Why I am contesting the Punchayet election, by Ervard Xerxes Vispi Dastur.

Each one of us has wished that community challenges – from housing to funding for Parsi entrepreneurs are tackled with transparent trust policies to balanced opinions by the Bombay Parsi Punchayet.

Trustee elections are round the corner. This is your time to vote in a fresh thinking – professionally-minded trustee committed to fulfil your desires. Our community has lost three more years since the last election and any further time wasting would be greater disservice to founders of this esteemed institution.

As a qualified professional with wide experience in leading and being part of teams, and building organisations, I have a responsibility to the community. As promised after the previous elections I have continued with grass root work for the community which has kept me well informed of their needs and desires. For this reason, I am contesting the Punchayet election.

I have been a partner for several years at V.S. Dastur & Co. Chartered Accountants, established by my father who believed that the drive of young qualified persons – combined with the wisdom of elders – is a magic formula to achieve great heights. To put into practice what he believes, my father chose to test me by handing over the reins.

As a chartered accountant, I work with many trusts across the country. Some of this work has been for the Punchayet, so I am already familiar with its working.

I have nurtured and enjoyed working with teams that have delivered remarkable results in terms of community service. These required teamwork and the ability to carry everyone along, a quality that has served me well as vice-chairman and treasurer of the Mumbai chapter of the World Zarathushti Chamber of Commerce. This is a philosophy I bring also to my responsibilities as Trustee and the Chairman of the Managing Committee of the Ripon Club, Treasurer of Rustam Baug Welfare Association, Secretary The Ness Wadia Memorial Pavilion and INDIA Board Member World Zarthosti Chamber of Commerce.

Importantly, Parsi youth need to be involved in tackling our issues. We will not be able to progress unless we can engage with our young – a lesson I’ve learned as a member of the advisory council of Xtremely Young Zoroastrians (XYZ).

As a trustee, there are many challenges I will take on. Here, I list a few

• Independent. I am not a part of any consensus group or coterie. It is this independence of thought that I believe is much needed to serve the community rather than one’s own interests.
• Transparency. I intend on bringing much needed transparency back to the functioning of the esteemed BPP.
• Modernity. Along with transparency, I intend on modernising some processes as well as bringing back some processes from the past that have been disbanded.
• Many of our elders face severe medical problems, but are unable to get treated due to various reasons. I will put in place a scheme covering orthopaedic, cardiac, neurological and cancer treatment. There are various ways we can do this – from group insurance schemes to tie-ups with reputed medical institutions.
• Parsis need to rekindle their entrepreneurial flames. I believe strongly in this and would help facilitate members of the community flourish.
• Ending the housing shortage for the young of our community is a major focus area for me.

As a trustee, my first task would be to push for a referendum on all major issues. Your views and hopes would serve as my guide.

I believe in one-on-one contact rather than public meetings that involve wasteful expenditure. I have listed my email address and phone number below; you will also find me on Linkedin. Feel free to get in touch with me anytime.
I need your support to make your life better.

Ervard Xerxes Vispi Dastur
Email: Xerxes.Dastur.2018@gmail.com
Cell No.: 9820084449
Blog: xerxesvdastur.wordpress.com
Facebook: fb.me/xerxes.dastur.2018

I Mr Ratan Patel retired businessman would like to offer my services as a Trustee of BPP for which I have registered my nomination. My decision to contest this election is purely based on trying to improve the not so satisfactory working of the BPP as is observed by the community in the recent past. My primary aim is to bring about 100% transparency ( Digital INDIA Digital BPP ), to decentralize the power quotient from Trusteeship and Community members to have complete freedom to raise justifiable objections about the working of BPP staff or its Trustees without the fear of any repercussions by the BPP,  besides I plan to improve upon many related issues which is described in my detailed manifesto to be posted soon on social media.

Humbly request your valuable vote to enable me to segrve my community to the best of my ability.

Please forward to as many people as possible so it can reach each and every member of our community.

Ratan D Patel’s Manifesto

The Press is hereby informed that the names of 5 Nominations received for the Bombay Parsi Punchayet Trustee Election to be held on 10th April 2016, for the Post of one Trustee are as under:

1. Mrs. Armaity Rustom Tirandaz

2. Mrs. Arnavaz Jal Mistry

3. Mr. Eric Nariman Dhatigara

4. Mr. Kersi Gustad Sethna

5. Ervad Rayomand Burzor Joshi

The last date of withdrawal of Nominations is Wednesday, 23rd March 2016; latest by 5:30 P.M.

Cawas S. Panthaki

Chief Executive

PUBLIC NOTICE

BOMBAY PARSI PUNCHAYET ANNOUNCES

SCHEDULE FOR TRUSTEE’S ELECTIONS UNDER THE

UNIVERSAL ADULT FRANCHISE SCHEME

Owing to the vacancy created upon the completion of the term of office of Trustee Mrs. Armaity R. Tirandaz as a Trustee of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet Elections for the post of a Trustee of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet will be held as per the below mentioned Election Schedule.

