Attacking the military regime led by President Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan’s suspended Chief Justice Iftikar Ahmed Chaudhury today declared that “era of dictatorship is over” in front of thousands of cheering supporters here after a massive show of support by the people.

Tens of thousands of people, who had waited overnight at different places along the 300-km route from Islamabad, greeted Chaudhury’s convoy of several hundred vehicles, which took over 24 hours to cover the distance after the top judge decided to travel by road ignoring the government’s warning of possible suicide attacks against him.

“Autocratic system of government and grabbing of power by a single person is now ended. All these are bitter lessons of history,” Chaudhury told a convention of lawyers and judges at Lahore that passed a resolution asking the army to relinquish power and return to the barracks.

“Nations that do not learn from history and repeat the mistakes, they have to faces its consequences,” he said amid chants of “Go Musharraf Go”.

Chaudhury told the crowd that the “Era of dictatorship is over”. At the rally were 16 Lahore HC judges.