Delhi sanitation workers demand Rs 1 crore compensation after colleague's murder

Sanitation workers and auto-tipper drivers protested at Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital on Monday, August 17, demanding Rs 1 crore compensation and a permanent government job for a family member of a 27-year-old sanitation worker who was stabbed to death in Kalyanpuri, and refused to let the family take his body for last rites until their demands were met.

The worker, identified as Anil, was stabbed while collecting garbage in Kalyanpuri around 8.15 am on Sunday and later died at the hospital, where his body was kept as protesters gathered.

Delhi Police and paramilitary personnel were deployed at the site as the protesters raised slogans and demanded the accused's immediate arrest, compensation for the family, and action against the private company that had engaged him.

Karan Singh Mahroliya, a member of the Delhi Sanitation Workers Union, said the protesters were seeking Rs 1 crore compensation and a permanent job in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for one member of Anil's family.

He said the body would not be released for last rites until the demands were met and that auto-tippers would stay off Delhi's roads, adding that the vehicles had already been withdrawn from service in several areas as part of the protest.

Police have registered a case and identified the accused, who remains at large. Teams are examining CCTV footage and other evidence to establish the sequence of events and the motive behind the killing.

Anil was a contractual sanitation worker engaged by the MCD through a private company. His colleagues had staged a dharna following the incident, demanding the accused's arrest and compensation for the family.

The MCD said on Sunday it would ensure compensation to Anil's family and that its representatives had visited the family to convey the assurance.

(Inputs from PTI)