Maha Sabha lawyers denounce pundit's legal action for fresh elections

Lawyers for the incumbent leader of the Sanatan Dharma Maha-Sabha, one of the largest Hindu groups in the country, say their client has been duly elected to serve until September 2023.

Their claim was made in a letter sent to an opposing group on Friday which is seeking to compel the organisation to hold election for the positions of president general and secretary general.

According to the the SDMS's lawyers, the current leader pundit Krishna Rambally was elected a president general on September 15, 2019 following the death of his predecessor pundit Uttam Maharaj in November 2018. Rambally, then first vice president, acted as president general until his appointment, according to the SDMS lawyers.

The lawyers claim on the day of the election there was no other nomination for the position.

In relation to a challenge of the position of secretary general, the SDMS lawyers claim upon the death of then secretary general of Satnarayan Maharaj on November 16, 2019, the assistant secretary, pundit Vijay Maharaj, was appointed to act as secretary general until the organisation held its annual conference in September 2020. He is the son of the former secretary general.

They said that conference has been deferred to 2022 owing to the restrictions imposed by the government to combat the spread of covid19.

Earlier this month, a group led by pundit Bhadase Seetahal Maraj initiated legal action threatening legal action if elections for the two positions were not held in the shortest time.

In a pre-action protocol letter, Seetahal Maraj sent to Vijay Maharaj and Rambally, he is challenging their authority to hold office as secretary-general and president-general, respectively.

According to his legal letter, Seetahal Maraj called on the Maha Sabha to schedule elections for the two top posts with 14 days of face court action.

The SDMS's lawyer is also challenging Seetahal Maraj's claim on the basis that he is the leader of another Hindu group known as the Vishwa Jyoti Organisation.

Attorney Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, SC, his wife, Lynette Maharaj, SC, leads Shaheera Allahar of the law firm Daltons for the SDMS. Attorney Gerald Ramdeen and Dayadai Harripaul are representing Seetahal Maraj.