NAME

The Party shall be known as “PARTI GERAKAN RAKYAT MALAYSIA”, and in English “MALAYSIAN PEOPLE’S MOVEMENT PARTY”.

ADDRESS

The Registered Office of the Party and its postal address shall be at No. 8, Jalan Pudu Ulu, Level 5, Menara PGRM, Cheras, 56100 Kuala Lumpur, or at such other address as is approved by and registered with the Registrar of Societies, Malaysia.

Its place of meeting shall be at the Registered Office or at such other place as may from time to time be decided on by the Central Committee.

The Secretariat of the Party shall be established at the registered office of the Party or at such other place as may be determined by the Central Committee and shall be managed and controlled by the Central Working Committee through the Secretary General.

The emblem of the Party shall be five golden stalks of twelve grains of padi on a green background, enclosed in a white equilateral triangle.

The flag of the Party shall have a red background with the said emblem in the centre.

To honour and uphold the Constitution of Malaysia and to sustain the tenets of the Rukunegara.

Egalitarian Malaysian Society

To strive for an egalitarian Malaysian Society based on humanitarian and democratic principles and to ensure social and economic justice by :-

1. eliminating any exploitation and giving full opportunity to everyone for legitimate economic advancement;
2. promoting a just and equitable distribution of wealth;
3. providing adequate and efficient facilities and amenities with proper regulatory control to ensure fair and just pricing;
4. ensuring the ownership of economic lots of land by the peasants and others and their efficient utilization;
5. encouraging and promoting healthy trade unionism and uplifting the conditions and standard of living of the working population;
6. eliminating all forms of gender-based discrimination.

Unity

To preserve and strengthen the unity and the happiness of the people in a spirit of understanding, tolerance and goodwill.

To promote and ensure the economic and cultural advancement of all communities in the development of national identity.

Advancement Of The Poor And The Backward
To eliminate the conditions which cause economic backwardness amongst our people; to protect the economically weak from exploitation and to encourage, assist and strengthen their participation in economic activities.

Civil And Other Services
To ensure well organised and efficient civil and other services.

Family
To uphold the institution of the family. 

Religious Tolerance
To encourage and promote respect and tolerance for the religious life of all communities.

Anti Corruption
To eliminate corruption in all forms. 

Languages
To uphold Bahasa Malaysia as the National Language, to preserve and sustain the use and study of the Chinese, Tamil, English and other languages of the Malaysian communities. 

Free Education
To provide free education for children up to the age of 18.

Co-operation With Other Political Organisations
To co-operate with other political organisations with similar aims and objects on a Malaysian basis in joint political activities. 

Membership shall be classified into three categories :-

1. Ordinary Membership for individual persons;
2. Life Membership for individual persons;
3. Affiliated Membership for individual organisations.

For Ordinary Membership
Membership of the Party shall be open to Malaysian citizens who:-

1. are at least 18 years of age;
2. agree and undertake to abide by the Constitution and to adhere to the programmes, principles and the policies of the Party;
3. are not members of any other political party; and

4. are not in any way disqualified to participate in any political party or organisation as defined in the Societies Act, 1966.

For Life Membership
A Life Member shall be appointed, from among the ordinary members who have been in the Party for at least 20 years and have been active in branch, division, state or national level, at the discretion of and by the Central Committee.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

Affiliated Membership is open to any organisation registered within Malaysia which has declared its support for the objects of the Party and accepts the conditions of affiliated membership, and agrees to abide by them.

No organisation may be accepted as an Affiliated Member unless it satisfies the following conditions :-

1. that it accepts and agrees to adhere to the programmes, principles and policies of the Party; 
2. that it agrees to abide by this Constitution and the Rules applicable to Affiliated Members from time to time; 
3. that it submits its constitution and political programmes for approval by the Central Committee;
4. that it pays its yearly subscriptions

The Party shall have a Council of not more than 300 Life Members consisting of all the Founder members and those appointed under Art 9.2. When the number of Life Members is less than 300 or where a Life Member ceases to be a Life Member either by death, resignation or otherwise, the Central Committee shall have the power to appoint another Life Member to fill up the vacancy thereof.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

a.The Council of Life Members shall in the year of election once in every 3 years elect 6 life members to the Central Committee.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

b.The term of the 6 Life Members to the Central Committee shall end upon the election of the new Central Committee Members at the Annual General Meeting of the Life Members Council.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

Notice of any election meeting shall be sent by the Secretary General to the members of the Council of Life Members at least twenty one days before the date of such meeting.

b.No Life Member may be elected to the Party Immovable Property Committee unless he has held office in the Central Committee for at least 5 years;

c.Members of the Party Immovable Property Committee shall be elected for a term of 3 years.

