Bhubaneswar, March 26: In a dramatic turn of events, security personnel forcibly evicted agitating Congress MLAs from the Odisha Assembly late at night.

The legislators were protesting the suspension of 12 members who were barred from the Assembly for seven days for allegedly engaging in unruly behavior and disrupting House proceedings.

Following their eviction, the Congress MLAs, along with senior party leaders, including AICC in-charge Ajay Kumar Lallu and Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Bhakta Charan Das, staged a sit-in protest near Master Canteen Square, close to the Congress Bhawan. They accused the ruling BJP government of suppressing the opposition's voice.

Speaking to reporters, Congress MLA Sagar Charan Das alleged, "We were forcibly removed by security personnel and police around 2 a.m. We were assaulted and misbehaved with. The BJP government has crossed all limits -- this is nothing less than a murder of democracy."

The Congress MLAs vowed to intensify their agitation, claiming that their eviction was a deliberate attempt to silence the opposition. The standoff between the government and the Congress party has further escalated, heightening tensions in the state.

For the past few days, Congress MLAs have been staging noisy protests inside the Assembly, using gongs and other traditional musical instruments, leading to repeated adjournments. They have been demanding the formation of a House committee to investigate rising cases of atrocities against women.

The party has alleged that crimes against women have significantly increased under the BJP government during the past nine months.

On Monday, Deputy Speaker Rajanikant Singh warned the Congress legislators to desist from disrupting House proceedings. However, the protest continued unabated on Tuesday, prompting Speaker Surama Padhy to suspend 12 of the 14 Congress MLAs.

The Congress party has announced plans to intensify their agitation, including a proposed gherao of the Odisha Assembly over the issue of women's safety.

Notably, this is not the first time Congress legislators have faced suspension. On March 11, Speaker Surama Padhy suspended Congress MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati for seven days following a scuffle with BJP members inside the House.

(IANS)

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