Odisha teacher murder : Opposition announces fresh stir

While Congress announced it would demonstrate in front of all the SP offices on December 14 demanding action against erring police personnel who allegedly injured NSUI activists during an agitation in front of the Assembly on Friday, the BJP Legislature Party members rushed to the Governor seeking his intervention on abrupt culmination if the winter session.

A day after the Odisha Assembly was adjourned sine die 20 days ahead of its schedule amidst a 9-day logjam over the Kalahandi woman teacher murder case, the opposition Congress and BJP Saturday announced fresh protests on the issue as well as police excess on youths and students demonstrators. While Congress announced it would demonstrate in front of all the SP offices on December 14 demanding action against erring police personnel who allegedly injured NSUI activists during an agitation in front of the Assembly on Friday, the BJP Legislature Party members rushed to the Governor seeking his intervention on abrupt culmination if the winter session. At a press conference here, OPCC president Niranjan Patnaik and CLP leader Narasingha Mishra strongly condemned police “excess” on the peaceful agitation by NSUI activists. Mishra termed the lathi-charge on party workers as “torture” and accused the state government of violating the human rights of students on “Human Rights Day” which fell on Friday.

“Law allows police tor use of minimum force on the unruly crowd. But police barged into our party office and brutally assaulted workers. In a democratic setup, police have no right to enter into the office of a recognised political party unless deadly criminals have taken shelter there. Here too they have to take permission from the party office,” he said.

Mishra alleged that attempts were made to break the doors at the Congress Bhawan where workers had taken shelter to escape police baton charge. The Commissioner of Police should be suspended, Mishra, a lawyer by profession said, adding police are liable to punishment under Section 307 of IPC, attempt to commit murder, and a case should be registered for house trespassing. Many NSUI activists were injured in the police lathi charge during the agitation on Mahatma Gandhi Marg when they were on the way to “gherao the assembly.” Police, on the other hand claimed that they chased away the mob which attempted to set fire to a police van and tried to force entry into the Assembly building. Mishra said that Congress would also move the Human Rights Commission, seeking action against erring cops and compensation for injured workers. The party will intensify the agitation in coming days, he said, adding that Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik was to blame for the police atrocities.

Meanwhile, Opposition BJP MLAs also met Governor Ganeshi Lal and strongly protested the decision of Speaker SN Patro to end the assembly session. They alleged that Opposition was not allowed to discuss issues of utmost public interest in the Winter Session.

BJP leader and Deputy Leader of Opposition BC Sethi said that the Speaker’s decision has created a Constitutional crisis. The Speaker was not running the House in an impartial manner and termed his decision to adjourn the Winter Session sine die as “undemocratic” and “unconstitutional”, Sethi said.

He pointed out that as per the provision of the Article 174 of the Constitution, the House should function for 60 working days in a calendar year. This was also mentioned in Section 11 of the rules of procedures and conduct of business in the Odisha Legislative Assembly.

The BJP said that in the last three years, the Odisha Assembly was convened for only eight sessions and the House conducted business for only 112 working days, instead of the stipulated nine sessions and 180 working days. They held Chief Miister Naveen Patnaik responsible for all these violation. “Since Patnaik has failed to run the Assembly, he has no moral rights to continue in office,” said senior BJP member J N Mishra. The saffron party also strongly condemned the police action against the BJP Yuva Morcha activists. The BJP frontal organisation youths were injured while picketing before the assembly on Friday demanding removal of Minister of State for Home, DS Mishra. The BJP legislature party members also rushed to Puri and invoked blessings of Lord Jagannath to save the state from “anarchy” and said the Chief Minister was playing the role of a “Dhrutarastra,” (Blind King) said Sethi. PTI AAM JRC JRC