THE Centre of Indian Trade Unions has called upon all state committees, federations and unions to intensify the campaign to make the September 2 general strike against the anti-people and anti-worker policies of the Narendra Modi government successful. CITU, in its national secretariat meeting held on June 13-14 in New Delhi, reviewed the preparatory campaign activities being undertaken in the states and industries in the run-up to the strike. The CITU also congratulated the working people of Kerala for ensuring resounding victory of the Left Democratic Front in the just-concluded Assembly elections. It also expressed serious concern and severe indignation at the barbarous attacks being unleashed by the Trinamool Congress goons on the people, particularly supporters of Left forces, trade unions and other mass organisations, with active patronage of the state administration, after the Assembly election results in West Bengal. The CITU secretariat said the policies being pursued by the Modi government are aimed at imposing slavery on the working people in the country at the behest of corporate and big-business houses, both domestic and foreign. The call for general strike has been given jointly by almost all the central trade unions from the national convention of workers on March 30 in New Delhi. The urgency for the countrywide strike action has become crucially important in view of the all round decline, disaster and gloom in the national economy as well as on the lives and livelihood of the common people brought about by the two years’ rule by the BJP. The media-hype sought to be created by the Modi government about the so-called successes of its two years’ rule through its lie-campaign, must be given a fitting rebuff by the working people of the country through making the united call for countrywide general strike a massive success. The CITU also condemned the attack on Left workers in West Bengal. CITU also has been targeted for this attack, assault and intimidation. Hundreds of offices were captured, ransacked and burnt; members and sympathisers are being assaulted and threatened to leave the organisation. A demonstration of inhuman barbarism throughout the state is going on with direct state-patronage and the purpose is to eliminate and mime the Left opposition through a reign of terror. “It has reached such heinous height that the TMC goons while carrying on physical assault on the people did not even spare a pregnant woman and her baby was killed in the womb. Our comrades in West Bengal have not given a walk-over to such barbaric assault on democratic and human rights of the people and have been bravely fighting such assaults through mobilising people in different parts of the state. While extending solidarity to the people of West Bengal in heroically resisting the barbaric onslaught on democratic rights, with the toiling people’s organisation at the forefront of that battle, CITU already called upon the state committees to organise solidarity protest against the attack on democratic rights and reign of terror in West Bengal,” CITU general secretary Tapan Sen said in a statement. “The CITU secretariat now calls for widespread countrywide campaign against ongoing barbarous attack on the people of West Bengal by the TMC goons with government support to culminate in massive demonstration/mobilisation in all the states and industrial centres on June 28,” it said. The 15TH all-India conference of CITU will be held on November 26-30 in Puri, Odisha, in which around 2,500 delegates will take part. The conference will be preceded by an all-India convention of working women to be held in Andhra Pradesh. The secretariat discussed organisational details on the conference preparations, including holding of state level conferences.