West Bengal government employees, who are on a hunger strike for a hike in dearness allowance (DA), met Governor CV Ananda Bose on Sunday and urged him to arrange a meeting with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to resolve all the issues.
But Mamata Banerjee had earlier made it clear that she would not be able to meet the demands even if the protesters “behead” her.
As the stir continued, a five-member delegation of state government employees reached Raj Bhawan and met the Governor on Sunday. The delegation members, Bhaskar Ghosh, Bipul Roy, Deepal Biswas, Srivas Tewar and Swapan Biswas were part of Sangrami Joutho Manch, a joint forum of several state government employees associations.
The protesting employees have submitted a letter, urging Governor CV Ananda Bose to immediately intervene and meet their demands to end the stir.
The government employees want DA on par with employees of other states and Centre. Demands such as payment of pending DA, recruitment of qualified candidates to vacant posts and regularisation of temporary workers also feature in their list.
The employees want a meeting with Mamata Banerjee to discuss and fulfill these demands.
They also appealed to Governor CV Anand Bose for his personal intervention to stop attacks on the teachers and state government employees who were part of the strike. They also demanded no action against employees as part of the protest.
GOVERNOR’S RESPONSE
In a tweet, Governor CV Ananda Bose expressed deep pain that the strike is entering its fourth week but said the issue may look complex but there is always a “simple way out”.
“What is of paramount importance is the precious life of our brothers who are on a continuous fast for a cause which is close to their heart. Governor entreats all those who are on the perilous fast to kindly end it and request all stakeholders to sit together and find an acceptable way out of the imbroglio,” CV Ananda Bose added.
Source: Indiatoday