 Am.
30 Jan. 1997

The President or any other Life Member duly authorized by him shall chair any meeting of the Council of Life Members. 

An intending member shall submit his application for membership in such form as the Central Working Committee may from time to time prescribe together with his entrance fee and subscription for the current year to the Secretary General or to the Secretary of the Branch of the area in which he works or resides. The Branch Secretary shall forward such application to the Secretary General within seven days upon receipt of such application.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

Every application for membership shall be submitted for approval to the Secretary General who shall tender the approved application for confirmation by the Central Working Committee at its next meeting.

On confirmation of the application by the Central Working Committee, the Secretary General shall cause the member to be registered with the Branch in the area where the member resides or works or as directed by the Central Working Committee and shall inform the Branch and the applicant accordingly as well as issuing him with a membership card. 

The applicant shall be entitled to exercise all the rights of membership and enjoy its benefits upon approval of his application and confirmation by the Central Working Committee or upon approval of his appeal by the Central Committee.

 Am.

24 Aug. 2003

In the event of the application for membership failing either to be approved by the Secretary General or to be confirmed by the Central Working Committee,the applicant shall be so informed within one month of the decision. He shall be entitled within one month of his being informed of the rejection of his application to appeal to the Central Committee which shall deal with the appeal and its decision shall be final.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

An applicant may appeal to the President for a decision if he does not receive any notification from the Secretary General on the result of his application within two months after its submission. 

A person shall be deemed to have been admitted as a member of the Party as from the date of approval of his application and confirmation by the Central Working Committee or approval of his appeal by the Central Committee.

Am. 

24 Aug. 2003

The Central Committee or the Central Working Committee may reject any application without assigning any reason thereof. 

* Am.
30 Sept. 2001

b.subscription for an Ordinary Member shall be:

(i) RM2.00 per year; or

* (ii) A one-time payment of RM50.00;

The subscription is payable annually on or before 30th June of the year,provided that if the Ordinary Member elects to pay the one-time payment referred to in Article 12.1(b) (ii), then that Ordinary Member need not pay the subscription annually for the subsequent years.

 Am.

30 Sept. 2001

Any member who allows his arrears to exceed two years’ subscription shall automatically cease to be a member of the Party. He may, however, be reinstated on payment of all the arrears at the discretion of the Central Working Committee.

The Central Working Committee may impose on members special subscriptions or levies for any purpose. If any member fails to pay such special subscriptions or levies within such period as may be resolved, the amount due shall be treated in the same manner as arrears of annual subscription.

The Central Working Committee shall have the power to waive the dues of any member on grounds of hardship on receipt of an application from the member concerned.

Unless otherwise provided for in this Constitution, a member shall be
entitled :- 

c.to hold such office in the Party to which he may be duly elected or
appointed; and

d.to have access to and to make such reasonable use of such facilities as the Party may provide

A member is not entitled to vote in any meeting or a Party election unless he is a voting member, a duly elected or appointed delegate or unless he has obtained approval in writing from the Central Working Committee.

Am.
30 Sept. 2001

A member is not entitled to stand as a candidate in a Party election unless he is an eligible candidate as defined under Article 41 of this constitution or unless he has obtained approval in writing from the Central Working Committee.

Am.
24 Oct. 1997 

An Affiliated Member shall not be entitled to any right except to nominate such representatives when called upon by the Central Committee of the Party to do so from time to time to sit in the Central Committee or in any other committee or sub-committee for any specific or general purpose. Such nominated representatives of an Affiliated Member shall not have the right to vote. 

Am.
30 Sept. 2001

A member whose place of residence or place of work has been located within the area of another Branch may apply for transfer to the new Branch by submitting an application in triplicate in the prescribed form to the Secretary General.

The Secretary General shall approve the application unless he is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds against the transfer.

The Secretary General shall notify the existing Branch as well as the Branch to which he is transferred by sending to the Secretaries of each of the Branches concerned a copy of the application for transfer together with the approval given.

