Power tussle can mar the future of not only countries but even of cooperatives. Amul is going Pakistan way with the democratically elected Chairman being subjected to constant push and pull.
There are about 13 district unions in the GCMMF, the cooperative which owns famous Amul brand. Ten of the 13 directors have a tendency to constant switching of loyalties leading to a feature of constant flux at Amul. Four years back they did not spare Vergese Kurien, the legend and voted him out. Today they look set to show the Present Chairman of GCMMF Mr Parthi Bhai Bhatol the door. Will they tomorrow not vote against the one who emerges the leader today?
The power tussle saw the exit of B M Vyas in May. The fight intensified so much that exit of Chairman Bhatol seemed imminent. Board meetings were postponed again and again. But suddenly on June 30 the four directors Manu Bhai Patel of Surat dairy, Jetha Bhai Patel of Sabarkatha dairy, Shanker Singh Rana of Gandhi Nagar dairy and Baba Bhai Parwar of Surender Nagar dairy sided with Bhatol.
But the peace did not last for long. The Opposite camp of Bhatol began to work on the Directors and now on August 7 they could launch their first offensive. A committee has been formed to hunt for a managing director. Even as it was expected that the federation’s board will elevate federation’s acting managing director R S Sodhi as permanent managing director during the regular board meeting on Friday, the board members decided to form a seven member committee for the purpose.
The five directors who will be on this committee include Amul Dairy’s chairman Ramsinh Parmar, Sabar Dairy’s chairman Jetha Patel, Valsad Dairy’s chairman Mogha Desai, Gandhinagar Dairy’s chairman Shankersinh Rana apart from Bhatol himself.
It was the first major setback for Bhatol.But more was to come. In the GCMMF’s annual general meeting (AGM) on August 12 majority of GCMMF’s 11-member board prevented the federation to hold any meeting. On Thursday, Mr Bhatol was further pushed towards the edge as 11 out of 13 board members abstained the AGM. In its over three-and-half decade long history, GCMMF was compelled to cancel its board meets thrice in last three months.
A requisitioned meeting has been called on August 21 to discuss the no-confidence motion against Bhatol. All the board members were present in the GCMMF campus on Thursday (August 12) but 10 members did not go to Chairman’s office .
After skipping board meets twice since November 2009, GCMMF board met on July 27 and August 7 to approve its long pending audited accounts and discuss the appointment of MD respectively.
What the movers and shakers of GCMMF do not seem to realize is that they are not only lowering the brand value of Amul but also playing with the future of 30 lakh farmers of 14,000 villages of Gujarat.