Balasore, Sept. 29: A protest by local residents against police excesses affected traffic for several hours on the national highway connecting Baripada and Balasore in Odisha today.

Hundreds of vehicles were stranded on the highway till this evening. Apart from blocking the road, the protesters also closed down the local market.

The protesters alleged that two persons, who were in police custody since yesterday afternoon following a compliant lodged by power distribution company Nesco, were severely beaten up before being produced in the court of the sub-divisional judicial magistrate at Baripada.

Akhandala Behera, 30, and his brother Ananda Behera, 26, were picked up by the police after Nesco officials alleged that they had assaulted a lineman, Nityananda Mohanty, who had gone to raid a furniture shop owned by Akhandala. Nesco officials had received information that despite power supply to the furniture shop having been snapped a year ago for non-payment of bills, Behera was drawing power illegally.

When Mohanty went to conduct the raid, Ananda refused to let him enter the shop. An altercation ensued and Mohanty later complained to the police that the brothers had beat him up. Akhandala accused Mohanty of stealing Rs 40,000 from his shop. The Behera brothers were produced in court after their advocates informed it that their clients were seriously injured by the cops. Akhandala was allegedly found in an unconscious state. The two were rushed to the district headquarters hospital at Baripada. “No physical assault was inflicted on them,” said inspector in charge of Betnoti police station Parsuram Sahu.