Filing failures

Claiming that "dozens of files are missing from the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP),” BPP chairman Yazdi Desai sent an email dated August 30, 2016 to the BPP chief executive officer Cawas Panthaki to instruct the staff "not to give any information or documents to BPP trustees Viraf (Mehta) and Armaity (Tirandaz) unless approved by the board. Say these are instructions from chairman because Viraf and Armaity are acting against interests of trust and BPP. Ronny and Mahiyar are readily giving all information. Fire them!”
Explaining his action in a message that was circulated on WhatsApp on September 19, Desai stated "all files in regards to hoardings in different colonies each and every file, is missing. Housing files of certain ‘friends’ of the Mehta family are missing.
"Viraf Mehta asks for many files to be sent to him to the boardroom when he is alone. Then we are not able to verify how many come back or are lost.

Office of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet

"All files disappear if there are ‘problems’ associated with the issue. Initially Viraf insisted that he be allowed to take files home — we refused to allow that.
"Now he takes files into the boardroom — relevant and important papers may ‘permanently disappear’ from the file.
"We will lay down a procedure for written requests from trustees to be received and all the pages of the files to be numbered to prevent any further disappearance of files and/or papers.”
Desai noted that in 2008 former BPP chairman Dinshaw Mehta "did the same to (BPP trustee) Noshir Dadrawala… refusing to give him many papers and forcing him to approach the Charity Commissioner (CC).” Desai said that they were not doing the same thing but needed "time to find a way to protect our files… These are the facts and the real reasons for my action. Not lack of transparency.”
In a WhatsApp message also circulated on September 19 Dinshaw hit back stating that it was "only after the ban on Jam-e-Jamshed and Dr Farokh Master’s… allotment were exposed to the community by a vigilant Press that both Viraf and Armaity are being so badly treated by refusing them access to any information, including draft minutes which has nothing to do with files. All this talk of files missing is only to make a melodramatic excuse for their own lack of transparency...
"The filing system of BPP is so archaic that when required no files are traceable. They are all dumped in a godown in Bhabha Sanatorium… If a file is given to Viraf or Armaity then it is noted and taken back by staff from them. The staff is supposed to sit with them during inspection hence withdrawal of any paper as alleged is not possible.”