Rourkela lawyers continue court boycott

ROURKELA : Lawyers owing allegiance to Rourkela Bar Association (RBA) continue to boycott all courts and announced to intensify their stir demanding transfer of a Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate (SDJM) and transparency in lower judiciary.

The agitating lawyers are up in arms against the SDJM after a principal accused in a cricket betting case was allowed bail and his seized property released on ‘sympathetic ground’ in June while two other co-accused were sent to jail.

RBA sources said they have been boycotting the court of the SDJM since July 10 and with no action over their demands since July 22, all courts are being boycotted. They said no judicial officers are allowed inside courts and the agitation would continue till their demands are fulfilled.

Incidentally, a delegation of the RBA, led by its president Ramesh Chandra Bal, on July 31 met Orissa High Court judge Justice D Das, who is the Portfolio Judge for Sundargarh district. On August 1, they met Law Minister Pratap Jena.

Bal said earlier, in a related development, the court of Sundargarh District Judge had filed a suo motu criminal revision case to check if any anomaly in the lower court order was involved.
He said the next hearing of the revision case has been posted to August 13. Unless a firm assurance is received from the High Court over their demands, the agitation would continue, Bal added.