The Madras High Court is set to deliver its ruling on July 1, 2026, regarding a civil suit challenging the continued tenure of the South Indian Artistes Association's office-bearers. The actors involved—Nasser,Vishal Krishna, and Karthi—currently serve as president, general secretary,and treasurer,respectively,despite their three-year term officially ending on March 19, 2025.
Justice A.D. Maria Clete reserved judgment on a plea to dismiss the suit,questioning the plaintiff's potential benefits from ruling against association. The suit seeks to invalidate resolution passed during the 68th annual general meeting (AGM) held on September 8, 2024. This resolution was later supported by a Government Order (G.O.) issued by the Tamil Nadu government on October 14,2025, which extended the office-bearers' terms until March 19,2028.
The plaintiff,V. Nambirajan,a member of the Nadigar Sangam,argues that the association's bylaws mandate elections every three years. He contends that elections should have been held after current office-bearers' terms expired. However,the office-bearers have remained in their positions based on the AGM resolution, which is at the heart of Nambirajan's complaint .
During the proceedings,Nadigar Sangam's counsel, Krishna Ravindran,highlighted that Nambirajan's challenge only targets the AGM resolution and not the subsequent G.O. that legally sanctioned the extension of the office-bearers' terms. He pointed out that the G.O. was issued under Section 54 of the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975,which allows for such extensions.
The Nadigar Sangam defended its decision to extend the office-bearers' terms, stating that a resolution proposed by another member,S.R. Sekar,at the 68th AGM aimed to facilitate completion of a convention center, a significant project for the association. The proposal,which garnered support from 311 members and was unanimously approved, was presented on August 23, 2024.
In court, the office-bearers argued that Nambirajan,now 79 years old,has not participated in any AGMs since joining the association in 2015. They suggested that he may be acting as a proxy for individuals dissatisfied with the current leadership, seeking to obstruct the association's operations and the convention center project .
The Tamil Nadu government had previously accepted the Nadigar Sangam's request to forgo elections,which would have cost approximately ₹40 lakh, allowing the current office-bearers to remain in their roles until 2028 . Meanwhile,Sekar has filed an application to dismiss Nambirajan's plaint, further complicating the ongoing legal battle.