A member who wishes to resign from the Party shall give 30 days’ notice in writing to his Branch Secretary and a copy to the Central Working Committee through the Secretary General and shall return his membership card and properties belonging to the Party and shall pay up all dues. 

The Branch Secretary shall immediately notify the Secretaries of his Division and State Liaison Committee of the resignation.

No notice of resignation shall be accepted from any member who has to exculpate himself of any disciplinary charge or proceeding against him by virtue of the provisions under Article 17 of this Constitution.

An Affiliated Member may resign its membership by giving 30 days’ notice in writing to the Secretary General. The Secretary General shall report such resignation to the Central Working Committee.

Any member who is known or shown to be a person disqualified from being a member under Article 9 or has ceased to have the requisite qualifications for membership may be deprived of his membership by the Central Working Committee.

No person shall be deprived of his membership unless an inquiry has been held to determine whether he suffers from the offending disqualification. For the purpose of holding such inquiry the Central Working Committee shall appoint a special sub-committee of not fewer than three members who shall, after hearing all the evidence in the matter, make its recommendations to the Central Working Committee for its decision.

Am
29 Sept 2012

The Central Working Committee may suspend any member of the Party for conduct prejudicial to the interest of the Party pending investigations. Such suspension shall be reviewed every 6 months if not lifted earlier. During the suspension, the member concerned shall not take part in any Party activity and shall be deemed to be also suspended from any elected or appointed Party post.

Am.
30 Sept. 2001

Any member disobeying the Constitution or Rules or causing dissension and division in the Party shall be called upon by the Central Working Committee or its delegated sub-committee /bureau to show cause why he should not be expelled from the Party. 

The Central Working Committee shall, after the lapse of the period given to him to show cause, or after hearing any representation made by the member concerned or by any other person or persons on his behalf, make a decision to exonerate, expel or punish the member as it deems fit. 

Any member not satisfied with the decision of the Central Working Committee has a right to appeal to the Central Committee within 14 days of his being notified of such a decision by the Central Working Committee. The decision of the Central Committee thereon shall be final and shall not be challenged in any court of law.

The Central Working Committee may for purposes of investigations and enquiries delegate its powers to a sub-committee or a bureau of not fewer than three members. However for investigations and enquiries into a member of the Council of Life Members, the sub-committee being set up shall consist entirely of members of the Council.

Am.
30 Sept. 2001

Every Branch, Division and State Liaison Committee shall keep a register of its members in a form prescribed by the Secretary General.

The Party Secretariat shall keep a Register of all members at its registered office.

Such registers shall be brought up to date from time to time and any change in the membership shall be submitted to the Secretary General for confirmation.

On the death or expulsion of a member, his membership shall be deemed to have ceased and his name shall be struck off from the register of members.

A register of members, wherever kept, shall be made available for inspection by a member on giving 14 days’ notice in writing to the Secretaries of his Branch, Division or State or to the Secretary General as the case may be.

A Branch may be established in an area, with at least 50 members,
corresponding to a polling district or a combination of polling districts within the same state constituency or as otherwise approved by the Central Working Committee. The maximum number of Branches established in a Division shall not exceed 18 unless the Central Working Committee with the approval of the Central Committee in consultation with the State Liaison Committee concerned decides otherwise provided that such additional Branches shall not
exceed 6. Such Branches shall be equally distributed among the number of state constituencies in the Division unless as otherwise approved by the Central Working Committee.

Am
01 Nov. 2009

A Branch so established shall be known by the same name as the name of the polling district or of one of the polling districts in which the branch is established or by any other name approved by the Central Working Committee in consultation with the State Working Committee.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

No Branch may be established without having obtained the approval of the Central Working Committee in consultation with the State Liaison Committee concerned and the approval of the Registrar of Societies, Malaysia.

a.A Chairman to be elected from amongst the members of the Branch or appointed by the Central Working Committee as provided for in Article 78.3;

