Punjab: Valmiki Samaj withdraws bandh call after assurance of meeting with CM

The Valmiki Samaj withdrew its statewide bandh call for Friday after an assurance of a meeting with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann over their issues.The Valmiki Samaj and Bhagwan Valmiki Tirth Management Committee which had called for a bandh from 9 am to 5 pm. Now, the chief minister will be meeting us, therefore, the bandh call stands withdrawn, he said.

The Valmiki Samaj withdrew its statewide bandh call for Friday after an assurance of a meeting with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann over their issues.

The Valmiki Samaj and Bhagwan Valmiki Tirth Management Committee which had called for a bandh from 9 am to 5 pm. Community leader Ravinder Hans in Amritsar said they took strong objection to an opinion expressed by the Punjab government earlier in the High Court over the recruitment of law officers in the state advocate general's office.

The then Advocate General Anmol Rattan Sidhu had favoured recruitment on the basis of merit keeping aside reservation considerations, Hans said.

''The community found the opinion objectionable and there was resentment among the community which prompted them to announce the bandh across the state. Now, the chief minister will be meeting us, therefore, the bandh call stands withdrawn,'' he said. In Amritsar and Phagwara, all shops, commercial units and educational institutions opened as usual after the withdrawal of the bandh call.

However, in some areas of Jalandhar, a few shops and business establishments remained closed for a few hours during the day as another outfit of the Valmiki community maintained that the bandh was on.

While members of the outfit asked shopkeepers to down shutters, many did on their own.

In Amritsar, district-level officers, including Deputy Commissioner Harpreet Singh Sudan and senior police officers, assured the community regarding a meeting with Mann on August 19.

An official statement issued by the district administration said a bandh call was given by the Valmiki community but after a marathon meeting between the district administration and senior leader of the community, it was decided that their issues will be discussed with the CM on August 19.

Satish Salhotra, a senior leader of the community, said in Phagwara that they have withdrawn their call for the bandh after an assurance of a meeting with Mann. PTI JMS SUN VSD RDK RDK

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