Fight the Double Life Imprisonment for Trade Union Activists !
Eight Workers: Sentenced To Two Lifetimes In Jail For The ‘Crime’ Of Fighting For Workers’ Rights And Organising Them In Trade Union
Resist Attacks on the Working Class Movement!
Eight workers have been sentenced with double life imprisonment for the ‘crime’ of struggling for workers and organising them in a trade union. This is probably the first time such a verdict has been given against workers or a trade union where the deep class hatred, prejudice, and enmity of the capitalists/corporate houses towards workers asking for their rights can be clearly seen. The message of the verdict is clear- if you raise your head, if you form the union of your choice, if you talk about your rights and wages, you will be crushed. The working class of the country is constantly being given this message.
Pricol Limited is an automobile component manufacturer with units in Coimbatore, Pune, Gurgaon and Uttarakhand. It has overseas units in Indonesia and Brazil. Pricol group engages in real estate, construction, travels and hospitality sector.
The workers of Pricol Ltd. (Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu) were agitating for implementation of labour laws and to get wages according to the labour law. Therefore they formed their own union, but the management kept refusing to give recognition to the union. On 3 December 2015 the Coimbatore Sessions court pronounced a sentence of double life imprisonment on 8 workers of the Pricol union ‘Kovai Maavatta Pricol Tozhilargal Ottrumai Sangam’ (Coimbatore District Pricol Workers’ Unity Union) — Gunabalan, Manivannan, Rajendran, Ramamurthy, Sampatkumar, Saravanakumar, Sivakumar, and Velmurugan.
