At least 55 people killed in two suicide blasts in Pakistan
Karachi (PTI): A powerful suicide blast ripped through a mosque in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province on Friday, killing at least 52 people and injuring over 50 others gathered to celebrate Prophet Muhammad's birthday, authorities said.
Hours later, another blast at a mosque in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Hangu city killed at least three people and injured five others.
The blast in Balochistan occurred near Madina Mosque on Al Falah Road in the Mastung district. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Mastung's Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Nawaz Gashkori, who was on duty for the rally, was among the deceased.
The explosion took place when people were gathering to mark Eid Miladun Nabi, the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad.
City Station House Officer (SHO) Mohammad Javed Lehri said the explosion was a "suicide blast" and that the bomber exploded himself next to DSP's car.
The bomb attack came a day after the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) killed a key Islamic State (ISIS) commander in the Mastung district.
Lehri said that the wounded are being shifted to a medical facility while an emergency has been imposed in the hospitals.
At least 52 people were killed and over 50 injured in the blast in Mastung, District Health Officer Rashid Muhammad Saeed said.
Some of the injured were in critical condition. Officials expressed concern that the number of casualties may increase.
Balochistan interim Information Minister Jan Achakzai said rescue teams have been dispatched to Mastung. He added the critically injured persons are being transferred to Quetta and that an emergency has been imposed in all the hospitals.
"The enemy wants to destroy religious tolerance and peace in Balochistan...," Achakzai said."The explosion is unbearable."
Caretaker Chief Minister Ali Mardan Domki has directed authorities to arrest those responsible for the blast.
"The perpetrators of the destruction do not deserve any leniency," he said. "Those who target peaceful processions will be dealt with firmly."
Chief Minister (CM) Domki urged the people to unite against terrorism, adding that Islam was a religion of peace and "those who commit such heinous acts cannot be called Muslims".
The caretaker CM also announced three days of mourning throughout the province over the tragic incident.
Interim Interior Minister Sarfraz Ahmed Bugti also strongly condemned the blast.
Stating that "terrorists have no faith or religion", Bugti asserted that all resources were being put to use during the rescue operation. He added that no effort would be spared in treating the injured and that terrorist elements did not deserve any concession.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President and former premier Shehbaz Sharif said that carrying out such a despicable act on an occasion marking the birth of the Holy Prophet is detestable now and in the hereafter.
He condemned the attack and offered condolences to the families of the deceased and injured.
Soon after the explosion in Balochistan, the Punjab police also said that its officers were performing security duties for Friday prayers at mosques across the province.
Meanwhile, the Karachi police said that Additional Inspector General Khadim Husain Rind has directed the police to remain "completely on high alert" in view of the Mastung blast.
He directed the policemen to tighten security arrangements regarding Eid-i-Miladun Nabi processions and Friday prayers across the city, as well as to monitor any unusual activities.
This is the second major blast that has terrorised Mastung over the last 15 days, Geo News reported.
Earlier this month, at least 11 people were injured in a blast in the same district.
Mastung has remained a target of terror attacks for the past several years with a major attack in July 2018 being one of the deadliest in the district's history during which at least 128 people were killed,
The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, which set up as an umbrella group of several terrorist outfits in 2007, called off a ceasefire with the federal government and ordered its terrorists to stage terrorist attacks across the country.
The group, which is believed to be close to al-Qaeda, has been blamed for several deadly attacks across Pakistan, including an attack on army headquarters in 2009, assaults on military bases, and the 2008 bombing of the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad.
In January, a Taliban suicide bomber blew himself up in a mosque packed with worshippers during afternoon prayers in Pakistan's restive northwestern Peshawar city, killing over 100 people.
Last year, a similar attack inside a Shia mosque in the Kocha Risaldar area in the city killed 63 people.
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BCI urges CJI to take action against Andhra HC judge for sending young lawyer to 24-hour custody
New Delhi (PTI): The Bar Council of India on Wednesday sought the urgent intervention of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant following a "deeply disturbing" incident where a judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court reportedly sent a young advocate to
24-hour judicial custody over a procedural lapse.
The Bar Council of India (BCI) Chairperson and senior advocate Manan Kumar Mishra, in a formal representation, termed the conduct of Justice Tarlada Rajasekhar Rao "grossly inappropriate" and "damaging to the confidence of the Bar".
“I most respectfully request your Lordship to kindly take immediate institutional cognizance of the matter and call for the video recording of the proceedings, the order passed, and the surrounding circumstances.
“I further request that appropriate administrative action may kindly be considered, including withdrawal of judicial work from the learned Judge pending review, his immediate transfer to some far off High Court, and his nomination for appropriate judicial training/orientation on court management, judicial temperament, Bar-Bench relations, and proportional exercise of contempt/judicial authority,” Mishra wrote.
This representation is made to preserve the “dignity, moral authority and public confidence of the judiciary”, he said, adding, “Judges command the highest respect not by fear, but by fairness, patience, restraint and constitutional humility”.
The communication urged the CJI to intervene at the earliest to ensure that the faith of Bar, particularly young advocates, in the protective and corrective role of the judiciary is restored.
The controversy stems from proceedings on May 5.
According to the BCI, a video circulating online shows Justice Rao rebuking a young advocate who was unable to produce a specific order copy during a hearing.
The letter said that despite the advocate "repeatedly seeking pardon and mercy" and claiming he was in physical pain, the judge remained "unmoved".
The judge allegedly told the lawyer, "now you will learn," and mocked his experience before directing the Registrar and police personnel to take him into custody for 24 hours.
The BCI chairperson said that the judge’s actions lacked proportionality and fairness.
"The dignity of the court is not enhanced when a lawyer is made to beg for grace in open court and is still sent to custody for a procedural lapse," the letter said.
"A young lawyer... is an officer of the Court, still learning, still growing, and entitled to correction without humiliation," it added.
The bar body said that such actions create a "chilling effect" on the legal fraternity, particularly among junior members, and undermine the mutual respect required between the Bench and the Bar.
