Ezhava leader's son Thushar Vellappally, and NDA ally, says issue will be sorted in a few days, urges Yogam members to stand united

The Kerala High Court on Thursday disqualified prominent Hindu community leader Vellappally Natesan and his son Thushar Vellappally as directors of the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP Yogam).

A Bench of Justice T R Ravi issued the order after hearing a batch of petitions challenging the continuation of the Natesan family at the helm of the Yogam. One of the petitioners was literary critic M K Sanu, who died last year.

While Natesan is known for his pro-CPI(M) approach, his son is the president of Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS), an NDA ally in Kerala. On Republic Day this year, Natesan was conferred the Padma Bhushan. Petitions seeking its directions quashing the award are also before the court.

The order may have political implications as it may reshape internal power equations within the organisation and potentially affect how sections of the Ezhava community aligns politically, particularly at a time when both the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the NDA have sought to court the community, which makes up around 24% of the state’s population, ahead of the coming Assembly polls.The SNDP Yogam, founded in 1903 to propagate the teachings of social reformer Sree Narayana Guru and represent the interests of the Ezhava community, is one of the largest caste-based organisations in Kerala. In recent years, Natesan has also been part of attempts to bring together major Hindu community organisations such as the SNDP Yogam and the Nair Service Society (NSS), which represents the influential Nair community, which constitutes around 12% of the population.

The proposed SNDP-NSS coordination, discussed in several meetings between Natesan and NSS leadership including general secretary G Sukumaran Nair, was seen as an effort to consolidate Hindu social groups in the state’s political landscape, though it failed to evolve into a formal alliance after Nair withdrew from any unity efforts following the Padma Bhushan for Natesan.

What did the court observe?

Acting on petitions filed in 2024, the High Court has issued a set of directions. The court quashed an order of the state Inspector General of Registration that declined to consider the disqualification of the Yogam directors. It held that Natesan and his son stand disqualified under Section 164(2) of the Companies Act, 2013 and are not eligible for reappointment as directors due to non-compliance with statutory requirements.

The Yogam is deemed to be a public company under applicable laws. According to Section 274(1)(g) of the Companies Act, 1956, a person is disqualified as a director of a public company if the company has not filed annual accounts and returns for any continuous period of three financial years.

The petitioners contended that the Yogam failed to file such returns from 2006-07 to 2016-17, until 2020, and that the directors had thus incurred disqualification from 2009 onwards. Earlier, when the issue was raised before the Inspector General of Registration, it was dismissed on the ground that the parties should seek remedies before a civil court.

The court said no person would be eligible to be reappointed as a director of the SNDP Yogam unless they possess a Director Identification Number (DIN). It also held that the two cannot hold office under the provisions of the Kerala Non-Trading Companies Act, 1961 as they do not possess a DIN. As per the order, Natesan and others have to vacate office.

Reacting to the order, Thushar in a video message said he was seeking legal remedies. “The issue may be sorted in a few days but we have to be united. The SNDP Yogam board members have applied for a DIN,” he added.

The court also directed the state government to appoint directors on an interim basis until new directors are elected after a general body meeting of the Yogam. The other two directors of the Yogam are Dr M N Soman, the president of the organisation, and Arayakandil Santhosh, a board member.

The petitioners had sought a declaration that the directors were disqualified, a direction to conduct a free and fair election, and a ruling that the Yogam has no control over its unions or branches.

The court noted that the Yogam has more than 32 lakh members and administers multiple educational institutions, besides overseeing microfinance credit and financial distribution of around Rs 4,500 crore. “The public interest lies in ensuring that the Yogam is governed legally and properly, and not for satisfying private interests of the office bearers,” the court observed.

The court also found that Natesan and others had continued in office even after the expiry of their term. Their election in 2015 could not be legally justified since not all members were permitted to vote. A division bench of the High Court had earlier held that the directors assumed office in 2015 and have continued since then on the strength of invalid provisions in the Articles of Association. Without conducting an election, the respondents managed to remain at the helm of the Yogam.

“In the above factual background, if the contention of the counsel of the respondents that the ineligibility has ended is accepted, it would, in effect, be subscribing to and perpetuating an illegality,” the court said.