By Rajasingham Jayadevan –

Rajasingham Jayadevan

British Tamil Forum (BTF) was served with the formal winding up order by the Business and Property Courts of the High Court in Manchester on 20 July 2020, under the Insolvency Act 1986 upon the petition filed by its former employee Roshini Sivagurunathan.

In the judgement of Rohini Sivagurunathan -vs- Tamil Forum UK Ltd ​(Rohini -v- BTF) at the Royal Court of Justice in February 2019, the judge found BTF involved in direct discrimination, victimisation and denial of natural justice against the Claimant Rohini Sivagurunathan. She was awarded £70,000 in damages and costs.

Tamil Forum UK Ltd is the legal arm of the controversial British Tamil Forum (BTF) that was almost managing the All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPG-T) of the British parliament from the shadows until before the judgement day for the debt of Rohini Sivagurunathan. Since then, All Party Group for Tamils(APPG-T) of the British parliament has distanced itself from the BTF.

Post winding up order by the High Court against the Tamil Forum UK Ltd known as British Tamil Forum, stirred up emotions of the Defendant and the Claimant Rohini Sivagurunathan is being portrayed as a vicious traitor on social media by the male dominated BTF. It was not an easy task for the Claimant, but she determinedly went through the process to wind up, despite the campaign of hatred to the extent of character assassination without any justification.

The BTF in its annual statutory accounts filed on 30 September 2019 with the Companies House in its legal name of Tamil Forum UK Ltd for the year ended 31 December 2018, failed to disclose its legally confirmed judgement debt of Rohini Sivagurunathan.

The Annual Accounts confirms the insolvent state of affairs of the BTF’s legal arm Tamil Forum UK Ltd. Creditors in the accounts are said to be the major donors to the BTF. It is claimed, instead of treating their contributions as income, they were conveniently classified as creditors. The current assets of the company too eroded by 98% in the 2018 accounts.

With the High Court judgement to wind up the Tamil Forum UK Ltd, the government Official Receivers office will now step in to windup the insolvent company. In any winding up of companies or personal Bankruptcies, the Official Receiver will pass on the case to a private professional Insolvency Practitioner known as Liquidator or Trustee in Bankruptcy, who will take his fees from the realisation of assets and pay the statutory fee to the state and then pay anything left in the estate to the creditors.

Tamil Forum UK Ltd is a close- knit limited guarantee company and its creditors are said to be connected parties involved with the BTF. One wonders why the Directors failed to proceed with the easy option of members voluntary winding up. BTF continued to function with the financially bankrupt company with the view that the Claimant Rohini Sivagurunathan will incur further legal expenses to obtain a creditors winding up order.

According to a social media circulation, Kanapathipillai Nirmalan, Visagaperuman Anandakumar (ROOT Ravi), Thurairajah Vasikaran, George R Nicholas, Thanarajah Vakeesan, Dr Inthumathy Kumarenthiran (sister of Root Ravi), Shanmuganathan Ratheeswaran (Suda), Subramaniam Senthilkumar and Nalliah Sivarasan are the managing members of the BTF. Kanapathipillai Nirmalan signed off the accounts as BTF’s director.

Though this winding up will passage through its final burial process by the Official Receiver, there are issues to be answered about the operatives of the BTF. British Tamil Forum is a well- established name within the Tamil community. Since its wind up order, BTF’s name is continued to be used by its operatives in high level campaign meetings.

An alarming judgement in the recent County Court case between MNP Accountants Ltd Vs Mr S & Mrs U Vigneswaran (on 9 July 2020), the judge of Watford County Court held that the Director of the Claimant company Kanapathipillai (Kana) Naheerathan (who is a Councillor of London Borough Of Brent) was personally responsible for the costs of the Defendants, as he was perusing his claim using the trading name for his own benefit when the company remained dormant and insolvent. The judge repeatedly asserted that the conduct of the Director of the Claimant Company as ‘illegal’. The operatives of the BTF will be answerable to the Official Receiver or any legal claims arising in the future against the use of name of BTF.

It will be high -stakes for those using the BTF name after the winding up order. Whether BTF will fade away without further abuse is something we have to wait and see.