District Correspondent, Sylhet: Md. Emdad Hossain Bhuiyan:
A “magic” trick is unfolding around the Sylhet Gas Field’s CBA. Since the rival Employees’ League did not participate in the CBA election, the Sylhet Gas Field Employees’ Union was declared the sole winner. The new president is the controversial gas field employee, Pradip Kumar Sharma, whose actions have sparked growing resentment among gas field employees.
Employees allege that, as an affiliate organization of the Workers’ Party, the Employees’ Union’s committee has included former officeholders from the Employees’ League in its new formation. Allegedly, around 80 to 90 members of the Employees’ League have been granted membership in the Employees’ Union. In protest, some BNP-affiliated workers, who have been sidelined for 16 years, were expelled from the organization. Sylhet Gas Field Limited (SGFL) has two workers’ organizations with a total membership of over 150.
These are the Employees’ Union and the Employees’ League. Over the past 16 years, except for a two-year session, the CBA has been dominated by the Employees’ League. The tenure of the Employees’ League-led CBA committee, formed in 2022, ended in September last year. However, due to political shifts, the new CBA was announced a few months later. The Deputy Director of the Sylhet Regional Labor Department, Adhir Chandra Bala, sent letters to both workers’ organizations on April 20 to participate in the election.
Assistant Director of the Sylhet Regional Labor Office, Abul Bashar, informed the media that while the Employees’ Union responded to the letter, no response was received from the Employees’ League. Consequently, the union was declared the new CBA. He confirmed that no laws were violated in forming the SGFL’s CBA. After participating unopposed, the Employees’ Union announced its committee.
The new CBA president is Pradip Kumar Sharma, president of the Employees’ Union. On September 25, BNP-affiliated workers Abdul Malek and Abdur Rob Khosru submitted a complaint to the Sylhet District Workers’ Party, mentioning the inclusion of former League members in the union and accusing Pradip of misconduct.
The complaint noted that although Pradip was a BNP-affiliated leader, he campaigned using “Joy Bangla, Joy Bangabandhu” slogans during the election. Additionally, he appointed Md. Bashir Uddin from the League as Co-opted President, Elias Ali as Co-opted Treasurer, and former organizational secretary of the League, Nazrul Islam, as a member of the union. Furthermore, 80 to 90 League members were incorporated into the Employees’ Union.
BNP-affiliated workers highlighted that the union’s membership was previously only 37 to 38 members during BNP’s difficult times. However, following the political shift, membership surged to 123. They demanded an investigation to uncover the origins of these additional members.
Abdul Malek and Abdur Rob Khosru opposed this inclusion of League members, informing BNP leaders at the district and upazila levels. In retaliation, Pradip allegedly used his influence to expel them from the union for breaching party discipline.
In 2018, Pradip Kumar Sharma was elected CBA president after BNP leader and former Sylhet-4 MP Dildar Hossain Selim intervened, securing the union’s victory. During his tenure, 57 daily laborers were recruited under controversial circumstances, with accusations of extorting Tk. 1.5–2 lakh per employee for jobs.
Haripur residents expressed outrage over Pradip’s actions, which stirred unrest at the Sylhet Gas Field. During the Awami League government’s tenure, BNP leaders from Jaintapur faced lawsuits, and some were expelled from the union, including Jalal Uddin, a local Balipara resident and BNP-affiliated worker.
Jalal Uddin, former vice president of the Jaintapur Upazila Chhatra Dal and current gas field employee, told the media, “We were expelled from the union solely for being BNP members. At that time, Pradip was closely associated with Awami League leaders.”
Expelled worker Abdul Malek told the media, “We never betrayed our principles. For 16 years, we endured injustice and humiliation. This time, we were expelled for protesting against Pradip’s misconduct.”
Abdur Rob Khosru, another expelled worker, said, “We were expelled for speaking out against injustice. Pradip carried out these actions to conceal his wrongdoings.”
New CBA president Pradip Kumar Sharma denied the allegations to the media, saying, “I have never aligned with the Awami League. As part of the CBA, I had to attend government programs and take photos with Awami League MPs, chairmen, and leaders, which are now being used to spread propaganda.”
He added, “Jalal, Khosru, and Malek were expelled for violating the union’s constitution. Their expulsion was unanimously decided 2–3 years ago. No one from the Employees’ League has newly joined the CBA. Even those expelled had previously posed as Awami League supporters.” Pradip claimed, “Those in the CBA now were already part of the union, and the allegations against me are baseless propaganda.”
