CITU Protests Against Congress for Broken Promises in Telangana
The Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) has criticized the Congress party for not fulfilling its seventh promise of restoring democracy in Telangana. On Tuesday, CITU Jogulamba Gadwal district vice president Upper Narasimha raised concerns over the issue during a protest at YSR Chowrasta.
During the protest, Narasimha pointed out that the Congress party had promised a fixed salary of ₹18,000 for ASHA workers before the elections. However, even after coming to power, the government has not implemented this promise. To press for their demand, ASHA workers had planned a “Chalo Assembly” protest on March 24.
Narasimha accused the government of suppressing the protest by illegally detaining ASHA workers from the midnight of March 23 itself. He claimed that this was done to prevent them from reaching the Assembly. He also alleged that even the family members of ASHA workers faced harassment.
Further criticizing the police action, he condemned the rough treatment of women protesters by male police officers. He stated that many ASHA workers were not taken to police stations after being arrested but were instead abandoned along the way. Questioning the Congress government, he asked, “Is this the democracy that Congress promised? Is this the governance of Indiramma Rajyam?” He accused the government of behaving in a feudalistic manner instead of protecting workers’ rights.
Narasimha also noted that ASHA workers were prevented from protesting in multiple mandals, raising concerns about the government’s true intentions. CITU demanded that the Telangana Assembly address the issue of fixed salaries for ASHA workers and implement the promise immediately. He warned that if the demands were ignored, there would be prolonged protests in the coming days.
Several CITU district leaders participated in the protest, including district president and secretaries Padma and Sunitha, vice president Naga Prameela, and ASHA workers Padma, Kavitha, Sridevi, and Renuka.