Am.
24 Oct. 1997

b.one or more Vice Chairmen to be appointed by the Chairman from
amongst the committee members;

c.a Secretary to be appointed by the Chairman from amongst the
committee members;

d.an Assistant Secretary, if deemed necessary, to be appointed by the
Secretary from amongst the committee members;

e.a Treasurer to be appointed by the Chairman from amongst the
committee members;

f.a Central Liaison Officer to be assigned or appointed by the Central
Working Committee;

g.the ordinary committee members consisting of :-

i) the Chairwoman of the Branch’s Women’s Wing, if any; 

ii) the Chairman of the Branch’s Youth Wing, if any; 

iii) 6 other members to be elected from amongst the members of the Branch; 

iv) such other members, not exceeding 3 in number, may be appointed by the Central Working Committee.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003
[(i) to (iii)]

A member who is a Member of the State Legislative Assembly or of
Parliament in the constituency covering the Branches shall be an ex-officio member of all the Branch committees unless he has already been elected or appointed as an office bearer.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003 

a.A Branch committee may establish Branch Bureaux from amongst the members of the Branch;

Am.
24 Aug. 2003 

b.(i) A sub-branch may be established within a branch corresponding to a polling district or its localities or as otherwise approved by the State Working Committee;
(ii) Each sub-branch shall consist of not less than 20 members
(iii) There shall not be more than 12 sub-branches within a branch;
(iv) A sub-branch shall consist of one chairman and 6 committee
members.

Add
24 Aug. 2003
[(i) to (iv)]

A Women/Youth Wing may be established in a Branch in accordance with the Rules and Regulations approved by the Central Committee.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003 

A Branch shall elect its office bearers during the year of election once in every three years.

Am.
2 Sept. 2006 

A Branch shall elect to its Division one delegate for every complete 25 voting members or part thereof on its qualifying membership register. Provided always that every Branch shall be entitled to be represented by at least 3 but not more than 10 delegates of whom one shall be the Branch Chairman.

Am.
2 Sept. 2006 

A Branch shall elect to its State Delegates’ Conference two delegates from the voting members on its qualifying membership register of whom one shall be the Chairman.

A Branch Chairman shall automatically be a delegate to the National
Delegates’ Conference unless he is already an existing Central Committee member (Article 35.1(a)), in which case he shall appoint in writing another delegate from amongst the members of the Branch Committee.

Am.
2 Sept. 2006

A Branch shall not be entitled to elect any delegate in a year of election in which the Branch does not have at least 50 voting members.

A Division shall be established in a Parliamentary constituency with at least 4 Branches.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003 

A Division so established shall be known by the same name as the
Parliamentary constituency in which the Division is established.

No Division may be established without having obtained the approval of the Central Working Committee in consultation with the State Liaison Committee concerned and the approval of the Registrar of Societies, Malaysia.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003 

a.a Chairman to be elected from amongst the Branch delegates to the
Division or appointed by the Central Working Committee as provided for in Article 78.3; 

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

b.one or more Vice Chairmen to be appointed by the Chairman from
amongst the committee members;

c.a Secretary to be appointed by the Chairman from amongst the
committee members; 

d.an Assistant Secretary, if deemed necessary, to be appointed by the
Secretary from amongst the committee members; 

e.a Treasurer to be appointed by the Chairman from amongst the
committee members;

f.a Central Liaison Officer to be assigned or appointed by the Central
Working Committee;

g.the ordinary committee members consisting of :-
i) the Chairwoman of the Division’s Women’s Wing, if any;
ii) the Chairman of the Division’s Youth Wing, if any;
iii) all Chairmen of the Branches, or in the event that the Chairman of any Branch is elected as the chairman of the Division, the Branch Committee concerned may elect another representative;
iv) 6 other members to be elected from amongst the Branch delegates to the Division;
v) such other members, not exceeding 3 in number, as may be
appointed by the Central Working Committee.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003
[(i) to (iv)]

A member who is a member of the State Legislative Assembly or of
Parliament of the Constituency within the Division shall be a member of the committee unless he has already been elected or appointed as an office bearer.

Am.
30 Jan. 1997

DIVISION BUREAUX

A Division committee may establish Division Bureaux from amongst members within the Division.

A Women/Youth Wing may be established in a Division in accordance with the Rules and Regulations approved by the Central Committee.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003 

A Division shall elect its office bearers during the year of election once in every three years.

Am.
2 Sept. 2006 

A Division shall elect to its State Delegates’ Conference one delegate from amongst the Division delegates. The delegate shall be the Division Chairman unless he is already a delegate by virtue of Article 23.3. 

