The ongoing dispute within the Cine and TV Artistes’ Association (CINTAA), following allegations of unilateral decision-making against former president Poonam Dhillon and former vice-president Padmini Kolhapure, has taken another turn. On Friday, a video circulated online showing actors and former CINTAA members Upasana Singh and Priti Sapru in an altercation with police, with Dhillon and Kolhapure also seen at the spot.
The video shows Upasana asking a police officer to return papers that had been taken. Speaking exclusively to HT City about the incident, Upasana alleges that Dhillon and Kolhapure were attempting to “take out CINTAA documents in a tempo”, calling it an “illegal” way of dealing with the ongoing matter.
According to Upasana, the incident came to light after an actor who happened to be passing by the CINTAA office spotted Dhillon and Kolhapure removing documents and other belongings and alerted her. “An actor who was passing by called me and told me what was happening. I immediately reached there and called the police. That is when everything happened,” she says.
Upasana alleges that the development came after a CINTAA member had raised concerns over irregularities in the association’s documents and demanded a forensic investigation. “A CINTAA member had raised concerns about irregularities in the documents and demanded a forensic jaanch. He felt that something was not right with them. After that, today I got to know that Padmini and Poonam were taking out CINTAA documents in a tempo,” she alleges.
She adds that she and others tried to explain to the police that Dhillon and Kolhapure could not enter the CINTAA premises after the elections were approved. “We were trying to explain to the police that they [Poonam and Padmini] can’t even enter the CINTAA premises now that the elections have been approved. Taking the documents is an illegal move to cover their tracks,” she says.
A police complaint has since been filed at the Versova police station, Upasana says. Questioning the alleged attempt to move the documents, she adds, “We have filed a police complaint. The elections will happen tomo. There is surely something that they are trying to hide. If everything was fine, why would they try to take out these documents?”
HOW THE CINTAA ROW UNFOLDED
The incident comes at a crucial time for CINTAA, with elections scheduled for September 12. Over the past few weeks, the organisation has been embroiled in an escalating internal dispute over its functioning, with allegations of unilateral decision-making against Dhillon and Kolhapure. A section of members questioned the way the association was being run and raised concerns over certain decisions and documents.
The crisis intensified in August after 11 members resigned, including eight elected executive committee members, alleging that key decisions were being taken without adequate consultation with the executive committee. Dhillon rejected the allegations, calling the accusations against her and Kolhapure offensive, while CINTAA also disputed claims surrounding the dissolution of its executive committee.
Amid the standoff, the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) announced fresh CINTAA elections for September 12. Dhillon and Kolhapure subsequently challenged the polls legally. On September 9, the court allowed the elections to proceed, with the outcome remaining subject to the ongoing legal proceedings.