The Calcutta-based Sengupta, the first general secretary since 1984 who is not from State Bank of India, has expressed displeasure at the way the organisation was made a party to the national strike decision by an apex body without Aiboc's knowledge. The simmering dissensions came out in the open in Sengupta's report on the executive committee meeting at Varanasi on October 9 and 10 this year.

Aiboc is part of the Professional Workers Trade Union Confederation which has a total membership of around 2,30,000 from all public sector undertakings. Aiboc is the largest unit in the PWTUC with a strength of 1,60,000 of which 60,000 are from SBI alone.

At Aiboc's 1995 triennial conference held in Bangalore, Godbole stepped down as general secretary and Sengupta, who isfrom Bank of India, was elected to the post.

As a special case, a chairman's post was created for Godbole, who became secretary general of the PWTUC. While Sengupta became the first non-SBI officer to become Aiboc's general secretary, the president's post is held by Shantha Raju of SBI. The chairman's post was abolished at the Varanasi meeting this year.

Sengupta raised three broad issues in his report at the Varanasi meeting. One, what is the decision-making forum of PWTUC? Two, whether PWTUC can correspond directly with the units or should do so their EC members. Three, whether PWTUC can appoint anybody from Aiboc without the knowledge of Aiboc's central office at Calcutta.

Fissures between the two surfaced on March 11 this year, when the PWTUC gave a call for a strike on March 27 without waiting for a decision from Aiboc's executive committee on the issue. Sengupta has termed this as "unfortunate" in his report to the EC members at Varanasi.

He has noted that during the PWTUC meeting on March 25and 26 at which Godbole was present, there was no indication of the strike call which had been given earlier.

Then on March 31, PWTUC issued a circular postponing the aborted March 27 strike to May 21.

Sengupta has questioned this. "How a decision of a strike can be announced by secretary general himself in the aforesaid background is difficult to comprehend," he has written.

It was also alleged that Godbole had inducted some handpicked members of Aiboc's executive committee on the general council of PWTUC.

Godbole first resigned the Aiboc chairman's post on December 19 last year, in what was seen as a means of putting pressure on the PWTUC affiliate. However, as Sengupta was ill at that time, Godbole was requested to continue. Godbole resigned again on April 23 this year, and the resignation was accepted at the Varanasi meet.

Sengupta, in his report, has pointed out that although the Aiboc's central office has shifted to Calcutta, the office that was run at Bangalore during Godbole's tenurecontinues to spend more than the main office here.

He has shown that the PWTUC's expenses are being added on to Aiboc's bill. From the last triennial in 1995 up to 1997, the Calcutta office incurred expenses of around Rs 47.55 lakh, while Bangalore's bill was around Rs 48.64 lakh.

He notes that: "...the expenses at the office at Bangalore became a tremendous strain on finance. We had to curtail expenses elsewhere."