District Court lawyers carried out a massive demonstration at the Mayo Hall Crossing in the city in protest against the police’s failure to arrest the main accused Atul Pratap Singh in the murder of a lawyer Akhilesh Shukla.
Traffic on Stanley Road came to a grinding halt due to the large number of lawyers protesting at this important crossing.
Since UP CM Yogi Aditya Nath was also in the city on Saturday, the strength and number of lawyers and their shouting slogans kept the police and administration on their toes.
To pacify the lawyers the DM, DCP City, and other top officials hurried to the Mayo Hall Crossing and pleaded with the agitating lawyers to disperse.
But lawyers demanded written assurance from the DM and the DCP that the main accused would be arrested immediately.
Left with no alternative, the DCP Abhishek Bharti gave in writing that the main accused would be arrested in three days.
It was only after this that the lawyers started dispersing.
However, they came back to the district court and held a meeting for the future course of action.
They have been on a warpath shunning judicial work since Nov 18.
The alleged accused Atul Pratap Singh’s men had beaten up the lawyer so mercilessly on Nov 17 with blunt objects over an argument that he succumbed to his injuries at the SGPI in Lucknow on Nov 21.
Earlier, a big faction of lawyers had rejected the appeal of DBA President Rajendra Misra and secretary to temporarily stop the agitation saying that their term had expired on Dec 3.
After Dec 3, the agitation was being carried out under the leadership of working President Sarita Shukla, a senior lady lawyer who had been deftly handling the agitation.
