04 September,2010 07:08 AM IST | | Bobby Anthony
Consumer guidance societyu00a0of India's members stage walkout at AGM, alleging irregularities
It was high drama at the 43rd annual general meeting (AGM) of India's oldest consumer rights body, Consumer Guidance Society Of India (CGSI) yesterday.
Trouble began when senior member, Achintya Mukherjee, asked CGSI 'president' Sharad Upasani if he was even an ordinary CGSI member.
To this, Upasani replied, "The matter is before the Charity Commissioner."
Mukherjee then said that Upasani had said at the last AGM that he was not even an ordinary member and since he had not retracted the statement, the AGM was illegal.
Walkout
As Mukherjee tried to read out some contentious points, he was stopped by Upasani, spurring Mukherjee and other members to walk out after submitting a memorandum.
It read, 'Subject: Illegal Annual General Meeting Called on September 3, 2010" to the so-called president of the CGSI and its chairman'.
A copy of the memorandum available with MiD DAY reads, 'Three AGMs held in 2007, 2008 and 2009 are all illegal.
They were presided over by a person (Upasani) who was not even a member of the society'.
Confusion created
The auditor's report and agenda notice of August 1, 2010 were not printed in the latest issue of CGSI's official organ, 'Keemat'.
However, the auditor's report and accounts for 2009-10 were put up on CGSI's website, to create confusion, members said.
"After MiD DAY wrote about Dr Manohar Kamath's links with insurance firms, corporate subversion of CGSI and consumer movement came to light, especially after CGSI had to leave Consumers' International, the global federation of consumer bodies," a CGSI member said.
"It exposed how consumers' interests were being subverted by CGSI's honorary general secretary Dr Kamath.
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We had been protesting for a long time about how controversial items not on the original agenda were taken up for discussion and how meetings are never held in CGSI's regular office, but in private clinics or New Law College in Matunga.
This is done to inconvenience dissenting members, scuttle their attendance and use their absence to pass resolutions undemocratically," the member said.
CGSI members told MiD DAY that Upasani was illegally carrying on as president all these years, and a proposal to make him an 'honorary' member during yesterday's meeting was on the cards.
Violations?
"On one hand, when members opposing Dr Kamath, plead for his intervention to preserve CGSI's basic nature or bring to his attention repeated violations of the managing committee, Upasani avoids meeting them, claiming that as president, he has no role except to conduct AGMs.
On the other hand, he has personally piloted an amendment to the minutes of the 2008 AGM, insisting that a resolution to accept advertisements and sponsorships from corporates was passed in the AGM, when his personally approved and printed version of the minutes of the same meeting, distributed to CGSI members, showed that the resolution was not even put to vote," said a CGSI member.
Members also said attempts are being made to change the CGSI constitution to favour corporate interests.
Moreover, minutes of CGSI's 15th managing committee meeting of Sunday, August 1, 2010 at Dr Kamath's Mahim clinic were signed by its honorary secretary Dr Manohar Kamath, dated as July 29, 2010.
CGSI members are amazed how a meeting supposedly held on August 1 could have been signed as July 29.
Members have now dubbed the 'meeting' an eyewash, which has been pre-choreographed by CGSI honorary secretary Dr Manohar Kamath.
Many individuals who were denied primary membership of CGSI have approached the charity commissioner.
Legal recourse
Civic activist James John said they would wait to see if justice will be delivered. "Otherwise, we will go to court.
According to their letter, we did not secure recommendations of existing CGSI members, which is required.
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However, we can prove that many others admitted did not have recommendations either and there were several other irregularities.
They have not returned our money for the last three years, nor have they admitted us subsequently, despite several requests," he said.
Neither Upasani nor Dr Kamath could be reached for comment.
