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Judgment
,,
Prathiba M. Singh, J",,
The dispute in the present suit relates to the various YMCAs of India and their National Council, known as the National Council of YMCAs of",,
India (hereinafter “NCYIâ€). The suit was filed under Section 92, Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 by some member YMCAs against the NCYI, the",,
President of which at that time was Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew. Various reliefs were sought in the suit for settling a scheme under Section 92, to",,
safeguard the moveable and immovable assets of the NCYI, and to supervise the conduct of elections. Vide judgement dated 19th July, 2018, after",,
granting leave under Section 92, this Court had appointed an Election Officer for the conduct of elections. The operative portion of the said order is set",,
out hereinbelow:-,,
“45. It is possible that the Nomination Committee or the Defendant organization may have various justifiable reasons for these changes that have,,
been brought about in the membership list and the requirements in respect thereof. However, considering the nature of the Defendant body, which is",,
holding in trust large quantum of immovable and movable properties across the country of its 756 members YMCAs, there can be no doubt that the",,
elections ought to be conducted smoothly, fairly and as per the memorandum and rules of the organization. It is sufficient to say at this stage that the",,
apprehensions raised by the Plaintiffs do not lack basis. Any changes in the list of members will have an impact on the final electoral result. Further if,,
several member associations have been suspended or not allowed to participate in the elections, the results are likely to be skewed. Thus, it is deemed",,
appropriate to, appoint an independent observer to supervise and conduct the elections already scheduled for the elected posts in the National",,
Executive on 2nd September, 2018.",,
It is deemed fit to appoint Justice Mr. Anil Dev Singh (Retd) as the Election Officer for conducting the elections, as per the Schedule announced",,
by the Defendant. The Election Officer would be empowered to:,,
a) To draw up/finalise the list of 'good standing' member YMCAs that would be entitled to send their delegates/nominees for voting in the forthcoming,,
elections;,,
b) Review the list of member organisations, who have been either suspended or not allowed to participate in the elections and afford them an",,
opportunity to rectify the shortcomings and enable their participation in the elections, as per the Rules;",,
c) Verify the lists of delegates being nominated by the various YMCAs organizations;,,
d) Call for any information that may be required to establish their genuinity as members of the said local organizations;,,
e) Draw up a final list of voters who would be entitled to vote on behalf of their various member organizations;,,
f) Scrutinise the eligibility of the persons nominated by the Nomination committee;,,
g) Scrutinise the counter nominations that may be filed;,,
h) Interact with the member organizations in respect of the venue for the elections and if required, change the venue;",,
i) Conduct the elections in a fee and fair manner and if required by secret ballot;,,
j) Announce the final results.,,
Further the Puthoor YMCA, Ruhnamkulam YMCA, Ernakulam YMCA, and Bombay YMCA are permitted to approach the Election Officer for",,
enabling their participation in the elections, subject to such conditions as the Election Officer may impose.",,
The Nomination committee shall extend complete cooperation to the Election Officer and work with him for the smooth conduct of elections. In,,
case of disagreement, the opinion of the Election Officer shall be final and binding.â€",,
Simultaneously, status quo was directed to be maintained in respect of the immovable properties of NCYI.",,
From the records of the Election Officer it is evident that the process for holding elections was commenced, after the order of this Court. Initially,",,
the elections were fixed for 6th October, 2018, however, as there were a large number of disputes amongst the warring groups, the elections were",,
postponed. Out of the total number of 756 member YMCAs, disputes were raised in respect of 130 YMCAs, as to which of them would be entitled to",,
participate in the election proceedings and nominate their respective candidates for participating in the elections. The learned Election Officer passed,,
various orders from time to time and the elections were finally fixed for 2nd December, 2018. Two important decisions were taken by the Election",,
Officer, which have been called to question. These are decisions dated 21st November, 2018, and 29th November, 2018. The Election Officerâ€s",,
decision dated 21st November, 2018 led to the Pathanamthitta YMCA (Hereinafter, “PYMCAâ€) and Repalle YMCA ( Hereinafter,",,
“RYMCAâ€) being disqualified. A total of 31 other YMCAs were also disqualified by the Election Officer vide order dated 29th November, 2018.",,
The Election Officer submitted his report dated 5th December, 2018. In view of PYMCA being excluded from the Good Standing list of YMCAs,",,
its nominee, Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew was out of the race for the post of President. Mr. J.B. Koshy, who was the nominee of the Ernakulam YMCA",,
was thus declared as the National President of the NCYI. The other elected office bearers were the National Treasurer, Mr. R.S Shettian, the",,
National Vice Presidents (above the age of 30 years), Mr. V. Asokan Solomon and Mr. Jacob Koshy, and the National Vice President (below the age",,
of 30 years), Mr. Gaurav Kalyan. The elections to the National Executive and the National Board could not be held.",,
Summary of the proceedings before the Election Officer.,,
Upon the issuance of the notice of elections, even prior to the filing of the suit, by the then management of NCYI, all member YMCAs were",,
required to submit their ASRs (Annual Statistical Report) by 30th September 2017. A total of 498 members had submitted the ASRs and inspection of,,
the same was given to the Plaintiffs by the Election Officer. The Election Officer was to draw up and finalise the list of good standing members of the,,
YMCA, who would be eligible to participate in the elections. The NCYI took the stand that all the requisite e-mails, in respect of submission of ASRs",,
and notices of default were sent to the member YMCAs. However, vide order dated 16th August, 2018, the Election Officer considered Article II (6)",,
(a) of the Memorandum of Association of the NCYI, which requires specific default notices to be issued. Accordingly, the Election Officer observed",,
as under:-,,
“9. In order to appreciate the contention of Mr. Mahajan Article II (6a) needs to be looked at. The said Article reads as under:,,
“(a) Every Member of the Society, who fails to pay the affiliation fees or submit the returns information on or before the due date shall be given",,
notice of the default by the National General Secretary within one month. The Member shall be disqualified to be represented at any General meeting,,
of the Society or at any meeting of the National Board by the National Executive unless the default is set right within three months of the due date or,,
