MOM IESM : 07 Oct 2015

MINUTES OF IESM GOVERNING BODY MEETING

HELD ON 07 OCTOBER 2015

General

1.        The IESM Governing Body (GB) meeting was held on 7/10/2015. The GB was meeting after a long gap - the last meeting was held on 23/3/2015 - as the General Secretary had failed to call a meeting despite being advised.

Review of Pending Points

2.        It was decided in the last meeting that in compliance with the IESM MoA,  the accounts from Jan 2013 onward would be shown to and countersigned by the Chairman on 7/4/2015. However, the three operators of the account (Vice Chairman Maj Gen Satbir Singh, Treasurer Wg Cdr CK Sharma and Gen Secy Gp Capt VK Gandhi) did not comply with the decision. Stressing the point that opaqueness in the accounts would lead to suspicion, the GB again urged the three to ensure compliance of the earlier GB decision.

Update on Court Cases

3.        The GB was updated on the progress of the following cases:

a)    Writ petitions filed by Gp Capt VK Gandhi in the Punjab & Haryana High Court against dissolution of the GB by the IESM general body on 28/7/2013 and its approval by the District as well as the State Registrar.

b)   Hearing in Gurgaon court of the charges of misappropriation, fraud and cheating of IESM funds by Vice Chairman Maj Gen Satbir Singh, Treasurer Wg Cdr CK Sharma and Gen Secy Gp Capt VK Gandhi.

Review of IESM actions on OROP

4.        The GB recalled the sustained efforts from 2008 to 2014  made by the IESM in bringing OROP to the front burner and in gradually whittling down Govt opposition to it. This resulted in finally acceptance of OROP by the Govt in Parliament on 17/2/2014. Those successful efforts and the strategy should be reinforced to finally see OROP through.

Core Values of IESM

5.        The GB again stressed the IESM commitment to its core values such as:

a)    OROP being the main demand, keep focus on it.

b)   Keeping the actions confined to veterans' issues and not delve into any matter pertaining to the serving.

c)    Keep the IESM totally apolitical and not let IESM be aligned with any political party, nor permit any politician on own stage.

d)   A soldier's life is sacred and is meant to be sacrificed only on the battlefield for the national cause; no fast undo death.  

e)    Maintain dignity and not use any derogatory or abusive language/gestures against any political/military leader. 

 6.       The GB noted with concern violation of above values by certain individuals and illegally misusing the IESM name/banner during such actions. The GB resolved that the IESM fully dissociates itself from any such activity. 

Actions at Jantar Mantar

7.        The GB appreciated the efforts made by some colleagues to highlight OROP issue further. However, it noted that efforts not are synonymous with results. So far there has been no concrete result.   The old 2008-2014 strategy should have continued to be followed to wear down the Govt. There was a greater chance of success even if took longer.  Putting the issue avoidably on full boil has come at a heavy price. It has led to following apparent negatives:

a)    The Govt announced a greatly diluted version of OROP.

b)   With our strident rhetoric against the Govt, all channels of communication are closed, rendering any further negotiation extremely difficult.

c)    The one-time public support is getting weaker; as is evident from voices on social media.

d)   The media has cooled off.

e)    The fulcrum of officer-man bondage is coming unstuck, with the JCOs/OR paving their own way. 

Propaganda and Falsehood

8.        The Jantar Mantar has become a notorious font of falsehoods and propaganda by self-appointed media advisors/experts. The reports say, there has been smear campaign against the Chairman in absentia. Some of the yarn being spun is a mix of old and new misinformation. A few examples:

a)    Blocking of IESM Accounts.

Fact -           The bank had no business to block the account. It has been done at the behest of the account operators -  Maj Gen Satbir Singh,   Wg Cdr CK Sharma and Gp Capt VK Gandhi. They got it done to find a pretext to collect funds in cash. To this end, they even misused the influence of one Mr G Singh, who is senior officer in the bank hierarchy and is a close relative of one of these three individuals. Such allegation is a clear case of villains playing victims.

b) The Chairman had joined CWG only to scuttle OROP.

