By Dr. Gyan Pathak
India may be heading towards a much intensified, aggressive, and confrontational workers and farmers movement in the country. On Quit India anniversary on August 9, the country witnessed a massive mobilization of workers and farmers, and only a fortnight later on August 24, their joint convention has called for a determined and decisive protests across the country against the policies of the Centre led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
August 9 mobilization was termed by the trade unions and farmers organizations as the beginning of a “united struggle of non-cooperation and defiance to anti-worker, anti-farmer, anti-people and anti-national policy of the Centre”. Next step came on August 24, when thousands of workers, peasants and agricultural workers participated in the first ever historic joint national convention held at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi that unanimously decided for taking their joint movement to logical conclusion.
The convention gave a call to observe October 3 (Lakhimpur Kheri massacre in 2021) as Black day, demanding dismissal and prosecution of Union Minister of State for Home affairs Ajay Mishra Teni; ‘Day and Night Mahapadav Struggle’ in front of the Raj Bhawans across States and UTs from November 26 to 28, 2023.; and determined and decisive protest actions in the months of December 2023 – January 2024.
The convention was jointly called by the joint platform of the 10 Central Trade Unions (CTUs) and Samyukta Kishan Morcha (SKM) the umbrella organisation of hundreds of farmers organisations. The convention decided to heighten their combat against the alleged destructive policies of the Centre, both at the sectoral and national levels. The convention asserted that the entire year of 2023 has to be a year of campaigns and combative agitations leading to higher forms of struggle at all levels.
A National Conventions of Workers was held in New Delhi on 30th January 2023. It was organized jointly by the joint platform of 10 CTUs – AITUC, INTUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF, and UTUC – and other independent federations and associations of workers. It had given a call for greater agitation on which the workers have moved into action throughout the country with a slogan “Save the Nation, Save the People.”
A joint meeting of the joint platform of CTUs and SKM was held on July 13, 2023, in which both the platforms reiterated their resolve to jointly fight against the anti-worker, anti-farmer and anti-people policies of the Modi government and decided to hold the first ever historic joint convention on August 24 to take on policy assaults of the Modi government.
On Quit India anniversary on August 9 demonstrations and sit-in protest were reported from over 700 districts of the countries, several hundred talukas and mandals, and 26 state headquarters. The chief demonstration was held at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi. Slogans, such as “PM Modi – Quit India”, “BJP – Quit India”, “BJP Hatao, Desh Bachao” were also raised during the demonstrations, which are significant in the light of forthcoming Vidhan Sabha elections in five states by the end of 2023 and the Lok Sabha election in 2024.
The present spell of workers and farmers struggle is just continuation of the struggle that originated with the passage of four controversial labour codes – on in 2019 and three in 2020, along with three controversial farm sector laws passed in August 2020. Both the struggles of the farmers and the workers started almost simultaneously, and the country witnessed even all India strike actions.
Farmers struggle became historic that witnessed massive active support and solidarity actions by the working-class movements across the country. All the programmes of sit-in demonstrations, agitations, bandhs spearheaded by SKM, were profoundly supported by the entire working-class movement, and the CTUs.
On all subsequent occasions, SKM also extended their unfettered support to the struggles and agitations organised by the joint platform of CTUs. These struggles and agitations by the two producing classes further consolidated the worker-peasant unity in action against their common enemy – the corporate communal nexus in the government.
After the historic farmers struggle, PM Modi had to withdraw the three farm sector laws that allegedly sought to bring Corporates to the farms. Farmers struggle was called off by December 2021 after the Centre gave assurance to address the farmers demands. However, farmers felt cheated and they said that their demand are yet unmet. They renewed their struggle by the end of 2022. Even RSS-BJP supported Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) organized protest rally in support of the farmers demands, and served stern warning to the Modi government or else face the consequences.
CTUs demand for withdrawal of the four controversial labour codes that PM Modi has said pro-worker and the much-desired biggest labour reform in the independent India, is not even heard. The Centre has ignored all the 10 agitating CTUs and preferred the RSS-BJP supported Bharatiya Majdoor Sangh (BMS). BMS has also reservations on some of the provisions of the labour codes and it wants some amendments. The four labour codes are kept at abeyance until now but Modi government has given clear signal that they want to implement them. CTUs fear that the codes would bring modern day slavery to workers, and if Modi government return to power after the 2024 general election, the codes would be implemented in the financial year 2024-25.
There are also fear of large-scale privatization of the public sector undertakings including banks and insurance sector. CTUs, and workers and employees’ unions from all sectors, including the government sectors are agitating against the reckless privatization of the public sector. The fear of greater push to reform and privatization of the public sector has brought all the workers and employees’ unions against the PM Modi led government.
It is in this backdrop, the joint convention of August 24 of farmers and workers has called for ousting this ruling regime which they said harming the Indian economy, making lives of common people miserable with steep price rise of essential commodities, growing job-loss and increased unemployment, expensive education and healthcare, no subsidy on inputs and no MSP for the farmers produce.
The convention noted in its declaration that the glorious struggle of SKM had compelled the government to repudiate their farm laws. Through workers united struggles, the privatisation process in several PSUs like BPCL, CEL, some steel plants etc could be stalled, though only for the time being. Saving Vizag Steel Plant from privatisation has become people’s struggle. The united struggle of the electricity employees in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Pondicherry, Jammu & Kashmir, Chandigarh and Haryana forced the governments to retreat. Through their militant united struggles, the scheme workers in various states achieved many of their demands including increase in their remuneration. A united joint resistance action could bend the ruling dispensation and could halt the policy onslaughts on workers, farmers and common people.
The joint convention unanimously adopted a charter of demands of the working people of the country such as, ensuring minimum wages of Rs 26,000 per month and pension of Rs10,000 to all workers; legal guarantee to MSP at C2+50 per cent for all farm produce with guaranteed procurement; scrapping the four labour codes and Electricity Amendment Bill 2020, providing 200 workdays at wages of Rs 600 per day under MNREGA with expansion to urban areas and one time loan waiver to poor and middle peasants and agricultural workers. (IPA Service)
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