within such further time as the National Executive may fix in its discretion.â€,,
A reading of the said article leaves no possibility of doubt that it casts a duty on the NCYI to issue default notice to every member of the society,,
who fails to pay the affiliation fee or fails to submit the return on or before the due date. The words “shall be given notice†appearing in Article II,,
(6a) have a compulsive force. These words impose an obligation on the NCYI to issue a notice to the defaulting member YMCA apprising it of its,,
default within the time imperative contemplated by Article II 6 (a). The idea behind the Article appears to be that a member ought not to be,,
disqualified without issuing a notice to it as it will not be able to participate in the election of the Executive Committee of NCYI as per Article VI of its,,
Memorandum of Association. This provision is based upon the principles of natural justice. The interpretation placed by Mr. Mahajan cannot be,,
accepted as it renders the Article otiose.,,
The assertion made by NCYI on August 09, 2018 that default notices were sent by email to the members is not correct. That apart, there is no",,
proof of the fact that member YMCAs were served with the default notices even if such notices, as being claimed by NYCI, were sent by ordinary",,
post. A disqualified member YMCA loses status of a 'Good Standing YMCA' and is consequently debarred from participating in the said election,,
process. Therefore, Article II(6a) mandatorily requires the NCYI to serve a notice to the member YMCA so that it can save itself from being",,
disqualified by curing the default within the prescribed time.â€,,
The Election Officer also held that the list of good standing YMCAs prepared by the NCYI could not be approved until the inspection of documents,,
was completed and the parties were heard. Doubts were expressed as to whether the election could be conducted as scheduled on 2nd September,",,
2018. Requests were made on 23rd August, 2018 for postponement of the election due to the flood situation in the Kerala, which was the venue for",,
the election. Applications were filed by Defendant No. 1 for inclusion of 14 members in the list of Good Standing Members, and by the Plaintiffs for",,
removal of 218 YMCAs from the said list. After consulting the various member YMCAs, the Election Officer came to the conclusion that the",,
members were in favour of holding the election at Adoor, Kerala. The convention of the National Board, the triennial convention and the National",,
Board meeting was also fixed to be held from 5th October to 7th October, 2018 at Adoor alongwith the election. Vide order dated 19th September,",,
2018, the Election Officer passed the following directions:",,
i) That any member YMCA affiliated after 30th September, 2017 would not be considered in the good standing list in view of Article IV read with",,
Article II. Such members would not be allowed to be represented at the General Meeting of the Society.,,
ii) On the issue as to whether any YMCA which was not established two years prior to 31st March, 2017, which was the cut-off date, could be",,
considered as being validly affiliated for the relevant year and for the good standing list, the Election Officer, in view of Article II (2) (vi) held that",,
such members could not be considered in the good standing list.,,
iii) It was further held that member organisations which had filed defective ASR forms were to be given notice.,,
iv) On the issue of whether compliance under Section 4 of the Societies Registration Act, 1860 ought to have been made by the member YMCAs",,
before they could be considered as good standing members, the Election Officer ruled as under:-",,
“4 (i) Point no. 6: The next question that has been raised by Mr. Jose is whether or not proof of filing the list of members of the Governing Body of,,
the affiliated YMCAs before the Registrar of Societies under section 4 of Societies Registration Act, 1860, should be made a criteria for allowing",,
rectification of defects ""like forged signatures of President/Secretary, not furnishing proper addresses of full members as per Article II 5 (b), making",,
cash payments in violation of requirements of circular dated June 01, 2017"".",,
(ii) Section 4 of the Societies Registration Act requires that once in every year on or before 14th day succeeding the day on which according to the,,
rules of the society, the annual general meeting of the society is held, or if rules do not provide for annual general meeting, in the month of January, a",,
list shall be filed with the Registrar of Joint-Stock Companies of the names, addresses and occupations of the Governors, Council, Directors,",,
Committee or other governing body entrusted with the management of the affairs of the society.,,
(iii) Therefore, under section 4 of the Societies Registration Act, it is incumbent on the YMCAs to furnish the names and addresses of the persons",,
manning its governing body, which will obviously include the particulars of the President, Secretary and any other other person, who is a member, of",,
the governing body. It is a mandatory provision which has a salutary object to achieve. From the list, it can be ascertained who are actually managing",,
the affairs of the society. Therefore, it can be easily identified whether or not, the person who is signing the ASR of a YMCA is actually its President",,
or Secretary or some imposter is faking as President or a Member of the YMCA. Mr. Beeran contended that the circulars issued' by NCYI to the,,
affiliated YMCAs before May, 30, 2016 required the YMCAs to comply with the statutory provisions of Section 4 of the Societies Registration Act,",,
1860 and as a proof thereof, it was, inter alia, required to furnish a copy of the receipt issued by Registrar's office of filing of its accounts and list of",,
Directors while submitting to the NCYI, their annual returns and affiliation fee and fair share. Mr. Beeran pointed out that this requirement was",,
dropped from the circulars issued after May 30, 2016 and affiliated members were not supposed to furnish aforesaid copy of the receipt issued by the",,
Registrar's office. The mere fact that the circulars dropped the requirement to furnish a copy of the receipt issued by Registrar's office relating to the,,
filing of the accounts and details of the persons manning the governing body does not absolve the YMCAs of complying with the statutory provisions,,
of section 4 of the Societies Registration Act, 1860. YMCAs admitted/affiliated to the NCYI shall be asked to file said receipt issued by the",,
Registrar's Office on filing of the accounts and list of Directors as before December 31, 2017. Remaining question raised by Mr. Jose regarding cash",,
payments of fee etc. will be considered at the time of affording an opportunity to the YMCAs to have their say.â€,,
Vide order dated 25th September, 2018, the Election Officer passed orders in the application filed by the Plaintiff for inclusion of 14 YMCAs in the",,
good standing list. Jabalpur YMCA, Parappur YMCA, Iritty YMCA, Sreekandpuram YMCA, Arnakulam YMCA, Ayappara YMCA, Pollam YMCA",,
and Fort Cochin YMCA were directed to cure various deficiencies within three days. The orders excluding Kunnamkulam YMCA, Puthoor YMCA,",,
