MUMBAI: Hundreds of migrant workers clashed with the police at a village in Surat district of Gujarat on Saturday to demand that they either be sent back to their home states or allowed to resume work at local industrial units to earn money, police said. The police resorted to lathicharge and fired tear gas to disperse the mob. Over a 100 workers were arrested in this connection, an official said.
The incident took place at Mora village near industrial town of Hazira. "At around 8 am on Saturday, around 500-1000 people gathered on the streets demanding they be sent back to their respective states. Around 60 of them were arrested, and nearly 60 others were detained," Joint Commissioner of Police (Sector-II) DN Patel said.
This is the sixth time the migrants have come out on the streets and clashed with the police. Most of them were engaged in diamond, textiles and other small industries in Surat. Protesting workers came out of their homes in the workers' colony at Mora village and started walking in a large group towards Hazira industrial area, he said.
Patel said that the migrants demanded that the district administration should arrange for their return to their hometowns in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and other states. "Some workers hurled stones at the police, after which four tear gas shells were lobbed and we had to resort to baton charge to control the unruly mob," Patel said.
Cases were being registered on the basis on CCTV footage from the area, the senior official said, adding that the situation was currently under control.
Sixth clash with police
This is the sixth time the migrants have come out on the streets and clashed with the police. Most of them were engaged in diamond, textiles and other small industries in Surat. The migrants demanded that the district administration should arrange for their return to their hometowns