Tension prevailed near Sunguvarchatram in Sriperumbudur near Chennai on Wednesday (October 9, 2024) as employees of Samsung India continued their protest for the 31st day, with the police cracking down on the workers by arresting them and dispersing them from the protest site.
Sources said that earlier, at around midnight, 10 office-bearers of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU)-backed Samsung workers’ union were arrested by the police at their homes amid resistance from the workers. The pandal that they had erected for the protest was also dismantled in the night without any notice.
The workers, however, continued their strike in an open space on Wednesday at the protest site in Echoor village, a kilometre away from the Samsung India manufacturing plant. The police then made another round of arrests, dispersing all the workers from the area.
Workers released: Thangam Thennarasu
Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu, meanwhile, said the State government was not trying to curb the workers’ protest, and that the police had taken action only over protests held without their permission. The arrested workers have been released, he said.
The 10 union members were released on their own bail, sources said.
Workers of Samsung India continue their protest on Wednesday
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Special Arrangement
Speaking to reporters at the Secretariat in Chennai on Wednesday, the Minister reiterated that the State’s Labour department would take appropriate action over the issue of recognition for the CITU-backed union at Samsung, based on the verdict of the Madras High Court.
Mr. Thennarasu said the State government respected the sentiments of the workers and that it had no intention to curb their rights. “Samsung has objected to the CITU-backed union. The matter is in court now and is sub-judice,” he said.
“We are not seeing CITU as our enemy. There is no issue between them and the State government. We are trying to resolve the issue through talks,” Mr. Thennarasu said. He requested the protesting workers to return to work, taking into account the welfare of their families and the future of the youth.
Workers at the Samsung facility in Sriperumbudur have been on a strike since September 9, 2024, demanding recognition for their newly formed union and an increase in wages. The plant has 1,800 workers, and 1,000 workers had joined the protest.
What happened on October 9?
Despite the police crackdown, hundreds of workers assembled at the venue and continued their protest on Wednesday morning. Reportedly, there was a heated argument between the protesting workers and the police personnel who asked them to disperse.
Purported videos of police personnel arresting the union leaders and asking passengers in a bus whether they were proceeding towards the protest site had been viral on social media since Wednesday morning.
Meanwhile, scores of workers who travelled in a goods carrier on Tuesday were injured after the vehicle fell onto a bridge due to rash driving.
Leaders from the alliance parties of the ruling DMK were planning to visit the protest site to express their solidarity with the workers.
‘Unfair to continue strike’: T.R.B. Raja
On Tuesday (October 8, 2024), Tamil Nadu Minister for Industries T.R.B. Rajaa requested the protesting Samsung employees to return to work, promising them that their CITU-backed union would be recognised after the court delivers its verdict on the matter. He added that the State government and Chief Minister M.K. Stalin would stand by them.
He further said it was unfair to continue the strike after the Chief Minister had intervened and designated three Ministers to hold talks with the workers and the company’s management.
He said the management was also ready to fulfil the demands of the workers, including high-quality food, standard locks, and air-conditioning of all 108 buses.
However, hundreds of workers continued their strike on Tuesday. “The workers have not accepted the terms mentioned in the Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) that was signed on Monday (October 7, 2024). This was signed by the workers’ committee, which favours the company. A majority of workers have not agreed to it and continue to strike,” said E. Muthukumar, Kancheepuram district secretary, CITU.
Palaniswami, Dhinakaran condemn action
AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami criticised the DMK government for the manner in which the agitating Samsung employees were arrested. In a post on social media, Mr. Palaniswami wondered why the regime, which, according to him, did not show any enthusiasm in taking action against those responsible for the “deterioration of law and order,” was seeking to “crush the employees who are fighting for their fair demands.”
It was condemnable that the government, instead of sorting out the workers’ problems through negotiations, was attempting to suppress the agitation.
AMMK general secretary T.T.V. Dhinakaran said that the government had been siding with the Samsung management on a “legitimate issue” faced by the workers. “Is it a mark of the Dravidian model government to go after the workers by visiting their houses at night and arresting them?” Mr. Dhinakaran asked. He urged the Chief Minister to safeguard the rights of the workers.
The Tamil Nadu unit of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), meanwhile, strongly condemned the arrest of the protesting workers. Denouncing the police action, Madurai MP Su. Venkatesan, in a social media post, said: “The workers are protesting for their rights in a democratic way. It is unacceptable that the guardians of the law have become the guardians of Samsung.”
