PARSURAM PARIDA Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) AS both the aforesaid writ petitions arise out of identical question of fact and involve similar questions of law, the same are disposed of by this common judgment.

(2.) THE petitioners in both the writ petitions have challenged the legality of the letter dated 10.5.2005 issued by the Registrar of Co -operative Societies, Orissa -cum -Chief Electoral Officer to all Divisional Electoral Deputy Registrars of Co -operative Societies and Assistant Registrars of all circles in the State annexed as Annexure -7 to the writ petition, i.e., W.P.(C) No.8077 of 2005 and Annexure -11 to W.P.(C) No.9165 of 2005. The programmes of election to the post of President of Balasore District Wholesale Co -operative Store Limited opp.party No.4 which are annexed as Annexure -8 to W.P.(C) No.8077 of 2005 and Annexure -13 to W.P.(C) No.9165 of 2005 have also been challenged along with Annexures -10 and 12 of the W.P.(C) No.9165 of 2005. The petitioners have further prayed for issuance of a writ of mandamus directing the opp.parties 1 to 3 scrap the election process of the opp.party No.4 -Society which was withheld by order dated 28.7.2004 of the Government of Orissa in its Co -operation Department annexed as Annexure -2 and 5 to both the writ petitions and to hold fresh election as per the Orissa Co -operative Societies Act, 1962 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act) as amended by the Amendment Act, 2004, after effecting amendment to the Orissa Co -operative Societies (Election to the Committee), Rules, 1992.

(3.) THE petitioners in both the writ petitions claim to be the elected members of such Primary Co -operative Societies which are members of the opp.party No.4 -Society. According to the petitioners, as per the amended Section 28(2) (c) of the Act, which came into force with effect from 27.12.2004, the Committee of a Central Society was required to consist of fifteen members and according to Clause (e -1), thereof, three members out of the said fifteen members should be from Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe, four from other Backward Classes including S.E.B.C. and five from other categories and one member each from Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and OBC shall be a woman candidate and from other categories two set as shall be reserved for women category. As per Rule 6 (3) of the Orissa Co -operative Societies (Election to the Committee), Rules, 1992 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Rules), the membership of the Societies was to be organized into different constituencies separately for specified number of representatives from specified classes, such as, S.C., S.T. and O.B.C. and others and its women candidates who were required to be elected from separate constituencies. As per Rule 7(4) of the Rules, a voter whose name appeared in the finally electoral roll for a particular constituency shall be eligible to become a candidate for the office of the member from that constituency.