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Congress leaders, workers court arrest

— Photo: Ashoke Chakrabarty

Congress leader J.B. Patnaik addressing party activists in Bhubaneswar on Monday.

BHUBANESWAR: Thousands of Congress leaders and workers courted arrest in different parts of the State on Monday as the party organised a ‘Jail Bharo’ agitation against the Naveen Patnaik Government’s ‘failure’ in maintaining law and order.

It was for the first time since their party was voted out of power in 2000 that the Congress workers and leaders appeared to be in full vigour. Hundreds of party workers, led by leaders of their region marched to the District Collector’s office in all the 30 districts to blame the Biju Janata Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party combine for the deteriorating law and order situation.

The Congress workers demanded that Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik resign to his post for the ‘failure’ of the police in bringing the culprits to book in many major crimes. Mr. Patnaik was doubly blamed as he also holds the Home portfolio.

While Union Minister of State for Rural Development Chandrasekhar Sahu led the agitation outside the office of the Revenue Divisional Commissioner in Berhampur, former Chief Minister Hemananda Biswal took part in the protest at Jharsuguda.

As the party workers scuffled with the police in their attempt to enter the District Collectorates, they were put inside the waiting police vehicles and taken away from the spots.

The party workers and leaders who courted arrest during the agitation were, however, released later in the day. The senior party leaders who participated in the agitation in Bhubaneswar include Pradesh Congress Committee president Jayadev Jena, Leader of Opposition J.B. Patnaik and former PCC president Sarat Patnaik.

Addressing the gathering, the leaders severely criticised the government saying that the law and order machinery had collapsed in the State.

The criminals were having a great time due to the inability of the government to take them to task.

The leaders also criticised the government for its alleged failure to catch the Maoists who looted arms in Nayagarh town and trace kidnapped businessman from Keonjhar Rashmiranjan Sahu almost one year after he was kidnapped from Bhubaneswar city.

The leaders further blamed the State government for the lathi-charge on agitating farmers at Hirakud and lawyers at Berhampur.

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