LAHORE - Newly appointed Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court Justice Khawaja Muhammad Sharif has vowed to root out corruption from the judiciary warning that he would not tolerate corruption at any cost. He said this in a message to the Punjab judiciary after taking oath of 38th CJ of the LHC at a ceremony held at Governors House. Governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer administered oath to Justice Khawaja. Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, members of provincial cabinet, local leaders of PPP, judges of high court, lawyers, administrative secretaries and notables of the town were also present on the occasion. After taking oath of his office, the chief justice reached the LHC, held the court and heard number of cases. He also refused to accept extraordinary protocol attached with the office of chief justice and returned the vehicles assigned for the protocol. He will enjoy the protocol of an ordinary judge. After holding court, the chief justice met senior advocates and received congratulation from them. He thanked them for launching relentless struggle for the restoration of judiciary. The chief justice said the dream of judges restoration was materialised by the blessings of Allah Almighty and sustained efforts of the legal community coupled with commitment of civil society as well as associations of public at large. He further said the members of the judiciary were getting three-fold increase in their salaries and now no body should indulge in corrupt practices. He said the people had pinned high hopes on the judiciary and in return they should make all out efforts to come up to their expectations. The CJ warned that court officials creating hurdles in the dispensation of justice would not be tolerated. He also appealed to lawyers to cooperate for speedy disposal of cases. Meanwhile, office-bearers of the Lahore High Court Bar Association congratulated him on taking the charge of his office. In a statement President LHCBA Munawar Gondal assured the chief justice of the Bars cooperation in promoting harmony between the Bar and bench and eradicating corruption from the judiciary. He also congratulated Justice Sayed Zahid Hussain, Justice Sair Ali, Justice M A Shahid Siddiqui and Justice Ghulam Rabbani on their elevation to the Supreme Court and hoped that they will protect the rights of masses.