Rawalpindi Courts Paralysed After Judge Assault
RAWALPINDI: The Express Tribune reported that judicial proceedings at Rawalpindi’s Judicial Complex and district courts were paralysed this week as lawyers, their clerks and court staff staged separate protests after Civil Judge Malik Ali Miran was attacked inside his chamber.
On the call of the District Bar Association, lawyers observed a complete strike and boycotted court proceedings. Judicial staff also stopped work in protest. The disruption left the courts largely empty of visitors by mid-morning, and cases listed for the day were mostly adjourned with fresh dates.
What happened in the judge’s chamber
According to the complaint filed by the judge’s reader, Tahir Abbas Shah, senior lawyer Aslam Khan Niazi and fellow advocate Muhammad Farooq Aslam tried to enter the judge’s chamber during court hours along with other lawyers. When stopped, they allegedly used abusive language, scuffled and forced their way inside.
The complaint says Aslam Niazi verbally abused the civil judge and asked why an application against him had been accepted. The judge reportedly replied that he had decided the application in accordance with the law and that an appeal could be filed against the decision.
Aslam Niazi then allegedly threatened the judge with serious consequences and struck him on the head with a glass, hitting him above the left eye. An FIR has been registered against seven lawyers, including Niazi, with charges relating to terrorism, assault and attempted murder. The FIR was sealed, and no lawyer had been arrested at the time of reporting.
Dawn reported earlier that the judge suffered cuts on his forehead and head that needed five to six stitches at Benazir Bhutto Hospital. The case was registered under Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act at the Civil Lines police station after a medico-legal examination. The attack followed a dispute over the dismissal of a stay order in a property case, The Truth International reported.
Strike and counter-protests
The District Bar Association’s strike call brought court work to a standstill. Heightened security was deployed at the Judicial Complex and the old district courts, with additional police personnel posted to prevent any confrontation. Visitors were allowed inside only after strict checking at the main entrances.
Judicial staff and lawyers’ clerks held separate rallies inside the complex. Court staff chanted slogans against terrorism and hooliganism, while the clerks protested what they described as intimidation and the registration of a false case.
The Bar Clerks Association backed the lawyers, calling the terrorism-related case retaliatory and fabricated. It demanded the FIR’s withdrawal and warned of daily protests if the case was not taken back.
District Bar Association President Malik Sajid Mahmood and Secretary Qamarul Haq Niazi said the arrest of any lawyer would have serious consequences, describing it as a red line for the bar. They said lawyers were willing to resolve the matter through dialogue but would not be blackmailed, and called on judges to correct their conduct.
Judges also stayed away
Judges did not speak publicly, but they were reported to have observed an unofficial strike, remaining in their chambers instead of hearing cases. On their instructions, court staff wore black armbands and held a protest rally inside the complex.
Court staff returned to their duties after 1pm, and the process for filing new cases was reopened before the end of the court day. But the morning’s hearings had largely been adjourned, with litigants given fresh dates.
LHC takes notice
The authorised authority of the Lahore High Court has taken notice of the incident. During high-level consultations between the bar and the bench, both sides agreed that the matter would be resolved through dialogue.
Dawn reported that District and Sessions Judge Rawalpindi Asghar Ali had already sought a detailed report on the attack, while Justice Sadaqat Ali Khan of the Lahore High Court’s Rawalpindi bench had also called for a report. CCTV footage of the incident has reportedly been secured.
Feature Pakistan covered the original attack on October 21, when the judge was injured and the FIR was registered. For other court and legal developments, see our coverage of the LHC plea for the release of Imran Khan’s sisters, the ATC’s orders on jail access for Imaan and Hadi’s legal team, and the Senate panel’s summoning of an ASF official over airport mistreatment.
