Constitution

THE POTHOHAR ASSOCIATION (U.K.)
A Charitable Society since 28 April 1980
Registration Number 280065

CONSTITUTION

Name The name of the Association shall be “The Pothohar Association
U.K.” Registered address shall be the correspondence address of the
Elected General Secretary of the Association until it acquires its own
premises
Aims and Objectives
1. To advance and promote Universal Brotherhood of mankind as being the fundamental part of the
  Sikh Religion.
2. To seek to help the aged as considered appropriate by the Executive Committee and to promote their
  causes in the Association and the community. In furtherance of these objects the members of the Executive Committee may work with the younger members of the community, to gain their interest and support in helping to promote harmony and understanding between persons.
Powers re- Property Holding Trust (part of clause 19). Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, the Executive Committee have power to do anything which is calculated to further the Aims and Objectives or is conducive or incidental to doing so including the power to:
1. borrow money and to charge the whole or any part of its property as security for the
  repayment of the money borrowed. They must comply as appropriate with
  sections 124 and 125 of the Charities Act 2011 if they wish to mortgage land;
2. buy take on lease or in
  exchange, hire or otherwise acquire any property and to maintain and
  equip it for use; and
3. sell, lease or otherwise
  dispose of all or any part of the property belonging to the Association.
  In exercising this power, the Executive Committee must comply as
  appropriate with sections 117 and 119-123 of the Charities Act 2011.
Membership
1. Life Membership A
  Pothohari, Viz a person belonging to DHAN POTHOHAR can
  become a Life member of the Association provided he/she is 18 years or
  above, subject to conditions in this constitution. If either of the wife
  or husband belongs to Pothohar, both shall be considered as Pothoharies
  for the purpose of membership of this Association. Membership is subject
  to approval by the Executive Committee.
2. Associate Members “Subject
  to the approval of the Executive Committee, Associate Membership shall
  be open to any member of the public not belonging to Pothohar, who shall
  undertake in advancing the objectives declared in clause 2”.
Subscriptions Subscription fee for both categories shall be £25 per member and
£50 for the couple payable at the time of application for membership.
Disqualification Any member, Life or Associate of the Association can be
disqualified/dismissed if he/she is found guilty of moral turpitude or
misconduct, with his/hers continued membership is considered detrimental
to the interests of the Association. This discretion shall/can also be
exercised to bar the entry of a Pothohari to the Association at the time
of acceptance of his membership, if deemed necessary. Similarly, any
member, Office Barer or member of the Executive Committee or PHT (Property
Holding Trustee) can also be disqualified/dismissed who is found guilty of
misappropriation of Association funds, without prejudice to any of
prosecution for such an offence. These steps shall, however, be taken
after due consideration of the matter by an Enquiry Committee comprising
of 3/5 members representing both the parties concerned in the dispute and
a Chairman appointed by the Executive Committee.
General Body
1. It shall consist of Life
  and Associate members only.
2. The right to vote or hold
  office of the Association or Executive Committee shall, however, be
  restricted to Life members only.
Office Bearers and
Members of the Executive Committee
1. The Association shall have
  the following Office Bearers:-

1. President
2. Vice President
3. General Secretary
4. Treasurer
5. Public Relations Officer
  (PRO)
6. Joint Secretary

1. In addition the Committee
  shall have Five additional
  committee members. Eleven members
  shall constitute the Executive Committee of the Association, see clause
  12 (c) for details.
2. The Executive Committee
  shall have the powers to appoint a sub – committee/s, which shall
  automatically dissolve on the completion of the task, entrusted to them.
Elections The Office Bearers and Members of the Executive Committee shall be
elected in the month of October by the General Body every two years.
Procedure of Election
1. General Body will meet in
  September in the year of election to complete formalities, viz;

1. President’s & General
  Secretary’s Reports/consideration
2. Treasurer’s
  Report/Audited accounts & its approval
3. Building Report-practice
  to be discontinued after formation of the Trust
4. Announcement for election
  in October-date to be intimated in due Course – by the General Secretary
5. Any other Business with
  president’s permission

