The Presidentship rotates between the services and the civil servants. And therein lies the problem.
In the year 280 BC, the King of Epirus defeated the Romans at the Battle of Heraclea. A year later, he defeated them again at the Battle of Asculum. Plutarch would later quote him to say, “One more victory like this, and we shall be ruined”. History accords to the name of Pyrrhus the doubtful vanity of any future success that would be so devastating on the victor that it would be tantamount to horrific defeat.
Institutions, businesses, families, political parties and even countries have a historical penchant of tearing themselves apart from within. As human beings, some philosophy with a healthy dose of pragmatism is required in a true Satyagraha. Some of that is today required in the public laundry washing tussle that has engulfed the venerable institution of the Delhi Gymkhana Club.
The issues are different, the real concerns clouded, the core messaging misleading. There are a few points worth putting on record.
The perception has been created of the Club being a playground of the uber elite, trust-fund luxuriating Lutyens’ Delhi crowd. People interested in exclusivity, rather than public service. The truth is the exact opposite. The majority membership of the club consists of people from the armed forces, civil servants, authors and journalists. Pensioners and salaried people. For whom a quiet atmosphere, a game of tennis and an affordable dinner are the reasons to venture out into a convivial atmosphere after a lifetime in public service. The health camps and book clubs providing succour to both body and mind.
Now a troubling scenario is afoot. Imagine this, amid a life-threatening virus and a total national lockdown, a special video conference hearing was called for by the National Company Law Tribunal to hear a charge-sheet against the club for various alleged infractions. Someone thought that the matter had a sudden urgency. That’s the first sign of something unusual and extraordinary at play.
If it were simply a matter of flagging cogent concern, raising issues and imputing renewal and reform, bravo. But it isn’t. It boils down to two things. Control and the land.
A closer look reveals that this is not a project being pursued by the Prime Minister and his team at the Union Cabinet for they are clearly focusing on the essentials, i.e. how to get India safely out of the lockdown. This is clearly not a national priority matter. The parties who have driven this to such an extent need an equally cogent understanding that ugly battles will only end in Pyrrhic victories for all concerned.
The matter hit national headlines on 22 April, when the Ministry of Corporate Affairs filed a petition with the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) seeking to take over the management of this 107-year-old club. Alleging misconduct, mismanagement and various other charges, the demand is that the Club’s governing body, its General Committee, be replaced by a set of new administrators—15 members that would be appointed by the ministry.
But this is not all. In attempts to whitewash the action, selective stories about the Club are being “leaked” to the media to paint it as a sort of playground of the elite, and that too right in the PM’s backyard.
Rahul Gandhi has somehow been put front and centre in news pieces aimed at Club bashing. Correction—Rahul Gandhi was a member as part of the Esteemed Members category in 2006. He is no longer a member. Equally, Cabinet Ministers Smirti Irani and Suresh Prabhu are. As was the late Arun Jaitley.
What the articles don’t tell you is the large number of sportspersons who are members—champions who have nourished their talent at the Club’s 26 grass courts include Naresh Kumar, a former Davis Cup captain. Others who have represented India from the members’ list include Sumant Misra, Narendra Nath and Prem Pandhi.
Another national champion, S.L.R. Sawhny has a trophy in his name that’s given to the Club’s best tennis player. The Club has also produced national squash champions. Bhubaneshwari Kumari, an Arjuna awardee and Padma Shri, and a national champion for 12 years and Bunker Roy, a national champion for three years while cricket legend Mansur Ali Khan “Tiger” Pataudi was a member. Former R&AW chief A.S. Dulat brought out this point in an anguished piece recently to rebut the stories being planted to tarnish the club’s image. This is a club that promotes sports, leaving the games to its detractors.
There is also a large presence of ex-servicemen amongst the membership. Some of the names include Lt Gen J.F.R. Jacob, Air Marshal Padamjit Singh Ahluwalia, (late) Lt Gen P.N. Hoon, (late) Field Marshal Arjan Singh, Lt Gen Shankar Prasad and Lt Gen A.S. Kalkat. In addition, there are retired officers from the intelligence and security agencies such as Dulat and Om Bhutani, former DG ITPB, to name a couple. This is certainly not privileged class but folks who worked hard for their retirement.
In fact, the Presidentship rotates between the services and the civil servants. And therein lies the problem. Currently the man in-charge is Lt Gen D.R. Soni, as it was the turn of the services. He’s a highly respected and recently retired Army commander. The complainants include an ex-club president who happens to be a retired civil servant.
A latent battle then, better resolved over a game of squash and a cup of coffee, not in the courts with lawyers with the future of the very club staked.
The basis of the MCA petition is a complaint filed by seven club members three years ago, including an ex-president and six others, most of whom were part of his governing committee. They filed a complaint against the existing management and gave the MCA the opening it was looking for to interfere in the Club’s matters. It is as simple as that. What is not as simple is the fact that a three-year-old complaint was suddenly speeded up and given priority during lockdown.
The club’s legal team was given barely any time to reply (a two days’ notice) as the hearing was scheduled via a video conferencing during lockdown. However, they say they are confident of rebutting the charges of what they feel are the false allegations that have been raised against the institution.
Some due course correction measures had already been taken. The MCA has raised the issue of exorbitant fees being charged from applicants for membership—Rs 7.5 lakh from the non-government sector and Rs 1.5 lakh from the government sector—while the membership takes years to come through, if at all. This has already been rectified in February this year. According to a committee member, the applicants were told they would be given a Rs 6 lakh refund. Additionally, in May last year, all those who wanted to opt out of the membership line were given full refunds. All this happened well before the MCA speeded up its hearing.
Amid the fog of filial war, the real threats are being missed in the battle. Once management is wrested using similar laws used to take over bankrupt companies, the fellowship can be irrevocably broken. Who will do what then is a matter of conjecture and idle hope. Any precedent set here could easily be used to apply to the Race Course, incidentally across the road from Gymkhana Club and the Delhi Golf Club, all of which are designed to promote sports and exist within the NDMC zone. That seems to be the real game here.
Any fellowship must embrace renewal and reform. To serve not only the interests of its members, but the public at large. The day lockdown was announced the club contributed all its food stores to NGOs, gave a Rs 21 lakh contribution to the PM’s relief fund and announced a drive to raise Rs 75 lakh. Concerns of any government body should be addressed, not only in a court of law, but in practice. In fact, efforts made should undertake any reasonable reform desired. An exemplar of good governance and the service of India from the very people who spent their lives in public service.
Like Covid-19, many can only hope a cure for this is found and a vaccine made without threatening the life of the patient.
This is not a political establishment but a bipartisan club that is known for both its tennis and squash courts and for its Thursday Nights and Sunday Lunches. It is also a place where members are wheeled in on their wheelchairs with oxygen tanks in tow simply because they feel comfortable enough to spend their evenings here, rather than being alone at home. And—in the end, that is what it is to most members—a home that is being misrepresented as something much more sinister.