B.SIVAKUMAR Vs. STATE CO-OPERATIVE ELECTION COMMISSION

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioners are members of the fourth respondent, a co-operative society registered under the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act (the Act). It is stated by the petitioners that there are altogether 15030 members in the fourth respondent society. The term of the last committee of the society expired on 25.03.2017. When the term of the committee expired, an Administrative Committee was constituted by the jurisdictional Joint Registrar and the said Administrative Committee is in office of the society. It is stated that based on a resolution adopted by the last committee, election has been notified to the committee of the society by the State Co-operative Election Commission. Ext.P1 is the notification published by the State Co-operative Election Commission in this connection. The case of the petitioners is that only 6766 members in the society are included in the voters' list published pursuant to Ext.P1 notification. According to the petitioners, substantial number of members in the society have been omitted to be included in the voters' list in the light of the provisions contained in Sections 16A and 19A of the Act. It is the case of the petitioners that the said provisions have been exempted in respect of societies where the annual general body meeting could not be conducted for the last three years and above and where some of the members could not achieve the minimum level of services in advance as intended by sub-section (1) of Section 16A of the Act. According to the petitioners, in the light of the exemption notification, the Election Commission ought to have taken steps to conduct election by including all the members in the voters' list. It is the case of the petitioners that when the society has 15030 members on its roll, an election conducted depriving almost 2/3rd of its members an opportunity to cast vote would be unfair. The petitioners, therefore, seek appropriate directions in this regard, in this writ petition.

(2.) Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners, the learned Government Pleader as also the learned counsel for the fourth respondent society.

(3.) The learned counsel for the fourth respondent society contended that annual general body meetings of the said society are being regularly conducted and that therefore, the exemption notification issued by the Government does not apply to it.