TEAM HERALD
MARGAO: Tension rent the air in the corridors of the Margao Municipal Council on Wednesday evening after agitated civic employees laid a near three- hour long siege outside the chamber of the Chief Officer Deepali Naik in protest against the delay in issuing an order to the four employees promoted as per the Departmental Promotion Committee’s recommendation.
Margao police led by DySP Mohan Naik and PI Sudesh Naik later moved inside the civic body and took into custody of six employees, including general secretary of the Goa Municipal Employees Association Anil Shirodkar and Rajan Deulkar, brother of MMC Chairperson Dayanand Deulkar. It was only after the six employees were taken into custody that the Chief Officer left her chamber under police protection at around 8 pm. Municipal employees were seen assembled outside the Margao police station as news spread over the arrest of the union leader and other employees.
Trouble started when the municipal employees found to their shock and surprise that the Chief Officer, who has been transferred to the Civil Supplies department, was deliberately dragging her feet to sign the promotional orders of the four employees.
In protest, Anil Shirodkar and the employees staged sit-in dharna outside the CO’s office and shouted slogans against the Chief Officer for meting out harassment to them. He maintained that the DPC had cleared the names of the employees for promotion long ago and blamed the Chief Officer for the delay.
When the media questioned the Chief Officer, she attributed the delay to the delay in compiling the minutes of the Council and the absence of a superintendent. She, however, slammed Anil Shirodkar for the agitation, warning that she would not tolerate any such pressure tactics in the civic body.
“The promotional orders have been typed this evening, but I could not sign them after office hours. I will sign the orders on Thursday morning”, she said.
As the agitating employees refused to call-off the sit-in dharna, the Chief Officer told PI Sudesh Naik to arrest Anil Shirodkar for causing obstruction outside her chamber. The employees refused to vacate corridors and offered to court arrest, wherein six of them were taken into preventive detention by the police.
When contacted, Margao PI Sudesh Naik said the
police have received a complaint from the Chief Officer Deepali Naik alleging outraging of her modesty and obstruction. The names of the employees were provided as Anil Shirodkar, Devidas Shetkar, Rajan Deulkar, Sachin Luhera, Abdul Matin, Chalawa Chalwadi, Smitha Sattardekar, Succorina
Fernandes and Marina
Fernandes.
