Truck union imposing monthly fee on operators

Archit Watts

Tribune News Service

Muktsar, July 21

Even as Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh has announced to disband all truck unions in the state, the office-bearers of Muktsar Truck Operators’ Union, who belong to the Congress, are charging the monthly fee of Rs 1,000 per truck from operators.

A large number of truck operators, led by PPCC general secretary Jagjit Singh ‘Honey Fattanwala’, a cousin of Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal, today met the Deputy Commissioner and the Senior Superintendent of Police seeking their personal intervention in this regard. They also demanded that the pending payment of wheat transportation should be stopped, fearing that the union office-bearers may embezzle it.

There is another Gurmeet Singh ‘Bulla, president of the union, and his deputy Baldev Singh belong to the former Congress MLA Karan Kaur Brar’s camp. Baldev Singh said, “How can we disband the union, when we have not got anything in writing from the government? Those opposing us belong to AAP and SAD. The union is still functioning and it has to pay electricity bills and salaries of nearly 20 employees besides meeting other expenditure. There is nothing illegal in charging Rs 1,000 from operators.”

Deputy Commissioner Sumeet Jarangal said, “The truck operators’ union doesn’t exist after the announcement by the Chief Minister. If some people are forcibly charging money, I will ask the SSP to take legal action against them.”

About the status of pending payment of wheat transportation, the DC said, “The tender of the wheat transportation work was allotted to the union as it had existed then. Now, it doesn’t exist anymore. We will now ask other truck operators too before taking the decision on how to make the pending payment. It will take nearly a week’s time.”