Thousands rally for Pakistan chief justice

LAHORE, Pakistan, May 5 (UPI) -- Thousands of people turned out Saturday to support Pakistan's embattled chief justice, who was suspended from office by President Pervez Musharraf.

Hundreds more were arrested to prevent them from joining the demonstration, the BBC reported.

Musharraf accused Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry of corruption when he ousted him. But the president's action angered judges and lawyers, who accused him of attacking an independent judiciary.

Chaudhry was scheduled to address the Lahore High Court Bar Association.

At least 17 of the 23 judges in the high court said they were willing to meet Chaudhry, The Pakistan Times reported.

Supporters joined his motorcade, lined the route that he took from his home in Islamabad to Lahore and gathered outside the high court.

Earlier this week, Musharraf said the legal community should not politicize the case, the BBC said.

"This is a constitutional and judicial issue and those giving it a political tone will not be successful in their designs," he said.