Dasgupta shows a roti served in jail at the news conference. A Telegraph picture

New Delhi, July 28: Left trade unions have not been able to strike roots in Haryana yet, but the violence in Gurgaon involving Honda workers may hand them the opportunity they had been looking for.

The Left said today ? two days after policemen beat up agitating workers of Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India ? that it was not going to abandon the issue of violation of labour laws by multinational companies.

Trade unions organised a Gurgaon bandh today. On August 1, the Left parties and their trade unions will organise a nationwide protest.

The only union that has made any inroads in Haryana is the CPI-backed All India Trade Union Congress, whose leader and Lok Sabha MP, Gurudas Dasgupta, today said that the administration is continuing to act tough with the workers, many of whom are still in jail with head injuries.

The Left trade unions in Haryana have been preoccupied with the problems faced by white-collar employees, while workers in the unorganised sector had to fend for themselves, said labour experts.

But the Gurgaon incident has pitchforked Left leaders into the struggle. Dasgupta was present when the clashes took place. CPM politburo member Brinda Karat and Rajya Sabha MP Nilotpal Basu visited Gurgaon a day after the violence. Today, a six-member CPI team visited the workers in jail and hospital.

Left leaders said the violence had vindicated their stand against the unbridled entry of foreign companies. “We are not against FDI but the foreign companies must abide by Indian labour laws,” said Basu. The Left has been locked in a struggle with the United Progressive Alliance government over FDI.

The parties also believe that the Centre is not doing enough to bring the Haryana administration in line. A couple of hours after Shivraj Patil made a statement in the Lok Sabha on the Gurgaon incident, Dasgupta held another news conference and rejected the Union home minister’s claim that the situation was “under control and peaceful”.

“Sixty-five workers are detained in jail where there is no drinking water. Even the toilets are without water,” said the CPI MP. There are 16 injured people in jail ? four of them with head injuries. The trade unions have been demanding that the administration send the injured workers to hospitals for proper medical attention.

CPM campaign

The CPM today announced a month-long agitation against the Congress-led government at the Centre in August for its alleged reluctance to implement the Common Minimum Programme.