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Lahore’s GPO Chowk on Wednesday became a battleground between riot police and lawyers after the latter staged a protest rally and attempted to enter the Lahore High Court (LHC).
The lawyers’ attempts to gain entry into the high court were repelled by police, who baton-charged, fired tear gas at and used water cannons to disperse them.
Rana Bilal, present at the scene, reported that violence erupted as lawyers, including members from the Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA), demanded the dismissal of a terror case filed against fellow lawyers, and protested against the shifting of a court to a different location.
The correspondent said that dozens of lawyers were arrested and wounded in police action, while some members of the press, law enforcement agencies and bystanders were also affected.
Negotiations between the police and lawyers have so far failed to resolve the impasse, the correspondent on the ground added.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said she had directed Inspector General Dr Usman Anwar to “refrain from using force against the lawyers”.
“Lawyers must also resolve their matters with LHC amicably. For the safety of the citizens of Lahore, confrontation should be avoided,” she said in a post on X.
Speaking to Dawn News, LHCBA President Asad Butt said that the lawyers’ protest would continue until their demands are met.
“The police have inflicted cruelty by using force against a peaceful march,” Butt said, noting that dozens of lawyers have been injured by tear gas shelling.
He demanded that the notification of the division of courts be withdrawn immediately, and that cases filed against lawyers should be dismissed.
According to a press release by the Punjab Bar Council, dated May 7, the LHCBA’s joint action committee — comprising a dozen members — had met on Tuesday where it had decided to “welcome” the protest rally announced by the Lahore Bar Association.
The Punjab Bar Council had demanded that the notification of “dividing the lawyers under the guise of the unjust division of Model Town courts” be withdrawn and that terror cases against lawyers be squashed. It had further announced a complete strike in all bar associations across Punjab.
SCBA, PBC condemn police action
The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) strongly condemned the “police high-handedness against the peacefully protesting lawyers” and urged Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa to take suo motu notice of the incident.
In a statement, SCBA President Shahzad Shaukat, Secretary Syed Ali Imran and the bar’s executive committee “expressed solidarity with the lawyers and their just stance”.
“Numerous lawyers have reportedly sustained serious injuries and many have been unjustly detained,” the statement highlighted.
It demanded immediate medical attention for the wounded and the prompt release of the arrested lawyers.
The SCBA lawyers also strongly condemned and criticised the “inept handling of this very sensitive matter” by LHC Chief Justice Malik Shahzad Ahmad Khan, who, they said, “failed to resolve the issue despite repeated appeals from the Bar”.
They highlighted that the lawyers’ arrests were a “clear infringement of the principles of democracy, freedom of expression, and the right to dissent”.
“If the police brutality continues unchecked and the lawyers’ just & fair demands remain unmet, this protest will escalate into a nationwide movement, with SCBA spearheading the call for nationwide action,” the Bar’s statement said.
Separately, the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) Vice Chairman Riazat Ali Sahar “vehemently condemned the reprehensible police brutality inflicted upon” the lawyers.
In a press release, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, Sahar said that lawyers across the country would “stage a complete strike” tomorrow as well as “convene protest meetings, marches and rallies in their respective bar rooms”.
Detailing the reasons for the protest, he said the lawyers were “engaged in a peaceful protest against the notification to transfer cases to the ‘Model Town kutchery’ and the unjustified registration of terrorism cases against their fraternity”.
Criticising “excessive and unwarranted use of police force against lawyers”, the PBC vice chairman demanded “immediate and decisive action from both the federal and Punjab governments, along with senior police officers, to address the involvement of police officials in this shameful and inhuman act”.
He further expressed disappointment towards the LHC chief justice, stating that the failure to resolve the longstanding issue through peaceful negotiation contributed to the situation.
Earlier, footage broadcast on television showed a large number of riot personnel and lawyers clashing, with what appeared to be tear gas blanketing GPO Chowk.
In a post on X at around 12:30pm, the Lahore Traffic Police said that a diversion had been placed at High Court Chowk and Istanbul Chowk towards GPO Chowk.
It further added that the Cantt deputy superintendent of police was present at the scene along with “additional contingents”.
Speaking to Dawn News, Lahore bureau chief Muhammad Bilal said that all gates and roads to the LHC have been shut so that the lawyers could not enter the court.
He noted that since the LHCBA had announced the rally beforehand, there was already a heavy police contingent present at the scene with anti-riot forces and water cannons.
“While the rally was making its way to the court, it was peaceful. The police began taking action once the lawyers tried to make their way into the court,” the bureau chief said, describing the situation as “pretty tense”.
Meanwhile, when asked why the police resorted to shelling at the lawyers, a senior superintendent of police said the protesters had first pelted stones at the police and tried to engage them in a fight.