Am.
30 Sept. 2001 

A Division shall elect three delegates from amongst the delegates of the Division to the National Delegates’ Conference. One of the delegates shall be the Division Chairman unless he is already a delegate by virtue of Article 23.4 or Article 35.1.

Am.
30 Sept. 2001 

A Division shall not be entitled to elect any delegate in a year of election in which the Division does not have at least 4 Branches with a minimum of 50 voting members in each Branch.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

A State Delegates’ Conference shall be established in a State where there are at least two Divisions.

A State Delegates’ Conference shall consist of delegates elected from
amongst the voting members of the Branches and the delegates of the
Divisions in the same state. 

Am.
30 Sept. 2001 

In a state without a State Delegates’ Conference the Branches and Divisions shall send their delegates to the State Delegates’ Conference of any other state as directed by the Central Working Committee. 

Members who are members of the State Legislative Assembly or of
Parliament of the Constituencies within the State may attend, but shall have no right to vote if they are not delegates included in Articles 23.3 or 28.2.

Add
2 Sept. 2006

A State Delegates’ Conference shall have a committee known as the State Liaison Committee consisting of :-

a) a Chairman to be elected from amongst the delegates at the State
Delegates’ Conference or appointed by the Central Working Committee
as provided for in Article 78.3;

Am.
24 Oct. 1997

b) one or more Vice Chairmen to be appointed by the Chairman from
amongst the committee members;

c) a Secretary to be appointed by the Chairman from amongst the
committee members and, if necessary, an Assistant Secretary to be
appointed by the Secretary; 

d) a Treasurer to be appointed by the Chairman from amongst the
committee members;

e) a Central Liaison Officer, to be appointed by the Central Working
Committee; 

f) the ordinary committee members consisting of :-
i) all Chairmen of the Divisions in the State, or in the event that the
chairman of any Division is elected as the chairman of the State Liaison Committee, the Division Committee concerned may elect another representative;
ii) the Chairwoman of the State Liaison Committee’s Women’s Wing, if
any;
iii) the Chairman of the State Liaison Committee’s Youth Wing, if any;
iv) 6 other members to be elected from amongst the delegates to the
State;
v) such other members not exceeding 3 in number as may be appointed by the Central Working Committee.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003
[(i) to (iv)]

Members who are members of the State Legislative Assembly or of
Parliament of the Constituencies within the State shall be members of the committee unless they have already been elected or appointed as office bearers.

Am.
30 Jan. 1997 

STATE WORKING COMMITTEE

Subject to the approval of the President, the Chairman of the State Liaison Committee may for the purpose of carrying out routine administration and dealing with emergencies or urgent matters appoint a State Working Committee comprising himself as Chairman, and such number of other committee members not exceeding 5, as he may deem necessary.

STATE BUREAUX

A State Liaison Committee may establish State Bureaux from amongst the members of the State.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003 

A State Women/Youth Wing may be established in a State in accordance with the Rules and Regulations approved by the Central Committee.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003 

A State Delegates’ Conference shall elect its office bearers during the year of election once in every three years.

Am.
24 Oct. 1997

Every State Delegates’ Conference shall be entitled to elect five delegates from amongst the delegates to represent it at the National Delegates’ Conference. One of the delegates shall be the Chairman unless he is already a delegate by virtue of Article 23.4 or 28.3.

Am.
30 Sept. 2001
Add
2 Sept. 2006

b.delegates duly elected by the respective Divisions and State Delegates’ Conferences to the National Delegates’ Conference;

c.the Branch Chairmen or the delegates duly appointed pursuant to Article 23.4;

d.not more than five delegates elected from each State Women Delegates’ Conference;

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

e.not more than five delegates elected from each State Youth Delegates’ Conference.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

Members of Parliament and State Legislative Assemblies who are members of the Party may attend but shall have no right to vote if they are not delegates included in Article 35.1 above.

