Journalists hold protest

KARACHI - The journalist community on Thursday held a pro-test demonstration over restricting them from getting the media coverage of Sindh High Court (SHC) reference bench for the martyred lawyers.The reporters and cameramen reached the courtroom for the coverage of martyred case but the security personnel stopped them without any justification.

The full court reference was held over the killing of five lawyers in different incident in the metropolitan during the lawyers’ movement, including April 9 incident that was presided over by chief justice of SHC Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali.

The lawyers condemned such action, but none of them put the matter during the reference as they showed their ignorance. Interestingly, some of the lawyers’ leaders have claimed that they raised the issue before the participants as well as the chief justice of SHC and boycotted the reference, but no initiative was taken.

Soon following the reference, the media representatives gathered in the court building and recorded their protest. At this, president of Bar Rasheed A Rizvi, secretary Munir-ur-Rahman and others showed their unawareness about the incident.

On the occasion, Rasheed A Rizvi called administrative officer of high court of Sindh Syéd Sadaqat Au to inquire about the authority who ordered to restrict the media-men but the official refused to expose the motif be-hind the matter, saying that he was bound to keep it secret.

Rizvi expressed that the said reference was originally the pro-gram of the bar and they hosted it. So without taking the bar into confidence, such action should not be taken by the government as well as the high court officials, adding that none of the higher authority has right to interfere in any such event.

Such violation of law and order would not be tolerated next.On the other side, after attending the said reference, Munir A Malik condemned the behavior of court officials and said that the media has been a part of the lawyers’ grand movement, so it should not be neglected at any cost, rather, the media men should be respected and treated with Prestige.

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