State turns up the heat, issues notices to 100 striking transport employees

Officials say these are routine actions; striking union members see them as a threat

The State government on Tuesday sent out a strict warning to road transport corporation (RTC) workers’ unions by dismissing 50 employees across the State against whom departmental inquiries have been held previously.

While officials maintained that these were routine dismissals, which were the result of inquiries, the timing of the dismissal was viewed by the unions as an attempt to derail the ongoing strike. The list of people dismissed also includes some union leaders, senior officials said.

The unions of the four RTCs are on an indefinite strike, demanding a 35 per cent salary hike.

The government insisted that the dismissals were not related to the strike.

“These are routine matters and the dismissals are the result of that. I’m not even aware of the exact details as this has nothing to do with the strike,” said Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy.

In addition to the 50 dismissals, around 100 employees were issued notices under the employees’ rules which could lead to their dismissal.

These notices were issued because these employees had specifically prevented others from showing up for work or tried to prevent operations, a senior official said.

Union members, however, viewed the government’s actions as a threat. “Besides these suspensions, they have also sent out threatening messages to trainees asking them to show up for work or vacate quarters. They are trying to break us and prevent this strike from progressing,” said H.S. Manjunath, general secretary, Karnataka Rajya Raste Sarige Nigamagala Naukarara Federation.

In Chikkamagaluru, the divisional controller of the KSRTC, on Tuesday, dismissed five employees reportedly for supporting the strike. The employees dismissed are Suresh (driver), Revanappa (driver) of Kadur depot, J. Annappa (driver-cum-conductor), Paddanna (driver) of Chikkamagaluru depot, and Jagadish (driver) of Sakleshpur depot.

No specific reason

The dismissal order, issued by Anil Kumar, divisional controller, does not specify the reason for the decision. It states, “The following employees are dismissed for involving in various cases”.

Invoking ESMA is the last resort. However, we want to resolve the issue in a cordial manner.

Ramalinga Reddy,Transport Minister