The labour unrest at Maruti Suzuki India's Manesar plant took a bloody turn today when a group of workers allegedly assaulted 11 Maruti Suzuki supervisors, on their way to work.
All 11 were hospitalised, with three of them admitted to Artemis Hospital in Gurgaon and the rest at Maruti Suzuki Medical Centre.
According to the police, one Dhiraj Soni, a Manesar plant worker of Maruti Suzuki, has been detained.
The company condemned the attack, saying, "This was another desperate action by the striking workers. Such violent acts have polluted and damaged the industrial climate in the Manesar belt to the detriment of the prosperity in the region.”
The incident took place this morning near the factory of Honda Motorcycle and Scooter.
However, Mr Arvind Singh Jat, leader of the MSI Manesar plant workers, denied all allegations, stating that this is a conspiracy. “Three of our workers were assaulted by the supervisors when they were de-boarding a bus in Gurgaon. We will soon be filing an FIR,” he told Business Line .
The Maruti Udyog Kamgar Union (MUKU) at the Gurgaon Plant of Maruti Suzuki India have been in talks with the Management, impressing upon them to find a speedy solution to the industrial dispute problem at its Manesar plant.
The stand-off between the management and the workers started on August 29 when the company suspended and dismissed 21 employees on charges of sabotaging and alleged quality issues. It enforced a 'good conduct bond' on the workers as a condition to enter the factory. Since then the company has been making alternate labour arrangement.
Meanwhile, close to 7,000 workers at three factories of two different companies of Suzuki in India have been sitting on indefinite strike since Wednesday afternoon to show solidarity with their protesting colleagues at Maruti Suzuki India's (MSI) Manesar plant.
Workers of Suzuki Powertrain India Ltd and Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd located in the Gurgaon Manesar industrial belt declared strike at 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday. Workers from Suzuki Castings - a part of Suzuki Powertrain India Ltd - who are affiliated to Suzuki Powertrain India Employees Union have also joined in the strike.