1. General Secretary will
  address election e-mail/letter under the directive of the Executive
  Committee inviting, under Recorded Delivery, nominations with a fee of
  £50 each nomination, refundable in the event of withdrawl, also to be
  sent under Recorded Delivery, within the prescribed time limit, on a
  prescribed form for the office bearers/members of the Executive.
  Nominations/withdraws must comply with the terms of the Constitution and
  also the requirements to be notified in the letter from the General Secretary
  who will, in writing, respond to the acceptance or otherwise of such
  nominations strictly as would be required in the invitation letter which
  would also attract a provision of the postal ballot in terms of
  constitution as well as the receipt of such ballot papers, to be
  received, by the notified date, under Recorded Delivery. Such members who
  has/have become bankrupt and/or are with a criminal record will not be
  eligible to stand in the election.
2. Electoral Register will be
  available at a fixed charge of £25 for inspection at the address of the
  elected incumbent General Secretary by any voting member/s between 10th
  and 20th August of the year of election and all those becoming registered
  voters before 31st July of the same year will have their names entered in
  the Register and their identification cards obtained from the General
  Secretary in order to be eligible to vote and/or stand for office in
  terms of the constitution. No more than one nomination per member per
  post, office bearer or committee member shall be accepted. If more than
  one nomination is received their nomination paper will be considered
  constitutionally and/or otherwise invalid.
3. Election by secret ballot
  will be conducted/supervised by a recognised Independent Electoral Body
  ensuring safe and secure, peaceful and impartial handling of the
  Association’s election in October. All those sending their nomination
  must also ensure their presence, in person, throughout on the Election
  Day failing which their nomination paper will be considered
  constitutionally and/or otherwise invalid. Its decision in the event of
  any election dispute/s will be considered final and accepted as such.
By – Election The By – Election of a member of the Executive Committee or an
Office Bearer in place of the one who expires or is disqualified or
otherwise ceases to be a member of the Association / Executive Committee,
shall be made by the Executive Committee unanimously, failing which, it
shall be done by a majority vote by the General Body in the next General
Meeting.
1. No office bearer shall
  hold the same post for more than two terms (if elected) continuously; but
  can stand for another post.
2. No member/s from amongst
  the ordinary nine members who have already served two terms shall stand
  and seek the third term but may seek/stand for any of the six offices of
  the Executive.
President:
1. This position in one’s
  life time is open by election for two terms only.

Duties of the Office
Bearers
1. President He/she shall be
  the head of the Association and shall preside over all the meetings of
  the Association both Executive Committee and General Body. He/she shall
  also attend to all administrative and organisational matters of the
  Association.
2. Vice President He/she
  shall assist the President in his duties and shall act for him during his
  absence. In addition, he/she shall deal with the complaints and disputes
  between the members of the Association.
3. General Secretary
  1. Shall attend all the
    meetings of the Association and prepare the minutes of all meetings.
  2. Shall deal with all the correspondence
    in the name of the Association.
  3. Shall convene meetings of
    the Executive Committee and General Body.
  4. Shall give effect to the
    resolutions passed and the decisions by the Executive Committee and
    General Body.
  5. Shall have general
    liaison with the Sub-Committee and other Office Bearers to expedite
    matters referred to them.
  6. Shall be a link between
    members of the General Body and the Executive Committee.
  7. Shall prepare annual
    report on the affairs of the Association for presentation at the Annual
    General Meeting of the Association.
4. Treasurer
  1. Shall receive and deposit
    all the moneys/cheques on behalf of the Association and promptly deposit
    them in the bank of the Association.
  2. Shall keep records and
    vouchers of all expenses and receipts of the Association in cash book
    which should be available at all times to the President/Secretary of the
    Association for their personal perusal or any other member, if deemed
    necessary by them.
  3. Shall get the accounts
    audited by the Auditor once a year
  4. Shall maintain a proper
    record of cheque books and current receipt books.
  5. Shall prepare a statement
    of account for presentation at the Annual General Meeting.
5. PRO-Public Relations
  Officer
  1. To have liaison with and
    assist the president; vice –president; and General Secretary in the
    discharge of public relations duties. Create good relations and dialogue
    between the Executive Committee and Biradari members.
  2. To assist in organising
    Social/Cultural events as decided by the Executive Committee.
6. Joint Secretary
  1. Shall assist the General
    Secretary in the efficient performance of his/her duties and shall act
    for him/her in his absence.
  2. Shall maintain a complete
    register of membership.
  3. Shall arrange children’s
    amenities and welfare activities.
  4. Shall arrange to store
    and account for the Association forms and stationary.
  5. Shall maintain an
    inventory of the assets of the Association.
7. Auditor
  1. Shall check/audit
    periodically the accounts of the Association maintained by the Treasurer
    and shall ensure that these are properly kept and the funds of the
    Association are spent for authorised purposes and under Financial
    cannons. He shall act as an internal auditor and would be elected as per
    clause No 8 (a) and (b). The Auditor would attend the Executive
    Committee meeting by invitation only when required.
  2. The Auditor may suggest
    change in the existing system of keeping accounts, but no alteration may
    be effected until approved by the Executive Committee.
Accounts The accounts of the Association with the bank shall be operated
jointly by any two of the three i.e. President, Secretary and Treasurer up
to £3000. Above £3000 all three must sign.
Funds
1. All The money received by
  the Treasurer shall be deposited in The Bank approved by the Executive
  Committee.
2. No money shall be spent
  without the approval of the Executive Committee except in emergency when
  the President or General Secretary can spend £750 maximum between 2
  Executive Committee Meetings. Approval of the Executive Committee shall
  be obtained in respect at the amount so spent, in the next meeting.
3. As far as possible, all
  payments shall be made by cheques/electronic transfer, but no payment over £750 shall be made in cash. The Treasurer
  shall keep an amount of £750 to meet an emergency payment and can spend
  £750 for which approval of the Executive Committee be obtained at the
  next meeting.
Meetings
1. General Body

