MUMBAI, Jan. 3 -- Dipak Juwatkar wasn't your run-of-the-mill beggar, despite the steel container placed in front of him as he sat on the road in the crowded Dadar Phule Market on Tuesday. The placard next to him was addressed to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, and it spoke of "not a single paisa" having been paid to those who retired from BEST a year ago. This was 59-year-old Juwatkar's sixth public demonstration. Since the first one, on November 5 last year, right outside the BEST headquarters in Colaba, the former BEST conductor, who went on to work as a clerk in the undertaking, has demonstrated at various locations, including Flora Fountain and the Wadala Bus Depot. No one from the BEST administration stepped out to have a word with Juwatkar during the two hours he sat outside Electric House at Colaba on November 5. But Juwatkar's solo act set in motion a collective stirring that resulted in a thousand-strong demonstration of retired BEST employees at Azad Maidan on November 24 and 25. On December 2, they received a written intimation of a meeting with deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde. The meeting has still not happened. The retired employees are now meeting on Saturday morning at Dadar's Sant Sena Hall to decide what to do next. Juwatkar, who worked in the BEST for 32 years, from 1993 to 2025, is not affiliated with any union. "They work only for their own glory,'' he said, bitterly. "Had they worked for us, would we still be waiting for our dues?" These dues include gratuity, the final settlement, as well as the Covid allowance promised to employees for working during the pandemic. Juwatkar claimed his dues amount to Rs.27 lakh. Others have as much as Rs.32 lakh owed to them, he said. Juwatkar's first placard, addressed to the BEST management, asked whether the administration planned to release their retired employees' dues after the latter died. "A few have in fact died waiting,'' he said. Thanks to the Bombay High Court, which has been hearing petitions filed by more than 100 retired employees, many of them have received 60-70% of their dues, said Juwatkar. However, those who retired after May 2024, have received nothing. Other public sector employees receive their dues within a month of their retirement, he pointed out. During every hearing, the BEST has told the court that lack of funds has made it impossible for it to pay retirement dues. However, the court has ordered it to pay the dues in instalments from loans the undertaking has taken. The court also asked the BMC to help out, but the latter refused. Juwatkar doesn't want to approach the courts. "Is it fair to spend thousands on lawyer's fees, and do the rounds of the court for money which is ours by right?" What made him protest all by himself? "Petitions to the authorities are always just filed away. Protesting outside the office where the bosses sit seemed the best way to attract their attention in a peaceful manner. I also hoped this solo protest would awaken others.'' Calls and messages to the BEST general manager and public relations officer went unanswered....