2nd September 2015
Press Release
CITU Salutes the Working Class of India for the Historic Strike
On 2ndSeptember 2015
The Centre of Indian Trade Unions congratulates and salutes the working class of India for the unprecedented and historic strike today against the anti worker, anti people and anti national policies of the BJP led NDA government.
Over 15 crores workers employed in almost all the sectors of the country’s economy covering the organised and unorganised sectors, public and private sectors, the central and state government sectors and the scheme workers participated in this strike. Protest demonstrations, rasta roko and rail roko were held across the country in which thousands of workers participated.
Police was used on the workers in several states. The Trinamool government in West Bengal used the brutal force of its police as well as its goons to physically attack the workers on strike. In fact attack by Trinamool goons to foil the strike started at least three days before the strike date and during this period several processions and meetings for strike campaign in different places in the state were attacked, offices were ransacked and many activists were injured. On the day of the strike, police along with Trinamool goons carried on brutal attacks on the strikers and TU activists throughout the state severely injuring many of the activists including senior leaders. Workers and their leaders were arrested in several places in the state. Police resorted to severe lathi charge and arrests in many other states including Assam, Jammu and Kashmir etc. CITU congratulates the workers, particularly in West Bengal for heroically resisting these attacks and participating in the strike in a massive manner.
In many states, including West Bengal, Kerala, Tripura, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, many districts of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh etc the strike turned into a virtual bandh with road transport and normal activities coming to a grinding halt. The manufacturing activities in several industrial clusters across the country totally stopped due to the strike.
The unprecedented response to the strike reflects the anger and resentment of the workers against the attacks on their working and living conditions and the attempts to deny their basic rights by amending the labour laws to benefit the national and multinational corporations. It reflects the anger at ignoring their basic demands that were being raised since the last several years. It also reflects the determination of the working class to fight back the nefarious design of the corporate-serving Govt at the centre to impose slavery on them through draconian changes in all labour laws. Through this strike the working class of India has warned the government that it was not going to take lying down the attacks on its basic rights. It also warned the government that policies that mortgage the country to corporate interests, both foreign and domestic will not be tolerated.
The CITU extends its gratitude to the massive support and solidarity extended to the strike by various sections of the people including kisans, agricultural workers, adivasis etc.
CITU demands the government to scrap all the anti worker amendments to the labour laws and take immediate concrete action on all the demands raised by the joint trade union movement.
It calls upon the working class to further strengthen the unity at the grass root level and be prepared for more intense struggles if the government chooses to continue with its policies.
Issued by,
(TAPAN SEN)
General Secretary
CITU
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