KL NEWS NETWORK
SRINAGAR
The proposed Secretariat gherao protest call given by Jammu and Kashmir government employees organisation Thursday met a stiff resistance from police who had to baton-charge the marching employees toward the Secretariat. But even then, the confrontation between cops and employees is still going at the gates of Secretariat.
Earlier police baton-charged and sprayed colour water to disperse the protesters, who regrouped and tried to push their way inside Secretariat, but faced resistance from a chain of cops.
Notably, Employees Joint Action Committee (EJAC) had called for Civil Secretariat gherao on May 28 to press for regularisation of daily wagers and casual labourers working in many departments.
Qayoom Wani, President EJAC while calling for the gherao appealed to all categories of employees to participate in the protest, saying: “If the government uses force as it has been using in the past to quell such protests, the agitation would be intensified.”
Wani said that Finance Minister Haseeb Drabu had said on the floor of the Assembly that the government was framing a policy for daily wagers and casual employees, but even after three months, “nothing” has been done.
“We ask the government to come up with the policy,” Wani said. “In case it fails to do so, the protest will be intensified.”
The confrontation was still going on when this report was filed.
