PUNE, 15 NOV. Senior leaders of the BJP are reportedly pressuring the administration to withdraw the entry ban imposed on a BJP office-bearer who was barred from the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) building and its properties. The action was taken after the office-bearer was accused of deliberately causing mental distress to a female PMC official.
A Minister reportedly spoke to the Municipal Commissioner a few days ago regarding the matter. Sources indicate that a responsible BJP office-bearer will now meet the Commissioner on Monday, bringing the banned office-bearer along.
The ban, along with the filing of a case at Shivaji Nagar Police Station, was initiated by Municipal Commissioner Naval Kishore Ram in June against the BJP's Labor Front office-bearer and six others, who were accused of stalking and making derogatory remarks towards a female officer in the Health Department. The action also included some contractual security guards who supported the banned official.
Amid pressure from the responsible BJP office-bearer to revoke the ban, the security guards who were also part of the action have already been reinstated. With the municipal elections approaching, having an office-bearer banned is proving problematic for both the party and the individual.
Following the Minister's phone call, the meeting scheduled for Monday is expected to involve the tendering of an apology to facilitate the process of withdrawing the entry ban.
In reaction to these developments, some PMC employees and officers expressed concern, stating, "We are constantly troubled by political leaders and their workers while working in the office. This is the first time the Municipal Commissioner has bravely taken action to ban someone's entry. Since political leaders are pressuring our officers to withdraw this ban, moves to lift the ban have begun. If the ban on this office-bearer and his workers is lifted, how are we supposed to work?"
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