Pakistan's ousted chief justice asks lawyers to fight for rule of law
ASIF SHAHZAD Associated Press Writer
Daily News, Florida: May 5th, 2007
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) - Pakistan's top judge, whose suspension by the country's military leader has sparked a political crisis, urged lawyers on Saturday to continue their fight to uphold the independence of the judiciary.
Lawyers and opposition figures have staged protests across the country maintaining that President Gen. Pervez Musharraf suspended the independent-minded judge to avert judicial challenges to upcoming elections.
"It is my request to you that you should forge unity among your ranks. This is your responsibility to strive for the supremacy and rule of law," Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry said in a televised speech, after arriving in the city of Gujrat from Islamabad.
Chaudhry's attorney, Munir A. Malik, said a "court of masses" had delivered a verdict in favor of the chief justice and said he hoped a panel of judges hearing charges would also find him innocent.
Chaudhry left the capital, Islamabad, on Saturday morning for the eastern city of Lahore where thousands were gathering for what was expected to be the biggest rally since he was sacked by Musharraf on March 9.
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