Dear ICEB Community,

This email is to summarize the Special General Body Meeting of the ICEB Membership that took place on Sunday, October 6, 2024, at 2 PM at ICEB. The quorum for the meeting, which required 2/3rds of the General Assembly membership (61 out of 91 members), was met through a combination of in-person and proxy attendance (64 members total; 49 in person and 15 via proxy). As a result, the meeting proceeded with voting on the resolution concerning the property next door to ICEB (see link), which was unanimously approved.

However, since the bylaws do not allow proxy voting for bylaw amendments, the proposed amendments were not put to a vote. The administration will revisit the timing and approach for presenting these bylaw amendments at a future Special General Body Meeting.

A few other important announcements concerning ICEB operations were also made during the meeting. In the Special General Body Meeting held on October 16, 2022, the previous Shura proposed a resolution that was approved by the General Assembly. Based on this approval, the Shura Delegates for the 2022-2023 term transferred their responsibilities to a new group of Shura Delegates, elected by the General Assembly in 2023, for a three-year term (2024-2026), and also appointed Br. Faheem Soherwardy as the President of ICEB for the term 2024-2025.

Upon careful review of the bylaws by the current ICEB Shura, which includes Br. Faheem and two members of the Presidents administration, it was realized that certain provisions in the bylaws were overlooked in the 2022 resolution. The bylaws provisions reviewed by the Shura made clear that:

• A simple resolution from a Special General Body Meeting cannot override the bylaws unless it fulfills the requirements for a bylaw amendment.
• Therefore, the Shura Delegates can only serve for two years, not three years as initially thought.
• The administration term must end in even-numbered years.
• An individual must be out of office for one full term (2 years) before they can be reconsidered for office after serving two consecutive terms.

As a result of these findings, the following self-corrections were made by the current administration and Shura to ensure compliance with ICEB bylaws, and the following announcements were made during the meeting:

• The Shura Delegates elected in 2023 will now serve a two-year term (2024-2025), as per the bylaws, instead of the three-year term mentioned during the transition.
• Our current President, Br. Faheem Soherwardy, and his administration have vacated their positions effective October 6, 2024, as Br. Faheem did not meet the two-year sitting-out period required after serving from 2019-2022. Since these appointments did not meet the bylaws requirements, they are considered null and void.
• The Shura Delegates will appoint a President for the remainder of the 2023-2024 administration term. Until this appointment is made, Shura Chair, Br. Tahir Jadoon, will serve as Acting President, as outlined in the bylaws.
• A new administration term will begin in 2025 (for 2025-2026), with the Shura Delegates selecting a new President for this term before January 1, 2025.

If you have any questions regarding these announcements, please contact the Shura Delegates at [email protected].

If you are interested in being considered, or would like to recommend someone, for the role of ICEB President for the current (2023-2024) or next (2025-2026) term, please notify one of the Shura Delegates or send an email to [email protected]. For eligibility details, kindly refer to the bylaws.

As we conclude, we acknowledge the efforts of Br. Faheem Soherwardy and his administration team in opening the masjid and managing its operations from January 1 to October 6. We appreciate their recognition of the conflict with the bylaws and their cooperation in addressing it in a manner consistent with the rules governing our community.

JazakAllah Khair,
ICEB Shura Delegates