The Central Committee shall consist of :-
a.the President to be elected from amongst the delegates at the National Delegates’ Conference;

b.one Deputy President to be elected from amongst the delegates at the National Delegates’ Conference; 

c.Vice Presidents comprising :-
i) three Vice Presidents to be elected from amongst the delegates at
the National Delegates’ Conference;
ii) not more than 5 Vice Presidents to be appointed by the Central
Committee;
iii) the National Chairwoman of the Women Wing (Wanita Gerakan);
iv) the National Chairman of the Youth Wing (Pemuda Gerakan); 

d.the Secretary General to be appointed from amongst the Central
Committee Members by the President with the concurrence of the Central Committee;

Am.
24 Oct. 1997

e.the National Treasurer to be appointed from amongst the Central
Committee Members by the President with the concurrence of the Central Committee;

Am.
24 Oct. 1997 

f.not more than three Deputy Secretaries General to be appointed by the Secretary General in consultation with the President from amongst the Central Committee Members or the Party’s Voting Members provided that such Voting Member Appointees may only attend Central Committee Meetings as invited observers;

Am
01 Nov 2009

g.a Deputy National Treasurer to be appointed by the National Treasurer in consultation with the President from amongst the Central Committee Members or the Party’s Voting Members provided that such a Voting Member Appointee may only attend Central Committee Meetings as an invited observer

Am
01 Nov 2009

h.the Chairman of the National Delegates’ Conference to be elected by the Central Committee Members;

i.a Deputy Chairman of the National Delegates’ Conference to be
appointed by the Chairman;

j.other members comprising of :-

i) 6 Life Members to be elected from amongst the members of the
Council of Life Members;

Am
24 Aug 2003

ii) 18 members to be elected from amongst the delegates at the
National Delegates’ Conference;

Am
2 Sept 2006

iii) not exceeding 6 members duly appointed by the President with the
concurrence of the Central Committee.

Am
24 Aug 2003

Am.
2 Sept. 2006 

The President may for the purpose of carrying out routine administration and for dealing with emergencies or urgent matters establish a Central Working Committee comprising himself as the Chairman and appoint as members the Deputy President, the Secretary General, the National Treasurer and such other members not exceeding 10 in number as he may deem fit.

The Central Working Committee shall meet as often as necessary. One half of its members will form the quorum. The Secretary General may, with the approval of the President, invite any other member of the Party to attend any meeting of the Central Working Committee.

The decisions of the Central Working Committee shall be reached by
consensus and the Secretary General shall report such decisions as well as to table the minutes of the meetings to the Central Committee for its information and necessary action.

The Central Committee may establish any National Bureau or Bureaux and
appoint their Chairmen from its committee members or the Party’s Voting
Members.

Am.
01 Nov 2009

A National Women/Youth Wing may be established in accordance with the Rules of the Party.

TIME FOR ELECTION OF NATIONAL OFFICE BEARERS

The National Delegates’ Conference shall elect its office bearers to the
Central Committee during the year of election once in every 3 years.

Unless otherwise expressly provided for under this Constitution a voting member may stand as a candidate for any post in the branch in which he is registered; however, no voting member who is an elected Branch Chairman who has failed to attend two meetings consecutively of the National Delegates’ Conference may stand as a candidate again for the post of Chairman of any branch without the approval of the Central Working Committee.

Am.
30 Jan. 1997

A voting member may stand for election as a candidate for any post in the Division, in the State Delegates’ Conference or in the National Delegates’ Conference provided that he has duly been elected as a delegate to the said Division, State Delegates’ Conference or the National Delegates’ Conference. 

Nominations and election of office bearers shall be carried out in accordance with the Rules in force, duly drawn up by the Central Committee.

The qualifying register of membership for elections shall be the list of voting members as at 1st January of the year in which elections are held as verified by the Secretary General.

Voting shall be by secret ballot only. Provided that in any resolution affecting business other than elections of office bearers the meeting may resolve to vote by a show of hands. 

Every member who is a voting member shall have the right to vote on any resolution or in any election at any meeting :-

a) of the Branch of which he is a registered member;
b) of the Division to which he is a delegate;
c) of the State Delegates’ Conference to which he is a delegate;
d) of the National Delegates’ Conference to which he is a delegate;
e) of any committee in which he is a member.

Unless otherwise expressly provided in this Constitution any matter voted upon shall be decided by a simple majority of the members present. In the event of an equality of votes, the Chairman shall have a casting vote.

Two or more members of a Branch, a Division, a State Delegates’ Conference or the National Delegates’ Conference carrying out an election shall be elected at the meeting to be scrutineers and to count the votes cast in the election and they shall carry out the duties under a supervisor who shall be similarly elected.

