DyCM C N Ashwath Narayan says labour laws amended, deletes tweet later

A tweet by Deputy Chief Minister C N Ashwath Narayan, which was soon deleted, has fuelled further speculation on the government's plan to amend labour laws in favour of industries.

In the deleted tweet thread, Narayan said, "Amendments have been made to the labour laws to ensure that our manufacturers remain competitive with the rest of the country and the world, (and) have the ability to adapt to the hygeine requirements resulting from the pandemic."

Not making these changes will make our manufacturers non-competitive and lead to closures, Narayan also tweeted. "We only have the best interests of everyone in mind," he said.

Narayan's office claimed that the tweets were posted due to oversight and that the government was still discussing amendments to labour laws.

Industries Minister Jagadish Shettar, when contacted, said that though there was no discussion to amend labour laws in the recent Cabinet meeting, his department had petitioned Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa for some relaxations. "Among them is extension of working hours in industries for labourers. No decision is made yet," Shettar said.

There were rumours that the state was mulling amending labour laws in the footsteps of the BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.