Fact -              The Chairman joined CWG on 30/1/2008 much before IESM was even conceived. Even being in the CWG, he was the first to court arrest, first to deposit his medals, first to sit for 24 hours hunger strike and led all the rallies at Jantar Mantar. His employment with the CWG in no way interfered with his leading the struggle for OROP.

c)           The Four JCOs that Complained of wrong-doing in the 2012                              IESM elections all belonged to Chairman's Village.

Fact -    This lie was told by Maj Gen Satbir Singh and   Gp Capt VK Gandhi during hearing before the State Registrar. The Registrar merely looked at the four petitions in the file placed before him where the petitioners had given their home addresses. When he found that not only four different villages but they belonged to even different districts, he openly mocked at the accusers.  Unfortunately, the eight officers who got into the GB through backdoor by skulduggery and by cheating the JCO/OR candidates, and who have no moral right to continue, are feeling peeved that the election process was successfully challenged by some who were wronged. So much for the Chetwode motto!

d)           The Chairman used to meet the RM alone.

Fact:     The Chairman had been meeting the RM since 2009 both in (several) delegations as well as alone. Details of all such meetings were always disseminated through sitreps. Apart from other tangible outcome, these meetings contributed greatly   in the OROP finally coming through. The entire GB was happy with this. It was only after 24/7/2013 when a meeting of the general body was summoned and GB feared dissolution due to their financial and election irregularities, that the GB members began finding non-existent faults. Even in Dec 2012, the Chairman was re-elected  unopposed. If there had been any grouse on this or any other score, the same would not have been possible. 

9.           The propagandists have also been circulating messages castigating the country for their ingratitude towards the armed forces. This is totally uncalled for and unwarranted, as the country has always stood by and continues to stand by the defence forces. There can be no better example of picking at one's healthiest tooth. Even worse, messages through social media are frequently being circulated  attempting to cause dissatisfaction among the serving. This is nothing short of sedition.

Unauthorised use of IESM designations

10.      It was noted by the GB with concern that the Vice Chairman Maj Gen Satbir Singh, continues to  show  himself as the Chairman in various communications, which is illegal and incorrect.  The Chairman clarified that he had advised the Vice Chairman not to do so. However, the Vice Chairman's  ambition seems to override his prudence and maturity. The GB authorised the Chairman to take whatever action deemed appropriate in this regard.    

Jantar Mantar Accounts

11. Members brought out that large amount of funds have been collected, including in cash, at Jantar Mantar in the name of IESM and no accounts have been rendered so far. This is bringing bad name to the organisation. The fund collection must be made transparent and must be accounted for. After discussion, it was decided that the three functionaries (Vice Chairman Maj Gen Satbir Singh, Treasurer Wg Cdr CK Sharma and Gen Secy Gp Capt VK Gandhi), be asked to put in a tabulated form on the net and social media, following details of the funds collected from 14/6/2015 onward:

a) Date of receipt of funds

b) Name of the donor/contributor

c) Amount donated/contributed

d) Mode of payment ie Crossed cheque/self cheque/cash

e) Name of bank and account number where deposited

12.      In case the threesome fail to comply with the request, the GB will take whatever further action it deems correct and necessary.

Critical Pending Issues of OROP

13.      As a take-off from the Defence Minister's Press conference of 5/9/2015, the following two issues remain to be pursued.

a)           Periodicity of Pension Equalisation.

                This forms the very principle of OROP.   Anything other than the annual equalisation will render the definition of OROP null and void.  Unfortunately the veterans' position has already been compromised by Maj Gen Satbir Singh, who without any authority, agreed to a two-yearly periodicity. Thus the principle stands sacrificed for expediency. Getting the Govt to agree now to change to the annual frequency will be an uphill task, but must be tried.

b)            Fixing of Bench Mark for Pension.

                The Press conference talked of taking the lowest and the highest pension of a sample population of a rank and taking the mean figure as the bench mark. The 'mean' or average will lead to one rank many pensions, thus nullifying the very basis of OROP.  An alternative method as worked out earlier by the Defence Minister himself, needs to be adhered to.

Closing Points

14.          The GB reaffirmed the IESM resolve to pursue OROP till finality. However, dealing with a complicated issue and with a farrago of ranks/categories of the veteran community requires patience and negotiating deftness; open confrontation, creating hype through provocative sloganeering is not the best option. 

 

Lt Gen Raj Kadyan

Chairman IESM

& Adviser UF ESM