Ethical Sugar - Sangur sugar factory workers’ agitation ends with their arrest

The Hindu - Friday 4 January 2008

HUBLI: The 66-day-old dharna staged by women relatives of workers of the Karnataka Cooperative Sugar Factory (KCSF), Sangur, on the Deputy Commissioner’s office premises in Haveri, ended on Wednesday evening with the arrest of all the protesters.

Following their arrest, the indefinite fast started by 13 workers at the same venue on December 30 also came to an end.

On Tuesday, the protesting workers ransacked the office of the Deputy Commissioner after the condition of a woman worker, who was on indefinite fast, deteriorated and no immediate medical care was made available to her.

The police had registered a case against the workers following the incident.

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On Wednesday, Kannada film actor and labour leader Ashok and the State unit president of Akhil Bharat Kissan Maha Sabha M. Gopal expressed solidarity with the protesters and joined the agitation. When the police tried to arrest the protesting workers, led by Honnappa Mariyammanavar, they and the women opposed the move. Later, the police arrested all the protesters.

However, they were released later.

Deputy Superintendent of Police V.B. Pujar said that according to preliminary investigation, it was found that only 37 workers were involved in the ransacking the office, and action would be taken against them.

The family members of KCSF workers were on dharna to press for the revival of the factory and also disbursement of their wages which were pending for the last 18 months.