Apathy leading to resentment

Resentment among workers and activists of various social and trade organisations is brewing against the apathetic attitude of the State Government, district and police administration in Amrendra Pandey murder case.

Resentment among workers and activists of various social and trade organisations is brewing against the apathetic attitude of the State Government, district and police administration in Amrendra Pandey murder case.

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Workers of Triveni Sheet Glass Works and employees working under various bodies, including the government departments, are piqued over the State Government's failure to pay compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the family of slain trade union leader Amrendra Pandey. Besides, they are exasperated with the district and police administration for failing to arrest JK Agrawal, the factory owner, who has been accused of conspiring the murder.

Amrendra, it may be mentioned, was done to death by some persons at the factory gate on March 24 while he was returning home after purchasing vegetables.

An FIR was lodged against factory owner JK Agrawal, general manager CP Yadav, KK Gupta, administrator, and some other persons. While the GM was arrested the same night, the administrator was arrested the next morning. Cops allegedly arrested two of the hired killers on March 25 but kept them confined at unknown places. Following pressure and story published in HT, they were forced to come out with the fact that they had arrested Bhaskar and Avneesh, the two alleged hired killers.

Pandey had been fighting for the cause of the workers for the past 12 years.

Workers and employees of various factories and government departments staged a demonstration for the arrest of the owner and demanded compensation from the government but both the demands are yet to be fulfilled, said CPI (M) leader Harishchandra Dwivedi.

As far as the demand for compensation was concerned the workers would not allow Amrendra's family to starve, he said. "We will launch a donation drive and the employees will have no hesitation in paying some amount for the family of the slain leader. In fact we are capable of collecting more money than what is being demanded from the State Government," he told the HT Live.

"But we cannot arrest JK, who is in town and moving with impunity," said former MLA Anugrah Narain Singh, who is spearheading the employees' agitation.

"The factory management is of criminal nature and it's also responsible for the murder of four other trade union leaders but each time it gets away with the clout it enjoys and its money power," said Dwivedi.

An FIR of attempt to murder is still pending against JK and no action has been taken in this case in which he tried to gun down a trade union leader Pawan Pandey, alleged Dwivedi.

He said in ordinary cases the State Government was generously contributing huge sums as compensation to people but in this case where a trade union leader had been murdered by none other but the factory management it was shying away.

The manner in which cops were going about this case clearly proved that an attempt was being made to hush up the case some how, alleged AN Singh. He also alleged Bhaskar and Avneesh, the alleged hired killers, were not quizzed properly by the police.

"This makes amply clear that cops were playing a double game," alleged Singh.