[Letter from Piloo Mody]

Summary

In this two-page letter dated July 6, 1974, Piloo Mody explains and defends the delegate quota approved by the Swatantra Party’s National Executive for an urgently convened National Convention. He argues that the convention must be held indoors because of the monsoon, that the party’s transition from a cadre-based to a mass-based organisation makes a 10:1 delegation ratio impractical, and that the proposed quota is needed to keep representation manageable while ensuring that each delegate represents an equal number of members.

Mody frames the quota as a matter of individual rather than regional representation. He rejects arrangements in which one delegate could speak for hundreds of members while another represented only a few, and criticises voting en masse as evidence of factionalism and personalised politics. The letter closes by setting three objectives for the convention: party unity regardless of the outcome, acceptance of its verdict by all members, and avoidance of a split. The convention’s total delegation is therefore capped at 1,000, with each delegate assigned an equal number of votes.

Key points

• Mody defends the delegate quota approved by the Swatantra Party’s National Executive.
• The National Convention is presented as urgent because the country and party are described as being in turmoil.
• Indoor accommodation during the monsoon limits the convention’s capacity.
• The party’s growth as a mass-based organisation makes the former 10:1 delegation ratio impractical; Mody says a 100:1 ratio is manageable.
• Mody argues that delegates must represent equal numbers of members and that representation should be individual rather than regional.
• He opposes bloc voting and personalised politics, insisting that members should exercise their own judgment and conscience.
• The convention’s objectives are party unity, acceptance of its verdict, and prevention of a split; the total delegation is capped at 1,000.