Violence rocks Puducherry, workers kill company official

Tragic death of a union leader, who was brutally beaten up by police during the agitation of workers, led to mayhem on Friday in Yanam, a district of Union Territory of Puducherry remotely located at the heart of affluent costal Andhra, nearly 850 KM away from Pondicherry.

Enraged workers of Regency Ceramics limited (RCL) ransacked the factory premises and forayed on the house of Vice President of RCL, Chandra Sekhar, and attacked him, who later succumbed to the injuries in the hospital.

In the continuous ordeal at the hands of furious workers, hundreds of buses on the National Highway and three factories were set ablaze. Around a dozen workers were injured in police firing during the ordeal and condition of three workers is said to be critical.

The workers of RCL were on rely-hunger strike for a week to get their problems with the management ‘solved.’ Management agreed all the demands of the workers, but stood stubborn on retrenchment of union leader Murali Mohan. When the management used the rift among the workers on strike, a majority section of workers resumed to work, but a group of workers declined to join the duties while insisting upon the dismissal of their leader Murali Mohan.

Management imposed prohibitory orders in the premises and when the agitating workers violated the orders, police beat them up brutally. As it was allegedly intrigued, Murali Mohan, the union leader, died on spot which flared up the situation.

The mob swarmed in to the house of the Vice President Chandra Sekhar, ransacked the furniture and beat him up severely, causing his death.

Since Yanam is topographically remote to Pondicherry, there has been resentment in the general public at large over the poor handling of any situation by the local administration. And as the administration of Yanam failed to control the law and order and the local police deserted the premises of the factory immediately when the mob went berserk.

Later, a police battalion from nearby Kakinada was deployed and the deployment followed by firing in which 12 workers were injuries.