Parsis in world can become members of Bombay Parsi Punchayet

Date

April 11, 2007

Post by

arZan

In a significant ruling, the Bombay High Court cleared the decks for over 1.25 Parsis in the world to gather under one roof. Justice AM Khanwilkar ruled on Thursday that any Parsi in any corner of the world can become a member of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP).

Besides, Justice Khanwilkar also ruled that any Parsi, who is of 18-years age can vote for the oncoming elections in the BPP. Earlier, in August 2006, the HC had directed the BPP to hold the elections before August 2007. The elections which are to be held every seven years were last held in 1993.

Of the total Parsi population, around 40,000 Parsis reside in Mumbai of which only 22,000 Parsis are general members of the BPP. Bedsides, there are around 1,200-1,500 Donor members who have the right to cast two votes. Any Parsi can become a member after paying Rs 1,000 as fees whereas the fees for Donor member is Rs 25,000 cash or kind.

The court was hearing bunch of petitions regarding the elections and trustees of the BPP. The HC has also laid down the guidelines for the elections. The elections are to be held either on a Saturday or a Sunday within the next six months. Till fresh trustees are elected, the present seven trustees under the chairmanship of Minoo Shroff, will continue.

The trustees will continue for a maximum of three terms each, comprising seven years each or for 21 years, whichever is earlier, stated the HC.

Any Parsi can become a member of the BPP and will be eligible to vote. There is no cap on granting membership in the BPP, however it has to be done within 60days after the trustees are elected. However, the Donor members will have to claim their right to cast two votes within 180 days after they pay their fees.

The order is significant as earlier there was restriction on the number of Parsis who could vote. Any person can enroll as a general member, however, if there are say, for example only 100 donor members, then 100 members from general category would be elected who would then vote for the trustees. Now irrespective of the number of donor members, all general members can vote too.

32 Comments

  1. ERUCH SURKARI.

    I feel strongly that the fate of the Parsis & Irani’s of India should for ever be decided by the Parsis & Irani ZARTHOSHTI’S of India. Parsi’s settled in various corners of the world are slowly but surely moving away from what some of us very proudly beleive as the PARSI way.Our Religion, Our Culture ,Our Values that we have practiced and preserved freely for centuries in INDIA cannot and should not be compromised by people living in far of lands who over the years have adopted a different culture and value system and the last thing on there mind would be the welfare and well being for the Zarthoshti’s of India.

  2. ERUCH SURKARI.

    I feel strongly that the fate of the Parsis & Irani’s of India should for ever be decided by the Parsis & Irani ZARTHOSHTI’S of India. Parsi’s settled in various corners of the world are slowly but surely moving away from what some of us very proudly beleive as the PARSI way.Our Religion, Our Culture ,Our Values that we have practiced and preserved freely for centuries in INDIA cannot and should not be compromised by people living in far of lands who over the years have adopted a different culture and value system and the last thing on there mind would be the welfare and well being for the Zarthoshti’s of India.

  3. rustom

    we have some within who have betrayed our ancestors..

    The last traitors of the Persian empire..
    The lawyer who is an intermarried Parsi makes our forfathers word ring true..’the break within will be from such..’

    Now such have belittled the efforts of our ancestors who faced holocausts yet never gave up nor changed their faith. The came to India to presetrve their faith,…if they wanted to change it, they could have done it back home…

    Our ancestors after setting up in India,preserved zoroastrianism, and for a millenia struggled to give and even left monies to preserve what they gave…

    Now the champoions of change who contradict themselves have betrayed the efforts of their own ancestors!!
    Their major contradicttion is they want to convert others to something..they themselves want to change…

    Now we have welcomed homosexuals who run naked in front of fruits as practising Zoroastrians!!
    A case in the U.S of marajuana smugllers claiming to be zoroastrians and taking marajuana as zoroastrian practise wasnt an eye opener to us..and so this..

    The gatha alone cults who like the invaders of Persia negate the other holy books..like the avesta etc have the same end result as those who wanted to cobvert Persia..to do away woth zoroastrian books ..thus knowledge will now have a toe hold in manouvering funds made to preserve zoroastrianism!!!

    Yes the last persian zoroastrian betrayers were from within…one waits to see if these so called champions of change have the galls to change hindusim, islam or christianity or their spouses beliefs!

    They have contributed nothing except chaos and greedingly taken and yet strive to take…

    Hats of to you AFP.. AFTER ALL behind veils you are behind such!!
    I shall pass on you names to my children so that you are rememberd in history as the last traitors

  4. rustom

    we have some within who have betrayed our ancestors..

    The last traitors of the Persian empire..
    The lawyer who is an intermarried Parsi makes our forfathers word ring true..’the break within will be from such..’

