Court in Canada has urge Sikh group
to do referendum on society by-laws
Kalgidhar Darbar Sahib Society at Abbotsford.
Vancouver, July 10, 2005
A court in Canada has urged a Sikh group to decide
its by-laws through a referendum.
The Supreme Court in Canada's British Columbia province
gave its ruling in a case relating to the Kalgidhar
Darbar Sahib Society at Abbotsford.
The case, concerning irregularities in the society's
by-laws, ended July 5 with the court ordering the
members to resolve their dispute through a referendum
within 10 days.
A majority vote in the referendum must now decide
any amendments to the by-laws, the constitution and
the selection procedure of the executive committee
of the society.
A petition in the court by Pargat Singh Atwal and
some 100 others had questioned the selection process
of the temporary executive committee of the society,
saying it did not comply with the by-laws.
The respondents, Kalgidhar Darbar Sahib Society and
a member, argued that an order confirming the committee
could be rectified within the ambit of the by-laws.
Neither the petitioners nor the respondents have
the essential 75 percent of support from members to
make any amendments.
Ever since its incorporation in May 1989, members
of the society have run into disputes. One such
row centred on the use of chairs and tables at the
langar hall of the temple.
Following a court order, an executive committee was
elected in November 1998. It favoured the use of tables
and chairs in the langar hall.
This led some society members to organise worship
at a makeshift temple on Cyril Street without the
use of tables and chairs. But they soon acquired land
on Blueridge Drive in Abbotsford for a permanent temple.
The situation was further complicated by a dispute
regarding the list of members entitled to vote at
general meetings. The court ruled that a list of members
produced by the society's president Gurmail Singh
Brar must be upheld.
(IANS)
