Lawyers' killing a test case for government, says Law Minister Tarar
Pakistan
The minister also highlights the significance of lawyers’ freedom to speak against injustice
ATTOCK (Dunya News) - Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar on Thursday spoke at the condolence reference of the murdered lawyers in Attock, where he assured the community of taking the killers to justice by declaring it a test case for the government.
“It is really sad that we will not be able to meet our friends again but I assure you that justice will prevail and we will do everything for the consolation of the bereaved families of Israr and Zulfiqar,” the minister said.
He said this was a textbook case of terrorism. “Every case has its merits and job of a lawyer is to present the case before the court and verdict is then announced on merit. No one will be allowed to go scot-free as lawyers are an important pillar of society,” he said.
“Good human beings and friends stay alive in our hearts forever. We should scratch our heads to find a way to stamp out events like these. Psychological screening should be made necessary for on-duty security personnel in order to stave off Attock-like incidents," he said.
The minister said there should be zero tolerance in cases of bringing arms to court premises.
The minister also highlighted the significance of lawyers’ freedom to speak against injustice as muzzling lawyers’ voice could lead to unintended consequences as happened in the past. He reminded that lawyers stood like a shield whenever democracy underwent difficult phases.
Background
An ASI of Elite Force gunned down two senior lawyers - Malik Israr Ahmed, a former president of the Punjab Bar Council, and Zulfiqar Mirza - with his official weapon in their chamber on the district court premises.
Security personnel arrested ASI Intizar Shah who targeted Malik Israr Ahmed over a grudge. Israr represented the ex-wife of the police official in a local family court in which the court anulled his marriage.