    Now such have belittled the efforts of our ancestors who faced holocausts yet never gave up nor changed their faith. The came to India to presetrve their faith,…if they wanted to change it, they could have done it back home…

    Our ancestors after setting up in India,preserved zoroastrianism, and for a millenia struggled to give and even left monies to preserve what they gave…

    Now the champoions of change who contradict themselves have betrayed the efforts of their own ancestors!!
    Their major contradicttion is they want to convert others to something..they themselves want to change…

    Now we have welcomed homosexuals who run naked in front of fruits as practising Zoroastrians!!
    A case in the U.S of marajuana smugllers claiming to be zoroastrians and taking marajuana as zoroastrian practise wasnt an eye opener to us..and so this..

    The gatha alone cults who like the invaders of Persia negate the other holy books..like the avesta etc have the same end result as those who wanted to cobvert Persia..to do away woth zoroastrian books ..thus knowledge will now have a toe hold in manouvering funds made to preserve zoroastrianism!!!

    Yes the last persian zoroastrian betrayers were from within…one waits to see if these so called champions of change have the galls to change hindusim, islam or christianity or their spouses beliefs!

    They have contributed nothing except chaos and greedingly taken and yet strive to take…

    Hats of to you AFP.. AFTER ALL behind veils you are behind such!!
    I shall pass on you names to my children so that you are rememberd in history as the last traitors

  5. Ronnie Patel

    I am Realy happy that the so called Jugdement has been send as a Gift from Auhra Mazda himself.
    Now at Least many more HONEST person from the community will become the member.
    I am also happy that i want to Tank the Judge personely & would also want to Request the Honourable Judge to Probe all the missdeeds that has been going on for the past so many years & also i wnt that the staff members who are working in Parsee Panchyat should also be probed as to God knows how many may have taken Bribes from the community members who were in serched of a house.
    I am realy the most happiest person in the whole world even my wife & daughter are also happy even though my wife is a nonparsee she is happy that atleast it will put the brakes on the foul mouths of all the stupid parsees.

  6. Ronnie Patel

    I am Realy happy that the so called Jugdement has been send as a Gift from Auhra Mazda himself.
    Now at Least many more HONEST person from the community will become the member.
    I am also happy that i want to Tank the Judge personely & would also want to Request the Honourable Judge to Probe all the missdeeds that has been going on for the past so many years & also i wnt that the staff members who are working in Parsee Panchyat should also be probed as to God knows how many may have taken Bribes from the community members who were in serched of a house.
    I am realy the most happiest person in the whole world even my wife & daughter are also happy even though my wife is a nonparsee she is happy that atleast it will put the brakes on the foul mouths of all the stupid parsees.

  7. Delnavaz

    Hey Ronnie,
    the ‘stupid Parsis’ as you call us should not worry you. After all you are not a Parsi.

  8. Delnavaz

    Hey Ronnie,
    the ‘stupid Parsis’ as you call us should not worry you. After all you are not a Parsi.

  9. Jamshed

    Yup …you are right Delnavaz…But don’t worry they are all frustrated on the BPP election elections….

  10. Jamshed

    Yup …you are right Delnavaz…But don’t worry they are all frustrated on the BPP election elections….

  11. Siloo Kapadia

    The recent vote was a vote for death to the community. Never mind, more elections will come.

  12. Siloo Kapadia

    The recent vote was a vote for death to the community. Never mind, more elections will come.

  13. rustom jamasji

    One can see the ‘yellowness’in the eyes of the ones that call themselves reformists/liberals. They are so liberal that they would want the comunity to die out just because they or their offspirngs couldnt handle the responsibility of being a zoroastrian…

    How magnanimous of you Siloo

  14. rustom jamasji

    One can see the ‘yellowness’in the eyes of the ones that call themselves reformists/liberals. They are so liberal that they would want the comunity to die out just because they or their offspirngs couldnt handle the responsibility of being a zoroastrian…

    How magnanimous of you Siloo

  15. Navroz

    Thank god the orthodox won, otherwise these so called reformist would have tarnished the community.

  16. Navroz

    Thank god the orthodox won, otherwise these so called reformist would have tarnished the community.

  17. Behram Dhabhar

    Fully agree with Delnavaz, Jamshed, Rustom and Navroz.

    The AFP panel who were supposed to be “Excellent human material” and so much of paper was wasted by the Jame Jamshed rag on them were not even anywhere on the horizon !

    The community rejected them outright, which is why we have their supporters on Parsi Khabar sulking away.

  18. piloo

    Firstly, please let us know why a Mumbai Parsee can NOT vote in Pune or Surat Parsee Punchayet Elections but Parsees from Pune & Surat an vote in BPP Elections?.
    Secondly, in politics, decent and educated always lose against semi literate and corrupt politicians. Does that make latter “EXCELLENT HUMAN MATERIAL”?
    Astonishing that in our supposedly educated community, bloggers think like rustic, criminal politicians of Bihar & U.P. who claim that they ‘won’in peoples court.
    There is nothing to sulk. BPP is heading the same way as BJP’s “India Shining” Campaign.

  19. Behram Dhabhar

    Fully agree with Delnavaz, Jamshed, Rustom and Navroz.

