Thane: Former MP and social worker Haribhau Rathod on Saturday asked the striking Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) employees to return to work in their own interest.
With no end in sight, the ongoing strike by the employees of the MSRTC has crossed 20 days.
Addressing a news conference at the Circuit House here, the social worker said the strike, which was hijacked by the BJP to pull down the Maha Vikas Aaghadi (MVA) government, is now leaderless and directionless, and the employees should realise this now.
He asked both the administration and the workers not to stretch it too far and come to an understanding, he said.
Making serious allegations, Rathod said the BJP has ruined the country and was out to avenge the MVA as it could not come to power and was adopting this method to defame the government and in the process ruining and raze the workers of the MSRTC.
He said Advocate Gunaratna Sadavarte, Gopichand Padalkar and Sadhabhau Khot had misled the striking workers and provoked them and taken them for a ride.
He further said the workers should honour the order of the courts where a committee has been formed and given twelve weeks time to come out with the report, he said.
Rathod said,” neither the merger nor the privatization was the solution to the ongoing issue and both the parties should come to terms and put an end to the ongoing strike.”
Sunil Nirbhavane the General Secretary of the Castribe Rajya Parivahan Karmachari Sanghatana squarely blamed the recognised unions for the mess up and the current situation which was drifting towards the situation like the one of the textile strike with a deadlock.
Rathod said they would meet with the Transport Minister Anil Parab also give an ultimatum and said if the issue is not resolved within a couple of days, he would himself take the lead and put an end to the ongoing mess, ultimately we want the “Lal Pari” to be saved, he said.
During the pandemic, the employees had risked their lives and given uninterrupted services to the people and what price they pay now with more than 2500 being suspended and some on the way to being sacked, he added.
