September 7, 2007
Mr Pradeep Vijayakar
President
The Press Club
Mumbai
Dear Mr President,
I am shocked to receive an e-letter written by Chairman Devenra Mohan dated August 30, 2007, addressed to Mr. Jatin Desai, Mr.G.C.Bainik and me, announcing in effect that the Managing Committee (MC) has not only relieved me of my assignment as the Convenor of a three-member committee, appointed to inquire the alleged violent incident of August 3,2006 involving Rennie Abraham and Gurbir Singh, but also as its member.
The letter among other things states: “In line with the Annual General Meeting’s decision on the above subject on July 27, 2007, it was noted by the Managing Committee that Suresh Nandi, conveyors (sic) of the Enquiry Committee, has failed to call any hearings of the committee. There does not seem to be any progress to complete and deliver the enquiry report either.
In the light of the AGM’s decision, it has now been decided to request Dr.G.C.Bainik and Mr Jatin Desai to proceed with the enquiry hearings without any further reference to Mr. Suresh Nandi”. I am enclosing/attaching the copy of the above letter for your ready reference.
In response to the above letter, I would like to submit the following:
1) In the first place, the letter is grossly misleading. It does not state as to what was the decision taken by the AGM held on July 27, 2007.
2) In the first place, no decision was taken by the AGM to either remove me from the post of convenor of the inquiry committee or as a member from the inquiry committee. (Mind you, I was appointed as the convenor by the AGM at its last year’s meeting).
3) Unfortunately, the issue relating to the functioning of the above inquiry committee was discussed at the AGM in my absence. (I had left the AGM minutes before the issue came to be discussed, to attend to my professional work). Had I been around, I would have explained my side of the story. My side was not brought to the attention of the AGM even when member C P Jha asked Treasurer Rajesh Mascarenhas to read out the last letter written by me to Chairman Devendra Mohan on May 14, 2007.
4) I am told that Mr Jatin Desai expressed certain views against me at the AGM. I do not subscribe to any of his expressed views. Because, they were partisan in nature and aimed at projecting me in poor light vis-à-vis the inquiry committee. In the first place, you as a President – who is presumed to be impartial – should not have allowed Mr Jatin Desai to speak in the first place in my absence. But that was not the case here.
5) In my above letter to Mr Devendra Mohan, a copy of which I had marked to you as well, and an earlier letter written to you way back on February 27, 2007, vide which I had explained in detail as to the problems/issues that were coming in the way of my going ahead with the inquiry. EVEN TODAY, I HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANY REPLIES TO THE ABOVE LETTERS EITHER FROM MR DEVENDRA MOHAN OR FROM YOU.
6) As I have been told by members present at the above AGM, you in your capacity of the President, chairing the meeting, chose not to do anything with regard to the on-going inquiry.
7) As I have explained in detail in my above letters as to what was impeding the inquiry and the efforts made by me to hold inquiries, I emphatically deny the assumption arrived at and stated in its above letter that I have failed to call any hearings of the committee. Let me refresh your memory of various initiatives taken by our committee to go ahead with its task: We had scheduled inquiry hearings beginning from November 3, 2006, and had formally intimated both the accused and witnesses vide our letter dated October 26, 2006. However, we had to defer the hearings a day before the scheduled start of hearings as the Club administration failed to provide secretarial help – a fact which we intimated to all the concerned vide our letter dated November 2, 2006.
8) Coming as it does after the non-cooperation from the Press Club administration all through for ensuring the smooth conduct of the inquiry, the decision to relieve me of my assignment as the convenor of the inquiry and remove me as the member of the committee smacks of a deliberate decision to ensuring against my conducting an impartial inquiry into the alleged violent incident between Rennie Abraham and Club Secretary Gurbir Singh.
9) In the event of your not taking cognizance of my serious grievances, as expressed above and also through other letters in the past, I will be forced to put the entire correspondence in the public domain, so that the club members can draw their own conclusions. I may also contest the MC’s decision in a proper forum.
Thanking you
Yours truly,
(Suresh Nandi)
cc: Chairman, the Press Club, Mumbai
August 30, 2007
Mr. Jatin Desai
Mr. G.C.Bainik
Mr. Suresh Nandi
Sub: Enquiry into alleged violent incident of August 3, 2006 involving Rennie Abraham & Gurbir Singh
In line with the Annual General Meeting’s decision on the above subject on July 27, 2007, it was noted by the Managing Committee that Suresh Nandi, conveyors of the Enquiry Committee, has failed to call any hearings of the committee. There does not seem to be any progress to complete and deliver the enquiry report either.
In the light of the AGM’s decision, it has now been decided to request Dr.G.C.Bainik and Mr Jatin Desai to proceed with the enquiry hearings without any further reference to Mr. Suresh Nandi.
The two members, Mr Bainik and Mr Desai, are requested to complete the Enquiry as far as possible within two months from the date of the AGM, ie. July 27, 2007.
Yours sincerely,
Devendra Mohan
Chairman
cc : President
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