Trouble broke out on Tuesday between S T Karmachari Union (STKU) and the S T Mazdoor Sangh (STMS), when members of the Sangh lodged a complaint in the Varachha police station, stating that STKU members attacked them and threatened them with dire consequences after members affiliated to both the unions had an altercation over president of the STKU getting his jeep repaired at the ST depot. The Varachha police later arrested Union president Motala and general secretary Vijaykumar Mali. However, both were released the next morning.

Office-bearers of the STKU have now pledged to get back at their rivals in the department.

While office-bearers of the STMS, affiliated to the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh have, in a written letter to the divisional controller (DC), demanded an inquiry into the alleged use of depot fuel by one of the office-bearers of the STKU, the Union has charged the Sangh office-bearers of attempting to destabilise the employee unity and using political pressure to crush them.President of the STMS Irshad Shaikh, along with Eknath Kadam, the general secretary of the body and others alleged that the Union members were refilling diesel at the rural depot and also getting their private vehicles serviced and repaired there.

Shaikh alleged that Farooq Motala, president of the rival trade union of the ST service has been getting his vehicle (GJ 9 B 3027) regularly refilled with diesel at the rural depot and has also been repairing his vehicle frequently there. He further alleged that the employees at the depot were ``scared'' of the high-handedness of these employees and so kept their mouth shut.

On the other hand, General secretary of the STKU, Vijaykumar Mali, said the Sangh was trying to destablise them. ``The Sangh has just 27 members, while our body has 44. They are just trying to destabilise us and gain initiative in the department.'' He alleged that the STMS was using political pressure to subdue their rivals in the department and that the refilling issue was just a pretext to rub the STKU the wrong way. He claimed that the STMS had even called the commissioner and asked him to take steps against them.``Are we hooligans, criminals or anti-socials that we have to be arrested in the middle of the night and put in the lock up,'' he asked.``We will submit a letter to the police commissioner and will take up the matter with the authorities in Gandhinagar and state leaders of the union,'' he said.