A memorial meeting for Comrade Swapan Mukherjee, the founding General Secretary of AICCTU, was held in Delhi on 23rd September 2016 at GPF auditorium. The meeting was called by All India Central Council of Trade Unions of which he was Vice-President at the time of his demise and also the editor of Shramik Solidarity (central organ of AICCTU in Hindi) since 2005.
The meeting was conducted by Santosh Roy, Delhi state secretary of AICCTU. A tribute to Comrade Swapan Mukherjee was presented by Rajiv Dimri, general secretary of AICCTU. Leaders from various central trade unions attended the meeting and shared their memories of Comrade Swapan and his importance to trade union and left movement and in forging unities in the present juncture when Sangh Parivar’s corporate-communal offensive on democracy and workers’ rights is increasing.
Comrades Swadesh Devroy from CITU, Harbhajan Singh Sidhu from HMS, DL Sachdev from AITUC, RK Sharma from AIUTUC, Animesh Das from IFTU, Birju Nayak from Mazdoor Ekta Committee and Raju from INTUC were the leaders of central and other trade unions who paid tributes to com. Swapan.
Many worker comrades of Delhi who felt a close relationship and had rich long experience of working with him shared their memories of Comrade Swapan. Comrade Swapan’s role had been instrumental in the initial years of making of many AICCTU affiliated trade unions in Delhi where he was also involved in educating many young activists who are now senior leaders in their Unions. The former general secretaries of DTC Workers’ Unity Centre (the union in whose formation com. Swapan played leading role in mid 80s) Vidya Singh Shukla, NM Thomas and Rajesh (the present GS); Jagnarain Singh from IPSS Mazdoor union (one of the oldest unions among security guards in Delhi in whose functioning com. Swapan was involved quite actively) and Com. Rooplal, senior party member who worked with com. Swapan since 80s paid their tributes.
The cultural team Sangwari sang revolutionary songs in the meeting which ended with the singing of ‘International’.
