People's Democracy

             CITU Denounces Nasik Arrests

THE Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) has denounced the continuing vindictive attacks on trade union leaders and activists by the Maharashtra state government at the behest of the employers’ class, following the notification of draconian MESMA that seeks to ban strikes and trade union rights.

The CITU condemned the arrest of Dr D L Karad, general secretary of the Maharashtra state CITU, along with R S Pandey, vice president of the state CITU, at Nasik on August 24, late in night, on false and fabricated charges under Section 307 (attempt to murder).

Through a statement issued from New Delhi, the CITU said it “is crystal clear that the arrest of Dr Karad and R S Pandey on the 24th midnight had been at the instance of the employers association in the background of ongoing struggles in several factories in Nasik industrial area against unlawful deployment of contract workers for permanent work, violation of agreements and all basic labour laws, denial of statutory minimum wages and social security etc.”

The CITU welcomed the immediate response of the working people of Nasik of protesting such an evil design of the state administration-employers nexus. One may note that the workers staged a militant demonstration before the district court at Nasik on August 25, and it was followed by a two day strike in Nasik industrial area on August 26 and 27, which the mass of industrial workers and unions joined irrespective of affiliations. Unions all over Maharashtra also held protest demonstrations on August 27 and staged a massive protest demonstration in Azad Maidan, Mumbai, on August 29. A trade union delegation met the state’s home minister on the same day to urge the government not to act at the dictates of the corporates and big business.

The CITU has called upon the working class and the trade union movement to protest countrywide against such heinous attacks on trade union rights by the Maharashtra government. It demanded that the government must stop acting at the behest of the corporate business class to suppress the trade unions and victimise the trade union leaders and activists through false and fabricated cases. The CITU also demanded immediate and unconditional release of Dr D L Karad, R S Pandey and all workers arrested at Nasik on August 24.