Bhubaneswar: Vehicular traffic on the busy Janpath in the Odisha capital was disrupted for over two hours today as hundreds of employees of the civic body as well as corporators staged a road blockade after some miscreants assaulted an on-duty official. 

The police have arrested three persons in connection with the alleged assault on Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) Additional Commissioner Ratnakar Sahoo (55) inside the office of the civic body in the morning. 

The cops arrested the three persons after the victim lodged a formal complaint in this regard. The arrested persons have been identified as Jeevan Rout, Rashmi Mahapatra and Debasish Pradhan.

In his complaint, Sahoo alleged that at least six unknown persons entered the office of the BMC unauthorizedly at around 11.30 am today while the public grievance redressal meeting was in progress.

The miscreants asked Sahoo whether he had spoken to Jagannath Pradhan. They assaulted the BMC Additional Commissioner after he revealed that he had a telephonic conversation with Jagannath Pradhan.

The miscreants assaulted Sahoo in the presence of corporators, BMC officials and common people with an attempt to murder.

“While I was trying to shield myself and plead for mercy, they threatened me and attempted to forcibly drag me into a vehicle, saying that I must come to Jagannath Pradhan and apologize,” said Sahoo in his complaint before Kharvela Nagar police in the city here.

The miscreants also snatched Sahoo’s mobile phone and uploaded scandalous contents on his WhatsApp status.

The officials of the BMC rescued Sahoo, who has sustained several injuries on his face.  

“The incident has caused me grave physical injuries and immense mental trauma and has seriously disrupted the decorum and functioning of a government office.

Sahoo urged the police to register an FIR in this regard under the relevant Sections of the IPC and take appropriate action.  

BJP leader Jagannath Pradhan, meanwhile, condemned the incident.

“I have heard that the BMC officer was assaulted after an argument at the grievance redressal meeting. After watching the video footage, I have identified two youths who were involved in the incident. I talked to them and they are ready to cooperate the police in their investigation,” Pradhan said.    

Protesting the assault on an on-duty officer, the employees of the civic body as well as many corporators staged a road blockade on the Janpath in the city here in the evening. The agitation led to traffic disruptions on the busy road.