Staff protests, gives 24-hr ultimatum to arrest accused

Excelsior Correspondent
POONCH, Aug 7: Entire staff of R&B Wing of Power Development Department (PDD) at Mendhar Sub-Division today held protest against the attack on AEE of the R&B Wing, S S Pathania by the principal of a private school and his associates on Thursday and threatened total pen down and tool down strike from tomorrow morning if the police failed to arrest the accused involved in attack within 24 hours.
The Assistant Executive Engineer Mr Pathania had been allegedly attacked and beaten up by principal of local convent school Mohd Khursheed and his men when he along with Tehsildar Mendhar and some staff had gone to the spot to assess situation after a high tension live wire was broken from a pole and fell on some houses.
During inspection of the area, the AEE who had recently joined his new posting at Mendhar found some violations in constructions and live HT wire moving ahead of a private school. He asked from the management of the schools regarding any permission from the PDD while raising building under this old existing HT power line, risking life of the small children. Upon this the officer had some heated arguments with the principal. Then principal and his men thrashed AEE in front of Tehsildar. Later, tehsildar and AEE lodged an FIR with the Mendhar police which failed to arrest the accused principal.
The police claimed that principal has also filed counter FIR and investigation has been started. Today entire staff though provided electric supply but most of them sat on dharna at PDD Sub Division and demanded immediate arrest of accused persons. They threatened that from tomorrow morning no body will work and power supply will also be stopped if the police failed to arrest principal of St Fransis Covent school who attacked AEE.
Later, they moved to SDPO Shahid Nahim who assured them that the accused will be arrested by this evening. But till now no information about the arrest of the accused has been received.