HC stick prods babus to work

The Calcutta High Court8217;s recent order urging the West Bengal government to issue an order making bandhs illegal had a perceptible impa...

The Calcutta High Court8217;s recent order urging the West Bengal government to issue an order making bandhs illegal had a perceptible impact on today8217;s 24-hour bandh 8212; called by the Socialist Unity Centre of India SUCI to protest the latest hike in LPG and petroleum prices.

At the state Secretariat in Writers Building, the attendance was as high as 70 per cent, with the state government issuing specific orders for employees to turn up for duty in compliance with the High Court order.

Acting Chief Minister Mohammed Amin said that government employees who failed to turn up during the day would be granted a day8217;s casual leave if they applied for it. Those who do not have leave to their credit will have a day8217;s pay cut, in accordance with the court order, he said.

There were fewer buses and trains plying today, however, and wholesale trading centres in the city remained closed.

Ironically, the Calcutta High Court was the one place where work was virtually paralysed 8212; most court employees and officers did not turn up. Many judges were also unable to attend their courts.

At the Calcutta High Court, acting Chief Justice A.N. Ray took up the hearing of the PIL that had sought the Court8217;s intervention in ensuring that normal life was not disrupted. But Justice Ray referred the matter to the bench of Justice Pratap Ray and Justice Jyotirmoy Bhattacharjee, who had already heard the matter, and issued directives to the state government. The matter comes up for hearing again on November 22 8212; the day another bandh has been called by Naxalites.

Meanwhile, Subhas Chakraborty, the CPIM minister for Sports and Youth affairs, said: 8216;8216;The day has come when bandh has lost its relevance and the day is not far when people will respond to a bandh call by beating up the sponsors8217;8217;. He also criticised school authorities for closing their establishments whenever there is a bandh call. 8216;8216;Who has given them the authority to ask students not to come and thereby send a message to not less than 8.4 million homes of students?8217;8217; he said, adding that steps would have to be taken to remedy this.

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8216;8216;Even though there had been an exchange of gunfire between militants and security personnel in Srinagar, children greeted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today with flowers. No school is closed,8217;8217; said Chakraborty.

Interestingly, Chakraborty used to be instrumental in mobilising Party cadres for bandhs, hartals and rallies.

Two more bandhs have been called in the state over the next fortnight.