ALL INDIA CHESS FEDERATION Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) All India Chess Federation along with Tamilnadu Chess Association, Maharashtra State Chess Association and Delhi Chess Association have filed this writ petition with the prayer to quash "the improper registration of All India Chess Federation S.No.825 of 1991 for second time under the Societies Registration Act by the 2 nd respondent, the District Registrar General".

(2.) The case of the petitioners is that All India Chess Federation ('Federation' for short) was already registered on 10.12.1958 as a Society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860, with the Registrar of Assurances, North Chennai, Tamilnadu as per Ext.P1, with registration No.125/1958 and it is governed by Ext.P1 bylaw. The 3 rd respondent Sri.P.T.Ummarkoya, was elected as the Honorary Secretary of the Federation in 1989, 1993, 1997 and 2001. Suppressing the fact that the very same All India Chess Federation was already registered with registration No.125/1958, in Chennai, 3 rd respondent got the Federation registered with the 2 nd respondent for the second time with the very same name in Kozhikode in the year 1991, with registration S.No.825 of 1991, while he was the Honorary Secretary of the Federation. It is the case of the petitioners that the 3 rd respondent got it registered with malafide intention to defalcate its funds, misusing his position, by playing fraud. The petitioners have alleged that various 'fraudulent activities' were carried out by the 3 rd respondent during his tenure and they came to know about the second registration of the federation only in the year 2004-05 and on coming to know about it, the first petitioner submitted applications for cancellation of the same. They have produced Exts.P12 to P14, stating that they had requested for certified copies of the application submitted by the 3 rd respondent on 1.7.1991 for registration of the Federation and for copies of the certificates when they were asked to remit the requisite stamp for the same. The case of petitioners is that there cannot be any second registration for a federation. Therefore the second registration obtained by playing fraud is liable to be canceled.

(3.) Ext.P3 certificate of registration of societies with No.825/1991 was issued on 11.12.1991. According to the petitioners, the 3 rd respondent, got it registered in Kozhikkode in order to swindle the public money which was to be used for the development of the game of chess. There are several litigations pending between the first petitioner and the 3 rd respondent -before the Metropolitan Magistrate Court, Saithapettu for committing the offence of forging documents and using the same for registration for the 2 nd time with the very same name. Apart from that, original suit has been filed before the Madras High Court in which the High Court has passed orders restraining the 3 rd respondent and the Division Bench of the Madras High Court in Original Suit Appeal Nos.330, 335, 9 and 17 of 2005 has passed orders declaring that the second registration of the Federation at Kozhikkode is invalid. According to the petitioners, the annual general body of the first petitioner held on 25.9.2005 resolved to cancel the registration in Kozhikkode, since the said registration is illegal and obtained by playing fraud.