Members of the Punjabi community have given the management of Punjabi Dharamshala, Sector 9, a seven-day deadline to respond to issues raised over its management, membership, elections, financial transparency and community participation.They said that if no written response or satisfactory resolution is received within the stipulated period, they will explore legal remedies and, if required, hold a peaceful protest outside the dharamshala.A 31-member team was also constituted during the meeting to coordinate further action on the issues raised and maintain communication with members of the community.The decision was taken at a joint meeting of members of the Punjabi community held at Punjabi dharamshala on Jattvibeday, which was led by Pankaj Gaba. A large number of senior citizens, youths and other members of the community attended the meeting and shared their views on the functioning and management of the institution.Gaba along with other prominent persons of the community, including Lalit Arora, Parvesh Arora, Sam Khatri, Vishal Arora, Somnath Dawar, Vir Vikram, Virender Mehta, Virender Chaudhary, Amit Mehta, Rakesh Kakkar, Amit Arora, Ajay Babbar, and other members sought clarification on whether the dharamshala had been brought under any private trust. If so, they demanded that the relevant documents and details of the process be placed before the community.The issue of membership fees was also raised prominently. Gaba questioned the proposed membership fee of Rs 1 lakh, saying that such a fee could make it difficult for ordinary Punjabi families to become members. “We demand that membership should be opened for all community members and that the fee be reduced to Rs 1,100,” he added.“We demand regular, fair and democratic elections for the president and management committee of the Punjabi dharamshala. We also seek a complete disclosure of the dharamshala’s income, expenditure and other financial details,” he added.The members also raised the issue that space at the dharamshala should be provided free of charge for social meetings organised by community members.The issue of the dharamshala being given on lease was also discussed. Community members demanded that details regarding the reasons, duration and terms of the lease be made public and that the existing arrangement be reviewed in the interest of the community.“I have no desire to become a president or get any other position. My objective is to strengthen the community and ensure mass participation of ordinary members in the affairs of the dharamshala,” he added.