CHANDIGARH: Hours after Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday declared illegal the mass casual leave of Punjab Civil Service (PCS) officers, in protest against the arrest of an officer in a corruption case, the civil service association withdrew the stir and resumed work.
The orders issued by the CM through chief secretary VK Janjua read: “It has been brought to my notice that some officers are not attending duty in the garb of some strike. They are protesting against strong action taken by the government against corrupt officers. Let this be very clear to everyone that this government has zero tolerance to corruption. Such a strike amounts to blackmailing and arm-twisting.”
It asked the chief secretary to declare the strike illegal and suspend all such officers who do not report by 2 pm. Those who did not join duty by 2 pm should be treated as ‘dies non’ (a break in service)’. The PCS Officers’ group withdrew their mass casual leave and resumed work immediately. They said they were satisfied with the assurance given by the CM.