Singareni Collieries Requests Six-Month Extension for Employee Union Elections

Hyderabad: The Singareni Collieries Company Ltd ( SCCL) submitted to the Telangana High Court on Thursday that it could not hold elections to its recognised employees unions now, and sought six more months. It cited the festival season and the state elections scheduled for December.

The High Court had earlier ordered SCCL to complete the poll process by October.

The SCCL has a presence in 24 Assembly constituencies in the undivided Adilabad, Karimnagar, Warangal and Khammam districts.

The SCCL said that it had been advised by the police in the six districts that the company covers to postpone the elections in view of the festival season and Assembly elections scheduled for December.

This stand was opposed by the Employees Union of the SCCL. Senior counsel G. Vidyasagar told the court that elections had not been conducted for four years after the term of the previous union had ended in 2019. He said more than 42,000 employees in 11 districts did not have representatives to raise their grievances before the management.

The court adjourned the hearing to September 22.