The Central Trade Unions express deep distress and anguish at the sentence of life to 13 workers and of 5 years jail to another four workers of Maruti Suzuki in connection with the violence plotted by the management in the Manesar plant of Maruti in 2012. In the same judgements 117 workers were acquitted honourably and 14 worker let off with sentence to the period they were in Jail.

The violence in 2012 in which a general manager of the factory was killed was the handiwork of hired musclemen of Maruti Suzuki management meant to create the ground for crushing the unions. Despite no way being responsible for the incident, the workers have been convicted on the basis of concocted evidence manufactured by the state administration, police and employer nexus in a shameless abuse of power. More than 546 regular and 2000 contract workers were thrown out of their jobs and 148 workers were thrown into jail for up to four and half years..

However the heinous design of the Haryana state administration-capitalist league to crush the trade union movement in the Gurgaon industrial area could not be achieved fully. Over one lakh workers in the area boycotted lunch on 16th March in spontaneous expression of protest. The workers of Maruti and its ancillaries/ subsidiaries in Gurgaon/ Manesar went on total strike for one hour strike in the evening shift of 18thMarch. Workers’ unions in Gurgaon industrial belt had massive protest demonstration on 23rd March in solidarity with the victimised workers including filing of appeal against the conviction.

The Central Trade Unions denounce the ugly game of the state and capital nexus with the same vehemence with which they denounced the violence of 2012 and congratulate the workers for their immediate and united response. The CTUs assert that the trade union movement cannot be cowed down with such nefarious acts by the government-employer nexus.

The CTUs express their solidarity with the struggle of the Maruti workers and the initiative of the industrial workers under the banner of Trade Union Council, Gurgaon in support of the Maruti workers. The CTUs call upon all the trade unions irrespective of affiliations and workers in general to come forward in solidarity with the Maruti workers struggle for justice including the legal battle. The CTUs also call upon all the trade unions in the country irrespective of affiliations to organise demonstrations in their workplaces or the industrial centres on 5th April 2017 as a mark of solidarity with the Maruti workers struggling for justice and for trade union rights and demanding unconditional release of the Maruti workers and reinstatement of victimised workers.