The court building in Kendrapara. Telegraph picture

Kendrapara, Nov 11: A rogue monkey has terrorised the staff and visitors of the civil court here.

The rogue monkey has virtually laid siege at the Kendrapara judicial and civil court building. Judges and lawyers are scared as the simian species is on a biting spree. The monkey had barged into the crowded court building to bite a lawyer and a court employee. Around twenty outsiders have also faced the wrath of rampaging male monkey.

Police are in a tizzy as to what to do with the animal who has been named as an accused in several FIRs.

“We are in the receipt of two FIRs at the Kendrapara town police station. No case, however, has been registered. There is no provision under the Indian Penal Code to register a case against animals. However, keeping in view the larger public interest, police have taken up the matter with the authorities concerned,” said Kendrapara superintendent of police Narasingha Bhol.

Local judicial authorities have drawn the attention of the district administration seeking prompt steps to drive away the monkey.

The district bar association has also sought an early end to the monkey menace.

“We have requested the district collector and divisional forest officer of Cuttack territorial forest division to cage the monkey. Even the judges are under constant fear of the monkey on the court premises. The monkey pounced on a lawyer a couple of days back. An employee of the court was also injured while on duty yesterday. In the past three says, the monkey has bitten many more people on the premises of the court,” said Bichitrananda Mohanty, president of the Kendrapara District Bar Association.

“The administration has taken the complaints seriously. The matter has been taken up with the forest personnel. The monkey would be driven out from the area in a day or two,” said collector Dhananjay Das.

The divisional forest officer of the Cuttack territorial forest division said: “We have declared the monkey as ‘rogue’ one. A team of experts from Nandankanan are being sent to tame or cage the animal.”

Kendrapara and the neighbouring Jagatsinghpur districts are the worst hit areas of the monkey problem. According to reports, more than 100 people, including about 30 children, have suffered injuries by monkey attacks in the last three months in these two districts.