“My question is: Is it appropriate in this age to turn a nationwide strike into a hartal or a bandh? I am not saying whether it is right or wrong, but I am placing it for a public discussion .”
Senior Congress leader and Opposition leader in the Kerala Assembly V D Satheesan on Thursday strongly criticized the culture of turning nationwide strikes into total shutdowns (hartals/bundhs) in Kerala, describing it as an “outdated” practice that needs to change.
Satheesan asked as to whether a strike similar to a hartal or a bandh is being held in any other state in India other than Kerala, saying that it is a national strike. He called for a public debate on whether nationwide strikes should be observed as hartals or complete shutdowns in the state.
Advertisement
Speaking to the media in Kozhikode, as part of the Puthu Yuga Yatra, Satheesan questioned why national strikes cause a total standstill only in Kerala, while life remains largely normal in states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Maharashtra.
The Opposition leader said such outdated things should be changed. It is a matter for public discussion whether it is right to hold a strike similar to a hartal and a bandh in Kerala. “My question is: Is it appropriate in this age to turn a nationwide strike into a hartal or a bandh? I am not saying whether it is right or wrong, but I am placing it for a public discussion ,” Satheesan said.
Stating that that enforcing hartals and bandhs are an outdated mode of protest, Satheesan said that instead of forcing shutdowns that burden the public, trade unions should use awareness campaigns to highlight their demands
He emphasised that people in other states are largely unaware of nationwide strikes, while in Kerala, strikes often halt normal life.
“If we go to our neighboring state, Tamil Nadu, we do not know of such an incident happening. If we go to Karnataka and Maharashtra, we will not see it. Even if we go to Delhi, where everyone has called for it, this is not there? We should consider whether a bandh or a hartal should be held in Kerala alone,” he said.
“There should be a public discussion, as only in Kerala, a strike becomes a hartal or bandh that brings normal life to a standstill. Whether this practice should continue must be discussed by the public,” he said.
He said the Congress fully supports the issues related to the strike and during the ‘Puthu Yuga Yatra’ the issue of the national strike will also be raised with the people
“Congress fully supports the issues related to the strike. During the journey, the issue of the national strike will also be raised with the people. The people will be informed through this march for what reason the strike is being held,” the senior Congress leader said
Meanwhile,Congress MP Sashi Tharoor said he supports the right to protest but not the right to disrupt. In a Facebook post onThursday, Tharror said it is a sad contradiction that today’s “Bharat Bandh” is actually just another “Kerala Bandh”. He also said, “By clinging to such old-fashioned “sportsmanlike” methods, we are not at all suitable for the youth and entrepreneurs of our state.”
It is a sad paradox that today’s “Bharat Bandh” has actually become just another “Kerala Bandh”. While other parts of India have grown beyond such forced disruptions, Kerala alone remains captive to this violence of an organized minority on an unorganized majority, Tharoor wrote on Facebook.
The 24-hour nationwide general strike called by trade unions on Thursday against the central government’s policies brought life to a standstill in Kerala with public transports largely crippled, Educational institutions, banks remained closed, government offices saw limited footfall of employees, shops and markets kept closed.
