ROURKELA: Taking an independent stand from rest of the bar associations in western Odisha districts, Rourkela Bar Association (RBA) on Monday demanded to set up the HC bench in the city and resorted to a six-day agitation. The RBA’s demand for the permanent bench at Rourkela in Sundargarh district would be a dampener for those advocating for Sambalpur. The Sundargarh District Bar Association (SDBA) along with smaller bars like Rajgangpur and Bonai are supporting the CAC which demands to locate the HC bench anywhere in western Odisha. However, the RBA being the second largest bar after Sambalpur continues to be most strong and vocal to its demand for Rourkela.
Apart from HC bench, they also demanded declaration of Rourkela as an independent judicial district, setting up a CBI court and record room in the city and posting of judges in different courts.
As part of the six-day agitation, lawyers led by RBA president Satya Sharma and former president Ramesh Bal closed all courts, Government offices including the Rourkela Municipal Corporation, Rourkela ADM, Rourkela Development Authority, RTO, Tehsildar and Commercial Tax located at Uditnagar. The Income Tax office was also closed.
Bal said financial institutions of the Central Government including banks and post offices were spared to avoid causing inconvenience to general public, especially the students who are filing forms for different examinations. The Convenor of CAC said at the Sundargarh district headquarters town, all Government offices were closed, while lawyers boycotted all courts. He said 31 bar associations under the CAC paralysed functioning of the State and Central Government offices in western Odisha districts, but six associations including RBA and Balangir staged the agitation separately.
Asked about RBA’s stand, Das in a guarded reply said the RBA is a strong and vibrant partner in the movement for the HC bench and its demand would not affect it. The CAC demands to locate the HC bench at any suitable place of western Odisha, he added.