Engineers and staffers of the Public Health Department in the Kashmir Valley remained on a protest strike Friday over alleged misbehaviour by a senior state minister with an official.Muzaffar Ahmad Lankar, chief engineer of the department, had submitted his resignation Thursday alleging that Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution Department (CAPD) Minister Chowdhary Muhammad Ramzan misbehaved with him.The minister told the media Thursday that he had not misbehaved with the chief engineer. He said he only wanted to know the fate of a drinking water supply scheme in his north Kashmir Handwara constituency for which he had allotted Rs.9 crore.
The joint action committee of the state government employees has also supported the strike call and demanded that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah act against his minister.Employees gathered at the office complex here Friday and shouted slogans against the minister and the government.Sajjad Ahmad Parray, chairman of Public Health Department (PHE) joint employees coordination committee, told IANS that the employees will hold a meeting after 4 p.m. here to decide their future course of action.He said that if the minister does not apologize or the government doesn't take action against him by Friday afternoon, they will announce details of further protests."All the offices of the department are closed throughout the Valley today (Friday) in protest against the minister's misbehaviour," Parray added.