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Pakistani court defends top judge

Guards sit in the entry hall of Geo TV's ransacked offices in Islamabad yesterday. Police broke the windowpanes and fired tear gas at the staff on Friday in an apparent effort to stop the channel from airing footage of police action against protesters. PHOTO: EPA

Pakistani authorities have lifted restrictions on the country's suspended top judge, one of his lawyers said yesterday, a day after protesters and police clashed on the streets of the capital and in other cities.

The suspension of Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhary on March 9 has outraged lawyers and united disparate opposition parties against Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, who is expected to seek another term late this year. Musharraf has appointed justice Javed Iqbal as the acting chief justice.

Lawyers were meeting in the eastern city of Lahore to discuss the case yesterday and police fired tear gas to disperse one group that tried to rally on a street outside the High Court, a witness said.

Chaudhary, who has refused to resign, has been confined to his home since his suspension, apart from two appearances before a panel of judges considering the case against him.

At a hearing at the Supreme Court on Friday, the panel ordered restrictions on him lifted, his lawyers said.

He was now free to meet anyone subject to his approval, in line with the order of the panel, known as the Supreme Judicial Council, one of his lawyers, Tariq Mehmud, said.

"However, they have clarified that there should be no mob, no procession and things like that," Mehmud said.

The government denied that he had ever been under house arrest.

Authorities have released no details of the accusations against Chaudhary but a state news agency cited "misconduct and misuse of authority."

There has been no indication how long the hearing into the accusations will last. The panel meets again on Wednesday.

The affair has fueled suspicion that Musharraf is afraid that the independent-minded judge will oppose any move by him to retain his role as army chief, which constitutionally the president should relinquish this year.

Musharraf, accused of acting unconstitutionally in trying to sack Chaudhary, said on Thursday he would not interfere in the panel's decision.

Policemen were still guarding Chaudhary's home yesterday but a magistrate posted there said that, apart from media, anyone who had an appointment could see him.

Chaudhary was also free to contact anyone by telephone and his television service had been restored, Mehmud said.

Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets on Friday, detained numerous opposition activists and raided a television station, Geo TV, during protests in Islamabad.

A US State Department spokesman called on both sides to show restraint. The US sees Musharraf as a vital ally in the war on terrorism while it also encourages democracy.

"What we would urge in this case is that both sides exercise the utmost degree of restraint in seeking to reduce the opportunity for any violent clashes between protesters and police," spokesman Sean McCormack said in Washington.

"Whatever dispute there might be between two branches of government, a judiciary as well as an executive, needs to be worked out within the confines of Pakistani law, tradition and their constitution," he said.

Pakistani newspapers condemned the police raid.

"The media stand in danger of becoming the regime's whipping boy," the Dawn newspaper said in an editorial.

Authorities earlier banned a Geo talk show that had been focusing on the issue.

The News newspaper, owned by the same group that owns Geo, said the raid had damaged the government's credibility.

"In one fell swoop, the government, which till now has been praised for being relatively tolerant of media criticism, has lost much of its credibility and goodwill," said the News, which has offices in the same building as Geo.

One of its offices was also damaged in the raid.

Musharraf, in an unusual step, called Geo to apologize personally.

"This should have not happened. I apologize. The culprits must be identified and punished," he told the station.

An initial probe has resulted in the sacking of 15 police officers, a senior official said yesterday, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
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