The two rival groups, one headed by Mian Misbahur Rehman and the other by Ziaur Rehman, are going head-to-head in the polls. Each group has 12 candidates. The campaign is going on full swing and dinners are being arranged to woo members for their precious votes, sources explained.
The Zia panel complains that the rules have amended to allow the incumbents. In the CoM’s 2001 AGM, a majority decided that a member could not contest elections more than six times. In AGM 2009, it was decided to restrict a position on the CoM for two years.
On December 4, the AGM 2010 headed by Mian Misbah-ur-Rehman relaxed previous rulings and allowed certain candidates from the sitting CoM to contest elections. When Nawabzada Farooq Khan, 72, questioned this decision, he was physically assaulted by CoM sitting member Zahid Nabi Malik.
Mmebers regretted that Mian Misbahur Rehman instead of reprimanding Malik, had included him in his panel for the 2011 elections and passed derogatory remarks about Khan.
According to the club’s official record, since 2001, Mian Misbahur Rehman has been elected to the CoM seven times while Malik has been elected to the same committee six times. Both are contesting the 2011 elections against the decisions of AGM 2001 and 2008, members claimed.
Malik denied that any physical assault took place, saying it was just a push from both sides at the end of the meeting. He said that he had had very cordial relations with Khan in the past. He said the minutes of 2001 and 2008 meetings were not passed till 2009. In 2009, the condition of two terms was implemented. Rehman and Malik then stood for election in 2010 and were, according to Malik, eligible to stand one more time in 2011.
There are 7,000 members in four categories, including 3,915 permanent members, who are entitled to cast a vote in the upcoming elections. Sources further allege that the incumbent CoM nominated a three member Election Commission (EC) comprising Justices (retired) Khalid Pal, Sharif Bokhari and Fazal Miran Chohan. Bokhari an A-category member was should not have been a member of the EC as rules allow only permanent members to be nominated, sources said.
In the Annual Audit Report 2010, a loss of Rs50 million was detected in the financial affairs of the club. Rs16.176 million was lost in the food and beverage sector, Rs17 million in sports and Rs13million in the administrative affairs of the club. Senior members, speaking on the condition of anonymity, pointed fingers at the CoM headed by Mian Misbahur Rehman.
Zahid Nabi Malik said that the loss in the food and beverage sector was due to the huge subsidy in food and sports its members got. Over staffing, he claimed, was another source of the loss. He added that Rs10.6 million was lost in 2009 under then chairperson Tasneem Noorani.
Sources also claim that about three years ago, a fraud of Rs10 million came to light at the Shoppe, a retail store established on the Gymkhana’s premises. Permanent member Zia Haider Rizvi was the convener of the shop and it was discovered that the contract for supplying soft drinks and juices was awarded to a firm owned by Rizvi’s son. An FIR was registered against three officials. However, the Rizvis were spared and no money has been recovered so far.
Sources further allege that the administration outsourced the Shoppe on an annual rent of Rs1.5 million to a business man who was a friend of the sitting chairman. The annual sale of the Shoppe was recorded above Rs100 million which was causing the club losses in the millions.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 28th, 2010.
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