Leftist Parties, Unions Expect July 9 Strike to Be a Success in TMC-Ruled Bengal

PTI, Kolkata, July 6, 2025 : Leftist trade unions and parties expect that a general strike on July 9 over workers' rights and people's issues, such as the price rise of essential items and joblessness, will get mass support in Trinamool Congress-ruled West Bengal, which used to be a Left bastion until 2011.

State CITU president Anadi Sahu said ten central trade unions have called the general strike against "liberalisation, price rise of essential commodities, joblessness, increase in contractual work, and other issues."

"The strike will have a good response in Bengal with participation from coal, steel, and jute industries and in the transport sector," he told PTI.

Sahu, however, maintained that some workers owing allegiance to the BJP and TMC unions may not participate in the strike, "but most of the people will support it since they are affected by the policies of the Centre."

Leftist political parties have supported the strike call, Sahu said. CPI(M) central committee member Sujan Chakraborty said the strike has been called to highlight the problems being faced by the public. "As such, we believe that the strike will have the support of the public in general," he said.

Chakraborty claimed that the Centre's new labour policies were "detrimental" to the interest of the working class.

The Trinamool Congress, which has been in power in West Bengal since 2011, has opposed any bandh in the state, maintaining that it leads to a loss of man-days. Previous strike calls were met with extra deployment of security forces and the availability of government buses to facilitate the movement of people for work and other purposes.

The BJP-led Union government holds that the labour reforms, passed by Parliament, will ensure the well-being of workers and give a boost to economic growth. According to it, the reforms are "very pro-worker" and will ensure timely payment of wages and give priority to the occupational safety of workers. It said that 44 central labour laws with over 1,200 sections have been assimilated into just four codes.

The right to strike has not been curtailed at all, it said.

The CITU leader claimed that 21 general strikes have been called till date by the central trade unions from 1990-91 for safeguarding workers' rights and to protest against disinvestment in PSUs.

Sahu claimed that the new labour codes would be "detrimental to the interests of workers". Claiming that it will allow a 12-hour work schedule instead of an eight-hour workday, he alleged that the minimum wage structure for workers is being attempted to be done away with.

"We also demand an increase in the wages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act," the CITU leader said.

Maintaining that cultivators were not getting the minimum support price for their produce, he said that workers and farmers would hold a rally on July 7 to seek support for the July 9 general strike called by ten central trade unions.