There are two accounts of the recent firing at Taloja, sach representing a separate class outlook.
One account, found in the police files and placed before the Legislative Assembly by Maharashtra’s Home Minister. Bhai Vaidya, has received a lot of publicity in the capitalist press. The other account, based on what the workers say, is given below.
The firing took place at Pramod Rubber Indus-tries, in Maharashtra Industrial Development Corpo-ration (MIDC) estate, Taloja, owned by Jaikishen S. Dixit and his brother, Pramod Rubber Industries emp-loys around 50 workers, most of whom are women. A union was formed last year which resulted in the dismissal of one activist. The workers then went on strike, demanding the reinstatement of their victimised comrade. Dixit refused to concede the demand and instead brought in a band of goondas to break the strike. About 30 of them lived in the factory, hara-ssing the striking workers, threatening and abusing them and attacking their gate meetings as the strike continued.
Normally, these attacks took place in the presence of the police, since Taloja police station is just 3-4 furlongs away from the factory. But true to their class duty, the police did not lift a finger to stop the goondas.
On January 14, the workers decided to hold a meeting at Padgha, a nearby village, to plan their future action. On their way home after the meeting some workers were stopped by the goondas and Dixit, who asked them to report the meeting’s deci-sions. When the workers refused, Dixit flew into a rage and began to abuse the workers. The workers, who tried to defend themselves, were chased by the goondas who flung stones while Dixit fired a revolver at them.
The workers immediately went to Taloja police station to lodge a complaint. The police refused to believe them, and instead, wrote down a complaint to the effect that the workers had stoned the factory. Thus, on January 14, the police were aware of the fact that the capitalist possessed a revolver which he would use against the workers.
On the morning of January 15. an Ekta Samiti of unions from the neighbouring factories decided to hold a meeting to express solidarity with the workers of Pramod Rubber. As small groups of them walked toward the factory, an Ambassador car drove up behind them, with Dixit inside. Slowing down at a level-crossing (around 3 kms, before the factory), Dixit began to shoot at the workers An eye-witness says: “None of us could make out what had happened. Suddenly, the ‘malik’ came in his green Ambassador, went over the level crossing near the Shri Krishna Dairy Farm and started shooting at us like a mad man. He drove straight down the road, shooting at us as he went. It was like “Sholay” happening in real life”.
One worker from a transformer company was killed in this firing. Three others- Ramchandra Pandu-rang Nimbare, Darma Khutarkar and Bhagwan Namdeo Mhatre were injured, according to the Evening News of India (February 6). However, the workers claim that almost eight persons were injured in the firing alone while more than 40 were hit by stones.
The workers ran after the car, but Dixit escaped into the factory and locked himself in, along with the goondas. The number of workers around the gates kept rising, and so did the fears of the capitalist. Terrified of what the workers might do, Dixit and the goondas started flinging stones at those who were sitting quietly by the gate. One worker said: “They must have prepared themselves to attack because they threw large stones from the second floor of the factory. We had not done anything. When we moved out of the stones’ range, they began to fire. They had many guns-we saw them. We had to run to escape slaughter.”
Later, the police claimed there was only one gun licensed, which belongs to Dixit. Where are the rest of the guns? Nobody knows.
One worker, Atmaram Khoparkar, was looking at the factory from a distance. A bullet hit him in the centre of the forehead. In a moment, he was killed.
All this time, the police were present. What action did they take to prevent Dixit from murdering the workers ? A capitalist newspaper reports: “Sub-Inspector B. K. Bansode, who rushed to the spot asked him (Dixit) several times to stop, but in vain.” (Evening News of India, January 17). When a capitalist is shooting down workers, the police “ask him several times to stop.” What other behaviour could be expected from the capitalists watchdogs?
Meanwhile, the number of workers had risen to 5,000 and they gheraoed the factory. To save the capitalist from their anger, the Taloja police station alerted all other police stations in the district. Alibag. which immediately sent two platoons of SRP, was the first to respond. Also, the “netas” started arriving to cool down” the situation, that is, to protect the capitalist from the workers. The Additional District Magistrate, Sanjay Narayan, Tehsildar Gupte, DIGP Rege and D. N. Patil, the Panvel MLA, began to “pacify” the workers, who now demanded that Dixit and the goondas should be handed over to them. Suddenly, smoke began to roll out of the building. The factory was on fire.
How did the fire start? According to the capi-talist newspapers: “an unruly mob set fire to (the) rubber factory” (Evening News of India, January 16), “the workers set fire to the factory and reduced it to ashes”. (Evening News of India, January 17). But as one worker asked: “How could we have set fire to the factory? Because of the firing we had to keep away from the factory. The ones nearest the factory were Dixit and his goondas.”
Two barrels of furnace oil stood near the gates. Due to the heat of the fire, both barrels burst open, spilling the blazing oil on two workers standing nearby. Both of them died in hospital the next day.
However, the fire gave the police and the “netas” the opportunity they were waiting for. They realised that the only way of protecting the capitalist in this situation was to rescue him from the fire and from the workers’ anger. Accordingly, while “nearly 34 men, including Dixit, were trapped inside, Inspector Waman Salunke rescued them, disarmed Dixit and arrested him'”. (Evening News of India, January 17). He knew that the best way to save Dixit from the anger of the workers was to move him to the safety of a prison. He was later taken to Khalapur gaol, with 33 others, including his brother.
But the militant workers did not want to let Dixit escape so easily and demanded that he be handed over to them. It was at this time that the “netas” stepped in. The ADM who had come to “pacify” the workers now ordered the police to unleash violence against the workers. He ordered a lathi-charge, then tear-gas and finally firing. Dixit’s bullets were now replaced by police bullets. The massacre began once again.
Prabhakar Darma Patil, a 19-year old worker, was running to save his life when a bullet cut him down. The next day, he died in hospital. “He is the only one police name”, say the workers, “there are others as well.” This time, more than a hundred workers were injured, Pramod Rubber Industries is today a grey, burnt shell. Its roof is a skeleton of soot-black rods and the machinery is bent in the fire. An SRP platoon and 10 constables, armed with guns and bayonets patrol the area. Dixit and his goondas are still safely in prison, while an inquiry proceeds into the incident. The inquiry will be conducted by a police officer-the very police who “rescued” Dixital and led the police firing.
One capitalist paper describes this incident as ”most unusual.” (Evening News of India, February 6). But is it? Experiences such as these have, on the D contrary, taught us that they are usual in a class-society, dominated by the exploiters, their police and their “netas”. On the other hand, as long as the workers are unarmed, their struggles will always be crushed despite their militancy, by the armed strength of the exploiters and their state. The path to liberation can only lie in creating a militant, political organisation that can train the working class to fight not only against capitalist exploitation, but also against capitalist armed force.
–February 8