Police, lawyers headed for confrontation

The alleged roughing up and abusing of a judge by Home Guard and a constable on night duty is the trigger

The detention and alleged manhandling of a Junior Civil Judge has led to a standoff between the police and the legal fraternity.

While the police maintain that the judge had failed to cooperate with the policemen, who were conducting a check on drunken driving, the legal fraternity alleged that the policemen on duty had exceeded their brief by roughing up the judge after stopping his car.

Junior Civil Judge of S. Kota of Vizianagaram district M. Kasiviswanadha Achari, who resides at Vepgagunta in the city, was driving his car back home around midnight of Saturday.

The car was stopped by a Home Guard and a constable, who were on night duty, at NAD junction. Mr. Achari tried to explain his identity but the policemen were in no mood to listen and roughed him up and abused him, according to a representative of the Bar Association.

Mr. Achari telephoned an advocate, K. S. S. Narayana, who rushed to the spot and called up Gopalapatnam Traffic SI B. V. N. R. Varma.

The SI also misbehaved with the Judge and the advocate before asking them to leave, according to a complaint submitted by the aggrieved judge to the District Judge.

An emergency meeting was convened at the District Judge’s Chamber on Sunday evening.

The Metropolitan Sessions Judge, CBI Judge and all Additional District Judges met and discussed the issue.

The District Judge received a written complaint from the aggrieved judge and directed the city Police Commissioner to submit a report on the incident immediately.

Strike planned

Meanwhile, advocates announced their decision to go on a strike in protest against what they called ‘police misbehaviour against the judge’.

“A strike notice will be served on Monday and the advocates will boycott courts on December 2 and hold a protest demonstration to condemn the high-handed behaviour of the police,” according to Visakhapatnam Bar Association president J. Prithviraj and secretary M.S. Madhav. “The judge failed to cooperate with our men on duty but he was let off after he showed his identity card. No case has been filed,” Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) K. Mahendra Patrudu said, when contacted.