Lawyers in Lahore go on strike on Thursday, after talks between the Lahore High Court Bar Association and the city administration broke down, a Pakistani broadcaster reported, while doctors in Islamabad also observed a strike after fierce clashes between doctors and lawyers at a hospital
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th December, 2019) Lawyers in Lahore go on strike on Thursday, after talks between the Lahore High Court Bar Association and the city administration broke down, a Pakistani broadcaster reported, while doctors in Islamabad also observed a strike after fierce clashes between doctors and lawyers at a hospital.
According to broadcaster Geo tv, Lahore's lawyers protest what they consider to be torture and unlawful arrests by police during Wednesday's incident at the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC).
Pakistan Bar Council Vice-Chairman Syed Amjad Shah denied accusations that lawyers were responsible for the attack, which saw hospital property and cars parked in the hospital grounds vandalized, the broadcaster reported. The council held two-hour long talks with city officials that proved to be unsuccessful.
A video of the incident was circulated on Twitter that appeared to show a crowd of people in suits clashing with riot police outside of the hospital. In a statement on Wednesday, Punjab Provincial Minister for Information Fayyaz ul Hasan Choban claimed that the mob, reportedly comprised of lawyers, tried to kidnap him.
In response to the violent incident in Lahore, doctors working in state hospitals in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad, called a two-hour strike on Thursday morning and demanded the safety of health professionals.
"The All Employees PIMS Restoration Movement (AEPRM) strongly condemns the terrorist attack carried out at the Punjab Institute of Cardiology by so-called lawyers. We stand by our brothers and sisters at PIC at this crucial moment, and condemn the criminal negligence of the Punjab government, which failed to extend security to health professionals in the province," AEPRM's spokesman Dr. Asfandyar said in a statement provided to Pakistani newspaper The news.
On Thursday, Punjab police opened criminal proceedings against 250 lawyers on charges including trespassing, rioting with a deadly weapon, and assault, media reported.
In the immediate aftermath of the incident, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan called an emergency session of parliament. Khan demanded an immediate report into the violent clash. �
