The Hindu : Opinion / Letters to the Editor : The Gurgaon episode

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Wednesday, Aug 03, 2005

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Opinion - Letters to the Editor

The Gurgaon episode

With the Haryana Chief Minister brokering an amicable settlement between the workers and the Honda management, the Gurgaon episode has ended on a happy note, at least for now. Maybe the police savagery could have been averted had the trade unions protested peacefully. If such incidents continue to take place frequently we may see more automation in the coming years, which will be detrimental to employment generation.

M. Rajagopal,
Chennai

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Our governments have sacrificed the interests of the working class by assuring the MNCs of unrestrained freedom. The MNCs invest in India because labour is cheap and they can make huge profits. Had a Gurgaon-like incident occurred in the Western countries, someone from the company would have been made accountable for letting things reach such a stage. The demand from some sections for a change in labour laws is akin to asking a patient to get his head chopped off because he has a headache.

M. Chandrashekhar,
Mysore

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Even in developed nations, protests are often violent. Protests outside the venue of WTO or G8 meetings are cases in point. But the police are always seen dispersing the agitators with water cannons. The police in India, who are supposed to be law-enforcers, unfortunately assume the function of law-makers in such situations. Till such time as the courts and people do not voice their strong opposition to such police highhandedness, we cannot claim that ours is the largest democracy.

R. Ramesh Sundar,
Chennai

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