The problem is caused by the inner handle shaft being made of plastic and it rubs against the plastic guide tube it passes through.
It has bene found that the handle shaft can tend to swell a bit causing the stiffness.
A solution is to remove the inner handle (the outer lock will also fall off so be ready to catch it) by removing the red and green screw covers and the moon shaped HARTAL logo screw cover and the 4 screws you wil find inside.
You will find inside that the handle is held in place by a circlip and washer, remove these and pull the handle free.
Use fine wet and dry paper to rub down the shaft as much as needed to allow a smooth free fit and turn.
Apply some silicone grease and reassemble, using the washer and circlip, refit the outer lock mechanism and the inner handle assembly.
The red screw cover is the top screw, green is the lower.