Holding ILGA Asia’s Chairing Pool Accountable for Allowing Unethical Conduct and Plagiarism

In 2022, at ILGA Asia in Vietnam, Shane successfully advocated for the inclusion of a disability representative on the board and ensured the conference was fully accessible. That was Shane’s work, and he takes pride in it.

In November 2024, Shane submitted his nomination for the ILGA Asia Chair of the Disability Steering Committee under Rainbow Disability Nepal. On the 10th of February, his nomination was declined—without explanation, other than a vague reference to "ethics." Despite repeated attempts to seek clarification, the board, the chairing pool and the safeguarding team have ignored his questions.

Then, on the 24th of February, he discovered that the Executive Director of Rainbow Disability Nepal, Aaditya Rai, had been nominated—despite plagiarizing Shane’s entire candidate form. This individual falsely claimed Shane’s successes, from authoring an e-book to founding an LGBTIQ+ Disability Working Group, as his own. His nomination was accepted without question. Shane immediately raised this with the chairing pool, and when he confronted Aaditya directly, the response was dismissive—Aaditya simply didn’t see an issue. In turn, he revoked Shane's nomination, claiming there would be no further relationship between Shane and Rainbow Disability Nepal—all while continuing to benefit from Shane’s work.

On the 25th of February, at the disability pre-conference, Shane did the vast majority of the work, from preparing to facilitating the three-hour session, yet Aaditya nearly walked away with all the credit. This is beyond unacceptable.

On the 26th of February, Shane brought his concerns to the chairing pool once again to renew his candidacy under a different organisation, only to be dismissed on the grounds that the nomination deadline had passed. Yet, Aaditya was allowed to submit his candidacy on February 10—two months after the initial official deadline. The hypocrisy is blatant.

Shane has been continuously silenced, and he refuses to stand for it. This election process has been rigged, steeped in nepotism, and lacking transparency. If this is how leadership selections are handled at a regional conference of this scale, then the ILGA Asia chairing pool and board has a serious accountability crisis.

Over the past few days, Aaditya Rai has also been accused of creating an unsafe environment for queer people with disabilities. One attendee pointed out that, prior to the conference, Aaditya used dismissive and aggressive language and even made threats to take away representation. This is a blatant abuse of power.

Yet, despite multiple emails opposing his nomination, the ILGA Asia Chairing Pool has allowed him to run uncontested—securing his win by default after unjustly rejecting the only other candidate, Shane.

If Aaditya Rai wins this election, he will represent the queer disabled community for the next two years across multiple platforms—while the harm he has caused lingers, leaving the community with no accountability or closure.

To ensure complete transparency regarding the claims above, all supporting evidence and documents have been provided in this Google Drive folder. The documentation includes:

• Shane (Original) Candidate Form - Dated 23/11/2024
• Aaditya (Plagiarized) Candidate Form - Dated 10/02/2025
• Screenshot Shane Sending Aaditya to Approve - Dated 21/11/2024
• Screenshot Aaditya Approval - Dated 23/11/2024
• Screenshot Email to Chairing Pool For Nomination Round 1 - Dated 23/11/2024
• Screenshot Denial Email from Board - Dated 10/02/2025
• Screenshot Request for Clarification 1 - Dated 10/02/2025
• Screenshot Request for Clarification 2 - Dated 12/02/2025
• Screenshot Request for Clarification and Appeal (cc’ed Chairing Pool, Safeguarding team) - Dated 24/02/2025
• Screenshot Renew Candidacy Plagiarism Report - Dated 24/02/2025
• Screenshot Report to SafeGuarding Team - Dated 26/02/2025

After presenting all the evidence, we demand that the ILGA Asia Chairing Pool take the following actions:

• Hold Aaditya Rai accountable for plagiarism and falsifying his application.
• Revoke his candidacy on the grounds of unethical conduct.
• Provide a clear, written explanation for the denial of Shane’s candidacy.
• Establish a policy for transparency and accountability in this and all future elections.
• Strengthen safeguarding measures to ensure the safety and well-being of all attendees.

These actions are necessary to restore integrity to the election process and uphold the values of fairness, inclusion, and accountability.

Update 27/2/2025 3:45 PM

After the disability chair nomination was put on hold for most of the day, Aaditya Rai’s candidacy has been reinstated—without any accountability for his actions. Meanwhile, more disability advocates have come forward with reports of him creating an unsafe environment for disabled individuals, yet the chairing pool has taken no action.

The complaints channel has received over 10 separate emails from conference attendees, yet we continue to be dismissed.

With that said, we once again call for the disqualification of Aaditya Rai from running for the board on the grounds of:

• Plagiarism
• Safeguarding concerns
• Lack of transparency
• Creating an unsafe environment

We urge you to sign this petition and help hold the chairing pool accountable for this decision.