Alappuzha YMCA, Kuttemperoor YMCA and KadathyMarady YMCA from the list of good standing members were set aside. It was observed by",,
the Election Officer that Perumpadave YMCA was rightly not included in the good standing list.,,
Thus, out of the 14 YMCAs, except Perumpadave YMCA, notices were issued to 13 YMCAs, as according to the Election Officer, they had been",,
wrongly excluded from the list of good standing YMCAs. On 29th September, 2018, considering that the elections were scheduled to be held shortly,",,
the Election Officer proposed as under:-,,
“11. It was suggested by the undersigned that the election should be held on the schedule date and the YMCAs which are in controversy as not,,
being eligible for voting, should be permitted to cast their vote in a separate Ballot Box and their eligibility could be decided after the election. The",,
parties were asked to respond to the suggestion on the next date.â€,,
Thus, the Election Officer thought it fit to consider that the YMCAs not found to be in good standing, should be permitted to cast their votes in a",,
separate ballot box and their eligibility would be decided after the election. Parties were directed to respond to this suggestion. On 30th September,",,
2018, owing to the fact that further inquiries were required into the good standing list of YMCAs, the election scheduled for 6th October, 2018 was",,
postponed by the Election Officer.,,
One of the issues that arose while deciding the “good standing†YMCAs, was in respect of short payment of application fee by the YMCAs",,
on the basis of the district/city/panchayat/municipality/ corporation, where each of the YMCAs was located. The election of the executive committee",,
was then scheduled for 2nd December, 2018 vide directions dated 22nd October, 2018.",,
Submissions were heard in respect of RYMCA and PYMCA. On 4th November, 2018 those YMCAs that had made short payment were",,
directed to make good the deficiencies and pay the arrears on or before 8th November, 2018, failing which their names would be removed from the",,
good standing list. On 6th November, 2018, the Election Officer issued the following notification:-",,
“Pursuant to the Order dated October 22, 2018, the National Triennial Election shall be held on December 2, 2018 at Mar Thoma Youth Centre,",,
Adoor, Kerala, as per the following schedule:-",,
1) The delegates should report to the Election venue with their original ID cards.,,
ii) Election will be held from 11.00 - 4.00 PM. iii) Registration will close at 3.00 PM.,,
iv) Counting of votes will take place on December 2, 2018 from 4.00 PM and onwards.",,
v) Result of the election shall be announced after completion of the counting of votes.,,
On finalization of the Electoral Rolls, YMCAs eligible to participate in election shall be duly intimated of the same.â€",,
On 9th November, 2018, in respect of the 13 YMCAs which were permitted to cure the deficiencies detailed in the show cause notice dated 20th",,
August, 2018, further scrutiny was carried out. The members retained in the good standing list were as under:-",,
“3. Having regard to the above kannamklum, Puthoor, Alappuza, Jabalpur and Kadathy Marady shall be included in the Good Standing List of",,
YMCA. Katamperoor YMCA shall be included in the list of Good Standing YMCA subject to payment of arrears of Rs. 4,000/- within 4 days by",,
depositing the amount in the account of NCYI through NEFT/RTGS.â€,,
Thus, out of the 13 YMCAs that had been given time to cure defects, 6 were retained on the good standing list and the remaining stood",,
disqualified for non-compliance.,,
On 10th November, 2018, the Election Officer considered the objections raised by the Plaintiffs that in case there is one member YMCA affiliated",,
to the NCYI from a particular territory, then a second member association cannot be admitted as a member. Article II (2)(vii) relied upon reads as",,
under:-,,
“PROVIDED that no Association organized in a City Corporation, Municipality or Panchayat, wherein there is an existing affiliated YMCA, shall",,
be admitted to the membership of the Society.â€,,
By virtue of this provision, the Election Officer issued notice to Bhel Nagar YMCA, Ollur YMCA, Puliyanam YMCA, Vattaparambu YMCA and",,
Kazhkoottam YMCA, Chennai YMCA, Ambattur YMCA, Perungundi YMCA, Porur YMCA, St. Thomas Mount YMCA and Vilivakkam YMCA to",,
show cause as to why they should not be delisted from the list of good standing YMCAs. Notices were issued to all of them for taking a decision as to,,
which YMCAs were required to be disqualified.,,
On 21st November, 2018, the Election Officer decided the question as to whether PYMCA ought to be retained in the good standing list or not.",,
The Election Officer, after perusing various records and discrepancies in the PYMCA minutes, decided that PYMCA would stand disqualified. The",,
findings of the Election Officer are as under:-,,
“31. Therefore, according to the aforesaid notification, it is mandatory for YMCAs affiliated to National Council to file their annual returns, namely,",,
Annual Statistical Report as on March 31, 2017 on the prescribed form. Annual Report, audited statement of accounts and minutes of the General",,
Body Meeting held in 2017 for the years 2016 - 17. All the four returns need the signatures of the President and the Secretary. Since, Advocate",,
Johnson Vilavinal was not elected validly as the Secretary of the said YMCA, the returns submitted to the NCYI suffer from invalidity. Since 4",,
members of the board of directors who were elected during the said meeting on May 19, 2017 that did not have the requisite quorum and who were",,
part of the meeting of the Board of Directors dated May 22, 2017 cannot be said to have validly elected Mr. Abel Methew as the President of",,
Pathanamthitta YMCA. Therefore, ASR for the period ending March 31, 2017 signed on September 18, 2017 by Mr. Abel Mathews and Advocate",,
Vilavinal cannot be considered as valid ASR. In this view of the matter, for the purposes of Triennial Election of the Executive Committee of the",,
NCYI, the said YMCA cannot be considered to be in the good standing list of YMCAs.â€",,
In respect of RYMCA, the issue raised by the Plaintiff was that the entire membership of the said YMCA had changed. This was demonstrated",,
by comparing the list of the members for the years 2014-15 and 2015-16. In response, it was argued that owing to the fact that the majority members",,
did not continue their membership with RYMCA, the minority members were told by the District Registrar, Guntur to register a new society. Thus,",,
RYMCA is not a fake YMCA. The Registration number was 148/2018. In respect of this YMCA, the Election Officer held that since the said",,
member was registered only in 2018 and only such members, which were affiliated prior to 30th September, 2017 were permitted to be included in the",,
good standing list, RYMCA was not retained in the said list for the purpose of the upcoming election. The findings of the Election Officer are as",,
under:-,,
“3. It is the case of the Defendant that there was a dispute between the majority members and the minority members of the Repalle YMCA and,,
as a result thereof there was a split and the minority took up the matter and approached the Registrar of Societies to register their faction as Repalle,,
