Surjewala Criticizes Haryana Government Over Sanitation Workers' Strike

Congress General Secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Randeep Singh Surjewala took to the mic in Kaithal on Sunday, blasting the Haryana government for what he called “stubbornness and arrogance” toward sanitation workers who have been on strike for almost a month.

He asked, almost rhetorically, why Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini hasn’t sat down with the workers to hear their grievances. “The Saini government’s ill‑intentions are buried under heaps of garbage,” Surjewala said, gesturing toward the piles that have begun to mount in several towns.

Sanitation staff, he reminded the audience, are among the most economically vulnerable groups. “A poor person thinks ten times before joining a protest because they lack time, money, and resources. Yet our sanitation brothers and sisters have been out there for weeks,” he added, his voice tinged with frustration.

The strike, now entering its second month in parts of Haryana, has already crippled waste collection and raised public‑health concerns. Trash is piling up, local residents are complaining, and municipal services are scrambling to keep up.

Meanwhile, the state’s response has been to order the workers back to duty by September 5, a deadline that many feel is more a show of authority than a genuine attempt at dialogue. Surjewala seized the moment to highlight what he sees as a glaring lack of empathy: “Why does this government display such stubbornness that even the chief minister seems to have no time to listen?”

Political analysts note that the deadlock has turned into a fresh arena of contest between the ruling BJP‑led administration and the opposition Congress, which is now rallying behind the sanitation workers’ demands.

As the standoff drags on, the message from Surjewala is clear: engage with the workers, address their demands, and stop letting “arrogance” become the hallmark of governance.