Kolkata: Trinamool Congress on Tuesday said the industrial strike by trade unions was forced on the people of West Bengal through "government backing and CPI-M muscle power."
"This is a politically motivated bandh forced on the people only to harass the working class and daily wage earners," Leader of the Opposition in West Bengal Assembly and TC leader Partha Chatterjee told reporters here. Claiming that people had rejected the strike, he said three strikes on July 27, August 5 and today had been called on the same issue of price rise.
Today's bandh was marred by violence by the ruling CPI-M, he said and added that a TC activist was killed by CPI-M supporters at Nanoor in Birbhum district. Besides, factory workers who had gone to report for work in several parts of the state had been driven out by "CPI-M goons", he said.
Left trade unions and INTUC had called the 24-hour industrial strike against price rise and other issues. It took the form of a general strike in the state with the Left parties supporting the trade unions. The strike was opposed by the TC. PTI
