Firing on Factory Workers in Gorakhpur

7 Workers Injured Seriously

Workers of Ankur Udyog Ltd., a factory in the Bargadwa industrial area in Gorakhpur, eastern UP were attacked by goons called by the factory owner this morning (3 May). At least seven workers have been seriously injured in firing by the goons.

The workers have laid siege to the factory and are not allowing the goons to escape. Police force has reached at the spot and are standing near the factory gates but have refused to act till now. They have so far also delayed registering a FIR. Injured workers have been admitted in the district hospital. Their names are: 1. Vinod Singh s/o Ramsarup Singh; 2. Virendra Yadav s/o Matilal Yadav; 3. Indradev s/o Bilas Das; 4. Amit Kumar s/o Bhure; 5. Ramanand Sahni s/o Shitla Prasad; 6. Shailesh Kumar s/o Ramashray and 7. Pappu Jaiswal.

This is evidently a well-planned attacked by the industrialists. A campaign of lies was launched in the media a few days before saying that the workers agitating for their basic rights are instigated by “Maoists” from outside. It may be recalled that this same canard was spread exactly 2 years before when thousands of workers from 7 factories in Bargadwa had started an organized movement on their demands. The factory owners are openly backed by the BJP MP from Gorakhpur Yogi Adityanath who has been consistently opposing the workers movement and issuing statements calling their leaders “Maoists bent upon spreading violence” and saying that the movement is “funded by the church”.

The administration is brazenly siding with the factory owners. The commissioner of Gorakhpur issued a statement 5 days before that “outside elements instigating the workers will not be spared and the police will take strictest action against them.” This statement came immediately after the meeting of industrialists having units in the GIDA (Gorakhpur Industrial Development Authority) area which called for the same. They even named three prominent activists Tapish Maindola, Pramod Kumar and Prashant as “Maoists” and called for action against them. These three were also arrested in 2009 and were released after a massive protest in Gorakhpur which almost paralysed administration work in Gorakhpur district magistrate’s office for 4 days.

The industrialists had been using various tactics to prevent the workers from participating in the May Day rally in Delhi under the Workers’ Charter Movement. About a dozen workers were arrested in false cases and a factory VN Dyers Ltd was even locked out. But the workers responded by going in large numbers for the rally. About 2000 workers from Gorakhpur took part in the May Day demonstration in Delhi. This has further infuriated the factory owners and their political backers who are trying to teach the workers a lesson.

Some friends from the media have warned that the administration is planning to implicate the labour leaders and active workers in the violence and slap serious cases against them to remove them from the scene so that the movement can be crushed.

We appeal to all of you to immediately put pressure on the state and district administration to arrest the factory owner and his goons and prevent them from falsely implicating the labour leaders. A list of phone/fax numbers and email ids of officials is attached with this mail.

Some important phone numbers where you can call:

Divisional Commissioner 2333076, 2335238 (off) 2336022 (Res) Fax: 2338817

District Magistrate 0551 - 2334569 (Fax)
Office of the District Magistrate
Collectrate Gorakhpur - 273001

City Magistrate: Arun - 9450924888

Dy Inspector General of Police 0551 - 2201187 / 2333442 Cantt. Gorakhpur:

Dy. Labour Commissioner, Labour Office Civil Lines Gorakhpur-273001

DLC, ML Choudhuri - 9838123667

Km. Mayawati, Chief Minister : Fifth Floor, Secretariat Annexe Lucknow-226001 0522 - 2235733, 2239234 (Fax) 2236181 2239296 2215501 (Phone: (Office) 2236838 2236985 Phone: (Res)

Shri Badshah Singh, Labour Minister, : 0522 - 2238925 (Fax) Department of Labour Secretariat Lucknow

Principal Secretary, Labour 0522 - 2237831 (Fax) Department of Labour Secretariat Lucknow - 226001