National
Normality returns to riot-hit Gurgaon
Staff Reporter
| George Fernandes visits Civil Hospital; workers unsure of future; INLD workers stage protest |
An injured recovering at the civil hospital in Gurgaon on Wednesday, two days after police and Honda employees clashed.
GURGAON: After two days of violent clashes between the agitating workers of the Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (Pvt.) Limited (HMSI) and the police, normality returned to the industrial township on Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, the National Democratic Alliance convener and former Defence Minister, George Fernandes, visited the Civil Hospital — the scene of action over the past two days — and met the injured workers. He assured them that he would take up their issue with the Government.
However, many of the workers were not sure about their future. "If the dispute is not resolved within a week, we will have to think of looking for work elsewhere. We can no longer sustain ourselves without a salary," said Raghu of Hasan in Karnataka, who had joined the company as technical staff six months ago.
Still nursing their wounds, Raghu and his friend, Ravi, also a resident of Karnataka, were not in a position to leave the hospital and go to a private doctor like many others had done. "We do not know many people here and there is no money," lamented Raghu, who had sustained blows on his head and bruises all over his body.
Gokul Shinde from Ahmednagar in Maharashtra decided to leave for his native place even as his limbs were in cast on Wednesday. "I come from a labourers' family. We will have to manage somehow as there is no option," he said.
Apart from blaming the hospital administration for the lack of proper facilities, the injured workers had only one question to ask: "Why did the police suddenly use excessive force even as their leaders were negotiating with the administration on Monday?''
Some volunteer agencies provided the injured workers with food packets and fruits. They were also given new sets of khadi kurta-pyjamas so that they could change their blood-stained clothes.
There was one surprise in store for the injured before the arrival of Mr. Fernandes in the morning. "They dressed up my wounds just before his arrival and tied the new bandage so hard that my head is hurting," said Narender Kumar, a resident of Navashahr in Punjab.
Complaints of missing
All the injured complained that many of their colleagues were missing since the violent clashes on Monday.
But some of the names were found on the list of people arrested by the police and put up on the notice board of the hospital.
At the district court, the Gurgaon Bar Council went on a flash strike in the afternoon following a lawyer's allegation that the police had detained him and registered a case of attempt to murder without any reason.
The lawyer, Rajendra Pathak, who claimed to be fighting the HMSI workers' case in the labour court, alleged that the police booked him even though he was not present at the spot when the mob beat up the policemen on Monday.
The court, while setting the date for hearing of his petition on Thursday, said that it would not bow down to pressure from the lawyers.
Amid heavy police presence, workers of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) also staged a protest outside the Mini-Secretariat in the morning. Later, they marched to the residence of the Deputy Commissioner and submitted a memorandum to him.
Hinting at the involvement of INLD in the violence on Monday, the Director-General of Police (Haryana), Nirmal Singh, told mediapersons that some anti-social elements had instigated violence at the behest of a regional party, which was in power in the State not very long ago.
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