Lawyers continue protest.

Lahore -- On the call made by the Punjab Bar Council (PbBC), the lawyers community locked down the courts yesterday across the Punjab province.

The lockdown call was made after the expiration of their 48-hour ultimatum for the release of lawyers arrested in connection with the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) carnage.

A PbBC meeting held in the chair of Vice Chairman Shahnawaz Ismaeel made the decision after the lawyers arrested in the PIC attack case had not been released nor the section 7 of the Anti-terrorism Act (ATA) excluded from the FIRs.

As per the decision, lawyers led by their respective bar associations office-bearers, took out protest rallies and also stageed sit-ins for one hour across the province.

Earlier, hundreds of black coats assembled at the Punjab Bar Council to attend a convention where prominent lawyer Ali Ahmed Kurd delivered a speech. He warned that if the arrested lawyers were not released within 48 hours, the lawyers' community would go to any extent. He said, 'We do not want to turn the situation into chaos,'

Meanwhile, the PbBC vice chairman fired broadside at judges, saying: 'The lawyers made sacrifices for the restoration of judiciary but when the lawyers needed their support, the judges played the role of traitors.'

The lawyers demand immediate action against the doctors whose instigation led to the occurrence of the unpleasant incident at the heart hospital.

The lawyers also demand the formation of a judicial commission comprised of Supreme Court judge to investigation the unpleasant incident.

They criticised the government for its failure to properly handle the situation, and said that its sluggishness caused the occurrence of an the incident.

Showing its anger earlier, the PbBC suspended the licences of Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar and provincial ministers Raja Basharat and Fayyazul Hassan Chohan for 'disgracing' lawyers on the PIC occurrence.

Amidst...