SADHAN SAHKARI SAMITI, DAKORE THROUGH ITS CHAIRMAN SRI RAGHUVANSHI LAL GUPTA AND OTHERS Vs. DISTRICT ASSISTANT REGISTRAR, CO

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Sadan Sahakari Samiti Dakore, petitioner No. 1, is a primary Co-operative Society which is affiliated to the Jalaun District Co-operative Bank Ltd. Orai, a Central Society. Petitioner No. 2, Raghuvanshi Lal Gupta is the Chairman of the petitioner society, and Sri Ram Swamp Dubey was its delegate to the U. P. District Co-operative Bank Ltd. Jalaun, Sri Ram Swarup Dubey had further been elected Chairman of the District Co-operative Bank, Jalaun. It is alleged that due to certain reasons respondent No. 1, and Daya Shanker Singh, was ill-disposed towards Sri Ram Swarup Dubey and wanted to see that ; he did not function as Chairman of the Central Society. With this end in view, Sri Daya Shanker Singh manoevred a fictitious complaint about the manner in which the affairs of the society were being conducted and by his order dated 26th of Aug., 1972, appointed Sri Jodhan Singh S. R. I. (respondent No. 2) as sole Arbitrator to resolve the alleged dispute. Thereafter, Sri Jodhan Singh, purporting to act as sole Arbitrator, passed an order dated 26-8-1972 appointing Sri Mukand Mohan Gupta, an Inspector of the Co-operative Society, Orai as Administrator for running the affairs of the ) Society. The petitioners have approached this Court for relief under Art. 226 of the Constitution and pray that the orders passed by respondent Nos. 1 and 2, appointing Sri Jodhan Singh as the sole Arbitrator and Sri Mukand Mohan Gupta as the Administrator of the Society, be quashed.

(2.) According to the petitioners, Sri Daya Shanker Singh, who was merely a District Assistant Registrar Co-operative Societies Jalaun, had no jurisdiction to entertain, a dispute regarding the manner in which the affairs of the Society were being con-ducted and as such he could not refer it to the arbitration of Sri Jodhan Singh. Since Sri Jodhan Singh had not been validly appointed as an arbitrator, he had absolutely no jurisdiction to make an interim order appointing Shri Mukand Mohan, Sub-Inspector, Co-operative Societies Jalaun, as Administrator for running the affairs of the Society. Moreover, in view of the specific provisions contained in Sec. 35 of the Act which provides for appointment of an Administrator, it was not open to the Arbitrator to exercise that power under Sec. 71(3) of the Act.

(3.) Learned Standing counsel, appearing for the respondents, refuted the allegations of malafide and contend that by means of the Notification dated 24th of June, 1969, copy of which has been filed as Annexure III to the counter-affidavit, the power under Sec. 71, to refer a dispute for decision to an arbitrator, has been conferred upon respondent No. 1, who is a District Assistant Registrar, Co-operative Societies. Shri Daya Shanker Singh was therefore fully competent to entertain the dispute and to refer the same to Sri Jodhan Singh, respondent No. 2, for arbitration. As an Arbitrator, Sri Jodhan Singh had, under Sec. 71(3) of the Act, all the power to pass such interlocutory orders including attachment of property as he thought necessary in the interest of justice. Since the complaint made against the Society was in regard to the manner in which its affairs were being conducted the Arbitrator had, in the interest of justice, ample jurisdiction to appoint an Administrator, notwithstanding the provision contained in Sec. 35 which have been enacted for meeting an entirely different contingency. In the circumstances, neither of the two orders passed by respondent Nos. 1 and 2 suffer from any error of jurisdiction.