Govt employees ‘attacked’ during protest to seek DA hike; FIR lodged

The location of the protest, which entered its 62nd day on Wednesday, was close to the Shahid Minar Ground where Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee was addressing a public meeting.

Altaf Ahmed, a member of the Joint Forum of State Government Employees (JFSGE) said, “Around 2pm, one of our members Mintu Paik took a woman to the washroom. On the way, they were manhandled and beaten up. We took him to the SSKM hospital for treatment. We are certain those who attacked him were holding the Trinamool Congress flags and from the party itself.”

Later in the evening, an FIR was filed at Hare Street Police Station against unknown persons for allegedly assaulting Paik and another government employee. When contacted by The Indian Express, TMC leaders were not available for comment on the allegations.

“Our protest entered its 62nd day and the state government didn’t take a single step to meet our demand for a hike in DA. We are continuing our protest despite facing odds. It is phenomenal to see how people are supporting and joining us. We are fighting for our demands and we will keep on fighting,” added Ahmed.

Addressing mediapersons on Wednesday, Bhaskar Ghosh, member of the joint forum said, “In my absence, an incident occurred when a teacher, Mintu Paik was beaten by the TMC members. He got injured and was admitted to the SSKM hospital. We have lodged an FIR against it and we will approach the Calcutta High Court on Thursday to file a contempt of court case against this incident.”