Demanding authorities to reinstate them, 61 women safai karamcharis staged a protest on Monday, September 2 outside Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS) building, a unit of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in Bengaluru. The workers were terminated in March 2024 from their jobs after they were told suddenly that their services were no longer required.
The All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU), which is supporting the workers, alleged that the safai karamcharis belonging to the Dalit community were terminated for raising their voice against injustice and extortion by their contractor. The women alleged that the contractor was demanding a cut of Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,200 per month to pay the agency and CABS. The issue dates back to 2019, when the contractor began depositing the workers' wages in their bank accounts but demanded that they return a portion in cash to their supervisors.
“From 2019 onwards, the sham contractors used to deposit the wages of the workers to their account and demanded the workers pay over Rs 3000 monthly cash to the supervisors, who said that the amount would be paid to both the Agency and CABS. When they spoke up, they were victimised and harassed. The amount being extorted by the agency increased from Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 4200 from each worker per month,” AICCTU had said.
Despite multiple complaints to CABS officials, no action was allegedly taken to stop the extortion. In October 2023, the women approached the Regional Labour Commissioner (Central), who intervened and halted the illegal collections. However, on March 23, 2024, when the workers reported for duty, they were informed that they had been terminated. They were told that a new contractor, Indian Security Agency, had taken over and that their services were no longer required.
The AICCTU then filed a complaint with the Karnataka State Commission for Safai Karamcharis (KSCSK), which ruled in favour of the workers. On May 9, the Commission ordered that the workers be reinstated. However, when the women reported for work on the designated day, they were not allowed to resume their duties.
The KSCSK escalated the matter to the state’s social welfare department, and said that its reinstatement order was breached. On July 2, the Minister for Social Welfare and Chairperson of the Karnataka Safai Karamchari Commission issued an order directing DRDO to reinstate the workers by July 8. Despite these directives, CABS has refused to comply.
The protesting workers are demanding immediate reinstatement, arguing that their termination was a retaliatory action for standing up against exploitation. Some of these women have been employed at CABS for over a decade.