An additional district and sessions judge of Madhubani, Awinash Kumar was heckled and assaulted by two policemen who were summoned in the court earlier.
The officer in charge of Ghoghardiha police station, Gopal Krishna and his colleague, sub-inspector Abhimanyu Kumar roughed up the judge, abused him, put their revolvers on his head. When the personal staff of the judge intervened, he too was assaulted.
Judge Awinash Kumar said that the policemen were summoned by the court in a case and this angered them. They shouted, "how did you dare to summon us."
Hearing commotion in the court, lawyers reached ADJ court and put the two erring policemen hostage. Both the policemen were later handed over to the sub-divisional magistrate and sub-divisional police officer who arrived at the court.
Arun Kumar Jha, an eyewitness and vice president of the bar association said the judge was trembling when the lawyers went to rescue him.
District and sessions judge of Madhubani, Mohammad Ishrstaullah briefed the guardian High Court judge Justice Parthasarathi about the incident.
District SP Satyaprakash called the action of police men unfortunate and assured the local lawyers that an FIR would be filed against the two police men and the arrest will be made.
Following the incident, a division bench of Patna High Court on Thursday night held an emergency court to pass an order on receipt of the report from the District and session judge of Madhubani on an attack on ADJ Awinash Kumar.
Justice Rajan Gupta and Justice Mohit Kumar in written order said, "the court has taken note of the incident on its motion as directed by the Chief Justice".
The court wrote' prima facie, "it appears to be an attack on the independence of the judiciary." The additional DG of police was present during the late-night court hearing.
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