SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, March 17: It is unusual how Jharkhand’s MLAs forget party affiliation to join trade union politics. At least five of the current MLAs—Dhulu Mahto, Sarfaraj Ahmed, Aparna Sengupta, Mathura Prasad Mahto, and Sita Soren—are comrades in arms with political rivals to run a coal trade union.
For example, Dhulu Mahto is a BJP MLA and Vice-President of Jharkhand BJP and a three-time MLA for Baghmara. His attachment is seen more with the Communist Party, rather than the Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS). Dhulu Mahto also has a massive influence in the Katras colliery region.
Aparna Sengupta who is a BJP MLA is connected to the Janata Mazdoor Sangh (JMS) which is affiliated with the Hind Mazdoor Sabha. Aparna Sengupta had her colliery union run by her husband, a senior Forward Bloc leader late Sushanto Sengupta. Sengupta merged her union with JMS after she joined the BJP. Aparna Sengupta, a former minister and two times MLA, currently serves as vice president of HMS and has a major influence in the Nirsa colliery region.
When Sanjiv Singh, a former Jharia MLA, joined the BJP in 2005, he kept his JMS organisation going, which has a significant impact on the Jharia coalfield.
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) has its own Jharkhand Colliery Union (JCMU). But its MLA Sarfaraj Ahmed is associated with the Rashtriya Colliery Mazdoor Union (RCMS) of the Congress Party. Sarfaraj Ahmed is also the vice president of the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC). He is also three times MLA and senior leader of Congress. Ahmed also serves as secretary of INTUC. He joined JMM but has continued his connection with the INTUC.
Sita Soren is another JMM MLA, and the sister-in-law of chief minister Hemant Soren. She is also associated with another trade union rather than her party’s JCMU. She is vice-president of AITUC. She runs a parallel organization against JMM’s union in the coal belt.
The third JMM MLA Mathura Prasad Mahto is connected to the Bihar Colliery Kamgar Union (BCKU) that is affiliated with Central Industrial Trade Union (CITU). Four times Tundi MLA is vice-president of BCKU. Mahto is also not attached to the party’s JCMU.
The Jama MLAs Sita Soren and Mathura Prasad Mahto received show-cause letters from JMM last year for joining labour unions affiliated with other parties, but no further action was taken.
For the Congress Party, simultaneous membership is nothing new. The issue was initially brought up in 1999 when Subrata Mukherjee, a senior Congress leader from West Bengal, maintained to hold the position at INTUC even after joining Mamta Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress. He even rose to the position of national president of INTUC in 2011.
The Congress constitution does not prohibit any leader or employee from engaging in trade union action. Everyone is free to labour for the greater good. Hence, it makes no difference who is affiliated with which labour union, according to Brajendra Prasad Singh, chairman of the Congress State Disciplinary Committee and state vice-president.
Lakhan Lal Mahto, joint general secretary of the state AITUC, stated that while his organization is undoubtedly Communist in orientation, it does not distinguish between members of different political parties. Everyone is welcomed by the company who is eager to labour. “Dhulu Mahto and Sita Soren’s entry is nothing new. Even Jawahar Lal Nehru, Subhash Chandra Bose, and VV Giri were not communists but they were presidents of IATUC”, said Lakhan Lal Mahto.
In the discussion on joining its MLAs in AITUC and HMS, BJP district president Chandrashekhar Singh said that such an issue comes under the state committee of the party. Moreover, the party is a separate political wing, BMS is the labour wing and ABVP is the student wing. So all have separate identities. “ Such questions were also raised when Sanjiv Singh became Jharia MLA and continued to run JMS”, said Chandrashekhar Singh.
