Tripura govt drops Labour Day from list of holidays, ‘anti-working class decision’, says Oppn

Speaking to indianexpress.com, former Labour minister Manik Dey said the decision reflects the attitude of the BJP government towards workers and labourers.

“This is a totally anti-working class decision. This has made the BJP government’s stand clear on how they treat workers and labourers. International Labour Day is observed around the world to mark the liberation of the working class. I haven’t heard of any other state in India which has dropped May Day from list of holidays,” he said.

Demanding the state government reinstate May Day in the list of holidays, opposition CPI (M) state office secretary Haripada Das issued a statement saying the move would adversely affect the interest of the working class people since the holiday signified labour rights which were earned through a struggle.

May Day was included in the list of government holidays in Tripura by the first Left Front government which was formed in 1978 under former chief minister Late Nripen Chakraborty.

Tripura Congress vice president Tapas Dey alleged BJP was busy protecting the interest of corporate business houses and BJP-IPFT government in Tripura is walking on their footsteps. “It is clear from the list of holidays that this state government is against the interests of working class people. May Day doesn’t belong to any political party. It is International Labour Day”, Dey said.

Tripura Government Employees Association (TGEA) general secretary Samar Roy has also criticized the move. “We criticize this move of the government and shall not agree with their decision,” he said.