Demands dialogue with contract employees.
Socialist Party (India) condemns the repressive action by police on 9 February, 2015 in Lucknow against a peaceful demonstration of Vidyut Karamchari Sanyukta Sangharsh Samiti, a platform of 9 Trade Unions including Vidyut Mazdoor Panchayat, demanding regularisation of about 48,000 contract employees working under Contractor system, stopping the trend of privatisation and opposing extension given to A.P. Mishra as MD of Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited after retirement for two year. We regret the violence which broke out after the police lathi charge outside Shakti Bhawan, the headquarters of UPPCL, during which one police jeep and two motorcycles were burnt. 154 employees, most of them working on contract, have been sent to jail and the President of Vidyut Mazdoor Panchayat, Girish Kumar Pandey, a senior leader of Socialist Party as well, was also arrested on 10 February.
We demand that the cases no. 84 & 85/15 u/s 114, 117, 147, 149, 332, 333, 336, 341, 427, 435, 436 IPC, 3/4 Public Property Damage Act and 7 Criminal Law Amendment Act, against the abovementioned people be withdrawn and the Trade Unions involved in the struggle be invited for dialogue on matters of serious concern for the contract employees.
Socialist Party expresses concern over trend in the government to hire contract employees, especially to do menial and hazardous tasks, and deny them the benefits which accrue to regular employees. How does the government expect, with two sets of employees with wide gap in service conditions, that the employees working under deprived conditions will perform satisfactorily? It is the discontent among the employees which has come out in the form of violence during the demonstration.
The general trend in the direction of privatisation of production, transmission as well as distribution in the electricity sector is also of concern to the employees. The engineers’ association in the power sector is also opposing the policy of privatisation.
The decision to continue A.P. Mishra as the MD of UPPCL is also being opposed by the employees because of his corrupt image. It is believed that it was because of him that the repressive action was taken by the police against the demonstration. Earlier demonstrations have been held at the same place many a times and demonstrators have been invited for dialogue by the authorities. The authorities were informed about demonstration on 9 February also in advance but this time the administration did not entertain the request of demonstrators for a dialogue.
We demand the immediate release of Girish K. Pandey and 154 other employees and urge the government to resolve the problem of contract employees at the earliest and restore their confidence and faith in the system.
Uma Shankar Mishra, 9839129612, Socialist Party & Hind Mazdoor Sabha
Vijay Narain, 9838380370, Socialist Party & Hind Mazdoor Sabha
Sandeep Pandey, 0522-2347365, Socialist Party
Lohia Mazdoor Bhawan, Tufail Ahmed Marg, Narhi, Lucknow, Ph: 0522 2286423