YMCA. It is stated by the Defendant that this was done at the advice of the Registrar of Societies. Be that as it may, undoubtedly a new YMCA was",,
registered with registration no. 148/2018 in the year 2018. This being so, the aforesaid newly registered YMCA needs a fresh affiliation to the NCYI.",,
I have already held by a detailed order dated September 19, 2018 that only such of the YMCAs that were affiliated/admitted as members of the",,
NCYI on or before September 30, 2017 and which have filed the requisite documents and paid the fee before December 31, 2017 shall be entitled to",,
attend Triennial Election of the Executive Committee of the NCYI and to vote. A YMCA which fails to satisfy any one of the aforesaid requirements,,
is not entitled to vote. Accordingly, Repalle YMCA cannot be retained in the good standing list of YMCAs for the purposes of voting at Triennial",,
Election of the Executive Committee of the NCYI as it being a newly registered YMCA needs to be affiliated with NCYI and it cannot claim to be,,
affiliated on the basis of the earlier affiliation before the aforesaid split.,,
I order accordingly.â€,,
On 24th November, 2018, an application moved by NCYI for disqualifying six YMCAs: Bombay, New Delhi, Perumbavoor, Alwaye, Goa",,
(Panjim) and Kollam (Quilon) was considered by the Election Officer. The objection in respect of these YMCAs was that the quorum which was,,
required as per the Rules and Regulations of the said YMCAs was not fulfilled in the General Body Meetings. The Election Officer, after going",,
through the Rules and Regulations, and the number of persons who had been present in the General Body Meetings, retained Bombay YMCA, New",,
Delhi YMCA, Perumbavoor YMCA, Alwaye YMCA and Kollam (Quilon) YMCA but disqualified the Goa (Panjim) YMCA. On 25th November,",,
2018, Nedumbassery YMCA, Mannuthy YMCA and Ollur YMCA were directed to be deleted from the good standing list due to various deficiencies.",,
On 27th November, 2018, the NCYI was again directed to prepare the list of good standing YMCAs and furnish the same, as the election was",,
approaching. On 29th November, 2018, an application for postponement of the election was rejected. An application moved by Madras YMCA to",,
delete Nagarcoil YMCA from the list of good standing members was taken up. On 29th November, 2018, the good standing list was finalised, and 343",,
YMCAs were retained in the said list. Corrections were made to the said list on 29th November, 2018 to the following effect, to implement the earlier",,
orders of the Election Officer:-,,
“Pathanamthitta YMCA (serial no. 268) has been inadvertently shown in the list of Good Standing YMCAs circulated today. Pathanamthitta,,
YMCA shall deemed to have been deleted from the list of Good Standing YMCAs. Pathanapuram YMCA has been inadvertently deleted from the,,
said list. It shall deem to have been included in the Good Standing list of YMCAs and deemed to have been placed at serial no. 268 in the said list.,,
This order shall be circulated by the NCYI to all concerned.â€,,
On 30th November, 2018, the Election Officer directed that Nagarcoil YMCA would continue to remain in the list of good standing YMCAs. On",,
30th November, submissions were heard on the various nominations. Mr. V. Asokan Solomon, who had filed a nomination for the post of National",,
President, and had withdrawn the same but retained his Vice-Presidential nomination sought reconsideration. The Election Officer passed the",,
following order in respect of the said request:-,,
“11. In the request letter, it is stated that he is the Vice-Presidential candidate proposed by the Nomination Committee of the NCYI and he may be",,
considered for the post of National President of NCYI in the ensuing elections. Mr. Mani Kumar states that he was earlier nominated for the post of,,
President Nagercoil but the Nomination Committee approved his candidature for one of the posts of Vice President. He accepted the same since Mr.,,
Leby Philip Mathews of Pathanamthitta YMCA wished to contest for the post of National President for the second tenure. According to Mr. Mani,,
Kumar, his candidature for the post National President needs to be considered as he is eligible for the post.",,
It cannot be denied that Mr. V. Asokan Solomon did not file any counter nomination for the post of President, when the Nomination Committee",,
approved the nomination of Mr. Leby Philip Mathews for the post of National President of the NCYI. In request letter dated November 23, 2018, Mr.",,
Asokan has requested for his re-nomination in its individual capacity. Even the letter is not accompanied by a Resolution of Board of Directors of,,
Nagercoil YMCA proposing his name for the post of National President of the NCYI. In the circumstances, therefore, the request of Mr. Asokan is",,
hereby rejected.â€,,
Thus, the disqualification of Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew, who had filed a nomination for the Presidentâ€s post, which had triggered the request of Mr.",,
V. Asokan Solomon had become a contentious issue. Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew had filed his nomination from PYMCA, and since PYMCA was de-",,
listed from the list of good standing members, his nomination was rendered invalid. Mr. V. Asokan Solomon who had originally wished to contest for",,
the post of President but did not file a counter nomination in favour of Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew, had sought reconsideration. With the rejection of Mr.",,
V. Asokan Solomonâ€s request, Mr. J.B. Koshy was elected unopposed as the President of NCYI.",,
Proceedings before the High Court in the present suit.,,
During the period while the matter was under consideration before the Election Officer, various applications were filed before this Court. On 29th",,
November, 2018, the order of the Election Officer disqualifying PYMCA from the list of good standing members leading to the disqualification of its",,
Presidential candidate, Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew was filed before the Court.",,
In the said application, the following order was passed:-",,
“LA. 16192/2018 & I.A. 16209/2018 .,,
The elections are slated for 2nd December, 2018. The Election Officer -Justice Anil Dev Singh (Retd.) was appointed by this Court vide order dated",,
19th July, 2018. The Election Officer has taken a decision on 21st November, 2018. The applications have been listed today for the first time. Ld.",,
Counsel for Applicant submits that one of the candidates has been disqualified.,,
This Court is not inclined to interfere in the election process which is two days away, especially when the decision of the Election Officer is dated 21st",,
November, 2018.",,
Issue notice in the applications.,,
List for hearing on 17th January, 2019, the date already fixed.",,
A copy of this order be given dasti under signature of the Court Master.â€,,
On 11th December, 2018, the Court further considered the applications under Order XXXIX Rules 1 and 2 CPC and other applications and passed",,
the following order:-,,
“I.As. 16978/2018 (u/6 1 Rule 10 CPO & 16979/2018 (u/O XXXIX Rule 1 and 2) & 16626/2018 (u/O XXXIX Rule 1 and 2 CPC,,
……,,
It has been brought to the notice of the Court by way of these applications that the post of the President went uncontested in view of the fact that,,
