Over 1,150 workers lost their jobs ahead of the festive season as the management of Bamandanga tea garden, Jalpaiguri, issued a lockout notice here on Wednesday, accusing the local BJP-run gram panchayat and an NGO of forcing them to close the unit.

Tea garden workers agitated in front of the gates, accusing the management of closing the unit without paying them bonuses before the festive season.

"The tea garden management closed their unit without any intimation. We are not paid a festive season bonus. Over 1,150 workers lost their jobs ahead of Durga Puja," said one of the protesting workers in the tea garden in Jalpaiguri's Nagrakata.

The tea garden management put up the lockout notice stating that it was forced to close the unit because of pressure from representatives of the local BJP-run gram panchayat.

"Though our tea garden is one of the sick industries in the area, we were operating it well. Recently, a section of workers started ceasework and made operating the unit difficult after being provoked by a local BJP panchayat member and an NGO. They even asked us to leave the tea garden for them to operate. We issued the lockout notice after facing a security threat," said Soumya Ghatak, the manager of the tea garden.

Local Trinamul leaders claimed some BJP leaders played a role in the closure of the unit that made over 1,150 workers lose their jobs ahead of the Puja.

"BJP leaders started mounting pressure on the tea garden management for undue advantages. The BJP can't deny their role behind the closure of this tea garden," said Sanjoy Kujur, the Trinamul block president in Nagrakata.

The BJP, however, denied the charge and claimed they were only protesting against the management's "anti-worker policy".

"The manager of the tea garden was illegally collecting money from families of poor workers for fresh recruitment," said Manoj Bhujel, a BJP district general secretary in Jalpaiguri.

"This is not the first time the management has closed the tea garden. They did it in the past. The lockout notice is a ploy to deny workers their bonuses before Puja," Bhujel added.

Tea garden workers on Wednesday met the local block development officer and demanded government intervention to reopen the Bamandanga unit.

"The tea garden workers met me. We will hold a meeting in the presence of the assistant labour commission to resolve the impasse," said Nagrakata BDO Bipul Kumar Mondal.