Hyderabad: Demanding the state government reinstate their services, conductors suspended from their services from the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) have written to Central and state authorities accusing TGSRTC MD VC Sajjanar of perpetrating immoral and corrupt practices.
Addressing media persons at Somajiguda Press Club on Tuesday, March 11, a group of TGSRTC conductors, including women, poured out their woes after they were dismissed by the corporation after an inquiry was conducted on them.
A nine-page complaint against Sajjanar, signed by around 200 suspended conductors, was sent to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Chief Justice of India, Lokayukta, the central vigilance and enforcement directorate and Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy.
The group claimed that a total of 2,400 conductors were sacked by the corporation during the BRS government.
“We have made small mistakes like losing Rs 20-30, for which you have suspended us. Did we ever speak about the corruption perpetrated by you? Why are you taking revenge against us like using brahmastra against sparrows,” a female conductor who was serving in Hanamkonda depot questioned, breaking down before the media.
Comparing Sajjanar with a father, as he has been leading the family of TGSRTC, she said that he was supposed to show mercy on them for their small mistakes like a father would forgive his children.
“For the past one year we have been pleading with you to pardon us. We also came to Bus Bhavan to meet you, but you are not allowing us to meet you. If you can’t speak with us, it means you have lost as a father. You are ineligible to be the managing director. If you can do any justice to us, please do, or else please step down so that at least the next MD will do justice to us,” the female conductor pleaded.
She stated that the suspended conductors were struggling to feed their children and afford their education due to unemployment. She warned that if they were not reinstated immediately, they might resort to suicide.
What the union leaders say about suspension, removal from service
According to union leaders, TGSRTC workers could either be suspended from service, where they can be reinstated after an inquiry. In this case, they will be on the payroll of the corporation, but will receive only 50% of their salary till the suspension is revoked.
However, if the workers are removed due to any reason, they will cease to be on the corporation’s payroll, which would mean they won’t get paid.
“In the case of removal from service, there are three stages of appeal. In case where the depot manager removes a worker, the first appellate authority is the divisional manager. If the appeal is rejected at this stage, the worker can appeal to the regional manager. If that too is rejected, then the worker can appeal to the executive director who is in-charge of the zone. If there is still no relief, the worker can appeal with the labour court, or a higher court,” explained Ashok Kumar, former deputy general secretary of the National Mazdoor Union, speaking with Siasat.com.
He said that the reasons for removal could range from absenteeism, malpractice, misbehaviour, causing an accident, corruption, and various other reasons.
He said that the review of appeals would be done on a case-by-case basis, and that if an appellate authority in one district or region takes a decision on one violation, an authority in another place may not take the same decision for a similar case.
He also mentioned that there could be cases where a fresh appointment could be given, if a worker has been serving the corporation since just a few years. But even in that situation, the seriousness of allegations are taken into consideration before issuing a fresh appointment as a new worker.
“A reasons for absenteeism could be physical hardships experienced by the worker, or in case of a female worker it could be a different reason,” he noted.
VS Rao, another union leader said that if the court rejects an appeal by a worker who has been removed from service, that would be the final decision, and if the state government wants to reinstate that worker, the by-laws of the corporation would need to be changed, which is not very likely, or easy.
According to the union leaders, there are around 250-300 workers who have been removed from their service, and their appeals could be in any of the three stages of appeal, or at the court, and some could have been rejected by the court. There are also 50-100 suspensions which have been pending reinstatement.
A state government committee formed to review reinstatement
Ashok Kumar told Siasat.com that after the workers who were removed from service during the previous government had represented their issue to the Congress government, state planning board vice-chairman G Chinna Reddy had ordered the constitution of a committee to review and consider their reinstatement on a case-by-case basis.
The committee comprising TGSRTC MD, labour commissioner and RTC officials, was presently in the process of reviewing those cases, he noted.
Regardless of whether the affected workers approached the chief minister or any government authority, the union leaders say that a blanket application of reinstatement couldn’t be done to cover all of them at once, as per the existing rules, and it wasn’t possible at all.
Discontent among Congress-affiliated union
Meanwhile, the Staff and Workers’ Union (SWU), an affiliate of the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), has been expressing its displeasure about the Congress government not implementing its election manifesto promise of restoring the unions of TGSRTC, which were rendered powerless by the previous BRS government in 2018.
According to Raji Reddy, general secretary of SWU-INTUC, the union has played an instrumental role in dethroning BRS from power in the 2023 elections, with its members and their families playing a major role in creating a negative perception among the voters on the BRS government.
However, despite representing to almost all the ministers and top-most leaders of Congress government to restore the unions and to conduct elections, their democratic demand, which was the Congress’ election assurance, was yet to be fulfilled.
“Because of the unions only remaining on paper, our representations to the government about the issues of TGSRTC workers are not being taken seriously,” he told Siasat.com.
SWU-AITUC has demanded the state government to restore the status of the RTC unions by March 24, give the unions due importance and conduct elections in addition to resolving the long-standing issues of RTC workers, failing which the union would announce its plans for an agitation during its general body meeting that would be held in Hyderabad on March 25.
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