Issues To Ponder

Dear Readers,

Election to Bombay Parsi Panchayat is soon approaching to elect just one member of the Board of Trustees. And so it is time for mudslinging, one-up-manship and character assassination galore. People stoop to any level to bring down a fellow candidate. I would like to take this opportunity to appraise the community members on wasteful expenditure to elect a single Trustee to the Board. From information available, it seems the election costs around 25,00,000/- whether to elect a single Trustee or all 7. The cost remains the same.

When the BPP is facing a severe cash crunch and is running in losses with salaries of employees being delayed and FD’s being withdrawn prematurely, and when creditors not being paid or payments are long overdue, in such a scenario DO WE NEED ELECTIONS AND WASTE 25 LAKHS TO FILL JUST ONE SPOT? Can we have a serious debate on in PT on this matter?

It is my opinion the Trustees can collectively approach or write to the Charity Commissioner and explain that they can manage to run the BPP until the next elections are due considering the current financial deficit and request permission be granted to roll over this election until fresh elections are held for all Trustees. Such a scenario did take place earlier and to my knowledge the Charity Commissioner did give the permission.

In any case one thing is certain as there are two warring groups in the Board room. Any candidate winning from either warring camp is going to be pulled down by the other camp and nothing will be achieved. The most important factor which we are missing out that is there will be another election held for remaining posts a wasteful expenditure of 50 lakhs in total. The solution to save such wasteful expenditure is that either all Trustees resign and have fresh elections to all posts at the same time or the sole candidate who wins this election should resign when the term of the other 6 Trustees ends so that this scenario is not repeated every time. There is no other way out.

I request readers to not be influenced by propaganda and vote with a conscience. Do not vote for a candidate who has just woken up from his sleep and decided to stand for elections. Do not vote just because the candidate is your friend. Do not vote for strangers whom you know nothing about. Vote for a candidate who is sincere, well experienced, is honest and has integrity. Study his or her profile and look at his/ her achievements before you decide to vote.

If we do have elections, without being biased I must add that Mrs. Anahita Desai as an individual in her own right cannot be deprived of her the right to contest just because her husband is the chairman of the BPP. Everyone deserves an equal opportunity. Whether she is elected or not depends on the people’s verdict. I am purely speaking of her right as an individual to stand for elections and am not getting into Gher no Gambhar syndrome.

Lastly wanted to make aware is that very quietly and discretely the present board of BPP increased the service charge by Rs 200 without taking the community into confidence or discussing with Associations of all Baugs as promsied to us last year during the hike of Rs 750. One of the Trustees on his visit to Godrej Baug also assured that the cost of waste composting will be borne by the BPP as the residents have already been charged Rs 750 per month. Now the Board has gone back on their word and increased the maintenance charge wef 01.04.18. THE ADDITIONAL RS 200 THAT IS BEING CHARGED TO US IS NOT FOR WASTE COMPOSTING. IT IS PAID TO THE TARANSPORTER . The BPP cannot keep burdening the residents with such arbitrary hikes. Next month the car parking hike will take place.

I am from Godrej Baug and our Association has requested a meeting with the Board to discuss this matter however we received a nonsensical response from the BPP requesting the Association to come and renegotiate with the transporter!! Are we serious?

Arzan Ghadially
(arzanjg@gmail.com)