The Asiatic Tomorrow panel has filed an interim application before the Bombay High Court seeking an urgent directive to the Asiatic Society of Mumbai (ASM) to conduct its long-delayed managing committee elections at the earliest possible date. The panel has urged the high court to direct the society to declare the date of the election and conduct it in a free, fair and proper manner.
Elections Originally Slated for November 2025 Remain in Limbo
The elections for the 221-year-old heritage body were originally slated for November 8, 2025 as the managing committee’s term ended on September 27. However, the election has remained in limbo for months due to a fierce dispute over the eligibility of new members and the integrity of the voter list.
A legal battle erupted over the addition of new members to the voters list post finalisation of the list on September 27 and scrutiny on October 3. The matter had reached the High Court after a few new members challenged the assistant charity commissioner’s order that froze the membership list to an earlier date. The High Court quashed the ACC’s order on November 6 stating that the latter had no jurisdiction to go into the issue of membership list.
HC Directed Elections to Continue, But No Date Declared Yet
The HC directed the elections to be continued as scheduled and clarified that it was not ruling on the membership dispute. However, the elections were neither held on November 8 and nor the date for holding the election has been declared by the managing committee.
At a press conference organised on Monday, the Asiatic Tomorrow panel led by former Rajya Sabha MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, announced that they have filed an interim application for clarification with the High Court to direct the society to declare date of election and appoint a person to oversee the process of election and conduct free, fair and proper election.
Society's Operations at Risk Due to Lack of Elected Body
According to the interim application, a copy of which was accessed by The Free Press Journal, the applicants stated that the society is not in a position to carry out its day-to-day objects, including its fundamental object of purchasing books, as the election has not been held. They also apprehended that the society might lose government and private grants due to a lack of a democratically elected managing committee.
“Any society can not insert new voters after the election has been announced. This is an attempt to steal the process of election. The election is still under darkness as there is no clarity about the dates. Our panel simply demands that the managing committee should carry out its responsibility and the election is held soon,” said Sahasrabuddhe.
Scrutiny Not Done Properly, Lumpsum Payments Alleged
The applicants stated that the scrutiny of the list of members has not been carried out properly and alleged that “certain interested members of the managing committee” proceeded to enroll new members even after declaration of the election programme in violation of ACC’s interim direction dated August 7 and “permitted lumpsum payment of membership fees with obvious intention to ensure majority at the elections.
Adv. Neel Helekar, one of the ASM members and applicants in the interim application, said, “We have just demanded that the election should be held in a clean manner. The court can take cognisance of the situation and direct the society to refer to the voters’ list announced before the election announcement. In a similar, The High Court had stayed the election of Mumbai Cricket Association as 400 new members were added after the election announcement, calling it inappropriate.”
The Free Press Journal contacted the ASM’s managing committee president Vispi Balaporia but did not receive any response.
Sahasrabuddhe also alleged that the working style of the current committee has “vitiated the intellectual circles by rejecting particular subjects of research.” He also alleged that the society is not promoting Marathi language and needs to be ideologically inclusive.
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