Battle against Corporate Takeover of UNI
— Anil Chamadia
MORE than one thousand
UNI employees, supported by various democratic forces, are waging a battle against the corporate take-over of UNI, the only news agency of Indian languages. To counter the employees’ battle for democracy, Subhash Chandra, the owner of Zee TV, is posing as a nationalist and claiming that by investing Rs.100 crore, he wants to develop it as a world class agency.
Employees assert that this co-operative agency, consisting of employees, newspaper owners and the Government representatives, which broadcasts unbiased news without fear or favour, is essential for democracy. They demand to know from the Manmohan Government, why such an agency is being handed over to a corporate house?
The government, posing to be very concerned about the livelihood of the employees, was actually preparing ground for their retrenchment. In the Company Board meeting, which decided to sell UNI shares to rice-trader and tooth-paste manufacturer Subhash Chandra, the owner of Zee TV, for Rs. 30 crore, it was said that the money was needed for the retrenchment of the employees! It is obvious that, otherwise, there was no need of such a huge amount of money, as UNI is basically run through its own resources.
UNI is the only news agency of Hindi, English and Urdu, on which a large number of small and medium size newspapers are dependent. Starting with a one-time fund of Rs. 10 lakh, given by newspaper owners, the employees run the agency and had earned Rs. 30 crore profit, three years back. UNI has valuable land and buildings in 8 cities, apart from Delhi. And above all, it has earned a global reputation.
The motive behind Subhash Chandra’s bid for UNI seems to be two-fold, financial as well as ideological. It is worth remembering that Subhash Chandra had reiterated his commitment to the Sangh in a grand RSS programme in Agra, four years back. One year later, when RSS was trying to revive Hindusthan Samachar for the Hindi belt, he first came to the UNI office in Delhi.
The Joint Action Committee of UNI employees has launched an agitation on the single demand of scrapping the UNI sale deed. This sale is actually part of a plan to privatise this independent news agency. For the last 45 years, shares more than 15%, never went to any single newspaper owner. So it was never under control of any newspaper owner. The Manager was appointed from among the employees. But to turn the profit-making institution into a loss-making one, a Director, Mr. Naresh Mohan, with a high salary was appointed. And thus was prepared the logic for sale of a cooperative/public concern. The entire income of Rs. 30 crore was wasted in transfer of more than 150 employees, denting-painting of the institution and luxurious tours etc. And then the 4 Directors, in a planned manner, gave their consent to hand-over UNI to Subhash Chandra
The Joint Action Committee is conducting the agitation since September 9. Various political parties and democratic forces have supported the employees. While no one from Laloo’s RJD ever came to support the employees, BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani asked, ‘If Subhashji wants to develop the institute by investing money, what is the harm in it?’
On October 3, when Subhash Chandra came to the institute, the employees drove him out of the office. Afraid of the militant and united movement of the employees the management approached the judiciary. And the court, after unilateral hearing, stopped employees from agitating in the institute. Later, the court permitted them to sit outside the institute gate. But this was not the only method of suppressing the movement. In Delhi, 3 employees were suspended and in Bombay, Chandra Prakash Jha was transferred to Agartala. His only crime was that he was causing inconvenience to the Management through his blogs on the internet. How can a Hindi correspondent be transferred to Agartala? When Chandra Prakash Jha, along with other colleagues, started indefinite hunger strike, the management intensified the repression. One day, employees were locked inside the office for many hours.
However, employees are determined to continue their battle against the corporatisation of the institute. And they are getting wide-ranging support from various quarters .While leaders of the leftist parties talked to Sonia, Manmohan etc., CPI(ML) General Secretary wrote letter to the President of demanding his intervention. Kuldip Nayar and the author of this report met the Prime Minister and demanded an inquiry into the deal. Medha Patkar and other social activists participated in the gate-meetings. JNU student union office-bearers from AISA came out in support of the movement. The movement is bound to gain momentum with the beginning of the winter session of the Parliament. The battle for saving UNI is preparation of a struggle front against corporatisation of media in our country.