APSRTC Employees Union (EU) and its coalition partners are leading in the elections held on Thursday for declaring the recognised union.
When reports last came in, the EU-coalition was leading by 1,900 votes across the State. The EU and its poll allies — Staff Workers and Federation (SWF), APSRTC Karmika Parishad which is affiliated to the ruling Telugu Desam Party, and YSR RTC Union — emerged victorious in Krishna, Prakasam, Chittoor, Vizianagaram, West Godavari, Nellore and Anantapur regions.
They have also become the recognised union in the APSRTC main office and four non-operation regions. Its rival, the National Mazdoor Union has won in Visakhapatnam and West Godavari regions. NMU president Challa Chandraiah conceded his union’s defeat in the elections.
In a joint statement issued late in the evening, leaders of EU and its poll allies Y.V. Rao, K. Padmakar, P. Damodar Rao, Ch. Sundaraiah, V. Varahala Naidu, Prasad Reddy and I.L. Narayana, said the election results were a slap on the face of the NMU which had tried all the tricks in the book to bulldoze the elections.
Elaborate arrangements were made for smooth conduct of the union polls at 128 bus depots and five workshop units across the State. Elections through postal ballot will be conducted on August 13 and 14.
As per the norms, officials and supervisors of the corporation stayed away from the voting procedure. The NMU contested while EU forged poll-alliance with other unions.