As per Clause No. 14 of the Scheme for Election, any person who shall at the time of Election be a member of the Parsi Community, of not less than 30 years of age ( this restriction of age does not apply to any Candidate who has attained the age of 25 years and whom a majority of not less than 2/3rds of the members of the Anjuman Committee desire to be so exempted by a written requisition to the Trustees) and who shall have been Proposed and Seconded by members of the Anjuman Committee i.e. General member or Donor member, are eligible to stand as Candidates.

Such candidates have to fill in the prescribed form (available from the Bombay Parsi Punchayet’s Office), accompanied by a cash deposit of Rs. 5000/-. The deposit shall stand forfeited, if the candidate fails to secure at least 5% of the total votes cast at such an election.

All those members on the General Register and Donor Register, who have so far not collected their Certificates, are requested to collect their respective Certificates to be eligible to exercise their franchise.

If the Certificate has been lost or destroyed, members on the General Register and Donor Register can apply before 06-04-2016 for a duplicate certificate, application for which has to be filled in a prescribed form along with payment of a fee of Rs. 10/-. As per the Scheme in force, Members on the General Register and Donor Register will be allowed to vote only on production of their respective Certificates. No duplicate Certificate will be issued and / or collection of original certificates permitted after 06-04-2016 (5.30 p.m) including on the Election day at the polling centres.

The Registers will be frozen as on 10-02-2016 (at 5.30 p.m.). Only those Members whose names appear on the General Register and the Donor Register, as on 10-02-2016, will have voting right at the forthcoming Election.

If nomination is received from only one candidate, in accordance with the sanctioned Scheme, such candidate will be declared duly elected.

In the event of there being more than one candidate, an Election will be conducted as per the schedule given hereunder:

SCHEDULE OF ELECTIONS

Sr. No. EVENT DATES

1. Members as on effective date (5.30 p.m.) 10-02-2016

2 Availability of final list of Members on the General / Donor Register 23-02-2016 On payment of charges of Rs.300/- per CD

3. Nomination Forms for Trustees’ Elections will be issued and accepted from 23-02-2016

3. Last date for filing Nominations to Trustee’s Elections (5.30 p.m.) 09-03-2016

3. Last date of withdrawal of Nomination (5.30 p.m.) 23-03-2016

4. Publishing of the names of Candidates 26-03-2016 & 27/03/2016

5. Last date for collecting Member Certificate or its Duplicate (5.30 p.m.) 06-04-2016

6. Election on 10-04-2016 at the following 5 centres from 10.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m.

1. Cusrow Baug, Colaba

2. Khareghat Memorial Hall, Khareghat Colony, Hughes Rd

3. Dadar Parsee Gymkhana, Dadar

4. Rustom Baug, Byculla

5. Sir Shapurji Bharucha Baug, Andheri (West)

3. Declaration of Election results by Scrutinizers and President latest by 10-04-2016

4. Result to be published on the Notice Board of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet latest by 11-04-2016

3. Result to be published in Newspapers latest by 12-04-2016

4. The new elected Trustee will assume Office at 12 Noon on 21-04-2016

N.B. 1.) A member can exercise his/ her voting right at any one of the voting centres on the date specified above.

2.) Certificates collected on production of Authority Letter by a third party should have the member’s signature duly attested either by a Notary or Special Executive Officer. Members whose certificates are not attested will not be allowed to vote.

3.) In case of there being a tie, in the number of votes cast between two candidates, Rule 21(C)(xv) of the Scheme would apply and the date of the result would be deferred by 4 days. In such an event the declaration of the result on the Notice Board of the B.P.P. would be declared on 15-04-2016 and the same would be published in the Newspapers on 16th & 17-04-2016.

4.) Members of the General & Donor Register who have been issued two or more separate certificates (one issued earlier and the other taken subsequently) can vote only once and only one certificate will be treated as valid.

5.) Voters must bring along with them Photo Proof of their Identity e.g. Passport, Driving license, Aadhar Card, PAN Card, Senior Citizen Card.

6.) Voters have to elect only one Trustee by pressing the button against the name of the candidate they wish to elect on the Electronic Voting Machine. (They can select only one) .

7.) LAMINATED CERTIFICATES WILL BE ALLOWED TO BE USED BY VOTERS. In such cases, the Staff has been instructed to punch the certificates at a pre-determined spot, instead of Signing them.

8.) As per Clause 4(d) of the Scheme for the Election of the Trustees each Donor Member vote would be counted/ treated as two votes. However, the donors have to press the button only once against each of their selected names of the candidates.

9.) Voters should note that only those certificates bearing the caption ‘General Register’ or ‘Donor Register’ would be treated as valid.

It is further notified that the full list of registered members on the General Register and Donor Register eligible to vote for the forthcoming Trustee’s Election is available on the Web and members can verify their enrolment or otherwise on the net address which is www.bppvoterslist.org

By Order of the Trustees

Bombay Parsi Punchayet

Yazdi Desai , the new Chairman of BPP, along with Armaity Tirandaz, Noshir Dadrawala, Zarir Bhathena, Kersi Randeria and Viraf Mehta

Photo Courtesy – Parsi Times