Cops stop teachers marching towards dy speaker’s house

: Police, on Tuesday, used mild force to stop protesting teachers, accompanied by farmers and members of student unions, from marching towards the residence of deputy speaker in Punjab Vidhan Sabha, Ajaib Singh Bhatti.

The protest was in support of teachers recruited under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) as well as in Adarsh and Model Schools who are protesting at Patiala demanding regularisation of their services at full pay scale.

This was part of series of protests by the union (the Sanjha Adhyapak Morcha) outside the residences of MLAs and ministers of the Congress party in support of their demands.

They had gathered at the Teacher’s Home, here, and marched towards Bhatti’s residence in Model Town Phase-3. Police tried to stop protesters by erecting barricades near the Dadi-Poti Park.

However, many protesters jumped these barricades.

Punjab co-convener of Morcha, Jagsir Singh Sahota, said, “Police tried to stop us. The administration has assured us of a meeting with the deputy speaker.”

“Police resorted to a mild cane-charge on protesters,” Sahota said. Bathinda SSP Nanak Singh denied any use of force on teachers.

“Teachers were stopped from reaching the deputy speaker’s house. Some of them broke barricades and did reach there. Leaders of the protest spoke to the deputy speaker over phone, after which their stir was called off.”