S.N. JAIN Vs. REGISTRAR CO-OP. SOCIETIES

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE prayer in the present writ petition is for setting aside of the order dated 17.6.2013 passed by the Registrar Cooperative Societies, Delhi (the Respondent herein), whereby in exercise of the powers conferred under Section 35(5) of the Delhi Cooperative Societies Act, 2003 (DCS Act), Shri S. Roy Biswas, Deputy Director, DDA was appointed as Returning Officer for holding the election of the Managing Committee of the Jai Laxmi Cooperative Group Housing Society Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "the Society"), as per DCS Act and Rules.

(2.) AT the outset, we may note that the writ petition has been filed by the Petitioner in his capacity as Treasurer of the Society. The Petitioner also professes to have been the Secretary of the Society for more than 15 years. According to the Petitioner, the Society had appointed one Shri Pandit Vinod Kumar Dubey, Advocate as the Returning Officer for holding the elections of the Managing Committee of the Society vide Resolution No.3 dated 7.12.2011 of the Managing Committee. The Returning Officer so appointed by the Managing Committee had issued an agenda notice dated 5.1.2012 for the holding of elections but the process of holding elections came to a stop on some of the residents of the Society making a representation to the Respondent, Registrar of Cooperative Societies. By an order dated 30th March, 2012, the Respondent appointed an Inspecting Officer to inspect the Society in view of the said complaints and to explore the possibility of holding elections of the Managing Committee of the Society and to submit report within 45 days from the issue of the order. By subsequent orders dated 25th June, 2012, the Respondent invoking the powers conferred upon him under Section 35(5) of the DCS Act, 2003 appointed an Administrator of the Society to take steps to revive the democratic set up within 90 days of his appointment after assuming charge. The said order of the Registrar Cooperative Societies dated 25.6.2012 was challenged by the Society before the learned Financial Commissioner, Delhi in revision proceedings. By his order dated 14 th May, 2013, the learned Financial Commissioner disposed of the said revision petition directing that the elections be conducted in the Society without any further delay by a Returning Officer to be appointed by the Registrar Cooperative Societies. In this factual scenario, the Registrar passed the impugned order dated 17.6.2013 appointing Shri S. Roy Biswas, Deputy Director, DDA as Returning Officer for holding the elections of the Managing Committee of the Society.

(3.) IN our opinion, the present writ petition has been filed by one of the members of the Ex -Managing Committee with the malafide object of perpetuating the existence of the Managing Committee and constitutes an abuse of the process of the Court. The order of the Financial Commissioner has not been challenged before us and the present writ petition, therefore, appears to be an attempt to assail the same collaterally. There also does not appear to us to be any justifiable reason why elections of the Society should not be held by the Registrar Cooperative Societies as directed by the Financial Commissioner, the Society itself having failed to hold the same ever since the year 2002. Interestingly, the Society is not even made a party to the present writ petition, which goes to show that the writ petition has in fact been filed by the Petitioner in his individual capacity.