the YMCA which had proposed the name of Mr. Leby Philip was disqualified and was held to be a member. of not good standing.,,
The newly elected team shall takeover and perform its functions in accordance with the constitution, memorandum and rules. Let the present",,
applications also be listed on the said date. Any decisions taken by, the current President who has been elected on 2nd December, 2018 shall be",,
subject to the outcome of the present applications and the applications which are already pending before this Court.,,
The matter is already listed on 17th January, 2,019. Issue notice to the Plaintiffs. They shall file their reply within a week. Rejoinder, thereto, be",,
filed within one week thereafter.,,
List on 17th January, 2019, the date already fixed.",,
Dasti.â€,,
Order dated 29th November, 2018 was challenged in FAO (OS) 179/2018 and vide order dated 4th December, 2018, the appeal was dismissed as",,
withdrawn.,,
Thereafter, on 17th January, 2019 various applications were considered by this Court. Disputes were raised by the five newly elected office",,
bearers on the ground that the incumbent secretary, Mr. Mani Kumar, who is in control of all the records was not handing over the records to the new",,
President. A Local Commissioner and an observer were appointed and the following order was passed:-,,
“1. There are several applications which have been filed today which reveal that there is a complete stalemate in the functioning of Defendant,,
No.1, National Council of YMCAs of India (“Councilâ€). The allegation is that the Secretary, Mr. Mani Kumar, who was in control of all the",,
records, is not handing over the records to the new President, on the ground that he has been appointed by the Executive and does not report to the",,
President. Under such circumstances, the new President has also put his lock on the room containing all the official records. Thus, currently the",,
functioning has come to a complete standstill.,,
In the elections which were held on 2nd December, 2018, under the supervision of Election Officer appointed by this Court, the following persons",,
were elected: -,,
(i) President â€" Mr. J.B. Koshy,,
(ii) Vice President(s) â€" Mr. Asokan Solomon, Mr. Gaurav Kalyan and Mr. Jacob Koshy",,
(iii) Treasurer â€" Mr. R.S. Shettian,,
The election of the President has been challenged on the ground that he was elected unopposed and accordingly, this Court had directed on 11th",,
December, 2018 as under: -",,
“3. The newly elected team shall takeover and perform its functions in accordance with the constitution, memorandum and rules. Let the present",,
applications also be listed on the said date. Any decisions taken by the current President who has been elected on 2nd December, 2018 shall be",,
subject to the outcome of the present applications and the applications which are already pending before this Court.â€,,
The facts which have now been spelt out in these applications show that there are disputes within the Defendant No.1, as to who should act as the",,
Secretary, and which counsel should represent the Council, and various other administrative decisions. Accordingly, it is deemed appropriate to direct",,
as under: -,,
(i) Mr. Johns George, Advocate (08394927678) is appointed as a Local Commissioner to visit the office of Defendant No.1 and take into custody all",,
the records of Defendant No.1. Mr. Mani Kumar and Mr. Bertram Devdas who has been appointed by J.B. Koshy as the Officiating Secretary, will",,
cooperate with the Local Commissioner and ensure that all the records are handed over to the Local Commissioner.,,
(ii) The Local Commissioner shall then prepare a complete list of all the files, duly assisted by Mr. Mani Kumar and Mr. Bertram Devdas. After the",,
files are duly taken, the Local Commissioner shall put a lock and keep custody of all the records. The keys shall be brought to this Court on the next",,
date along with the LC report.,,
The local commission shall be executed on 23rd and 24th January, 2019 from 11 am onwards. The Local Commissioner shall be paid a fee of Rs.1",,
lakh by the Council.,,
Upon the Local Commissionerâ€s exercise being completed, a meeting shall be called of the following persons: -",,
a) President â€" Mr. J.B. Koshy,,
b) Vice President(s) â€" Mr. Asokan Solomon,",,
Mr. Gaurav Kalyan and Mr. Jacob Koshy,,
c) Treasurer â€" Mr. R.S. Shettian,,
The meeting shall take place on 1st February, 2019 at 2:30 pm, in the presence of the Court observer, Ms. Rebecca John, Senior Advocate (M:",,
9810068499). The venue for the meeting of the office bearers shall be the office of the Council in Delhi. The office bearers shall take a decision in,,
respect of the following: -,,
(i) Appoint a new National General Secretary for the National Counsel of YMCAs of India.,,
(ii) Appoint counsels who would be representing Defendant No.1 and execute the necessary vakalatnamas.,,
(iii) Decide a date for the meeting of the National Board.,,
Sr. No.,YMCA,
1.,"Nannuvakkadu
North",
2.,Bethapudi,
3.,Ullipalem,
4.,Hindupur,
5.,Kollapalem,
6.,Kolluru,
7.,Oleru,
8.,Arumbaka,
9.,Bidarudibba,
10.,Thurpupalem,
11.,Gudavalli,
12.,Cherukupalli,
13.,Nagaram,
14.,Adavuladeevi,
15.,Bhattiprolu,
16.,Penumudi,
17.,Pudiwada,
18.,Zampani,
19.,Siripuram,
20.,Chavali,
21.,Inturu,
22.,Nadigaddapalem,
23.,Vadlamudi,
24.,Dachepalli,
25.,Chandole,
26.,Tenali,
27.,Piduguralla,
28.,Narasaraopet,
29.,Bapatla,
ii. Acknowledgement issued by the District Registrar, Kollam (Appropriate Authority) certifying that the YMCA has submitted their necessary annual",,
records as per Rule 7(iii) of the Travancore-Cochin Literary, Scientific and Charitable Societies Registration Act, 1955.",,
iii. The List of Members of the Director Board of the Applicant YMCA of the year 2017 elected and submitted to the District Registrar.,,
iv. Govt. Issued ID Cards of more than 25 Full Members of the Applicant YMCA. â€,,
With the filing of these documents, the requirements were completed and hence since similarly placed YMCAs, that had submitted the documents,",,
were also retained in the good standing list, the only reason why PYMCA was disqualified was that the Presidential candidate belonged to PYMCA",,
and the Plaintiffs had a vested interest in getting him disqualified. Various allegations, which were not as per the notice issued by the Election Officer,",,
were entertained. Issues as to the quorum in the general body were also raised, which were clarified. The Election Officer was made to go into a",,
fishing and roving enquiry whereby the rules governing the quorum were sought to be produced, as also the manner in which amendments to the said",,
rules had been carried out. An amendment dating back to 2010 was considered, and this was beyond the mandate of the Election Officer. The",,
amendment, which was 8 years old, was held to be unlawful and erroneous â€" 8 years later. It is further submitted in the application that the other",,
candidate for the post of President â€" Justice (Retd.) J. B. Koshy regularly attended the hearings before the Election Officer. The Election Officer,,
has also gone into the question as to whether the said YMCA is from a panchayat, municipality or corporation and whether the affiliation fee had been",,
