Readers' Forum
“Change from within”
What a wonderful letter from B. T. Dastur ("Change from within,” Readers’ Forum, Parsiana, April 21, 2012). Hats off to him for this stunning slap to WAPIZ (World Alliance of Parsi Irani Zarthoshtis) and its trustee Khojeste Mistree, also a Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) trustee. Dastur has not spared BPP chairman Dinshaw Mehta either. Pulling no punches he boldly and rightly blames the chairman for non-performance despite his responsibility as head of the BPP to be accountable to the community for what has not been done.
Before their unholy "wedlock” ended in "divorce,” the BPP chairman and WAPIZ behaved in a joint, collusive, petty manner. They washed dirty linen in public and seemed to enjoy belittling people, even legal luminaries. Readers will recall that Mistree and Mehta had alleged that Iqbal Chagla, a highly respected and admired member of the Bar, was guilty of hurting the sentiments of the Parsi community. Riding a wave of insolence over their initial victory in the "renegade priests” case, they went overboard in their recklessness.
They went even further, asking counsels Jimmy Avasia and Fredun De Vitre who assisted Chagla in the originating summons, to talk some "sense” into their allegedly misleading senior who told the court that the Zoroastrian priesthood had no high or low priests.
And pray, what do we see now? A volte face of sorts? These same wonderful people in the BPP arranged a felicitation function honoring the newly appointed advocate general Darius Khambata recently. To the dismay of the BPP, at his felicitation Khambata declared that he owes everything that he is today to Chagla.
It is hoped that the days of tyranny and terrorism by the BPP will result in no more "sudreh tearing” or "bone breaking,” since their wild adventurism stands exposed to the community. From the Roshni Maloo affair, to Dr Meher Master-Moos and a Russian Zoroastrian suffering indignities, to the illegal film shooting at Khareghat Colony, to the episode at Rustom Baug where BPP trustee Jimmy Mistry’s personal bodyguards tangled with voters during the by-elections, everybody can see what Dastur has superbly brought into focus.
RASHID G. KHOSRAVI
Before their unholy "wedlock” ended in "divorce,” the BPP chairman and WAPIZ behaved in a joint, collusive, petty manner. They washed dirty linen in public and seemed to enjoy belittling people, even legal luminaries. Readers will recall that Mistree and Mehta had alleged that Iqbal Chagla, a highly respected and admired member of the Bar, was guilty of hurting the sentiments of the Parsi community. Riding a wave of insolence over their initial victory in the "renegade priests” case, they went overboard in their recklessness.
They went even further, asking counsels Jimmy Avasia and Fredun De Vitre who assisted Chagla in the originating summons, to talk some "sense” into their allegedly misleading senior who told the court that the Zoroastrian priesthood had no high or low priests.
And pray, what do we see now? A volte face of sorts? These same wonderful people in the BPP arranged a felicitation function honoring the newly appointed advocate general Darius Khambata recently. To the dismay of the BPP, at his felicitation Khambata declared that he owes everything that he is today to Chagla.
It is hoped that the days of tyranny and terrorism by the BPP will result in no more "sudreh tearing” or "bone breaking,” since their wild adventurism stands exposed to the community. From the Roshni Maloo affair, to Dr Meher Master-Moos and a Russian Zoroastrian suffering indignities, to the illegal film shooting at Khareghat Colony, to the episode at Rustom Baug where BPP trustee Jimmy Mistry’s personal bodyguards tangled with voters during the by-elections, everybody can see what Dastur has superbly brought into focus.
RASHID G. KHOSRAVI
◆ ◆ ◆
From the archive