Any committee or sub-committee may without meeting together, transact any urgent business by circular with the approval of the Chairman and any such resolution may be voted upon by its members by posting their votes to the Chairman concerned.

Any resolution circularised for voting shall be sent by registered post to every member entitled to vote. Provided that no such resolution shall be valid unless not less than one-half of its members so circularised have voted for the resolution and have returned their votes before the closing date which shall not be less than 14 days from the date of posting of the proposed resolution.

In any balloting carried out under this Constitution no spoilt vote or unmarked ballot paper shall be deemed to be a valid vote.

Subject to Article 44 the validity of any proceeding or action taken in
pursuance of and in accordance with any provision in this Constitution shall not be invalidated merely because any member or members entitled to vote or to be notified have not been able to vote or have not received such notification unless such omission affects more than one-fourth of the number of members so entitled.

The Central Working Committee with the approval of the Central Committee shall decide on the periods for the Branch, Division, State Delegates’ Conference and National Delegates’ Conference to hold their elections in the year in which elections should be held. Notwithstanding this the Central Working Committee with the approval of the Central Committee shall have the power to postpone the due elections to a date or dates after the year in which the election is due to be held but shall not be later than 15 months from 31st December of the election year, provided however that in the event the election is postponed on the grounds of an impending General Election for Parliament, the postponed election shall be held and concluded within 8 months from the date of that General Election.

Am
30 Sept 2001

Add
02 Sept 2006

Add
29 Sept 2012

Am.
30 Sept. 2001 

Am.
30 Sept. 2001

Am.
30 Sept. 2001 

In the event of any Branch or Division or State Delegates’ Conference failing to hold its elections within the periods prescribed, the President or an officer delegated by him for the purpose may convene a meeting and hold the elections.

Am.
24 Aug. 2003

No Division General Meeting, State Delegates’ Conference or National
Delegates’ Conference shall delay its elections on account of the failure of any Branch or Division or State Delegates’ Conference to hold its elections in time or on account of any dispute arising from elections carried out in any Branch or Division or State Delegates’ Conference but shall carry out its elections as scheduled without the representatives from the defaulting Branch or Division or State Delegates’ Conference.

In the event of the National Delegates’ Conference elections not being held within the period provided for above, a requisition may be made to hold a National Delegates’ Conference for the purpose of the elections, such requisition to be made in the manner hereinafter provided for in Articles 74.1 and 74.2.

VALIDITY OF ELECTIONS
No Election shall be invalid by reason of any failure to comply with any
provision of this Constitution or of the Rules made thereunder, or the
participation in such election by any person who is disqualified from being a member or office bearer under this Constitution or the Societies Act, if it appears to the Central Committee that the result of the election would have remained the same had there not been any failure to comply with any such provision, or had the said person not participated in such election, as the case may be.

In the event of any vacancy in any office other than that of the Branch,
Division or State Chairman or President occurring at any time before the next election, such vacancy subject to the approval of the Central Working Committee may be filled by the committee of the respective Branch, Division, State or National Delegates’ Conference. The person appointed to fill such a vacancy shall hold office until the next election held by the Branch, Division, State or National Delegates’ Conference concerned.

Am.
2 Sept. 2006

a.If the vacancy to be filled is that of the Branch, Division or State Chairman or President, an election called by the Secretary or Secretary-General in the case of a vacancy for President shall be held within 60 days if the term served is less than 18 months from the date of the last elections.

Add
2 Sept. 2006

b.If the said 18 months had been served, for the remainder of the term of
office,
i) the Deputy President shall act as the Acting President;
ii) one of the Vice-Chairman shall be elected by the Committee as the
Acting Chairman within 30 days at a committee meeting called by the
Secretary.

REMOVAL AND REPLACEMENT OF OFFICE BEARERS AT GENERAL
MEETING

A Branch, Division, State Delegates’ Conference and the National Delegates’ Conference may at any time at a General Meeting pass a resolution to remove any office bearer provided that no such resolution shall be passed unless the office bearer concerned has been duly notified and that such a resolution has been stated as an item of the agenda in the notice of meeting and two thirds of all the members present have voted in favour of the resolution. In the event of an office bearer being so removed, the Branch, Division, State Delegates’ Conference or the National Delegates’ Conference concerned may immediately elect another member to fill the office.