The Panchkula District Bar Association observed a strike on Tuesday, alleging that the Haryana Police did not act on the complaint of an advocate against a serving Lt Colonel posted at the Chandimandir Military Station.

The police had, on July 10, registered an FIR against advocate Maninder Singh Bitta and some other advocates for allegedly beating up Lt Col Ashish Chandok, taking him hostage and making him sign an agreement. The police levelled charges of causing grievous hurt and wrongful confinement against the lawyers in the FIR.

However, the police has failed to make any arrests even after 96 hours of the FIR being registered. DCP Srishti Gupta could not be contacted for comments.

After five days of the incident inside the Panchkula courts complex, the Bar association claimed on Tuesday that the Army officer had assaulted and misbehaved with Bitta in the court. It alleged that he threatened to kill Bitta if he continued to be his wife’s lawyer. Bitta had complained about him to the police. At a meeting of the executive committee of the Bar, it was decided to abstain from work to show solidarity with Bitta.

As per the FIR, Lt Col Chandok, who is estranged from his wife, has been contesting three cases filed by her at the Panchkula courts. He told the police that on July 9, during the hearing of the cases at the Family Courts, Bitta — the opposing lawyer — and his associates misbehaved with him, and later, called 10-17 lawyers who allegedly assaulted him outside a courtroom.

He alleged that Bitta and the other lawyers confined him in the chamber of advocate NS Sodhi, where they assaulted him again and forced him to sign a ‘raazinama’. “They got a ‘raazinama’ signed by me, which I was not able to read. After I signed it, I was allowed to leave the court complex,” the officer told the police. His medical examination had revealed two injuries.