3 min readMumbaiApr 24, 2026 12:58 AM IST
First published on: Apr 24, 2026 at 12:45 AM IST
The Bombay High Court on Thursday rejected pleas challenging the Charity Commissioner’s March 13 order that deferred elections for the managing committee of the Asiatic Society in south Mumbai, and directed preparation of a fresh list of eligible voters.
The verdict casts a shadow on the approval of applications of 1,467 new members, who were enrolled after October 3, 2025 with “no proper approval”, from being eligible for voting in the elections. The HC also refused the petitioners’ request to stay the operation of the order.
Established in 1804, the Asiatic Society ranks among India’s oldest institutions promoting research and scholarship in fields like history, archaeology, linguistics, and literature.
A single-judge bench of Justice Farhan P Dubash ruled on pleas, including one filed by former Congress Rajya Sabha member and senior journalist Kumar Ketkar and others.
Elections for 19 seats were set to pit panels headed by Ketkar against one led by former BJP Rajya Sabha member Vinay Sahasrabuddhe.
On March 13, Charity Commissioner Amogh Kaloti halted the elections immediately, pointing to “serious questions” over the managing committee’s functioning and its members.
The decision mentioned reports of several rare books missing from the Asiatic Library. It directed an observer and a sub-committee to oversee the Society’s affairs until a new managing committee is formed.
Justice Dubash had on April 8 stayed the implementation of the decision, however, he reserved verdict on April 17 after conducting detailed hearing.
Advocate General (AG) Milind Sathe for the Charity Commissioner argued that even after the election programme for November 7 was announced on October 3, 2025, the committee illegally cleared 1,467 membership applications between October 16, 2025, and March 2026.
He further said the Charity Commissioner’s decision simply sought fresh polls using the same frozen nominations.
Justice Dubash accepted Sathe’s arguments and noted the Managing Committee continued to function despite their term having ended and took decisions required for day-to-day administration, and the same was “entirely impermissible”.
“The same also applies to the Scrutinising Committee of Asiatic Society which has suo motu decided to continue its working, notwithstanding the fact that its tenure came to an end on September 27, 2025 and during such period, proceeded to recommend about 1,467 applications for membership, which names have since also been included in the finalised voters’ list for Elections-2025 despite there being no proper approval thereof by the Managing Committee,” the HC noted.
Therefore, the HC observed the Charity Commissioner “correctly instituted an inquiry” into the Society’s affairs after the questions were raised in the state Legislative Assembly.
Justice Dubash also rejected senior advocate Atul Damle’s arguments for petitioners and observed while they were not office bearers or managing panel members, the Charity Commissioner gave adequate prior notice to relevant persons.
The HC therefore dismissed the pleas after holding that the Charity Commissioner had “sufficient powers” under the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act for an interim arrangement for the society’s smooth functioning.
The HC therefore dismissed the pleas after holding that the Charity Commissioner had "sufficient powers" under the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act for an interim arrangement for the society's smooth functioning.
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