paid, which was again beyond the mandate of the Election Officer. Despite PYMCA having produced the receipts issued by the District Registrar",,
under Section 4 of the Societies Registration Act, the Election Officer went into the validity of the said receipt. Such extreme steps were not",,
contemplated by this Court at the time of directing the holding of the election. It is further averred that the disqualification has led to the democratic,,
process being vitiated, with the President being elected unopposed. The following prayers are sought.",,
“a. Set aside the order dated 21.11.2018 passed by the Election Officer, disqualifying the applicant Pathanamthitta, YMCA",,
b. Allow the Applicant to participate in the election scheduled to be held on 2.12.2018.,,
c. In the alternative the election scheduled for 02.12.2018 be postponed till the disposal of the present application.â€,,
(iv) I.A.16979/2018,,
This application has been moved on behalf of YMCA Kumplampoika on the ground that PYMCA was removed on 21st November, 2018 by the",,
Election Officer and after PYMCA was disqualified, other YMCAs ought to have been permitted to nominate their candidates, which opportunity was",,
not given by the Election Officer. Consequently, Mr. J. B. Koshy was elected unopposed to the post of President. Accordingly, the following reliefs",,
are prayed:,,
“a. Declare the election conducted for the post of President null and void.,,
b. Direct the Ld. Election Officer to give opportunity to file fresh nominations and to conduct the fresh elections for the post of the President of,,
NCYI.,,
c. Set aside the order dated 29.11.2018 passed by the Ld. Election Officer.â€,,
(v) I.A.4737/2018,,
In this application, the Plaintiffs had initially sought the appointment of an Election Officer for getting the triennial election of the NCYI conducted",,
and also seeking verification of the list of good standing YMCAs as on 31st December, 2017. The prayers sought in this application are as under:",,
“In the aforementioned facts and circumstances this Honâ€ble Court may graciously be pleased to allow this application and pending this suit,,
appoint a retired High Court Judge as court administrator/observer for defendant society:,,
A. To act as an Election Officer and decide on all requirements including the proper venue under the rules for the conduct of the Triennial election of,,
the Defendant Society to be conducted on to 3rd September, 2018.",,
B. Direct the officers of the Defendant Society to provide all records and logistics to the observer as and when directed by him/her.,,
C. Include YMCA Puthoor and Kunnamkulam or any other YMCAs found suitable in the list of good standing YMCAs as on 31.12.2017 after giving,,
all affiliated member YMCAs two weeks notice to resubmit annual Affiliation fees/fair share and other documents.,,
D. To conduct the Triennial election of the Defendant Society at an appropriate venue to be chosen from among any YMCA premises after,,
considering the convenience of all the members,,
E. Direct verification of the validity of affiliation of Good Standing YMCAs in the list of 31.12.2017.â€,,
Submissions on behalf of the parties,,
After the elections on 2nd December, 2018, the NCYI changed its counsel. The present counsels for the NCYI have made submissions in support",,
of the Plaintiffâ€s case. Thus, the circumstances that prevailed at the time when the suit was filed have changed as the new President and the other",,
four office bearers are now running the NCYI. On behalf of the NCYI, Mr. Thomas Joseph has made his submissions. On behalf of Mr. Lebi Philip",,
Mathew and the 31 YMCAs, which were disqualified, Mr. Jayant Mehta, Mr. Manu Krishnan and Mr. Koshy John have made their respective",,
submissions. Broadly, therefore, there are two groups: One group being supported by the present President - Mr. J. B. Koshy and the Plaintiff and the",,
other group being led by Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew and the other YMCAs, which were disqualified.",,
On behalf of Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew and the YMCAs that were disqualified, it is submitted that out of the total 756 members of the previous",,
year, 297 were removed by the NCYI itself in January, 2018, out of which 14 of them sought inclusion. 7 YMCAs were allowed to cure the defects",,
and join the list of good standing YMCAs. Out of the 498 declared as good standing members in January, 2018, 162 were disqualified by the Election",,
Officer. 336 member YMCAs were remaining to which 41 were added.,,
These 41 were part of the 498 declared in January, 2018 to be of good standing. 60 YMCA members were disqualified due to non-filing of Section 4",,
reports, which is a mandatory requirement under the Societies Registration Act. Since the constitution of the society is not under challenge, the NCYI",,
S. No.,Particulars,Date
1.,"Notice for the National Board
Meeting","Friday, February 22, 2019
2.,"Last date for submission of
Nomination Forms for the Nationa
Executive Committee from Good
Standing YMCAs as approved b
the Delhi High Court","Saturday, March 9, 2019
l
y
3.,"Scrutiny of Delegate‟s Forms by
the National Officer‟s Meeting and
declaration of Official Panel for
National Executive","Wednesday, March 13, 2019
4.,"Last Date for filing Counter
Nominations","Wednesday, March 20, 2019
5.,"Scrutiny of above and Publication
of listed Candidates by the Nationa
Officers","Saturday, March 23, 2019
l
6.,"Last Date for Withdrawal of
Nomination","Tuesday, March 26, 2019
7.,"Publication of final list of
candidates","Tuesday, March 26, 2019
8.,National Board Meeting,"Saturday, March 30, 2019
The National Board, as per Article VII, consists of all the members of the National Executive; seven persons elected tri-annually by the",,
secretaries from amongst the national roster of secretaries; 15 members co-opted in the National Executive committee; the immediate past National,,
President and the chairman of the national standing committees. The National Board appoints the National General Secretary, who is recommended",,
by the National Executive committee. Under Article VIII, the National Executive is constituted as under:",,
“ 1. The National Executive of the Society shall consist of:,,
a) the President,,
b) the three Vice-Presidents c) the Treasurer,,
d) the National General Secretary,,
e) the President of the Association of Secretaries f) Chairmen of all Regions,,
g) eleven members elected by the National Board at its first meeting held after the conclusion of the Ordinary general meeting out of which a,,
minimum of one shall be a lady and one shall be below the age of 30 years as on the 1st of January of the year of election/General meeting.,,
h) The Immediate Past President.â€,,
The national roster of secretaries is to be maintained by the NCYI.,,
For the purpose of appointing the National General Secretary, a search committee is to be constituted and suitable applications are called from the",,
eligible national roster of secretaries. A committee is formed for scrutinizing the applications and candidates are called for interviews. The committee,",,
thereafter, recommends the candidate to the National Executive, which then recommends to the National Board. The removal of the National General",,
