12 suspects arrested for attack plot on Pakistan rally
Friday, May 11, 2007
POLICE have arrested 12 men suspected of plotting an attack on a rally addressed by Pakistan's top judge as gunmen fired at the home of a lawyer defending him, officials said yesterday.
Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf's suspension of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry on March 9 on misconduct charges has sparked nationwide protests by lawyers and opposition parties.
The popular support for the judge is seen as the most serious threat to Musharraf's rule since he seized power in a coup in October 1999.
Chaudhry has received fervent support from thousands of people when he has addressed bar associations in Sukkur, Hyderabad, Peshawar and Lahore and was scheduled to address lawyers in Karachi on May 12.
"Police have arrested 12 suspects who were planning trouble during the visit of the chief justice of Pakistan on May 12," interior secretary of Southern Sindh province Brigadier Ghulam Muhammad Muhtaram told AFP.
The suspects, who were arrested late Wednesday, were being interrogated to find out who their accomplices are and their plans for the attack, he said.
"The situation is tense and there are reports of bloody clashes on May 12, since both pro-government and opposition parties have announced rallies on the same day," Muhtaram said.
Chaudhry was advised late Wednesday by the home department to postpone his visit, he added. But his lawyers have said he will not do so.
Authorities fear clashes between Chaudhry's supporters and the ruling Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) party, a close ally of Musharraf.
Separately, unknown gunmen fired at the home of a senior lawyer defending Chaudhry, but he escaped unharmed.
"Unknown persons opened fire on my house while I was with my family," Munir A Malik, the president of the supreme court bar association told AFP.
"We all took refuge in a room when several bullets were fired which damaged walls and some other parts of the house," he said.
"Musharraf and his allies are creating a law and order situation as they are scared of the chief justice's defiance and popularity among the people," Malik said.
Police were investigating the firing on Malik's house and will provide him with security but the recent arrests have nothing to do with the incident, Muhtaram said. AFP
Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf's suspension of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry on March 9 on misconduct charges has sparked nationwide protests by lawyers and opposition parties.
The popular support for the judge is seen as the most serious threat to Musharraf's rule since he seized power in a coup in October 1999.
Chaudhry has received fervent support from thousands of people when he has addressed bar associations in Sukkur, Hyderabad, Peshawar and Lahore and was scheduled to address lawyers in Karachi on May 12.
"Police have arrested 12 suspects who were planning trouble during the visit of the chief justice of Pakistan on May 12," interior secretary of Southern Sindh province Brigadier Ghulam Muhammad Muhtaram told AFP.
The suspects, who were arrested late Wednesday, were being interrogated to find out who their accomplices are and their plans for the attack, he said.
"The situation is tense and there are reports of bloody clashes on May 12, since both pro-government and opposition parties have announced rallies on the same day," Muhtaram said.
Chaudhry was advised late Wednesday by the home department to postpone his visit, he added. But his lawyers have said he will not do so.
Authorities fear clashes between Chaudhry's supporters and the ruling Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) party, a close ally of Musharraf.
Separately, unknown gunmen fired at the home of a senior lawyer defending Chaudhry, but he escaped unharmed.
"Unknown persons opened fire on my house while I was with my family," Munir A Malik, the president of the supreme court bar association told AFP.
"We all took refuge in a room when several bullets were fired which damaged walls and some other parts of the house," he said.
"Musharraf and his allies are creating a law and order situation as they are scared of the chief justice's defiance and popularity among the people," Malik said.
Police were investigating the firing on Malik's house and will provide him with security but the recent arrests have nothing to do with the incident, Muhtaram said. AFP
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