Immediately release Comrade Prafulla Chakraborty, veteran trade union leader
19 October 2011: The New Trade Union Initiative condemns the arrest of Comrade Prafulla Chakraborty of the Kanoria Jute Mill Shramik Sangrami Union on false charges. Comrade Chakraborty was arrested from his residence and charged under sections 149 (Unlawful assembly), 147 (Punishment for Rioting), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 324 (Punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), and 326 (Voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means) of the IPC. His bail application was later rejected by the Uluberia Court and he has been remanded in judicial custody till 24 October.
On 22 August, the mill owner had announced that Rs 12 crore would be invested in the first phase for overall development of the factory of which a major will be used to clear the dues of the workers. But, till date the mill has absorbed only 318 workers of the 3000 who lost their jobs with no plan for absorbing them too. Production is yet to begin with the absorbed workers engaged in maintaining the machinery of the mill. The left front government had initiated a monthly allowance for the workers of closed factories – some workers of the Kanoria Jute Mill were also receiving it. With the mill being opened, the workers fear that this payment may too be discontinued by the Government. Payment of Provident Fund dues have also not begun.
On 16 October the workers of Kanoria Jute mill wrote a letter to the Chief Minister urging her not to invite the existing promoters to run the mill. The Kanoria Jute Mill Shramik Sangrami Union has been opposing the state government’s move to allow the existing management to run the mill again as it had repeatedly failed earlier. The Kanoria Jute Mill was reopened on 22 August by the erstwhile owner Mr. Pasari following talks with the State Labour minister, Purnendu Bose. Mr. Bose too had stood with the workers of Kanoria in their struggle before he joined government. Com. Chakraborty has been opposing the Labour Minister’s decision to allow the same promoter who had closed down the mill five years ago to run the factory, ignoring the workers’ demand to form a cooperative for the purpose.
The arrest of Com. Chakraborty was based on an incident that occurred on 9 October 2011 at a worker’s residence where a meeting was on, when a scuffle took place between those present at the meeting and some workers supported by the management, who disrupted the meeting. His arrest is yet another reflection of a state government increasingly constricting the space for reasoned debate and resorting to the use of its repressive machinery to advance its own agenda.
NTUI demands that the Government of West Bengal:
• Immediately release Comrade Prafulla Chakraborty
• Ensures that all workers of the Kanoria Jute Mill are immediately absorbed, paid wages and other dues and the mill revived through workers’ cooperative funds for which are guaranteed by the state government.
• Respect the Right to Democratic Dissent.
For more information, contact:
Anuradha Talwar, Convenor-NTUI West Bengal State Committee and Secretary, NTUI (09433002064)
Pradip Roy, Convenor-NTUI West Bengal State Committee (03322192306)