Thiruvananthapuram: Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala demanded that the government should withdraw the decision to arbitrarily deduct one month’s salary from the employees towards chief minister’s distress relief fund ( CMDRF ). He said the order should be redrafted in such a way that the government should take consent from those who were willing to donate their one month’s salary.“No government employee had expressed dissatisfaction in donating their two days’ salary to the CMDRF. Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s suggestion that employees can donate their salary in ten instalments also did not create any resentment among the employees, but, the order issued by finance department is not in tune with this,” Chennithala said at a news conference here on Monday.He requested the cabinet – that will meet on Wednesday – to revoke the order in this regard. He said finance minister T M Thomas Isaac, who issued such an order without discussing it in the cabinet, should publicly concede that it was mistake on his part. He said the whole state stood together in the time of the floods, but the state government through the order has destroyed the feeling of brotherhood.Pro-UDF unions oppose move: The government’s call for compulsory donation has created a tiff between the pro-LDF and pro-UDF unions in several offices. The Congress-led unions launched a campaign in all the government offices not to give any written undertaking that they are not willing to pay. They have urged the employees to boycott the call for one-month salary donation to CMDRF.In most offices, the pro-CPM NGO union had already secured assurance from employees on donating their salaries. However, even members within the union are opposing this. But out of fear they are not coming out in open, said sources.Pro-Congress NGO Association has decided to boycott the call . All association members have decided to pay according to their capacity to the CMDRF. The association, in the meeting of service organizations convened by finance minister Thomas Isaac, had objected to forcibly taking one-month salary. Now, Isaac has convened a meeting of pensioner’s association to urge them to pay their one month pension, on Saturday.

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