State Mahasangh to observe Black Day

NAGPUR, July 18: The State unit of Castribe Karmachari Mahasangh has condemned the police firing on dalits in Mumbai and has decided to observe July 24 as `Black Day’ in protest against the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party government’s callous attitude towards minorities in the State.

Issuing a press statement here on Thursday, Krishna Ingle, president of Maharashtra unit of the Mahasangh, said that officers and employees of minority communities were insecure in the Peshvai Raj. Lauding the courage of the two dalit officers, Datta Waghmare, Deputy Secretary and Vasant Ingle, Deputy Police Commissioner, who have resigned from their respective posts recently in protest against the firing, he said that both officers had shown great courage.

Ingle said that the coalition government was deliberately ignoring officers of the minority community. There was not a single Divisional Commissioner from the backward community in the six commissionerates in the state. Only four collectors were from the backward communities in the 29 districts while there was just one Superintendent of Police from the community in entire state, the Castribe leader pointed out. He blamed the State Chief Secretary, Dinesh Afzalpurkar for the discrimination and demanded his expulsion.

The Castribe Mahasangh has demanded a Rs five lakh-compensation for each of the families of victims and Rs one lakh to injured. The Mahasangh also asked for full protection to the backward class employees in the State.