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Updated: Jun 07, 2019 17:52 IST

A junior engineer in Odisha’s Bolangir district, who was forced to do sit-ups by Biju Janata Dal’s (BJD) Patnagarh MLA Saroj Kumar Meher, was rescued by the police after being allegedly abducted.

Patnagarh sub-divisional police officer Suresh Nayak said that Jaykant Sabar was rescued from Khariar area of Nuapada district, following a complaint lodged by the junior engineer’s wife on Thursday.

Speaking to the media, Sabar alleged that the executive engineer of the Public Works Department (PWD) had slapped him in public on the order of the Patnagarh MLA.

Also read: Odisha BJD MLA faces arrest for forcing official to do sit-ups

“The MLA asked me to do sit-ups. But as I requested him with folded hands not to punish me in this manner, he said if I would not do the sit-ups, the people present at the spot will thrash me. The executive engineer slapped me on Meher’s instruction, and so, apprehending further attacks and humiliation, I did the sit-ups,” he said.

Sabar, however, denied that he was kidnapped.

The MLA forced Sabar to do the sit-ups as punishment for poor road construction work in Patnagarh.

Meanwhile, Meher has apologised for the incident.

“The locals were angry over poor road construction work in their area and demanded action against the official. As the situation was out of my control, I had to ask the official to do sit-ups,” said the MLA.

(The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text, only the headline has been changed)