Police use water cannons to foil daily wagers protest, scores detained

Police Monday foiled the protest of daily wagers of Public Health Engineering (PHE) department and detained scores of its members when they tried to march towards Civil Secretariat to protest against the alleged discrimination with them.

Police also used water cannons to thwart them from marching towards the Secretariat.

Amid anti-government sloganeering, the protesters tried to carry out demonstration against the government’s ‘imminent decision’ of regularizing the employees who have political affiliation with the coalition government.

However, as soon as the protesters came out from the head office at Exchange road, police used water cannons to foil their attempt and detained scores of its members.

Prior to their detention, President of PHE daily wagers association, Sajad Ahmad Parray said that the successive regimes have so far failed to regularize thousands of daily wagers appointed since 1994.

He said that the successive governments made futile promises with them so far.

“Finance Minister, Haseeb A Drabu had promised us that we will be regularized and also a committee headed by chief Secretary was formed in this regard. The committee had to submit their report on May 30,” he said.

He alleged that a sub-committee meeting was held on May 30 in which it was decided that those who have been appointed in the year 2007 to 2010 and having political affiliation with PDP and BJP will be regularized. “We are being forced to take to streets against the government,” he added.

“We have served the department with dedication since past almost 20 years and the government is ignoring our plight. We won’t act as mute spectator in case the government would betray our trust,” Parray added.

Nonetheless, police later swung into action and detained scores of the protesters.

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