Drivers’ protest ends as Cong takes up their cause

But it was only after Mayor Harcharan Singh Gohalwaria along with senior deputy mayor Sunita Aggarwal and deputy mayor R D Sharma reached the place that the protest ended with the family and around 150 people of drivers’ union agreeing to cremate Lal’s body.

However,the matter took on political colour as while the Congress claimed that the mayor had announced the job of a clerk for the eldest daughter of Lal,the mayor denied any such announcement.

Congress councillor Rakesh Prashar told Ludhiana Newsline,“We wanted the grieving family to get justice and thus supported them in the protest. We agreed to end the protest after mayor announced the job of a clerk for the eldest daughter of Lal studying in 12th standard right now.”

He added that the matter would be raised by the Congress in the House meeting too.

However,Mayor Harcharan Singh Gohalwaria denied announcement of any job. “First,he was not our employee. Our liability stands when our employee dies,not when an employee whose services have been terminated dies. But still on humanitarian grounds,I went there today and assured his family that the matter will be taken to the House meeting,and whatever councillors decide,will be done,” he told Ludhiana Newsline.

He added that no job announcement had been made on his behalf as it was just not possible without completing qualification criteria.

The services of Lal,a driver with the MC health wing,were terminated in 2010 for crushing a girl,Kafia Parveen,under his truck. The girl had died on the spot. Now after he died because of cancer,his family claimed that he died because of depression as the MC wrongly accused him of killing the girl.