Poonam, Padmini challenge 'fresh' CINTAA elections

The Cine and TV Artistes’ Association (CINTAA) elections are being held today amid an ongoing legal battle over the authority to conduct the polls.

Poonam Dhillon and Padmini Kolhapure who are on important positions at the CINTAA committee, in an exclusive conversation with media, have called the election process “haphazard” and “one-sided” and maintained that those declared winners will not be able to take office until the pending legal dispute is decided.

Speaking about the High Court proceedings, the duo said the court had allowed the elections to go ahead as the polling date was too close, but the outcome would remain subject to the decision in the pending suit.

Padmini said the legal challenge filed by their side questions the authority and jurisdiction of the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) to enter CINTAA and conduct its elections.

“We have filed that they don't have any authority, no jurisdiction to enter into CINTAA and announce our elections,” she said.

Explaining their understanding of the court's order, C.P. Thakur said the elections could proceed but those elected would not immediately assume office.

“The people who will be the winners of tomorrow's election will not be taking office,” Thakur said.

Padmini further questioned, “But the election process which they have taken up is so haphazard and it is just so one-sided,” she said.

She alleged that people who had submitted their names for the election were themselves unclear about whether their names had been included in the voting list.

“You know, people who have actually given in their names, they don't know whether their names are there, their voting list,” she said.

Padmini also raised questions over the timing of the publication of the final list. She claimed that although it was stated in court on September 8 that the final list had been declared, nominated candidates were allegedly unable to obtain the list until the following morning.

She said the candidates had been asked to send emails because the date and time recorded on an email could establish when the list was actually provided.

“Time mein aap kuch bhi likh sakte ho, lekin email dates ko change nahi kar sakte.” (You can write anything with a particular date, but you cannot change the dates on emails.)

Padmini said they had documents and reports relating to the sequence of events and would leave it to the court to examine the matter.

The election dispute comes amid a wider leadership crisis within CINTAA, following resignations from members of its Executive Committee and disagreements over the association's functioning and administration.

Poonam also expressed disappointment over the manner in which the internal dispute has spilled into the public domain.

“We are really shocked, very disappointed and saddened,” she said, referring to the mud-slinging between former colleagues who had worked together as a team until recently.

Poonam stressed that the dispute should not be reduced to a personal battle between her and Padmini and their opponents, saying that CINTAA represents thousands of artistes.

“They are not talking CINTAA, they are saying Padmini and Poonam, Padmini and Poonam,” Padmini said. “They should be talking CINTAA, we represent CINTAA.”

Poonam added, “It is hurting and it is degrading to all actors because CINTAA is representative of not just 21 members of EC. It is representing 9,000 actors all across films and television,” she said.