MP News: Staff Accuse District Panchayat Chief Of ‘Harassment’, March In Protest

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Sarpanchs, secretaries and Gram Rozgar Sahayaks staged a joint protest against District Panchayat President Pinky Wankhede and her staff for allegedly harassing them and threatening them with complaints to the Collector, in Khandwa on Thursday.

The protesters accused senior officials of forcing target-based work and mentally harassing panchayat employees.

Representatives from across the district gathered at the Stadium Ground around noon and marched in a rally to the Collectorate. They raised slogans and submitted a memorandum to Additional Collector Srishti Deshmukh. The rally then proceeded to the local BJP office, where protesters again voiced their grievances.

The joint forum alleged that panchayat employees are being unfairly targeted, intimidated and threatened with complaints to the Collector. They claimed that work under government schemes, such as water conservation and “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam” is being carried out, but payments have not yet been released.

The protesters said they wanted the alleged illegal scrutiny of gram panchayat records to stop.

Their other demands included timely payment of salaries between the first and fifth of every month, and strict action against those responsible for the alleged mental harassment of the panchayat secretary in Harda, who died.