JUDGMENT

A. K. PATNAIK, J. — The case of the petitioner in this writ petition is that on 22.3.1997 at about 9.00 A.M. in the morning, he went to the Soro Police Station to lodge First Information Report against Shri Baidhar Khatua and his two sons, namely, Prafulla Khatua and Prasanna Khatua who were illegally felling trees and bamboos from a disputed land of Satyabhama Pattnaik of village Sultanpur of which the petitioner was one of the custodians. He handed over a written F.I.R. to the Officer-in-Charge of Soro Police Station and requested him to investigate into the matter. The Officer-in-Charge of Soro Police Station after going through the contents of the F.I.R. scolded the petitioner in filthy language and directed a constable to put him in the lock-up. The petitioner was then kept in the police lock-up and was assaulted mercilessly with lathi and kicks by the Officer-in-Charge of Soro Police Station and one Shri Behera. The petitioner was asked by them to produce his son, Manoranjan Biswal, who was alleged to be involved in the case. On 23.3.1997 at about 2.00 P.M. the petitioner was hand-cuffed and tied with a rope and taken to the Court at Balasore in a line truck and made