The day-long strike called by the pro-Left Democratic Front action council of State employees and teachers created tense moments at the civil station on Thursday following heated exchanges between supporters of the strike and employees who turned up for duty defying the strike call.
Attempts to stop employees resulted in a scuffle between the protestors and the police.
It all started when Land Acquisition deputy collector was not allowed to enter office. The situation worsened as police intervened.
Despite the presence of the police, protestors stopped employees who turned up late for the duty.
Police had to intervene in the face of district collector’s instructions to ensure the safety of employees turning up for duty.
The situation remained tense till afternoon as the civil station premises were dominated by protestors and the police. Protestors took out a protest raising slogans against the police before retracting.
Despite the tensions, 58.47 per cent employees turned up at different offices in the civil station.
District collector M.G. Rajamanickam and Additional District Magistrate B. Ramachandran were among the 78 out of the 168 employees who were present at the collectorate.
The action council however claimed the strike to be a resounding success throwing the functioning of offices and educational institutions out of gear.
