End of Vellappally era? Why Kerala HC disqualified SNDP Yogam chief, son Thushar & 2 others

Kerala HC’s Justice TR Ravi said disqualification of Natesan and three others, including his son Thushar Vellappally, was necessary because they violated rules under Companies Act.

File photo of SNDP Yogam chief Vellappally Natesan | X @YogamSndp

Thiruvananthapuram: After leading the social service organisation for over three decades, Vellappally Natesan’s era at Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP) appeared to have ended abruptly Thursday after the Kerala High Court disqualified him and others for failing to file mandatory financial audits for more than three years.

Kerala HC’s Justice T.R. Ravi said disqualification of Natesan and three others, including his son Thushar Vellappally, was necessary because they violated the Companies Act by failing to file annual accounts and returns for a continuous period from FY 2006-07 to FY 2016-17.

The bench in its order responded to three separate writ petitions filed by members of the SNDP Yogam, which challenged  an earlier order from the Inspector General of Registration (IGR) clearing the directors.

“Respondents 4 to 7 are declared to have vacated office under Section 167(1)(a) of the Companies Act, 2013 as they are disqualified under Section 164(1)(h) of the Act,” Justice Ravi stated, noting that the positions Natesan and others held are also invalid since they didn’t have Director Identification Numbers (DIN) issued by the Kerala government.

The high court directed the state government to appoint a required number of temporary directors to manage the SNDP Yogam until a general meeting can be held to elect new office-bearers. 

According to Section 164(2) of the Companies Act, directors of a company can be disqualified if they fail to file financial statements or annual returns for a continuous period of three financial years.

Registered in 1903, the SNDP Yogam is a social service organisation based on the principles of Sree Narayana Guru for the upliftment of the state’s Ezhava community. Natesan became its general secretary in 1995, after which the organisation gradually grew to an enterprise, managing a vast network of educational and health institutions. 

Portrayed as the representative of the Ezhava community—an OBC community accounting for nearly 25 percent of the state’s population—the organisation and Natesan also play a significant role in Kerala politics as a major pressure group.  Natesan, a long-standing ally of the ruling LDF, was awarded the Padma Bhushan this year. His son Thushar is the president of Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS), a part of the BJP-led NDA.

ThePrint reached Vellappally Natesan for comment via call and messages but had not received any response by the time of publication.

Writ petitions and SNDP’s controversial past

The three writ petitions filed by members of SNDP Yogam in 2024 challenged an order from the Inspector General of Registration (IGR) from earlier that same year, which cleared the organisation’s directors despite their failure to comply with filing norms.

The petitioners also sought the appointment of an administrator, the preparation of a voter list, and the conduct of free and fair elections within a strict time frame. The petition also noted that the directors did not possess a valid Director Identification Number (DIN), a mandatory eight-digit identifier required for all office-bearers, issued by the state government under the Kerala Non-Trading Companies Act, 1961.

It noted that the SNDP Yogam, originally registered in 1903, eventually came under the Kerala Non-Trading Companies Act, but still retained the status of a public company. It added that though the Yogam later filed returns under the Companies Fresh Start Scheme (CFSS), 2020, resulting in immunity from fines, the disqualification should remain.

Meanwhile the defence argued that Natesan and the others held DINs before the Companies Act, 2013, came into effect, and that they filed documents through the Companies Fresh Start Scheme (CFSS) in 2020, which was accepted by the Inspector General of Registration.

This is not the first time the SNDP Yogam has come under scrutiny for alleged financial irregularity. It has faced multiple controversies since Vellappally took over, including the alleged Rs 15 crore microfinance scam between 2013-14. It was alleged that the organisation took low-interest loans from the Kerala State Backward Classes Development Corporation (KSBCDC) and re-lent them to beneficiaries at exorbitant interest rates. 

The investigation into this case is still underway.

Another case involved alleged misuse of funds at an institution under the Sree Narayana Trust. It was alleged that around Rs 1.10 crore was collected for the golden jubilee celebrations of Sree Narayana College in Kollam, and investigators later alleged that Rs 55 lakh from the fund was transferred to the personal account of Vellappally Natesan. 

The Crime Branch filed a chargesheet in the case in 2020, while Natesan maintained that the money had subsequently been returned to the trust’s account. Hearing in this case was stayed by the Supreme Court in 2023.

(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)