A day after the Department of Personnel issued an order indicating strong action against employees who participated in the mass casual leave, the departments have started filing replies after receiving notices asking for the status of employees for their “unauthorised” absence from duty on Thursday.Besides, the main civil secretariat, departments including Employment Generation, Skill Development and Training and Education Department and other such government institutions have begun receiving notices.The Tribune is in possession of such copies of replies filed by the respective departments which reads:“Reference: Action regarding unauthorised absence of employees on duty.”“In connection with the above subject matter and the letter under reference, it is verified as per the office records (attendance register) that no employee of this department has been found to be absent unauthorisedly and leave has been availed by them as per the attendance register. Therefore, the information of the department may be considered null and void.”In a reply to, “Action regarding unauthorised absence of employees on duty.”The letter reads, “In connection with the above subject matter and the letter referred to; it is written that no employee of the Directorate of School Education (Secondary), Punjab, was found to be absent without authorisation. Therefore, the information of this department should be considered null and void.”A day after the Maha Hartal, protesting Punjab government employees showed no signs of backing down.Manjeet Singh and Alka Chopra, both representatives of the joint action committee of the employees’ union in the Punjab Civil Secretariat, said the employees gathered at the seventh floor of the civil secretariat during lunch and tore the copies of the notices.Earlier it was decided to burn effigies of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, AAP convener and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema in front of Deputy Commissioner offices across the state, but the move was kept on hold for Friday.While slamming the allegation of unauthorised absence of employees, Chopra and Singh said that prior intimation was given to the employee about the strike.The unions have also decided to convene a meeting of their leaders to chalk out the further course of action. The meeting is likely to be held in Ludhiana.Nearly four lakh Punjab Government employees proceeded on mass casual leave on Thursday to press for the release of pending dearness allowance, restoration of the Old Pension Scheme and resolution of other service-related issues. Nearly three lakh pensioners also joined the protest.In response, CM Mann called off a scheduled meeting with employee representatives in Jalandhar, triggering protests and further backlash from the employees.However, the situation intensified after the government issued an order seeking details of employees who had remained absent from duty.The order stated the government had received complaints from various quarters that the public was facing inconvenience as officials were not attending offices.The rising scale of the planned agitation presents a significant political challenge for the Mann government ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. With around 7.50 lakh employees and pensioners participating, the protest has the potential to influence nearly 38 lakh voters when their families are taken into account.