Police foil employees’ march Scores Injured, Around 200 Taken Into Custody Shabeer Ahamd Srinagar, June 10: Scores of employees were injured when Police used force on a protest rally called by Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) here on Monday. JCC, an amalgam of state government employees, is spearheading a campaign in support of demands like enhancement in retirement age, removal of pay anomalies and regularization of daily wagers. Hundreds of employees assembled near Jahangir Chowk here this morning and started a march towards Civil Secretariat to press for their demands. However, police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel intercepted them near flyover. The forces tried to stop the employees from marching towards the Secretariat, however the latter did not relent. To disperse the protesting employees, police cane-charged them and also used colored water cannons. Witnesses said that scores of employees were injured in police action. Two senior trade union leaders- Nusrat Beig and Muntazir Mohiudin - were shifted to SMHS hospital for treatment. Scores of employees were bundles in police vehicles and taken to different police stations. Those detained include Abdul Qayoom Wani, Abdul Gafoor Dar, Farooq Ahmad Trail, Khalid Mehmood, Khurshid Ahmad Bhat and Muhammad Amin Khan. The police action created panic in entire Jahangir Chowk area and traffic movement was also affected for quite some time. Today’s protests affected work in Government offices across Kashmir. JCC spokesman Farooq Ahmad Trali told Greater Kashmir that the amalgam would hold an important meeting on Tuesday to chalk out a ‘decisive strategy’ to press for their demands. He said the next phase of the agitation would be ‘harsh.’ “I would not say that there would be indefinite strike, but it would be harsh,” Trali said, adding that the meeting would be held in CAPD office at Shaheed Gunj here at 1 p.m. The spokesman said the Government was given enough time to fulfill demands of employees. “We will announce our new progamme after the meeting,” Trali said. Employees of the State Forest Corporation led by Bashir Ahmad Bhat Khurshid Ahmad Masoodi also participated in today’s protest march. TARIiGAMIi CONDEMNS POLIiCE ACTIiON: Strongly condemning the police action against employees, the CPI (M) State Secretary Muhammad Yousuf Tarigami has said the government was complicating the grievances of employees including daily wagers through use of brute force. In a statement issued here, the CPI (M) leader said: “One wonders that in Kashmir every problem is being tackled by the use of force. Be it the protests against power crisis, scarcity of drinking water, LPG crisis, price rise or the employees’ demands; the government seems to have force as the only solution to all the problems. Unfortunately, instead of redressing grievances of people especially that of employees, the government is resorting to force to buy time.” Tarigami stressed that the government should be alive to the demands and aspirations of the people and make all-out efforts to redress their grievances. Tarigami said the government should fulfill the genuine demands of the employees including daily wagers working in different departments. SAJAD LONE SUPPORTS EMPLOYEES: Peoples Conference (PC) Chairman Sajad Lone Monday came out strongly in support of protesting employees under the banner of Joint Consultative Committee. On the instructions of PC Chairman Sajad Lone, a delegation comprising Dawood Bilal Lodhi, Zaffar Hussain Shah, M S Bhat and Shahid Rashid visited the arrested employee leaders at Shaheed Gunj Police Station and expressed solidarity with them. They assured them that PC would continue to support the just demands of employees that are based on the principles of equity and dignity. Sajad Lone expressed confidence that the struggle of the employees would bear fruit sooner or later as justice can be delayed but not denied. Sajad Lone also expressed support to JCC leaders Abdul Qayoom Wani and Farooq Trali and said that it was astonishing that the Chief Minister and his government were so non-serious about meeting the demands of the employees as has been promised to them at various occasion. “Why does the Government believe that it can play with the welfare and sound-working of this State by being so non-serious about resolving the grievances of the employees?” he asked. The Peoples Conference delegation spoke to the employees leadership and apprised them of PC’s pro-employee and pro-people stand on such vital issues and assured them of continued moral and political support in the pursuit of justice.
Posted on: Mon, 10 Jun 2013 23:37:23 +0000
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