Southern States - Tamil Nadu   

`Dismissals give short-shrift to quota system'

By Our Special Correspondent

VILLUPURAM July 10. The en masse dismissal of government employees and teachers in one stroke is unprecedented, and is not only violative of the convention of the International Labour Office but would also give short shrift to the reservation system, S. Ramadoss, founder-leader, Pattali Makkal Katchi, said today.

Besides the midnight arrests, the dismissal was an attack on the staff belonging to backward and most backward classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. For, they had been inducted into government service under the 69 per cent quota system, he told a press conference at his Thailapuram farmhouse, near here.

The PMK leader asked whether the Government followed the reservation policy in the new recruitments, made in the place of the axed employees. If it ignored the quota policy, it would tantamount to a ``grave social injustice''.

When the employees were expecting a call for talks, the Government declared a war against them, taking harsh measures such as enforcing the Essential Services Maintenance Act with retrospective effect, making arrests and forcing them to vacate government quarters. Some of them ``died of the shock of midnight arrests''. Who would own responsibility for the tragedy?

The Panruti MLA, Velmurugan, who was present, said the PMK labour wing had filed a public interest litigation petition in the Madras High Court seeking to get justice to the employees.

Referring to the observations by the AICC president, Sonia Gandhi, that her party would go in for alliance with secular parties, Dr. Ramadoss said the Congress seemed to have understood rather belatedly the reality that no single party could form government either at the Centre or in the State.

On the Ayodhya dispute, Dr. Ramadoss said it had become customary to rake up the issue at the time of election. Raising the Kashi-Mathura issue now would not be conducive to the unity of the country, he said.

Dr. Ramadoss said his party would celebrate the birth centenary of Kamaraj in Chennai (the date is yet to be finalised).

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Southern States

News: Front Page | National | Southern States | Other States | International | Opinion | Business | Sport | Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary |

Stories in this Section

• Ousted staff troop in with appeals
• Rulers can't escape punishment for abuse of power: Elangovan
• Ordinance suffers from mala fide: Secretariat officers
• Ooty canal, a health hazard now
• High-level AICTE panel to probe irregularities
• Andi Thevar arrested
• 5 selected for sports training
• Moderate rainfall in Cauvery delta
• `Dismissals give short-shrift to quota system'
• I hold no portfolios, like Kamaraj: Digvijay
• Shifting of officials demoralises Madurai police
• Poaching case against Kumaradhas' son
• Jailed teacher hospitalised

Copyright © 2003, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu