A large number of lawyers and opposition activists on Saturday gave the suspended Pakistan Supreme Court chief justice Iftikhar M Chaudhry an unprecedented roadside reception in Pakistan's powerful Punjab province on his way to Lahore, posing the biggest ever political challenge for President Pervez Musharraf's regime.

Chaudhry, accompanied by his defence lawyers, set off to Lahore by road this morning to address an advocates' convention, disregarding the official warning about possible suicide bomb attacks.

During his journey, which was covered by all television channels including the state-run PTV, thousands of people greeted his convoy. Hundreds of lawyers and opposition activists held receptions for him in Rawalpindi, Rawant, Gujjat Khan, Gujaranwala, Jhelum en route to Lahore.

In Jhelum and a few other places, the police fired teargas and made several arrests to control the surging crowds. His convoy took more than 10 hours to cover the distance which normally takes less than five hours.

Media reports from Lahore said 16 judges of the Lahore high court turned up at the convention hall well before Chaudhry reached there to address it. So far, over a dozen judges and judicial officials have resigned in protest against the suspension of the chief justice.

The receptions were largely held by local bar councils, opposition parties like Pakistan Peoples Party, Pakistan Muslim League-N and the Islamist Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, with modest participation of general public.