Sadharan Brahmo Samaj politics disgraces Brahmoism

[sarbajitr]

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1090110/jsp/calcutta/story_10368702.jsp

It is really shocking what the Managing Committees of some of our
Samajes are upto. The sooner these "temples of Brahmoism" and their
bodies are disbanded the better since they are blackening the name of
the Brahmo religion.

<quote>
Ballot box trouble in Brahmo battle
POULOMI BANERJEE

The Brahmo Samaj ballot box.

The general body elections of Sadharan Brahmo Samaj, one of the oldest
democratic institutions in India, ran into rough weather on Friday
after two of the contestants found the lock of the ballot box open.

Elected representatives of the Samaj, a breakaway faction of Raja
Rammohun Roy's Brahmo Samaj, manage six schools, colleges like Amherst
Street City and Heramba Chandra, a library and women's and children's
homes in the city.

"Mina Mukherjee and I visited our Bidhan Sarani office to cast our
votes and found the ballot box open. We alerted the other members,"
said Utpal Bose on Friday. Both he and Mukherjee are contesting this
year's elections.

The annual poll is being held since 1878, when the Samaj was founded
by Shibnath Shastri, Umesh Chandra Dutta and others.

Polling started on December 26 and was to end on January 11. "We sent
ballot papers to our 1,002 members spread across the country. They
either mail their ballots or visit our office and drop it in the box,"
said Asim Ahmed, the assistant secretary who is contesting for the
post of secretary.

The keys to the ballot box and the room where it is kept were with
Sitala Prasad, the caretaker of the building for decades.

According to him, the ballot box was not locked. Secretary Samir Das
insisted that the box was locked.

He also refuted Ahmed's claim that the box should not only have been
locked but the lock should also have been sealed.

"The lock might have been broken by those who want to hold on to their
posts. Though no salary is paid, the honorary posts carry certain
perks," said Das.

"The financial strength of the Calcutta body is about Rs 88 lakh,"
added the secretary.

A repoll, which has never happened in the organisation's history,
seems the only way out.

"The secretary will have to propose a repoll to the general committee,
which will take the decision. It is the only way out for us now," said
president Ashish Kumar Pain.

[biswajit dutta-2]

Dear Sarbajit ,
This confirms whatever I have been writing about so long . Our Samajes are in acute distress & disarray . Wholesale revamp & amputation of cancerous growths with immediate effect is the call of the hour . I saw the tampered ballot box personally when I visited Sadharan Brahmo Samaj the day before to formally report Ma's passing away .

Small firmly entrenched(almost impossible to dislodge) cliques & vested interests are running the Samajes . Gunning for the loaves & fishes of office . This is an instance of fallout between two such bitterly feuding competing & conflicting groups trying to paint each other in poor light . A case of the pot calling the kettle black . There is no place for right thinking people in the Samajes .
Biswajit
 

--- On Tue, 20/1/09, sroy1947 <sroy1947@...> wrote:
From: sroy1947
 <sroy1947@...>
Subject: [brahmoconferenceorg] Sadharan Brahmo Samaj politics disgraces Brahmoism
To: brahmoconferenceorg@...
Date: Tuesday, 20 January, 2009, 7:25 PM










   
            http://www.telegrap hindia.com/ 1090110/jsp/ calcutta/ story_10368702. jsp



It is really shocking what the Managing Committees of some of our

Samajes are upto. The sooner these "temples of Brahmoism" and their

bodies are disbanded the better since they are blackening the name of

the Brahmo religion.



<quote>

Ballot box trouble in Brahmo battle

POULOMI BANERJEE



The Brahmo Samaj ballot box.



The general body elections of Sadharan Brahmo Samaj, one of the oldest

democratic institutions in India, ran into rough weather on Friday

after two of the contestants found the lock of the ballot box open.



Elected representatives of the Samaj, a breakaway faction of Raja

Rammohun Roy's Brahmo Samaj, manage six schools, colleges like Amherst

Street City and Heramba Chandra, a library and women's and children's

homes in the city.



"Mina Mukherjee and I visited our Bidhan Sarani office to cast our

votes and found the ballot box open. We alerted the other members,"

said Utpal Bose on Friday. Both he and Mukherjee are contesting this

year's elections.



The annual poll is being held since 1878, when the Samaj was founded

by Shibnath Shastri, Umesh Chandra Dutta and others.



Polling started on December 26 and was to end on January 11. "We sent

ballot papers to our 1,002 members spread across the country. They

either mail their ballots or visit our office and drop it in the box,"

said Asim Ahmed, the assistant secretary who is contesting for the

post of secretary.



The keys to the ballot box and the room where it is kept were with

Sitala Prasad, the caretaker of the building for decades.



According to him, the ballot box was not locked. Secretary Samir Das

insisted that the box was locked.



He also refuted Ahmed's claim that the box should not only have been

locked but the lock should also have been sealed.



"The lock might have been broken by those who want to hold on to their

posts. Though no salary is paid, the honorary posts carry certain

perks," said Das.



"The financial strength of the Calcutta body is about Rs 88 lakh,"

added the secretary.



A repoll, which has never happened in the organisation' s history,

seems the only way out.



"The secretary will have to propose a repoll to the general committee,

which will take the decision. It is the only way out for us now," said

president Ashish Kumar Pain.




     

   
   
       
         
       
       








       


       
       


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