Let me try to sketch out a possibility you may not have thought about...
2009/1/3 V. Sasi Kumar sasi.fsf@gmail.com:
The speakers included the IT minister from West Bengal and N. Ram. It is interesting that the West Bengal minister was invited though that state has still not decided to favour Free Software. Even the local minister was not invited, if I remember correctly. N. Ram is a know CPIM sympathiser and a person I respect for the way he runs the publication. (You may interpret this also as CPIM bashing, but I can't help it.) All this makes it appear to an impartial observer that the organisers were CPIM sympathisers or activists. Nothing wrong in organising such a conference. The wrong thing they did was to announce the formation of a chapter of FSFI without even telling FSFI. They also used the FSFI logo in their newsletter, as though to indicate that FSFI was involved. But they did not announce it in fsf-friends or other mailing lists of the community. Hope you don't justify that too.
<possibility> Some youth who were inspired by the ideals of free software and FSF/FSFI wanted to contribute their efforts to building the free software movement in TN. They were not aware about FSFI's policy on local chapters(I can safely say that not many knew that until recently) and did not know that they would have stones thrown at them for using the FSFI logo and also branded as "misguided activists of a political party". They invited people who they felt would support the cause of free software. Due to being extremely busy in organising such a program they were not able/forgot to send a mail to the required lists. Then certain people on this list, instead of trying to guide these youth, started throwing stones at them. Youth do not want to be beaten with stones and hence do not reply to FSFI's mail. </possibility> Sasi Sir, In your wisdom please see if such a situation is even remotely possible.