LAHORE   -  On the call of several bar associations, lawyers fraternity on Thursday observed countrywide strike against arrests and police torture. The Lahore High Court Bar Association lawyers held a sitting of its general body to condemn the arrests and police torture. Security was beefed up at the Lahore High Court (LHC) in view of possible protests by lawyers. Entry of lawyers’ vehicles was banned. A security officer said no lawyer’s car would be parked inside the Lahore High Court. Water cannons were stationed outside the Lahore High Court. Additional police force was deployed inside and outside the high court. Moreover, in other cities across the country, black coats boycotted the court proceedings to protest police torture. Karachi Bar Association officials locked all the entry points of the city courts. All shops and cafetarias inside court were closed. The president of the Karachi Bar Association wrote a letter to the four district judges to suspend judicial affairs against the incident.