Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge protest in Parliament complex against new Labour Codes

Carrying posters and placards against the new Labour Codes, the opposition MPs raised slogans demanding their rollback.

New Delhi: A day after the government scheduled a discussion on electoral reforms, the Opposition on Wednesday took up the issue of the "anti-worker" Labour Codes, staging a joint protest outside Parliament House but did not disrupt the proceedings inside.

Senior Opposition leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (Congress), TR Baalu, Kanimozhi (DMK), Dola Sen (Trinamool Congress), K Radhakrishnan, John Brittas (CPI-M) and P Sandosh Kumar (CPI) joined the MPs holding a banner that read 'No to Corporate Jungle Raj, Yes to Labour Justice' at the 'Makar Dwar' of Parliament.

While Trinamool Congress did not join a meeting of Opposition floor leaders at Kharge's office in Parliament, its MP Dola Sen, also a trade union leader, joined the protest. Trinamool also held a separate march from Gandhi Statue to Makar Dwar demanding clearance of MNREGA dues to West Bengal.

Before the protest, floor leaders of Congress, DMK, RJD, SP, JMM, CPI-M, CPI, Muslim League, NCP-SP, and Shiv Sena (UBT) met to discuss floor strategy after both the government and Opposition broke a stalemate over the issue of discussing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. Both sides agreed to hold debates on Vande Mataram and electoral reforms next week.

Sources said that at the meeting, the leaders decided that they should remain united as they forced the government to agree to their demand for a discussion on electoral rolls.

A senior leader told DH that they are for the smooth functioning of the government but they should keep the pressure on the government. Both Houses functioned smoothly during the day unlike the first two days of the Winter Session.

The decision to hold a protest on Labour Codes was mooted by the CPI(M) and CPI, and parties like DMK and Congress joined the bandwagon. A message was shared with the Trinamool leaders who conveyed that their representative would join the protest. On Thursday, the Opposition may take up the issue of air pollution.

While the joint Opposition held a protest on Labour Codes, Trinamool sources said they would be focussing on the issue of MNREGA dues to West Bengal without taking its attention away from the issue of SIR.

Kharge, the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, posted on X after the protest, "The Modi government is anti-labour, anti-worker and pro-cronies" as he listed the "serious concerns" in the new Codes, including that on job security as companies can now hire workers on short-term contracts, avoiding long-term benefits. He said although the Code keeps an 8-hour day on paper, states can allow 12-hour shifts through flexible scheduling.

"Coupled with state-determined overtime limits, this effectively permits much longer workdays, increasing fatigue and safety risks even when labelled 'consensual'...Workers must wait 60 days before striking, plus a 14-day cooling-off period. This prevents quick action against unsafe or unfair conditions. Requiring one union with 51 per cent membership to be the sole negotiator sidelines smaller unions and reduces representation for diverse worker groups," he said.

Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that the government has snatched away all the rights that workers had in their hands. "The protection previously granted to workers have been taken away, and new avenues for their exploitation have been opened. Through these laws, Narendra Modi's pro-capitalist and anti-worker mindset has once again come to the fore. The country does not accept these laws," she posted on X.