The two opposing groups of lawyers held daylong demonstrations yesterday to press home their demands and no judicial work took place at the SC for the second consecutive day due to the countrywide blockade enforced by the AL-led 14-patry combine.

Jatiyatabadi Ainjibi Forum (JAF), the pro-BNP lawyers' organisation, continued demonstrations for contempt proceedings against the culprits in the November 30 vandalism which they said has tarnished the image of the top court.

Blaming the pro-AL lawyers for the incident, they called on the chief justice not to open the court until the persons responsible are dealt out punishment.

On the other hand, the lawyers with allegiance to the 14-party combine were agitating for resignation of the chief justice and attorney general for what they said was unjustly staying the proceedings of three writ petitions on November 30. The petitions were filed challenging the legality of the president's taking over as the chief adviser to the caretaker government.

They declared that they will boycott the court of chief justice until he resigns.

Meanwhile, an SC lawyer yesterday filed a case against Bangladesh Bar Council Vice-Chairman barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud and three others for what he said was causing disruption to the court proceedings.

In another development, Ramna police yesterday picked up a youth from the city's Paribagh slums, following up the photographs and video footage of Thursday's incident.

Raju, the arrestee, has had his hair cut to avert capture, said a police press release.

He has admitted to having a role in the vandalism incident, it added

The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) at an emergency meeting at Abdul Ahad Hall demanded immediate withdrawal of the 'false case' filed against Rokanuddin, former SCBA general secretary Enayetur Rahim and others.

It also formed an eight-member committee with barrister Shafique Ahmed at the helm to investigate the ransacking of the offices of chief justice and attorney general.

AM Amin Uddin is the member-secretary of the committee while the other members are Abdul Baset Majumder, Ozair Farooq, Mahbubey Alam, Rafiqul Islam Mian, Yusuf Hossain Humayun, and Ziaur Rahman Khan.

The committee will seek to find out the motives and the persons responsible for the incident, and submit its report to the SCBA within two weeks, M Amin Uddin told The Daily Star yesterday.

The SCBA meeting also observed that some of the newspapers, widely considered as mouthpiece of the BNP, have published false reports and superimposed photographs of lawyers.

ROKAN, OTHER LAWYERS SUED

Our Court Correspondent add: A Supreme Court lawyer yesterday filed a criminal case against Vice-Chairman of Bangladesh Bar Council barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud and other lawyers for vandalising the offices of attorney general and chief justice and also for creating disturbance in court proceedings last Thursday.

Barrister Omar Sadat, son-in-law of former minister and BNP leader Shajahan Siraj, filed the case with the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court, Dhaka.

After the hearing, Metropolitan Magistrate ABM Abdul Fattah recorded statement of the complainant and directed officer-in-charge of Shahbagh police station to conduct investigation into the allegations and register it as an FIR (first information report), if found true.

The other accused are former secretary of the Supreme Court Bar Association Enayetur Rahim, Advocate Subrata Chowdhury, Sheikh Awsafur Rahman, a few lawyers and outsiders.

In his complaint, Sadat said Rokan directed the accused lawyers and outsiders to vandalise the chief justice's chamber, courtrooms and other public properties and also to threaten the attorney general.

When contacted, Rokan told The Daily Star that the charges brought in the complaints against him and others are false, fabricated and concocted.

"The case was filed on 'political ground,' said Rokan adding that he was not present at the place of occurrence during the vandalism.