STATE TIMES NEWS
Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir BJP president Ravinder Raina on Saturday met the government employees who have been protesting for over four months here seeking their relocation outside the Valley in view of targeted killings by terrorists.
They also demanded the government to release their pending salaries ahead of the festival season.
Raina called up Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Secretary Arun K Mehta from the protest venue and later assured the protesters that he was hopeful that the administration will fulfill their genuine demands.
Hundreds of panic-striken Dogra employees moved to Jammu from Kashmir after the killing of a teacher named Rajni Bala inside her school in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district on May 31.
“They have been on strike for the last 130 days and their demands are justified. Nothing is more precious than a human life. How can a person perform their duties in an atmosphere of fear?” Raina told reporters at Panama Chowk here.
He said the protesting employees got jobs under inter-district recruitment policy and they have already served in Kashmir for over 15 years.
“I spoke to the LG and the chief secretary, and I am hopeful that the administration will address all their genuine issues and frame a transfer policy for them,” the BJP leader said.
He also requested the government to release their pending salaries.
The agitating employees said they have already raised their demands with LG Sinha.
“We want the government to frame a transfer policy and accommodate us anywhere in Jammu division,” one of the employees said.