Secretary is governed by the National Personnel Policy. He is appointed on contractual basis. The procedure for suspending or removing him is,,
governed by clause XVI of the national personnel policy.,,
Thus, as on date, the National Executive and the National Board are to be constituted. There also remains the question of re-election, if any, which",,
has been prayed for.,,
The events that have transpired so far in the present suit including the events leading upon to the elections dated 2nd December, 2018 shows that",,
the drawing up of the list of good standing YMCAs has been an extremely contentious issue. From the submissions made before the Court, it is clear",,
that the member YMCAs have not been following the good governance policies for -,,
(a) Maintenance of a list of members along with their full contact details, addresses etc.",,
(b) The payment of proper affiliation fee;,,
(c) Submission of the list of members on a regular and annual basis;,,
(d) Obtaining of the ASRs regularly.,,
In the past, a large number of deficiencies, defects and defaults appear to have been condoned, which has led to perpetuation of these bad",,
practices. The creation of two distinct and warring groups within the NCYI has brought to fore the lack of governance both amongst the member,,
organizations and at the national level.,,
The records of the Election Officer show that enormous efforts have gone into the conduct of elections even for the five office bearersâ€,,
positions.,,
This Court is concerned about the election of the President in an unopposed manner owing to the turn of events. There was a nomination,,
committee, which had already fixed the schedule for election prior to the time of filing of the suit. The nominations/counter nominations had been",,
accepted by the said committee. It was during this process that the present suit came to be filed and the Election Officer was appointed. The Election,,
Officer had to re-visit and draw up the list of good standing members.,,
However, once the good standing members†list was finalized by the Election Officer, no opportunity existed for the said member YMCAs, who",,
were held to be in good standing and who could participate in the election, to submit a proper nomination for the election. The time gap between the",,
publication of the list of good standing YMCAs and the election on 2nd December, 2018 was not even a week. The nomination process was not re-",,
opened as it could not have been completed during this period.,,
Even as per the original schedule fixed by the nomination committee and schedule fixed thereafter by the Election Officer, the process from",,
inviting the nominations till the elections is at least a six months process. In the present case, the list of good standing members was published by the",,
Election Officer on 29th November, 2018 and the election was held on 2nd December, 2018. The Election Officer rejected the request of the second",,
candidate Mr. Asokan Solomon, who had originally expressed interest for contesting for the post of President, but had stepped down in favour of Mr.",,
Lebi Philip Mathew. This decision was taken by the Election Officer on 30th November, 2018. With the PYMCA, of which Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew",,
was a member being disqualified and Mr. Asokan Solomonâ€s request for nomination for the post of President being rejected on 30th November,",,
2018, led to Mr. Koshy being elected unopposed. Without going into the question as to whether PYMCA was rightly disqualified or not, it is sufficient",,
to hold that adequate opportunities did not exist for a second candidate to be nominated for the unopposed posts. The post of the President is,,
extremely crucial in the NCYI, as the President is the person vested with enormous powers, and is responsible for the day to day administration of the",,
NCYI.,,
This Court is of the opinion that the election of Mr. J. B. Koshy, though not illegal in the circumstances, as summarised by the Election Officer, the",,
disqualification of PYMCA and the consequential result of the President being elected unopposed, has led to injustice in respect of several member",,
YMCAs, who were supporting the candidature of Mr. Lebi Philip Mathew and who were not given an opportunity to nominate an alternate candidate",,
in place of Mr. Mathew.,,
Moreover, under Article VI, the list of members not in default is to be first drawn up and thereafter the nominations have to be received. In the",,
election held on 2nd December, 2018 owing to the filing of the present suit and the appointment of the Election Officer, the exact reverse situation has",,
taken place i.e. the nominations were those, which were submitted to the nomination committee earlier and the list of good standing members was",,
finally scrutinised and drawn up by the Election Officer, after the nominations were submitted. The circumstances, which led to this situation left the",,
Election Officer with no other option but to go ahead with the elections as were conducted. However, since the National Executive and National",,
Board are to be constituted and the elections have to be held to the said Executive, the current President, who was declared elected on 2nd",,
December, 2018 in an unopposed manner, shall continue to function as President subject to the directions, which would be passed hereinafter. The",,
procedure for the election of the President, being contrary to the provisions of Article VI, however, in extenuating circumstances, the same needs to",,
be set right.,,
Insofar as the good standing YMCAs†list is concerned, the Election Officer has scrutinized the various records of member YMCAs and",,
released the list of members of good standing. The said list, which runs into 343 members, was slightly amended vide order dated 29th November,",,
2018. PYMCA was deleted and Patanapuram was added. The said list of good standing YMCAs, as drawn up by the Election Officer is attached to",,
the present order for ready reference with footnotes.,,
All the remaining YMCAs, which have been disqualified by the Election Officer or by the earlier nomination committee would now have an",,
opportunity to get their names included in the “Good Standing†list. However, before doing so, they will have to comply with all the requirements",,
of the constitution, memorandum and rules and regulations. The insistence for a list of members duly filed with the Registrar of Societies, is as per law",,
and non-compliance cannot be condoned in any manner. Member YMCAs ought to fulfil these requirements, if they wish to participate in the election",,
process. Thus, the directions by the Election Officer that those YMCAs which did not submit the list of members duly acknowledged under Section 4,",,
cannot be faulted with. However, the said YMCAs, which did not comply with the said requirement, cannot be permanently disenfranchised as well.",,
The disqualified YMCAs shall now be entitled to rectify all their defects and deficiencies and file their returns as per Section 4 of the Societies,,
Registration Act. Along with the election to the National Executive, fresh elections would also be held to the post of President.",,
I.A. 1892/2019 (for recall of order dated 17th January, 2019)",,
Mr. Mani Kumar has filed I.A. No.1892/2019 seeking his reinstatement. It is his case that he cannot be removed except in accordance with the,,
