HYDERABAD: The entire body of the Hyderabad Chamber of Small Traders and Small Industry (HCSTSI) has been elected unopposed, following a series of twists and turns, for the first time in the chamber’s history.

According to unofficial results announced by the chamber’s secretary general, Nadeem Siddiqui was declared president unopposed. Muhammad Fahad Mian was elected senior vice president and Irfan Arbiyani vice president. The contests would otherwise have been evenly poised had polling been held on Monday.

The changed electoral landscape was being attributed to multiple factors, including the betrayal of Amin Khatri, the HCSTSI’s founding father and an octogenarian industrialist, by his trusted men, and rifts among members. Several more twists and turns followed before unofficial results were announced on Sunday night, showing that the three office-bearers had been elected unopposed ahead of Monday’s scheduled polling.

Initially, the chamber’s secretary general announced on Sept 26 that polling would be held for three seats on Sept 28, setting off an election campaign by the candidates. Meanwhile, talks began to bring about a rapprochement among the candidates and their backers, and Khatri finally gave in to avoid a split in the chamber.

“Things have been brewing in the HCSTSI for quite some time. Usually, candidates were finalised by four people — Amin Khatri, Masood Pervez, Saleem Memon and Haji Yaqoob — known as patrons in the chamber’s jargon,” said a member.

The 20 members of the executive committee elect office-bearers from among themselves for two years. For the 2026-28 term, the executive committee was already elected unopposed. Each patron provided five nominees for induction into the committee.

“Amin Khatri always has blind faith in Akram Ansari and agrees to the names proposed by him. Lately, Ansari inducted members considered more loyal to him than to Khatri. It changed the scene altogether,” said a member.

The change in the number of executive committee members upset the applecart. The situation headed for a closely contested electoral race. Another member said that candidates normally filed nominations along with withdrawals, so that the patrons could mutually make a final choice.

“This time, the scene became different with the entry of Nadeem Siddiqui,” said a candidate who later withdrew his candidacy. But Siddiqui, a former MPA and close associate of Haji Yaqoob, did not agree to file a withdrawal, saying he had been given to understand that he was the final choice for the presidential slot.

He was also backed by Akram and Saleemuddin, Khatri’s trusted men. Siddiqui’s friends claimed Khatri had promised to make him president but backtracked after patrons Saleem and Masood Pervez differed with the idea at the instance of Farooq Shaikhani, former president of the traders’ body. There was no major objection to Siddiqui’s nomination, except that he had been inactive in the chamber for a long time. Separately, Shaikhani’s overbearing attitude had annoyed Ansari and his friends.

“Khatri felt betrayed by Ansari, who remained under his tutelage in trade politics for three decades,” a member said, quoting Khatri as telling him. “ I can comment on the issue in detail. There are many things that need to be factored in. However Amin Khatri is our leader,” Ansari told Dawn when contacted.

The main chamber, the Hyderabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (HCCI), was also linked in some way with the HCSTSI’s current electoral issues. Nadeem Siddiqui is a first cousin of Adeel Siddiqui of the HCCI, which is currently the subject of litigation.

“Outgoing president Saleem Memon had addressed letters to government functionaries, questioning the HCCI’s status in the wake of its legal battle and urging officials not to entertain it. The letter was written at the instance of Farooq Shaikhani, but Adeel Siddiqui did not react against the step by the HCSTSI at the time. This friction appeared to be an underlying cause of the friction between Shaikhani and Siddiqui,” a member commented.

Insiders believed the Sept 28 contest would have been evenly poised had Khatri not agreed to the election of Siddiqui, Mian and Arbiyani, to avoid an HCCI-like dispute in the chamber. Both sides kept claiming to have the numbers of committee members required to elect office-bearers.

The HCSTSI was established in the wake of a prolonged fight between Seth Goharullah and Amin Khatri and his friends for control of the HCCI. Veteran industrialist Khatri got the HCSTSI established a decade ago, and its membership is growing.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2026