Congress comes out in support of Asha workers stir in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram: Congress's Kerala unit President K. Sudhakaran and Leader of Opposition V.D. Satheesan on Wednesday said that the party will have no hesitation in lending its support to the ongoing indefinite strike of the Asha workers which entered its 17th day.

The women Asha (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers are on the protest in front of the state Secretariat demanding an increase in their monthly honorarium from Rs 7,000 to Rs 21,000 plus retirement benefits, and the clearance of pending payments.

The Congress has taken objection to a hard-hitting letter from the government, asking all the protesters to return to work otherwise they will be replaced by new workers.

Apart from the letter, it has objected to the repeated statement from veteran CPI-M and CITU leader Elamaram Kareem who dismissed this ongoing protest as one which is led by a group which is trying to raise money that comes through donations.

Sudhakaran said that as a protest to this threatening letter, the party workers, including from the women’s wing, will take to the streets on Thursday.

"This circular will be burnt before the 1,200 local bodies in the state. On March 3 under the 14 district Congress committees, workers will arrive before the state Secretariat and the 13 district collectorates," he said.

On Wednesday, senior CPI leader K.K.Sivaraman also lent his full support to the protesting Asha workers.

"The Kerala government has turned a blind eye to the hapless workers and this act comes at a time when the state government has lavishly given a huge salary hike to the members of the Kerala State Public Service Commission and also the government pleaders, who otherwise are handsomely paid," he said.

Thiruvananthapuram Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, presently in the thick of the news over his comments, also reached the site to express his solidarity with the protesters.

Meanwhile, the police also started to register cases against popular social activists who came and met the protesters and spoke to them.

Joseph C. Mathew, who had inaugurated the protests, said that he only heard that a notice had been served to him to appear before the police.

"As a law-abiding citizen, I will surely appear before the police," he said, while asserting that he was "staunchly" behind the protesters.

In Kerala, there are an estimated 26,000 Asha workers who are considered to be the backbone of the state’s health response and have won huge applause during times of crisis -- whether it was the Covid-19 pandemic or the devastating floods.