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Athagarh bandh ends peacefully

Correspondent

CUTTACK: The opposition Congress-sponsored one-day bandh in Athagarh sub-division of the district on Thursday went off peacefully without any major untoward incident reported from anywhere. The bandh call was given in protest against the State Government’s inaction over the death of one youth who allegedly died of police excesses last week.

Bhaskar Behera, a 24-year-old youth died in hospital last Thursday after the local police had allegedly assaulted him.

To add more shock to the victim’s family, in an unfortunate incident, the 85-year old grandfather of the victim Chaitanya Behera, died on Thursday due to mental shock.

"The old man was one of the key eyewitnesses when the local police beat up Bhaskar last Thursday in his house at Rajnagar village," said local Congress leader Bibhuti Mishra. The family was completely shattered by the police highhandedness of the police, Mr. Mishra alleged.

The dawn-to-dusk bandh went off peacefully. According to reports reaching here, Congress activists staged road blockade and paralyzed bus and train services in the locality for over two hours in the morning. Normalcy was restored in the afternoon after the agitators were taken into preventive custody, police said.

Athagarh SDPO SD Mallick said a total of 133 Congress activists along with local leaders were taken into preventive custody and they were released in the afternoon and normalcy was restored.

Mr. Mishra, however, claimed that over 2000 Congress activists were arrested and said the bandh was total. "Locals came out spontaneously in support of the bandh and shops and business establishments remained closed throughout the day in Athgarh town," the Congress leader said.

Road blockades were staged at two places on NH-42 at Kuspangi and Khuntuni. Similarly, Congress activists paralysed train services when they squatted on railway tracks at Raja Athagarh and Ghantikhal railway stations. Government offices, banks, courts, schools and colleges although were opened on the day, they witnessed thin attendance.

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