1. Two General Meetings, one
  in the first year in September or October and the second in October in
  the second year of election as per procedure in and add: clause 9, which
  is about elections.
2. A special general meeting
  can also be held:-
  1. Whenever
    the Executive Committee deems it expedient to discuss an important
    matter concerning the Association.
  2. Whenever
    one fifth 1/5 of the members so request in writing to President asking
    him for such a meeting.
  3. To
    consider a motion of no – confidence in the Executive Committee as a
    whole. Quorum for this Meeting shall be two-third 2/3 of members, and
    only the simple majority shall be required to pass the motion.
3. One-third 1/3 of the
  members or 50 members shall from the quorum except for 15 (ii) 3 above.
  In case of the General Meeting being adjourned due to lack of quorum,
  the next meeting of the General Body has no binding of the quorum.
4. Agenda for the General
  Body meeting shall be approved by the Executive Committee.
5. Members of the Executive
  Committee shall not discuss the conduct of other members in the General
  Body Meeting.
6. Association’s Foundation
  Day shall be celebrated on Baisakhi each year.
7. A 15 days clear notice
  shall be given for Annual General Body meetings and 7 days clear notice
  for special General Body meetings.
8. All future
  correspondence, etc will be done by email only. If some member still
  wants by post they have to request it in writing from the Secretary.

1. Executive Committee

1. 1. The
    Executive Committee shall meet at least once a Month.
  2. An
    emergency meeting shall be called by the President, General Secretary
    or shall be called at the request of 8 members of the Executive
    Committee to the President or General Secretary in writing to discuss
    an important issue.
  3. Any
    member who does not attend 3 consecutive meetings of the Executive
    Committee shall cease to be a member of the Executive Committee,
    without proper reasons for being absent from the meetings. An
    explanation shall, however, be obtained and considered before taking
    any such action. Refusal to give an explanation shall entail an
    ex-parte decision.
  4. Two-thirds
    2/3 of members or 7 members shall form the
    quorum.
  5. Meetings
    may be held via online video conference

Amendments to
Constitution Any amendments to this constitution shall
have to be approved by the General Body by 2/3 of the members present and
voting. Any amendments that are brought to the General Body shall be
discussed in the Executive Committee and approved by a 2/3 of the members
present and voting. No amendment shall be made which will cause the
Association to cease to be a charity at law.
Vacancies The following causes shall be deemed sufficient to cause vacancy in
the Executive Committee
1. Death
2. Insanity.
3. Ceasing to be a member of
  the Association.
4. Transfer
5. Misconduct – which, in the
  opinion of the Executive Committee renders one unfit to be a member of
  the Association.
6. Failing to be present at
  the 3 consecutive meetings of the Executive Meetings of the Association,
  without giving justifiable reason in writing to the President.
PHT – PROPERTY HOLDING
TRUST DOCUMENT
1. There shall be a minimum
  of five and a maximum of seven Property Holding Trustees (PHT) of The
  Association at any one time. All the PHTs shall act jointly as a body.
2. All PHTs shall:

1. 1. be life members of the
    Association;
  2. be resident of the United
    Kingdom;
  3. be a house owner;
  4. be without a Criminal
    Record or having become bankrupt or otherwise insolvent;
  5. be of sound mind and
    proven integrity;
  6. to facilitate the
    purchase of the property, Executive Committee is empowered to appoint
    3-4 temporary Property Holding Trustees until the appointment of regular
    PHTs.
  7. not be an auditor of the
    Association
  8. not be disqualified in
    law from being a charity trustee