    The AFP panel who were supposed to be “Excellent human material” and so much of paper was wasted by the Jame Jamshed rag on them were not even anywhere on the horizon !

    The community rejected them outright, which is why we have their supporters on Parsi Khabar sulking away.

  20. piloo

    Firstly, please let us know why a Mumbai Parsee can NOT vote in Pune or Surat Parsee Punchayet Elections but Parsees from Pune & Surat an vote in BPP Elections?.
    Secondly, in politics, decent and educated always lose against semi literate and corrupt politicians. Does that make latter “EXCELLENT HUMAN MATERIAL”?
    Astonishing that in our supposedly educated community, bloggers think like rustic, criminal politicians of Bihar & U.P. who claim that they ‘won’in peoples court.
    There is nothing to sulk. BPP is heading the same way as BJP’s “India Shining” Campaign.

  21. Anti - Dhongidox.

    Isn’t ironical that the quarrels between two sections of the Community has individuals (from both sides) residing in the same Parsee Colony (DPC)? Be it, AZA, AFP or the saviours(?) WAPIZ, whose financier has lost ground on his own home turf.
    These loudmouths display their “human matetial”, sorry content of their grey matter,
    by their utterances.

  22. True Orthodox Zoroastrian.

    SOME PERSONS THINK THAT ENTIRE COMMUNITY IS EITHER WITH AZA. ARZ,ERSTWHILE AFP OR WITH WAPIZ.
    THESE WISEACRES CAN NOT IMAGINE A INDEPENDENT THINKING PARSEES NOT ASSOCIATED WITH ANY OF THESE GROUPS.
    IF OUT OF AROUND 35,000 PARSEES OF BOMBAY HALF VOTED FOR THE PRESENT MONUMENTS OF NON ACHIEVEMENT, DOES THAT MEAN THEY REPRESENT THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY. TRIUMPH OF MOBOCRACY CAN NOT BE EQUATED WITH DEMOCRACY.IN
    EARLIER ELECTION PROCEDURE IT WAS REPRESENTATION OF ARISTOCRACY, NOW IT IS ‘TRIUMPH’ OF MOBOCRACY.

  23. Anti - Dhongidox.

    Isn’t ironical that the quarrels between two sections of the Community has individuals (from both sides) residing in the same Parsee Colony (DPC)? Be it, AZA, AFP or the saviours(?) WAPIZ, whose financier has lost ground on his own home turf.
    These loudmouths display their “human matetial”, sorry content of their grey matter,
    by their utterances.

  24. farzana

    very well said Piloo.

  25. True Orthodox Zoroastrian.

    SOME PERSONS THINK THAT ENTIRE COMMUNITY IS EITHER WITH AZA. ARZ,ERSTWHILE AFP OR WITH WAPIZ.
    THESE WISEACRES CAN NOT IMAGINE A INDEPENDENT THINKING PARSEES NOT ASSOCIATED WITH ANY OF THESE GROUPS.
    IF OUT OF AROUND 35,000 PARSEES OF BOMBAY HALF VOTED FOR THE PRESENT MONUMENTS OF NON ACHIEVEMENT, DOES THAT MEAN THEY REPRESENT THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY. TRIUMPH OF MOBOCRACY CAN NOT BE EQUATED WITH DEMOCRACY.IN
    EARLIER ELECTION PROCEDURE IT WAS REPRESENTATION OF ARISTOCRACY, NOW IT IS ‘TRIUMPH’ OF MOBOCRACY.

  26. farzana

    very well said Piloo.

  27. Religious but Rational.

    Farzana/Anti-Dhongidox & Piloo,
    High time some omnipresent so called Traditionalist bloggers refrained from blogging their ‘scholastic’ ideas in P.K. They are getting loads of ‘appreciation’ from you all, which is beyond their calibre.

  28. Religious but Rational.

    Farzana/Anti-Dhongidox & Piloo,
    High time some omnipresent so called Traditionalist bloggers refrained from blogging their ‘scholastic’ ideas in P.K. They are getting loads of ‘appreciation’ from you all, which is beyond their calibre.

  29. Ratan Elavia

    Behram,
    I believe the AFP lost because they were perceived to be non aproachable. The present trustees I am told devote time to the regular community members, which is why they are preferred. Undoubtedly the AFP members were proffesionals in their own field and would have been an asset to our community but one cannot have all virtues in one person.

  30. Ratan Elavia

    Behram,
    I believe the AFP lost because they were perceived to be non aproachable. The present trustees I am told devote time to the regular community members, which is why they are preferred. Undoubtedly the AFP members were proffesionals in their own field and would have been an asset to our community but one cannot have all virtues in one person.

  31. farzana

    Religious but Rational, the real appreciation is for Ahura Mazda for having sense of humour to creat them…:)

  32. farzana

    Religious but Rational, the real appreciation is for Ahura Mazda for having sense of humour to creat them…:)