Attack On Lawyer In Cuttack: Home Guard Among Two Arrested By CB

Cuttack: Intensifying its inquiry into the ongoing tussle between policemen and lawyers, the Odisha Crime Branch on Wednesday arrested two persons for their alleged involvement in attack on a lawyer here.

Those arrested have been identified as Kishore Jena, a home guard, and Dillip Singh.

On the other hand, the lawyers of the Orissa High Court Bar Association have decided to hold a meeting to discuss their further course of action.

The members association had on Tuesday picketed in front of all government offices and stopped court work in Cuttack to protest against the assault on a lawyer by police.

Briefing mediapersons on Monday night, President of the High Court Bar Association Srikant Nayak said about 1500 representatives of the lawyers’ associations across the state would gherao Naveen Niwas on September 27 and submit a memorandum to the Chief Minister.

A decision to this effect was taken at the executive committee of the Association.

He had also said that the association in a letter had sought time for a discussion with the Chief Minister. “Since there has been no response from the Chief Minister till date, the association has decided to close all government offices in Cuttack,” he had pointed out.

The association had earlier met the Law minister and requested him to take necessary action. But the minister is yet to take any step.

It may be recalled that some policemen had an argument with the lawyer Debi Prasad Patnaik following a road accident at Nua Bazaar overbridge on the night of August 28. The argument later took a violent turn with the policemen assaulting Patnaik.

Protesting against the police excesses, a group of lawyers had allegedly set a PCR van on fire in front of the RDC office the following day.

Hearing the two petitions filed by Orissa High Court Bar Association and Nationalist Lawyers’ Association, the Orissa High Court on September 4 had ordered a Crime Branch (CB) probe into the incident.

Both the associations had prayed the court for an inquiry by a sitting judge and arrest of the erring policemen.