PwD protestors stage dharna at civic headquarters for want of allowance

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

Persons with disabilities, on Wednesday, staged a protest at the municipal corporation headquarters, demanding payment of their pending disability allowance, which has not been paid for the past 14 months. At around 1.30 pm, agitators suddenly began a sit-in demonstration at the main entrance of the civic body.

To prevent the vehicles of the mayor and the deputy mayor from leaving, the protesters also staged a demonstration at the second gate used for their entry and exit. Deputy Mayor Rajendra Janjal later spoke over the phone with Chief Finance and Accounts Officer (CAFO) Santosh Wahule, who assured that the disability allowance would be paid soon. Following this assurance, the protesters withdrew their agitation.

The municipal corporation provides a disability allowance to persons with disabilities in the city. However, beneficiaries claim that they have not received the allowance for the last 14 months. Earlier as well, various organisations representing persons with disabilities had staged protests outside the civic body, but they were repeatedly given assurances.

On Wednesday, the disability cell of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) had warned of a protest. As scheduled, persons with disabilities began a sit-in demonstration at the main entrance of the municipal headquarters, which resulted in vehicles of corporators, officials and visitors being stranded. The mayor and deputy mayor have a separate entrance for movement, but protesters also blocked that gate. This led to considerable commotion among security guards and former servicemen deployed at the premises.

Deputy mayor Rajendra Janjal listened to the grievances of the protesters. During a phone conversation, Santosh Wahule informed him that payment for two months would be released in April and the remaining dues would be cleared gradually. After receiving this assurance, the protesters called off the agitation.

Activists including Mohsin Khan, Abdulla Shaikh, Rahim Khan, Saeed Khan, along with several women and persons with disabilities, were present during the protest.