MAHENDRA Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE common point that arises in these two petitions relates to the width and extent of the power of the Registrar under section 78 of the Maharashtra Co -operative Societies Act, 1960, to remove the committee of an 'insured co -operative bank', in view of section 110A of the Maharashtra Co -operative Societies Act.

(2.) THE short factual background is this : The Bhandara District Central Co -operative Bank, Bhandara, respondent No. 3, is an 'insured co -operative bank' as per the Explanation below section 110A of the Maharashtra Co -operative Societies Act. The Registrar, Co -operative Societies, has issued notices under section 78 of the Maharashtra Co -operative Societies Act to all the 28 members of the committee of the said bank calling upon them to show cause as to why the committee should not be removed for the several charges mostly pertaining to mismanagement mentioned in the notice. Mahendra Gadkari, the petitioner, in Writ Petition No. 2746 of 1990, and Janbaji Bedurkar, the petitioner in Writ Petition No. 99 of 1991, have by these two separate petitions challenged the validity of the said notices.

(3.) A plain reading of section 110A leaves no manner of doubt that it is an overriding provision brought on the statute book with a view to have the control of the Reserve Bank of India ('the RBI') over the insured co -operative banks in certain matters. The only exercise to be undertaken in this matter is to examine the width and extent of the said overriding provision. The analysis of this provision leads to the following result :