Senior Congress leader Rajendra Prasad Singh was elected as the president of Rashtriya Colliery Mazdoor Sangh (RCMS) for the record eight time today, maintaining his stranglehold on the coal workers' union affiliated to Indian National Trade Union Congress (Intuc).

Around 900 delegates, who came from different parts of the country, unanimously selected Singh for a fresh tenure of three years during the central committee election at the Sangh's Jamadoba-based auditorium in the coal capital.

The entire election process was wrapped up within a couple of hours as no one stood up to oppose the candidature of Singh, an undisputed coal union leader for the past couple of decades.

Singh, a veteran trade union leader who also served as the state finance, health and family welfare minister in the JMM-Congress government, has also been authorised to select the new members of RCMS committee.

The committee, comprising general secretary, vice president, secretary, working president and treasurer, would be announced tomorrow.

"I will announce the names of new committee members after a puja at my home tomorrow," Singh said.

Later, addressing the delegates, Singh took a dig at the Centre for e-auctions of coal blocks and privatisation in the sector.

"The e-auction is aimed at favouring selected business groups patronised by the NDA government. The central government is trying to privatise the coal sector in the name of outsourcing. The outsourcing is aimed at curtailing the rights coal workers," he added.

Singh exhorted various branch committees of the union to increase their membership through extensive campaigns in their respective areas.

Rival faction

Former state rural development minister and Dhanbad MP Chandrashekhar Dubey, alias Dadai Dubey, termed the Rashtriya Colliery Mazdoor Sangh's election illegal.

Dubey, who leads the rival faction within the union, held a news conference in Dhanbad and said the election of Rajendra Prasad Singh as the union president was not valid.

Dubey claimed said the RCMS election was held at Singrauli on March 17, during which the delegates had elected him as the president. Israel Ansari was selected the life president while N.G. Arun was made the general secretary, he claimed.