The well-known cooperator in Delhi cooperative circles- Sunil Kumar Singh and his panel have won the much-touted elections of the Bihar Marketing Cooperative (Biscomaun) with a thumping majority, defeating the rival panel led by NCCF Chairman Vishal Singh.
Out of the 17 seats on the board of directors, it is claimed that Sunil Kumar Singh’s panel secured 12 seats, while Vishal Singh’s panel managed to win only five. The election and the counting of votes, held on Friday, were marred by violence between the two groups.
Although the results of the board of directors are yet to be officially declared, they have been sent for approval to the Cooperative Election Authority.
Speaking to Indian Cooperative soon after his victory, Sunil Kumar Singh said, “I am very thankful to the delegates for giving us a thumping majority in the board of directors. With the support of other winners from my panel, we will leave no stone unturned in fulfilling their expectations and will work tirelessly for them.”
“We were confident that our panel would win the election with a thumping majority, and the counting results reflect that. However, many wrong tactics were adopted during the Biscomaun elections at both the central and state levels to delay the elections and weaken my position, but all of them failed,” Singh told this correspondent.
He further added, “I have been associated with Biscomaun for the past 22 years and have done significant work for the upliftment of farmers. How can other leaders, who have never been directly associated with Biscomaun, take over its charge?”
From Sunil Kumar Singh’s panel, the winners include his wife Bandana Singh, himself, Abhijit Kumar, Heera Prasad, Ram Kelawar Singh, Parth Kumar Yadav, Ramesh Chandra Chaubey, Madhu Priya, Saheen Kalam, Vinay Kumar Yadav and Muneshwar Pahan.
From Vishal Singh’s panel, the winners are Vishal Singh himself, Mahesh Rai, Shobha Singh, Vinay Kumar Shahi, and Dinesh Singh. It is also claimed that Nalanda MLA Jitendra Kumar has won a seat on the board of directors.
Interestingly, Bihar StCB Chairman Ramesh Chaubey and Parth Kumar Yadav from Sunil Kumar Singh’s panel won the election by a narrow margin of just one vote, securing 120 votes each, while their rivals from Vishal Singh’s panel, Manoj Kumar and Navendra Jha, received 119 votes each.
The opposition panel, led by Vishal Singh, alleged that Jharkhand MLA Anoop Singh created chaos at the polling booth, attempted to intimidate voters, and even tore the ballot paper of one voter.
In the Biscomaun elections, not only the Patna DM but also the Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson of the Cooperative Election Authority under the Union Ministry of Cooperation played an important role in conducting the elections transparently.
The Biscomaun elections had been postponed multiple times in the past. However, with the proactive involvement of the Cooperative Election Authority and the current momentum, the elections concluded without further delays.
According to the election schedule, the election for the office bearers is set to take place on 30th January 2025. It is worth noting that, following the recent amendment to the MSCS Act, Sunil cannot contest for the top post, although he may nominate a candidate for the position.
