PESHAWAR: Lawyers across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa boycotted courts on Tuesday in protest against the rising petroleum levy and continued increase in the prices of essential items.
On the call of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council, lawyers stayed away from the Peshawar High Court as well as district courts across the province, bringing judicial work to a halt. Protesting lawyers said the government was continuously raising the prices of petroleum products and food items, making life difficult for ordinary citizens.
They demanded that the petroleum levy be abolished immediately and that the government take concrete steps to control inflation. According to them, people were already distressed due to inflation and were struggling to afford even two meals a day, and it was the government’s responsibility to provide relief to the public.
The lawyers also expressed solidarity with the nationwide strike announced by Jamaat-e-Islami for the same day, saying they supported the party’s call against inflation. No untoward incident was reported during the boycott, and courts remained largely non-functional as judges adjourned cases due to the absence of counsel.
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