Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on January 22nd said that if state government college teachers are found to be protesting on working days, they will have face a pay cut for the said day.
The Minister attended a meeting with college teachers at the Kalakshetra Auditorium, Guwahati. “If teachers are found protesting during duty hours, they will have to bear a salary cut for the said day. The same applies if they come to visit Minister during the working days,” he said.
It may be mentioned, the Director of Higher Education, Assam on December 30th, 2019 has warned employees of disciplinary action if they indulge in criticism of the government or its policies. A similar notice was also issued by the office of the director of Elementary Education on December 24th, 2019.
The move comes after several government employees and teachers slammed the government and joined the protests against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.
The Assam government has also warned its employees of disciplinary action against those “indulging and participating in political activities” on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and Instagram. The department of education has formed a monitoring cell to monitor the “prohibited activities”.
Photo: @jyotishpawanbordoloi
