People's Democracy

THE CPI(M), Delhi state committee strongly condemned the brutal repression of workers of Mayapuri Industrial Area in South West Delhi by the police and managements and demanded that the central and Delhi governments intervene immediately to halt this dastardly assault.

Workers of Mayapuri Industrial area had observed a successful one day strike on December 20 under the leadership of the CITU. They were compelled to do so due to blatant violation of labour laws and union bashing indulged in by factory owners in the area. The flashpoint was reached when the management of Chelsea Mills in Phase I, Mayapuri Industrial Area tried to crush the newly formed union there.

Workers who assembled on the morning of December 20 were attacked with stones and bricks by hired goondas of the management of Ms Diamond Toys and A D Gears, located in Mayapuri Phase I. This elicited retaliation from the workers. Soon almost 10,000 workers assembled and took out a procession that ensured the complete success of the strike.

The police resorted to a brutal lathicharge in which several were hurt. This was followed up by random arrests and midnight raids at workers’ homes. The arrested include Chhote Lal, president, West Delhi district committee of CITU as well as four women. All 35 arrested have been sent to Tihar Jail. Many others including Sudhir Kumar, president, Delhi state CITU have also been implicated in false cases.

The factory owners are regularly moving about with iron rods in hand to terrorise the workers. They destroyed the office of a union located in the area on December 21. The police has been a mute spectator to all this. Even more shameful is the role of three BJP MLAs – Harsharan Singh Balli, Jagdish Mukhi and Karan Singh Tanwar who are instigating the owners to take revenge on the workers. These three visited Mayapuri Police Station to pressurise the police to terrorise the workers.

The Delhi Government is fully responsible for tolerating blatant violation of labour laws and union bashing in Mayapuri. The CPI(M) demanded immediate release of all arrested workers and trade union activists, strict action against managements violating labour laws, arrest of the goondas who attacked the workers and halt to the heinous attack on trade union rights in Mayapuri.