1. PHTs shall be proposed by
  the Executive Committee and shall be appointed in the Annual General Body
  meeting of the Association by majority vote of those present.
2. Nomination for a PHT shall
  be on a prescribed form submitted to the Secretary.
3. In the event of a
  vacancy/s, the Committee shall be empowered to fill the same,
  temporarily, and concurrently also seek further applications from the
  members. In the following Annual General Meeting, either new PHTs will be
  appointed or the temporary appointment/s shall be confirmed.
4. the PHT shall not sell,
  lease, exchange, mortgage or charge the property or assets they hold on
  behalf the Association other than pursuant to the lawful instruction of
  the Association which shall be determined by its 2/3rd majority vote in a
  specially convened General Body meeting of the Association, called with
  the prior approval, in writing of the Executive Committee; the written
  instruction of the Association will be sent to the PHTs by the Executive
  Committee; PHTs will in letter and spirit fulfil such instructions.
5. A PHT shall automatically
  cease to be a PHT if he/she:-

1. 1. dies;
  2. resigns;
  3. ceases to be qualified to
    be appointed as a PHT under clause 18 (b); or
  4. if they are removed by
    the Association by a 2/3 majority vote in a specially convened General
    Body meeting of the Association, called with the prior approval, in
    writing of the Executive Committee; the decision of the General Body
    will be sent to the PHT/individual PHT by the Executive Committee.

1. All PHTs shall receive
  copies of all official notices and accounts of the Association and
  correspondence relating to the property and assets of the Association
2. All property and assets
  belonging to the Association shall be vested in the PHTs names and on
  upon ceasing to be a PHT, a PHT shall co-operate in the vesting of
  property and assets in the continuing and new PHTs.
3. No PHTs shall buy or sell
  to the Association any property or any other assets or derive any
  personal financial gain or other benefit in the administration of the
  Trust.
4. If the PHT are sued on
  behalf of the Association or identify that, to protect the Association’s
  assets or property they need to issue proceedings, they shall immediately
  notify the Executive Committee in writing and liaise with the Executive
  Committee in relation to those proceedings. The Executive Committee will
  ensure that appropriate insurance is in place at all times to indemnify
  the PHT in relation to any claims which may arise in relation to the
  property and or assets of the Association, shall be responsible for
  general property insurance and shall provide evidence of insurance to the
  PHT if they so require.
5. All deeds, documents,
  titles and securities shall be held by the PHTs, who shall take such
  measures for the safe custody and preservation thereof, at the
  Association’s expense of as they may think fit and shall produce them for
  inspection when required by the Executive Committee of the Association.
6. The PHT shall have the
  right to examine all records, accounts and assets of the Association.
7. In all other matters, the
  rules and regulations of the Charity Commission shall prevail.
8. Under no circumstances
  shall the property or funds or income of the Association be distributed
  or shared amongst its members, the PHT or individual PHTs.

19. Non-Executive Chairman : The Outgoing President shall be appointed as a Non-Executive Chairman & its role shall be to assist Executive Committee with fund raising, brainstorming, innovation & find solutions of any issues.. At the request of the President Non-Executive Chairman may be invited to a meeting.

Miscellaneous All hearts are precious jewels and none should be harmed. The infringement of the Rules shall be avoided. The decision of the Executive Committee in all cases of misbehaviour shall be final and binding on the members, the decision of the President upon any point of order shall be final. The President shall have the power to interrupt or disqualifynoisy, disrespectful or out of point speaking members.
Notices

All notices and circulars shall be deemed to have
been served if delivered at or sent by email / post addressed to the last known
address of the member or person for whom they are intended by the Secretary or
Joint Secretary.

Dissolution The Association is not to be dissolved, but, in case of a
Dissolution of Association by a resolution adopted by three quarters (¾)
majority of members, the assets (after settling the liabilities, if any)
of the Association shall be given or transferred to a charitable body or
bodies having similar objectives. This is the final constitution having
been duly adopted by the General Body in their meeting dated 5 February 2023, and it supersedes all previous constitutions.

History: First Registered:

1. 28th April 1980.
2. Amended: 2nd March 1985
3. 26th September 1998
4. 16th October 1999
5. 17th October 2004
6. 4th October 2015
7. 5th February 2023

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