With Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao vehemently going ahead with his decision to privatise 5,100 bus routes of the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC), leaders of the striking employees' unions have hit back and termed the move 'unconstitutional'.
KCR issued an ultimatum after a cabinet meeting on Saturday, even as a Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the unions led high decibel agitations across the state with the support of opposition parties and civil society groups.
"If they don't return to work by midnight on November, we will privatise the remaining 5,000 routes," KCR asserted while stating that the decision to privatise was irrevocable as the state was empowered to do so under the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019.
'Won't stop strike': JAC
The stubborn take by the Chief Minister didn't go down well with the leaders of striking TSRTC JAC.
Terming CM's statements as provocative, and aimed at demoralising the employees, Chandrashekar Reddy, state General Secretary of the Telangana Mazdoor Union (TMU), said that "The Chief Minister's statements reflected that he didn't have any commitment towards the RTC or concern for its employees. If he had, he would not have unceremoniously dissolved the committee that was looking into our demands. He also recklessly said that 48,000 of us were 'self-dismissed' for going on strike."
Speaking to TNM, Thomas Reddy, TSRTC JAC Co-Convener, said, "The CM has never had a dialogue with employees unions. On one side, he is threatening us and on the other side, he is claiming that the employees are his children. The High Court and the people are observing him. If he still wants to go ahead, he will be remembered on the wrong side of history."
The JAC leaders said that they will not step back from the strike and take the movement to people across the state through different means until November 9.
The police have guaranteed protection to RTC workers who resume their duties, and said that sufficient personnel had been deployed at all bus depots. They also warned of strict action against those who indulged in damage to "public property or assault on public servants discharging their duties".
'KCR lost credibility': BJP
The CM had also lashed out at the BJP for supporting the striking employees, calling it a double standard, as BJP-ruled states had already privatised the RTCs. He also said that the Centre had enacted certain legislation that empowers the states to privatise RTCs.
However, the BJP, which has extended support to the striking RTC staff in the agitations, was quick to respond.
In a statement, Telangana BJP Chief Spokesperson K Krishna Saagar Rao said, "The CM has lost complete credibility by constantly indulging in the manipulation of facts for petty political expediency and selfish personal gains."
He said that the MV Act 2019 has neither a reference to transport corporations, nor does it recommend privatisation of RTCs, as KCR claimed.
"KCR is visibly shaken by the High Court's active intervention and a possible adverse order against the state government on November 7, when the court examines the case. It's no secret that he wishes to threaten and blackmail employees of RTC to abandon their fight and resume duties with zero assurances before November 7."
As many as 48,000 TSRTC staff (drivers, conductors, mechanics etc) have been on an indefinite strike for the last 30 days, with a list of 26 demands -- the main one being the merger of the TSRTC into the government. At present, the corporation is a state-owned public utility, which functions as an autonomous body.
Ruling out the possibility of a merger, KCR had stated that the cabinet already took a resolution against it.
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