MUZAFFARABAD, Feb 11: The non-gazetted technical employees of the AJK electricity department observed a peaceful strike throughout Azad Kashmir on Monday to condemn the cold-blooded murder of their colleague and to protest the alleged apathy of the authorities towards providing justice to the victim’s dependents.

Lineman Shabbir Hussain Rathore was hammered to death in the border village of Palangi in Forward Kahuta sub division on Jan 29 allegedly by some consumers while he was removing their illegal power connection from the main electricity line.

The association of the non-gazetted technical employees had been calling upon the government since then to arrest and award exemplary punishment to the killers, besides providing appropriate compensation to the victim’s dependents as well job to his elder son in the electricity department.

However, according to Raja Shakil Ahmed, president of the association, there was a lukewarm response by the government to their just demands, which had forced the electricity department’s non-gazetted employees throughout the state to observe a peaceful strike as a first step.

In Muzaffarabad, the protesting employees staged the demonstration outside the XEN office, where the association leaders, including Raja Shakil Ahmed, Amir Mehmood Wani, Ansar Atta Sheikh, Mirza Majid Beg and others, delivered charged speeches.