People's Democracy

  CPI(M) Team’s Findings On Police Brutality In Gurgaon

Brinda Karat and Nilotpal Basu meeting the victims in civil hospital

Following conclusions have been drawn by the team of CPI(M) leaders comprising Polit Bureau member Brinda Karat, leader in Rajya Sabha Nilotpal Basu, Haryana state secretary Inderjit Singh and Haryana CITU state vice president Balbir Dahiya, which visited Gurgaon on July 26 to take stock of the situation arising from the brutal police attack on workers of Honda factory.

1. The brutal lathicharge was resorted to when thousands of workers were sitting peacefully in the mini secretariat premises in front of the DC office. This was pre-planned as the workers were kept sitting under the pretext of negotiations for nearly half an hour till additional police reinforcements were mobilised to launch this savage attack.  The DC, Sudhir Rajpal personally participated in the lathicharge as evidenced in press photos wearing a helmet, police protection jacket and wielding a lathi in his hands.

2. Most of the injured have received serious head injuries and broken arms, an ample proof that the severe lathicharge was resorted to on unarmed workers and that workers could not escape due to the location being encircled by boundary wall and further encircled by huge police force.

3. Those injured were first taken to police station, given extra beatings and then only taken to the hospital in police vehicles

4. The TU leaders and activists were arrested by the police under false cases of serious criminal nature. Those injured among them were not  treated and  kept in detention at an undisclosed location for more than 24 hours.

5. The total number of injured workers is actually more than 500 and the authorities are counting only those who were brought to the hospitals. The rest of the injured received treatment on their own, in private clinics or at their respective homes.

6. The authorities did not reveal the names/ list of those under arrest and those who were taken to various hospitals by the police, like to Satna hospital, a place about 30 km away from Gurgaon. Due to this the relatives, particularly women relatives, were running around in utter desperation. Only when the Party MPs insisted, a list of 61 arrested workers was furnished by the police. The MPs then asked the authorities to make the list public through the media but the same has not been done till date.

7. A police officer was found using obscene and filthy abuses to one such aggrieved woman, Birmati.

8. In order to scare away the agitated relatives and those attending the injured workers, the police resolved to lathicharge and use of teargas repeatedly at the civil hospital. Even media persons present on the spot were manhandled to prevent them from giving a live coverage.

9. The entire Gurgaon city is being terrorised by the police who are dragging the residents and shopkeepers from their homes and shops and beating them up. This way there is total jungle raj prevailing even now.

10. It is amazing that the DC has described the arrested TU activists as outsiders although all of them are office bearers of various trade unions working from Gurgaon.

11. The team is of the firm opinion that a confirmed nexus between the Honda company and district officials is existing and that is why the company is openly throwing to wind all labour laws. The higher authorities are working in complete tandom with the company officials. To exhibit and exercise this total loyalty to the Honda company, the highest district officials have trampled under foot not only the trade union rights but the human rights also as seen in the unprecedented and indefensible magnitude of the police brutalities. These officials have been further found indulging in rousing regional characteristic feelings in most notorious manner to divert the unity of the workers belonging  to Honda company. This scenario seems to be an ironic dress rehearsal of the emerging picture which the MNCs of imperialism are actually seeking to repeat in a big way under the whole gamut of liberalisation policies.

In the opinion of the team, the most urgent and necessary action must be to remove those district officials who are prima facie responsible for the inhuman atrocities  and be tried for criminal conduct. For this no inquiry is required. The arrested workers and their leaders must be released unconditionally. The seriously injured workers must be suitably compensated. All workers of Honda company must be allowed to join through lifting of illegal lockout. All labour laws and trade union rights must be strictly adhered to. The already declared judicial enquiry should expose the unsavoury nexus between the company and the government officials. (INN)