National Personnel Policy. After the election conducted on 2nd December, 2018, various allegations were raised against Mr. Mani Kumar including",,
complete non-cooperation by him. He, in fact, refused to even allow the day to day functioning of the NCYI by going on leave without permission.",,
The President Mr. J. B. Koshy has, accordingly, placed him under suspension on 4th January, 2019. On 17th January, 2019, Mr. Mani Kumar was",,
present in Court and the Court observed as under:,,
“1. There are several applications which have been filed today which reveal that there is a complete stalemate in the functioning of Defendant,,
No.1, National Council of YMCAs of India (“Councilâ€). The allegation is that the Secretary, Mr. Mani Kumar, who was in control of all the",,
records, is not handing over the records to the new President, on the ground that he has been appointed by the Executive and does not report to the",,
President. Under such circumstances, the new President has also put his lock on the room containing all the official records. Thus, currently the",,
functioning has come to a complete standstill.â€,,
It was under these circumstances that the Local Commissioner and the Court observer were appointed and five elected office bearers were,,
permitted to appoint a new General Secretary under the National Personnel Policy. Clauses 14, 15 & 16 of the said Policy read as under:",,
“XIV. Acts and Omissions Constituting Misconduct,,
Without prejudice to the general meaning of the term 'misconduct' it shall particularly be deemed to mean and include the following:,,
Willful insubordination or disobedience of orders;,,
Theft, fraud, misappropriation, dishonesty or breach of trust in relation to the property of the Society or associations while dealing with official duties",,
assigned by the Society/association.,,
Habitual negligence or inefficiency in performance of duties.,,
Commission or any act amounting to a criminal offence involving moral turpitude or conviction by a Court for criminal offence.,,
Giving false information regarding his name, age, qualifications, experience, matrimonial status, etc. at the time of taking up employment or",,
thereafter.,,
Submitting false medical certificate to obtain leave.,,
Any act that is detrimental to the interest of the Movement.,,
XV. Penalties,,
The following penalties may be imposed on a Secretary for misconduct or for any other good and sufficient reasons:,,
i) Censure,,
ii) Withholding of increments with or without cumulative effect.,,
iii) Recovery from salary of pecuniary loss caused to the society by negligence.,,
iv) Reduction to a lower post or lower stage of pay.,,
v) Discharge from service,,
vi) Dismissal from service.,,
XVI. Procedure for Imposing Penalties,,
Whenever any disciplinary action is proposed to be taken against a Secretary on the National Roster, the competent Authority shall issue a memo to",,
Affiliation fee per year YMCAs in Panchayath,"Minimum Rs.2,000/-",
YMCAs in Municipality,"Minimum Rs.5,000/-",
YMCAs in Corporations,"Minimum Rs.20,000/-",
Metro Cities FAIR SHARE (Per year),"Rs.1,00,000/-",
Full members (30 years and above),Rs.50/- per perso,
Full members (18 to 29 years),Rs.20/- per personâ€,
decided, the Election Committee will pass orders either (a) rejecting the objections or",,
(b) if the objections are accepted and any member YMCA is disqualified, the said member YMCA shall be given an opportunity to rectify the defects.",,
9) If the opportunity being given to rectify the defects is availed, and the deficiency continues to exist, the Election Committee would pass orders",,
disqualifying the said member.,,
10) Any disqualified member YMCA would not be allowed to participate in the electoral process.,,
11) Upon publication of the final list of good standing members, the Election Committee shall announce the schedule of elections for the National",,
Executive and for the post of President. Nominations and counter nominations shall be invited. Until then, the current President Mr. J. B. Koshy shall",,
continue as officiating President. He shall, however, not take any decision which would have an impact on the electoral process, but would be entitled",,
to handle day to day administration of NCYI.,,
12) The venue and date of the election shall be fixed by the Election Committee after a broad consultation with the representatives of both groups/,,
member YMCAs.,,
13) The nominations shall, thereafter, be scrutinized and the Election Committee would take care to ensure that the elections are conducted in a fair",,
and transparent manner. The entire process shall be completed or before 31st March 2020.,,
14) Upon the National Executive being elected, the meeting of the National Board shall be convened on the next day for transacting usual business of",,
NCYI.,,
15) The National Executive then shall take a decision on Mr. Mani Kumarâ€s suspension/disciplinary action, if any, within a period of three months",,
from the date of its first meeting.,,
16) Mr. Johns George, Advocate who was earlier appointed as the Local Commissioner and is well conversant with the records, is appointed as the",,
Assistant to the Election Committee. The Election Committee is permitted to appoint any other personnel for its assistance.,,
17) The fee of the members of the Election Committee is fixed at Rs.7 lakhs to be paid to Justice Kurian Joseph (Retd.) and Rs.5 lakhs to be paid to,,
Sister Nirmalini as a lumpsum at this stage. The fee of the Local Commissioner shall be Rs.50,000/- per month till the Election Committee discharges",,
him.,,
18) The fee, including all the expenses for conduct of elections, travel expenses of the Election Committee and its personnel including boarding, lodging",,
etc, shall be borne by the NCYI.",,
19) The election, insofar as the four office bearers are concerned, is upheld. While accepting nominations for the post of President, the provisions of",,
Articles V & VI and the regional representation shall be borne in mind.,,
20) The Election Committee would have the flexibility to modify the above schedules/dates, however the election process would be concluded by 31st",,
March 2020.,,
I.A.s 4312/2019 (for release of key of cupboard), & I.A. 665/ 2019 (for directions)",,
The keys of the store room and the cupboard where the records of the NCYI are kept, be released to Mr. Bertram Devdas - the officiating",,
National General Secretary. Mr. Devdas shall ensure that access to the same is given to the newly appointed Election Committee and its assisting,,
counsels. The five office bearers, who are currently functioning would also have access to the records of the NCYI for its day to day management.",,
The records shall not be tampered with or manipulated in any manner whatsoever.,,
Mr. Bertram Devdas shall be functioning not only as the national officiating General Secretary but also in the capacity of a Receiver of this Court,,
and shall ensure safe custody of all the records duly inventoried by the Local Commissioner. He shall also assist the Election Committee in order to,,
ensure that the elections are conducted in a smooth manner. I.As are disposed of.,,
A copy of this order be given dasti to the members of the Election Committee, and to the Assistant to the Election Committee as also counsels for",,
the parties.,,