Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) employees on Friday staged a dharna in front of the administrative building, protesting the suspension of 20 of their colleagues by the management. The protesters, drawn from various unions, shouted slogans against the authorities for “harassing” employees. Terming the suspension as “unilateral”, they said that the decision was “in gross violation” of the norms to be followed while taking disciplinary action.
The employees were particularly vocal on the way action was taken, as “it was based merely on the reports of the Vigilance Department and that, too, on ‘flimsy grounds’”. They maintained that the suspended employees were not given an opportunity to voice their side of the story. “Even women employees were not given a chance to be heard. The action will certainly cause mental agony among the employees,” said Venkatramana Reddy, vice-president, TTD Employees Cooperative Bank. The protesters vowed to continue agitation till the management backtracked and gave justice to the suspended employees.
Meanwhile, TTD EO M.G. Gopal invited union leaders for talks. He also agreed to consider their demands including taking back suspended and dismissed employees into service.
