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Strike a legitimate weapon: Sorabjee

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD Aug. 23. The Attorney-General, Soli Sorabjee, has said that the Supreme Court's recent observation that the Government employees have no moral or equitable right to go on strike was obviously an "overreaction'' to the frequency of strikes.

Talking to The Hindu here on Saturday, Mr. Sorabjee agreed that sometimes the strikes were observed for trivial reasons causing serious inconvenience to the public and the administration. "This is an overreaction'', he commented. He said that strike was an important tool in the armoury of workers and should be used "sparingly and responsibly''. He said that the trade unions had not always acted with a sense of responsibility and there were instances of frequent, indiscriminate and wildcat strikes, causing inconvenience to the public.

"But you can't rule out resorting to strike altogether in all circumstances,'' he added. Very often the administration turns a deaf ear and the long-pending grievances of employees remain unsolved for years. Each strike should be judged on a case-by-case basis and there should not be any generalisation like "all strikes are bad or all strikes are good''.

He said that strike should be resorted to, for a brief duration, to convey the strong sense of protest. "Strike should not be for long and, needless to say, should be non-violent,'' he said. The essential services during strike period should not be disrupted. He sought to allay fears expressed in some quarters that the proposed National Judicial Commission would affect the independence of the judiciary. The executive would not have a majority as per the composition of the commission. The Chief Justice of India would be Chairman and the Law Minister and an eminent person appointed by the President in consultation with the Chief justice would be its other members.

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