Updates From AISAPA - Ashok Bahirwani (22 August 2011)

HELLO MY DEAR SPEAK ASIANS ,

Today was a very busy day and i attempt to report as follows:

It started with my Meeting with the Associations Council Mr. Ahmad Abdiji we had a long conference on various issues.

We discussed in detail the present situation and the route ahead.

We discussed that the PIL filed by the Association on Saturday i.e. 20th August, 2011 will now be mentioned before the Chief Justice of the Mumbai High court for admission tomorrow morning at 11.00am.
We hope that the Associations PIL as filed on 20th August 2011 be heard by and along with the earlier criminal PIL.
We, have agreed, and decided that a RTI application, be filed before the relevant RBI authorities, with the following details.

Writ petition (lodg.) No. 1365 0f 2011

Speakasiaonline pte. Ltd. and others. ..Petitioners
Versus
Reserve Bank of India .Respondents

Coram: Dr. D. Y. Chandrachud & Anoop V. Mohta, JJ.
Date: 14th July, 2011.

The honorable lordships in their order dated 14th July, 2011. Had opined in their order on page 5 para 6 line 2 as follows:

Relevant Extract:

“However in the interest of fairness, an opportunity should be granted to the petitioners to submit a representation to the Reserve Bank. Sub section (2) of section 35A of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 does in fact contemplate the making of such representation.”

The lordships further in line 11 go on to add as follows:

“We accordingly dispose of this petition by permitting the petitioners to place representations on the record of the Chief General Manager of the Reserve Bank of India, who had issued the circular dated 23rd May, 2011. In the event that such a representation is made, we would expect the Reserve Bank of India to make a decision in accordance with law. The Reserve Bank of India may furnish an opportunity to the petitioners to explain the contents of the representation in a meeting which may be convened for that purpose”.

The question for the RTI may arise as follows:

Has the Chief General Manager, RBI been approached by the company Speakasiaonline pte. Ltd. if yes when?
If Yes, Has the chief General Manager, RBI given an opportunity to the said company to present their business module?
What was the reason?, on what grounds?, what was the causative action which forced the Chief General Manager to issue the circular dated 23rd May, 2011?
Has the meeting been convened as the lordships ordered?

Friends, this is the broad outline and grounds for the RTI application.
My advice to all of you is that please arrange proper legal councils, spend money, and get good experienced advocates on board.
For any document support send your request to speakasian.ashok@gmail.com with the subject “RTI help”.
I am asking you to write to me on my Id only because the speakasia.association@gmail.com is being flooded with the support E mails.

Your Committee then met some members of an NGO’s supporting the human rights of people in Maharashtra and made a presentation to them on how lakhs of people who depended solely on the income generated from the SAOL module have been robbed of their legitimate right to earn. By this malicious campaign they have been robbed of the opportunity to their livelihood and respectful existence.
The Committee Members then met and decided on the following steps for the immediate future over the next couple of days:
Immediate focus is to seek our COO’s Release.
We need to see that the Associations PIL is admitted tomorrow.
The associations PIL has to be clubbed with the initial PIL and should be heard along with the original PIL.
To Launch the Associations own Website thereby providing an Authenticated Forum for the Panelists.
To register the association and open the Bank Accounts.
The resultant outcome of the hearing of the PIL hopefully on Wednesday i.e. 24th August, 2011 will decide our future course of action.

As an aside, I wish to mention here that the immediate pre operative expenses are being borne by the office bearers and the committee members on an individual basis. But going forward we may require monetary support from the speakasian family, and we are in the process under advice of legal counsel, deciding how to go about it.
It will not be out of place to mention here that the legal fees of our counsel Adv. Ahmad Abdiji has been paid by your Office bearer by individual cheques.
Tomorrows Agenda is as follows

Early Morning meeting of the core committee for E support and website development.
Attending the Thane Court where Tarak Sahibs Bail application will be heard.
Meeting PR agency to discuss PR activity to fight negative campaign.
Collate, and putting material together for Wednesday PIL hearing.

That is all friends.
Proud Speak Asian

Jai Speakasian
Ashok Bahirwani
Secretary
AISPA.