Lawyers and district administration clash turns violent in Sahiwal

SAHIWAL: A confrontation between lawyers and the district administration in Chichawatni escalated sharply after members of the tehsil bar allegedly attacked the assistant commissioner’s office, damaged property, tore official files and threatened staff, according to police and administrative officials.

The latest developments came amid an already tense dispute between revenue officials and the Chichawatni Tehsil Bar Association. Police said Patwari Muhammad Zulqarnain was allegedly abducted by bar members and tortured before being recovered in an operation involving police, the Elite Force and Pera. Chichawatni City Police then registered a case against 60 to 70 lawyers on Zulqarnain’s complaint, making it the second FIR lodged against lawyers in two days.

An earlier case had already been registered by City Police on the complaint of Naib Tehsildar Ghulam Mustafa against advocates Tajmal Hussain Chadhar, Sohail Iqbal, Ihsan Farid and four unidentified individuals.

Attack allegations and security deployment

According to the latest FIR, close to 100 lawyers carrying sticks, iron rods and bamboo poles gathered outside the office of Assistant Commissioner Javed Lakhwaera. Eyewitnesses said arguments broke out between lawyers and revenue staff before lawyers entered the office and the staff tried to stop them. They said the clash continued for around 50 minutes.

Reports said the lawyers locked revenue offices before leaving, using padlocks they had brought with them. Revenue staff later broke those locks with hammers to reopen the offices. Lawyers tried to seize official records and tore a number of files.

Chichawatni DSP Saleem Rath said 60 to 70 police personnel had been deployed around the assistant commissioner’s office and the tehsil court complex as a security measure. He added that no lawyer had been arrested and that several had already secured bail in the earlier cases.

Work disrupted as both sides maintain protest

Eyewitnesses said revenue and judicial work had effectively halted, leaving large numbers of citizens stranded at the courts while lawyers remained occupied in internal meetings. At the same time, the tehsil bar association continued its boycott and protest, while patwaris maintained a pen-down strike.

Assistant Commissioner Javed Lakhwaera told Dawn by phone that the situation remained "non-negotiable" and that there was "no improvement." He said the matter had been taken up with the district and divisional administration.

Sahiwal District Bar Association President Marth Saeed Saghla said a complete strike was under way and that he had called a lawyers’ convention on Monday to consider the issue further.

Chichawatni Tehsil Bar President Sajjad Iqbal Gujjar said revenue officials were responsible for the dispute and alleged that the administration was failing to help lower tensions. He said lawyers wanted the issue settled peacefully, but claimed the district administration was resorting to coercive steps against them. He also alleged that two FIRs had so far been registered against lawyers on the instructions of the deputy commissioner.

How the dispute began

The standoff began two days earlier during routine court proceedings being conducted by Naib Tehsildar Ghulam Mustafa. Advocate Tajmal Hussain sought the officer’s attention but was refused, leading to a heated exchange. Tajmal then allegedly called fellow lawyers, who entered the revenue office and assaulted the official.

After that incident, patwaris went on strike in support of the revenue officer, while the tehsil bar backed the lawyers. Both sides also passed separate resolutions condemning each other. Repeated attempts to contact Deputy Commissioner Sami Ullah Farooq went unanswered.