
The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday in an order said that in case any of the PGIMER Ministerial and Secretarial Employees Union leaders proceed on strike or hunger strike, they may be immediately arrested and sent to civil imprisonment.
“Deputy Commissioner-cum-District Magistrate, Chandigarh and SSP, Chandigarh are directed to take necessary preventive steps to ensure that there is no violation of the aforesaid orders passed by this Court,” Justice Arvind Singh Sangwan said in the order, while referring to the previous directions issued by the HC prohibiting various employee unions of PGI from proceeding on any strike.
The order on Tuesday was passed in a contempt petition filed by PGI against Tarandeep Singh Grewal and Harbhajan Singh Bhatti, who are General Secretary and President of the Ministerial and Secretarial Employees Union, PGI Chandigarh.
The counsel representing the PGI informed the court that the HC in August 2019 has already restrained the unions from proceeding on strike or disrupting the functioning at the institute. The court was told that that same order was reiterated in March 2020. However, the counsel added that Grewal and Batti have now formed a new union to bypass the court orders and threatened to go on a hunger strike.
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The Union had on May 26 written to PGI Director Professor Jagat Ram and informed him about Grewal’s hunger strike with effect from June 10. The employees are seeking fulfillment of various demands, particularly connected to promotion of the employees and other service-related issues.
The PGI, on June 9, had warned the employees of disciplinary action in case they participated in the strike.
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