Mumbai: Things get (h)eated at Parsi Punchayet office

Noshir Dadrawala the man of the moment on a hunger strike outside the Bombay Parsi Punchayet BPP office at Fort all through Monday to protest the delaying of BPP elections said ldquodesperate times call for desperate measuresrdquo A hunger protest by a trustee is a first in 300 plus years of BPPDadrawala started his hunger strike at 10 am on Monday ldquoas a final recourse to set right the working of the BPP Board which has been in violation of all ethical and legal directives for a year nowrdquo he saidDadrawala added ldquoElections have been repeatedly postponed by some of the BPP trustees on the Board claiming a lsquomajorityrsquo on one pretext or the other First it was that we have senior citizens and they cannot be called outside to vote in these COVID times Then there was the lockdown which was understandable at the time Then when the lockdown was lifted it was said that everybody should be vaccinated and then we can have elections Now the pretext is that it is expensive to hold elections All crucial decisions are made by the collective board of BPPrsquos seven trustees who are elected democratically every seven years For over a year now there have been two vacancies on the Board which have not been filled with elections constantly being postponed on various pretexts some of which I have stated above by trustee Viraf Mehta and chairperson Armaity Tirandazrdquo Dadrawala stated emphatically ldquoIt is very simple I have a onepoint mandate declare the date and programme of elections for the two vacant seats and have a full Board of seven trustees by the beginning of January 2022rdquoNourishing fightDadrawala claimed that a lot of ldquodetractors and losersrdquo had prophesied that ldquoby Monday afternoon I will be put on a drip and the socalled lsquorsquodramarsquo that is my hunger strike will be over But to all those concerned about my health I am fighting fit Standing for what is right is amazingly nourishing and keeps the body alive and energised I in fact want to send get well soon greetings to the losers and my detractorsrdquo finished the selfproclaimed lsquofoodiersquo Dadrawala had said earlier ldquoI love food doesnrsquot it show Yet my love for justice is greaterrdquoKersi Randheria BPP trustee supporting Dadrawala had slammed the ldquocallousnessrdquo of the trustees over the weekend who had he stated ldquonot bothered to contact Dadrawala knowing that he was going to go on a fastrdquoMature methodViraf Mehta trustee and chairperson Armaity Tirandaz said they had met Dadrawala on Monday afternoon and explained ldquowe said we must sort out the matter with a mature discussion A hunger strike is not a mature response There is a Board meeting on Tuesday today evening where this should come up for discussion and we can tell you more thenrdquoDinshaw Mehta former BPP chairman was much more fiery He slammed Noshir Dadrawalarsquos hunger strike as ldquodraamebaazirdquo Mehta added ldquoThese are COVID times Each election costs the BPP approximately 50 lakh that has to be considered Dadrawala had claimed that he wanted to discuss the matter with the trustees on Tuesday so going on hunger strike on Monday is premature We have options like discussion and there is the legal route too which an individual can moveWhen Dinshaw Mehta was told that Dadrawala claimed this was not drama he shot back ldquoIf this is not drama then what is itrdquo Dadrawala hit back saying ldquoI Laughed Out Loud LOL when I first read that I would be put on a drip and several hours later I am Rolling on the Floor Laughing ROFLrdquo he finished proving that the eat may not but the heat is certainly on at the august offices of the BPP the apex body of the community and the citys second biggest landlord after the Bombay Port Trust BPT