and ATA with Ramna police station, nominating Tassaduq Hussain, Shehla Khan, Hammad, Umar Siyyam, Ahsan Majeed, Khalid Mehmood, Shaista Tabassum, Yasir Khan, Naheed advocate, Tashfeen, Raja Farrukh, Naseer Kiyani, Arbab Ayub Gujjar, Raja Zahid, Nusrat Perveen, Liaquat Manzoor, Naveed Malik, Asif Gujjar and others for storming into the IHC, damaging property and injuring officials on duty.

Lawyers’ bodies reaction

The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) condemned the demolition of lawyers’ chambers by CDA’s Enforcement Wing.

“The events that led to today’s incident were very regrettable and necessitate for thorough probe and investigation as such; SCBAP hereby demands a high-powered Judicial Commission constituted by Honourable Chief Justice of Supreme Court of Pakistan so that those found responsible must be brought to book quickly,” the SCBA statement said.

On the other hand, the IHCBA and the District Bar Association, in a joint statement, regretted the closure of courts and requested the Supreme Court chief justice to hold a judicial inquiry into the matter.

Senior lawyers, on the other hand, expressed displeasure over the handling of the matter by elected representatives. Additional Attorney General Tariq Mehmood Khokhar said the storming of the Islamabad High Court by a mob of lawyers was an attack on the judiciary.

“It’s a new low by the lawyers. Not so long ago a hospital in Lahore was ransacked and its staff beaten up. What next,” he said.

Senior lawyer Dr Mohammad Aslam Khaki said he would set his black coat on fire if the lawyers who attacked the IHC were not penalised.

Published in Dawn, February 9th, 2021