BALANGIR: Members of the Balangir Bar Association have decided not to participate in the two-day-long Mahabandh called by Central Action Committee (CAC) of All-Western Odisha Bar Association (AWOBA) over High Court (HC) bench issue. The CAC has called for Mahabandh on November 29 and 30.
Instead, Balangir lawyers have decided to launch a separate agitation for establishment of High Court bench here. They said the bench should be set up at Balangir which fulfils all the criteria of Jaswant Singh Commission report in this regard. As an HC functioned at Balangir in 1945 as per the agreement signed before the merger of princely States with the then British Government, a bench should now be set up here, they said.
The lawyers have also called for Balangir Bandh on December 3 over the demand. They said Balangir Bar Association has never supported setting up of HC bandh in Sambalpur.