AMMA row: Ansiba Hassan to implead in the case that stayed the functioning of ad-hoc committee

Actor Ansiba Hassan will file a defense in the case in which the Ernakulam Munsiff Court has stayed the functioning of the special committee constituted at the annual general body meeting of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA).

The court issued a stay order against the ad hoc committee headed by actor and legislator Ramesh Pisharody after AMMA president Shwetha Menon objected to the functioning of the committee on July 3. Mr. Pisharody has since resigned as committee chairman.

Sources from Ms. Hassan’s legal team said, “We will move the petition online today and the court is likely to consider admission within a day or two. Our understanding is that the stay is limited to Mr. Pisharody only. Our client also has a stake in the case.” The next hearing of the case is on July 13.

Rival groups clashed over the interim order; Ms Menon faced significant criticism for insisting that she had not resigned, even though she had publicly stated at the AGM that she and the entire executive committee had resigned. He even announced in front of the media that he was resigning from primary membership of AMMA. But almost two weeks later, Ms. Menon maintained that she was still the president and had not tendered her resignation. However, on the day he received a positive court decision, three members of his committee (Joy Mathew, Jayan Cherthala and Kailash) resigned.

Accepting his argument, the court ruled that the incumbent executive committee could continue the administration until further orders and restrained him from interfering with the functioning of the interim committee. In her defense, Ms. Menon narrated how the committee led by Mohanlal remained in office even after his resignation until a new committee was elected. He also argued that the mandatory two-thirds majority required to terminate the current committee was not achieved at the General Assembly meeting held on June 21.

Since the court decision, a section of the AMMA opposing Ms. Menon has raised doubts about the sanctity of the minutes of the AGM which were submitted to the court for a positive decision. Members like Maala Parvathy alleged that a completely one-sided version of the minutes was presented. There was also controversy over the leak of a telephone conversation between Ms Menon and Mr Pisharody, who expressed concern about a breach of trust.