Employees of the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), including sanitation workers, on Tuesday launched a 'cease work' protest over the alleged assault on an on-duty senior colleague the previous day.
On the other hand, police arrested two more accused in the assault case, taking the total number of arrests to five.
Wearing black badges, all employees of BMC arrived at the office this morning and staged a 'cease work' protest demanding immediate arrest of all persons involved in the incident and adequate security for them at the office.
"The way in which our senior officer was dragged from the office and assaulted despite the presence of security guards, we are all shocked and are feeling insecure in the office," a woman employee of the BMC said.
BMC commissioner Rajesh Prabhakar Patil said, "Our officers and employees are hurt by the unfortunate incident which happened in our office on Monday. They are staging a protest over the incident." To ensure that such incidents do not recur in future, the BMC will take steps to enhance the security arrangements and maintain a protocol within the office premises, he said.
Sanitation workers in Bhubaneswar have called off their services in various parts of Bhubaneswar in protest against the assault on the additional commissioner of the BMC. The workers demanded the immediate arrest of all accused in the incident.
Due to the 'cease work’ protest by the sanitation workers, cleanliness activities have been stopped and garbage has not been cleared.
Meanwhile, police arrested two more accused in the assault case. They were identified as Sanjeev Mishra and Sachikant Swain, residents of Bhubaneswar. So far, five persons have been arrested in the case registered at Kaharavelnagar police station here.
The Odisha Government Combined Employees' Association (OGCEA) condemned the act of attacking an on-duty officer and demanded exemplary action against the culprits.
Earlier, the association of Odisha Administrative Service (OAS) officers had decided to put their 'mass leave' protest on hold after they got an assurance from Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi that strong action will be taken against all culprits involved in the alleged assault of their senior colleague, an official said on Tuesday.
The Odisha Administrative Service Association has called for its members to go on a 'mass leave' from Tuesday to protest against the alleged assault of a senior OAS officer on Monday.
According to a statement issued by OAS Association president Jyoti Ranjan Mishra, "The CM has assured the association that the culprits and the perpetrators behind the scene, however powerful they may be, shall be strictly punished as per stringent provisions of law." On the appeal of Majhi, the association decided not to proceed on leave or take any such measures, Mishra said.
"Hence, in reverence to the CM's appeal, the mass leave from July 1 is not called off but is hereby postponed," he said.
However, despite their apex body's decision to defer the 'mass leave' agitation, OAS officers in 10 districts, including Cuttack, Ganjam, Jagatsinghpur, Bolangir, Sonepur, Rayagada and Mayurbhanj, went on 'cease work'.
Meanwhile, Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Bhakta Charan Das demanded the immediate arrest of all the remaining accused and also the conspirator who had allegedly sent them to assault the OAS officer.
"This was not the first case of an assault on an officer in Odisha. Several such cases have been reported in the recent past. The BMC additional commissioner was thrashed as he did not invite an unelected BJP leader to the public grievance meeting," Das alleged.
Ruling party leaders are being invited as guests at government programmes, which has set a wrong trend in the state. As the chief minister is at the helm of the government machinery in the state, he should take responsibility and seek an apology from all officers, Das said.
The government also needs to take corrective measures by issuing necessary circulars or advisories mentioning who can visit the public offices and attend government programmes, he said.
Senior BJD leader and Bhubaneswar Mayor Sulochana Das said, "The video footage submitted by us shows that there were 6 to 7 hooligans who brutally attacked our officer inside the BMC office. However, only 3 people have been arrested till now." The police should take exemplary action in this case. They should find out who the mastermind behind this attack is, she said.
The mayor sought the personal intervention of the chief minister in this matter.
BJP leader Jagannath Pradhan said, "I condemn the incident. Whatever happened was very sad. The police, on the direction of the CM, have taken necessary actions. But the BJD is using this issue to further their agenda." Pradhan has also alleged that the BMC additional commissioner had misbehaved with him and a woman sanitation worker.
On the other hand, the BJP has suspended five of its members, including corporator Apurup Narayan Rout, Rashmi Ranjan Mohapatra, Sachikanta Swain and Sanjeev Mishra for their alleged involvement in the assault case.
Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) Additional Commissioner Ratnakar Sahoo was allegedly dragged from his office and assaulted by a group of people on Monday, police said.
"BJP corporator Jeevan Rout are among five people arrested in the case so far," an officer said.
