Widespread protests in Mianwali; lawyers’ body anounce complete boycott

MIANWALI: The District Police Officer (DPO) Malik Abdul Aziz Wednesday said that the reaction in the city triggered by the torture incident of Dr Sher Afgan Niazi in Lahore last night was natural as a large number of people of his “biradari” are residents here. Talking to media he said the police have refrained from hard resistance to prevent loss of life and property.
Widescale protests here in the city in reaction to torture incident of Dr Sher Afgan Niazi in Lahore last night became violent late Tuesday as the bar room building and lawyers’ chambers at district courts were torched by a an enraged mob. Eye witnesses said as many as 14 chmbers of lawyers were gutted completely.
The DPO said that 2 DSPs had been already deputed at the courts who helped the authorities in controlling the fire and preventing injury or life loss.
According to APP district correspondent, large processions were seen in
the city and in its aftermath main roads of the city conencting Sargodha, Multan,
Rawalpindi and Mianwali- Bannu were closed to all kinds of traffic today.
Complying with the strike call of traders’ bodies as well as president district bar, all the business centres, retail markets, shops as well as schools and colleges remained closed and the protestors took to the streets today.
A number of people said to belong to the ‘biradari’ of Dr Sher Afghan, and his supporters, rallied across the city and burnt tyres along their way.
However,local police force despite its heavy presence preferred to observe the incidents without major intervention.
A number of citizens have expressed concern over the tense situation in the city, which is mourning the sad incident concerning Dr Niazi.
Meanwhile, an emergency meeting of the bar association here led by its president Sultan Sikander Khan has decided to lodge an FIR against 35 miscreants who set to fire their chambers and bar building. Lawyers said they had already indentified most of the persons involved.
The lawyers decided to boycott courts till the arrests of the miscreants involved in the fire incident.