Lawyers ransack govt offices,resort to road blockade in Orissa

Sambalpur, Nov 26 (UNI) Protesting the arrest of an advocate by the local police, the lawyers here today went on rampage ransacking government offices, blocking the roads and demonstrating in front of the police station for several hours.

Even the official vehicle of the Sambalpur Additional District Magistrate (ADM) N C Satpathy was not spared by the agitators.

The advocates also gheraoed the town police station and blocked the road nearby.

The trouble began when Suraj Kumar Biswal, an advocate of Sambalpur District Bar Association, was arrested by the police this morning for allegedly misbehaving with Sambalpur Sadar circle Revenue Inspector (RI) Pramanada Samal on November 5.

The lawyers opposed the arrest of Mr Biswal and demanded that the Revenue Inspector be arrested on the basis of FIR filed by the advocate.

Sensing that the situation was going out of control, senior police officers L Rana and SDPO D K Deo rushed to the site to pacify the agitating lawyers.

The road blockade was lifted and the gherao of police station was withdrawn by the advocates after the senior police officers promised to arrest the RI within next 24 hours.

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