Kolkata, Oct 31 — In a historic departure from its long-standing organisational policy, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday officially launched its first direct workers' trade union in West Bengal, holding its inaugural program at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) Airport in Kolkata.
Operating under the state unit's 'BJP Trade Union Relation Cell,' the party has refrained from establishing a single centralised trade union brand, choosing instead to name branch units regionally according to their specific sector.
The inaugural unit at the airport has been formally designated as the 'NSCBI Airport (Kolkata) Contractors' Workers' Morcha'.
Since its inception in 1980, the BJP has historically refrained from establishing party-affiliated labour or student wings, relying instead on associate organisations affiliated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)—such as the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) for workers and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) for students.
Addressing the launch ceremony, West Bengal BJP State President Samik Bhattacharya detailed the ideological reasoning behind the traditional policy, noting that party-linked trade unions often face conflicts of interest when their parent political party enters government.
"Ideologically or politically, we believe that if a political party has its own workers' organisation, then when that party is in government, the workers will not be able to protest or agitate against the administration regarding their rights, deprivations, and grievances," Bhattacharya explained. "However, our stance with this new wing is clear: we will work for the country, and we will demand the full remuneration we deserve for our work."
BJP All-India General Secretary Sunil Bansal, who attended the launch event at NSCBI Airport, termed the establishment of the airport contractors' union a "historic day" and confirmed that the party will progressively expand similar labour units across other industrial and commercial sectors in West Bengal.
The BJP previously maintained only a 'Trade Union Relations Cell' in the state, tasked primarily with coordinating among existing independent labour unions and sector workers.
Following Saturday's launch, Aritra Chatterjee—the West Bengal co-convener of the BJP Trade Union Relations Cell—was named president of the newly formed NSCBI Airport contract workers' union.
Chatterjee has also been appointed to lead a parallel, newly formed contract workers' organisation at the state-run Webel technology complex.