These workers, owung allegiance to Girni Kamgar Sanghaarsh Samiti, have decided to organise a sit-in dharna during the election campaign in the textile mill-dominated "Girangaon" comprising the South Central Mumbai Parliamentary constituency and six Assembly segments-Chinchpokli, Nagpada, Mazgaon, Parel, Sewree and Worli.

Though the Chinchpokli and Nagpada have been won by the non-SS-BJP alliance parties in 1995 Assembly elections, the other four have been secured by the Saffron combine. The South Central Mumbai constituency was won by the Sena nominee Mohan Rawle with a thin margin of 153 by defeating the Samajwadi Party nominee Sohail Lokhandwala.

The Samiti general secretary Datta Iswalkar told The Financial Express that the Shiv Sena was grown in the "Girangaon" mainly due to the whole-hearted support fromthe textile mill workers, whose strength has been reduced drastically from 2,85,000 to mere 45,000 at present. "Ironically, the same Sena which used to propagate the "son of soil" theory, has failed miserably to safeguard the interest of these workers. The Saffron government in the state has adopted the pro-owner and builder policies during its four- and-half-year rule," he alleged.

Iswalkar said that the ruling SS-BJP alliance had failed to abolish the controversial Bombay Industrial relations (BIR) Act, as promised in their "vachan-nama" in the 1995 elections. In a bid to abolish the monopoly of the Rashtriya Mill Mazdoor Sangh in the textile industry, the government had tabled the Maharashtra Industrial Relations Act, though it was still being discussed by the joint committee of the state legislature.

Iswalkar said that though the state government cleared the proposal of sale of excess lands by certain city mills, it had failed to order the mill owners to pay wages regularly to workers.

Iswalkarpooh-poohed chief minister Narayan Rane's claim of announcing a package for mill workers immediately after his appointment. He blamed both the former chief minister Manohar Joshi and Rane for passing the buck on mill workers on the grounds that there was unanimity among various trade unions on the vexed mill land sale issue.

Ironically, Iswalkar said that 6,000 workers from Khatau Mills had not get their salaries since two-and-half-years, which amounts to a whopping Rs 24 crore, while Matulya Mills has to pay about Rs 2 crore towards workers salaries since last nine months.

Iswalkar said that workers from the healthy mills such as Piramal Mills, Mafatlal, Raghuvanshi Mills and Swan Mills were not sure about getting their salaries regularly. "Huge residential towers, bowling game plaza and shopping complexes have come up on the lands, which have been sold out by certain mills. However, these mills have failed to plough back money into the revival of mill or payment of wage bills", he added. Iswalkar saidthat the Samiti had already sought the state Governor PC Alexander's intervention in directing the state government to mediate for directing the mill owners to pay the salary dues. "It is unfortunate that the state government under the garb of election model code of conduct wants to keep away," he added.

According to him, the Samiti has organised a dharna in fornt of Phoenix Mills, where a bowling game plaza has been developed. He informed that the Samiti would follow up court cases filed against the Khatau Mills, Raghuvanshi Mills, Mafatlal Mills and Bombay Dyeing Mills. These cases are largely related to the closure of one or the other unit and non-payment of salaries.