Shortly after the protesting Telangana State Road Transport Corporation - Joint Action Committee (TSRTC-JAC) called off their strike and announced that they will be joining duties on Tuesday, the TSRTC in-charge Managing Director Sunil Sharma quickly declined their proposal and further threatened legal action if the protesting employees attempted to disrupt the bus services.
Earlier on Monday, the JAC after 52 days called off their strike, and said that they would be reporting for duty at 6 am the next day. They said that they would simultaneously continue with their protests.
However, despite the JAC coming down and announcing that they will be returning to work without any of their 26 demands being met, TSRTC in-charge MD Sunil Sharma through a press release said, “The announcement of the JAC that they would be joining back work from tomorrow, is ridiculous. On one hand they are saying that they will continue with the struggle and in the same breath have also called off the strike. Employees cannot boycott their duties and join back as per their whims and fancies in any public undertaking sector in the country.”
The MD added, “The employees are presently on an illegal strike. According to rules it is impossible to take them back. As the High Court observed, the Labour Commissioner will make the decision, and as per their decision we will take necessary action. Everything will happen according to the law, until then there is a need to maintain restraint.”
Around 48,000 TSRTC workers were on strike since October 5 with a list of 26 demands, with the primary demand that the TSRTC, an autonomous body under the government, be merged with the government so that TSRTC employees receive the same benefits as government employees. However, as the government outrightly rejected the demand, the JAC recently dropped that demand.
On Monday, JAC convenor Ashwathama Reddy announcing the end of the strike had said, “From 6 am, all the RTC drivers should gather at their respective depots and rejoin duty. We appeal to the temporary drivers against coming to the bus depots. If they (government) don’t take us back, we will intensify our strike. The JAC will make efforts to help the families of the victims who had died and killed themselves during the strike. Our protest will continue. We will fight until our issues are resolved.”
Fearing that the TSRTC workers who would be gathering at the bus depots would create trouble and disrupt the services, Sunil Sharma threatened, “We will install CCTV cameras in all the depots to monitor the situation. If there is any violation of the law, the government and the TSRTC management won’t forgive. We will take legal and disciplinary action.” Presently, the government is running the TSRTC by hiring temporary drivers.
Chief Minister KCR had earlier claimed that the protesting employees were ‘self-dismissed’ after they failed to show up to work on October 5. A month later, another ultimatum was given on November 5, however, the workers had defied it.