About 150 State leaders of four left parties — CPI, CPI (M), CPM Punjab and CPI (Ml) liberation — held a protest dharna outside Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal’s residence to lodge their protest against Government’s unresponsive attitude towards 15-point demand charter related with the burning problems of the people.led by State secretaries Comrades Hardev Arshi (CPI), Charan Singh Virdi (CPI) (M), Mangat Ram Pasla (CPM Punjab) and Gurmit Singh Bakhtupur (CPI) (Ml) (liberation), they alleged that the State Government is indifferent towards the 15-point demand charter, it had submitted, “containing just and genuine burning problems of the workers, peasants, youth and women”.The state leaders from all over the state, breaking section 144 clamped in Chandigarh, gathered near the Chief minister’s residence.
They were stopped by the police by erecting barricades on the road when they started to march towards the Chief Minister’s residence holding red flags and raising thundering slogans.The protesters squatted on the road and started their protest dharna, which was addressed by senior leaders. The speakers strongly condemned the “adamant and unresponsive attitude” of Chief Minister Badal.They demanded old age and widow pension to be raised to Rs 3,000, minimum wage at Rs 15,000 per month, 10 marla plots to all houseless people, filling up of all vacant posts in government departments, unemployment allowance and round the year work to MGNREGA workers.The state leaders highly condemned the callousness of Chief Minister who did not receive the mass deputation. It was resolved to make the agitation more broad based and called upon the people to make the July 20 district-level demonstrations a grand success.