Elite Breach Candy Swimming Bath Trust club’s members allege breach in constitution

They have also claimed that some ineligible members,including incumbent chairman Dipesh Mehta,have been appointed to the managing board,and that memberships have been granted outside the purview of the constitution.

According to its constitution,which was approved by the city civil court in 1967,the BCSBT comprises members in various categories that include trust members (open to Europeans only),ordinary members (Indian citizens) and honorary life members (those who have been granted membership on account of exceptional service rendered to the trust).

Currently,the membership fee for the elite club has been pegged around Rs 1.2 crore.

According to the BCSBT constitution,the managing committee is run by trust members alone,while the custodian trustee (preferably an institution,otherwise a committee of three trust members) looks after the club’s immovable assets. According to article 16 of the Trust’s constitution,custodian trustees and the managing committee remain independent of each other.

In 2011,however,three managing committee members,Rohit Barman,Captain Vikram Malik and Dipesh Mehta,were appointed as custodian trustees. Under their custodianship,the group has alleged,illegal renovations and constructions were carried out within the club premises,affecting the immovable property of

the Trust.

“We have issues with the managing committee,which should be resolved through dialogue. If the committee has a clear conscience,it should be able to address the concerns of the members and reveal the actual position of its members and other details of the club,rather than resort to unnecessary tactics of revoking the membership of those in opposition,” Shaina NC told Newsline.

Under the EGM,58 trust members,in addition to demanding the removal of the current managing committee,have also called for setting up an alternative interim managing committee. They have also demanded a third-party audit of the Trust’s finances and memberships and a temporary freeze on new memberships till the time issue is resolved.

While Mehta remained unavailable for comment,Malik,who is the secretary of the managing committee,refuted the allegations. “The matter is sub-judice with the charity commissioner,so I cannot comment on this. But we have shared all information regarding the club to all members on a regular basis,so there is no basis for these allegations and for calling this meeting,” he said.