SULABH CHARAN SAMAL Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE Petitioner in this Writ Petition have assailed the voter list prepared for election to the Committee of Management of Cuttack Central Co -operative Bank (here in after referred to as the 'Bank'), a Central Society for electing 15 member Directors to its Committee of Management on the basis of constituencies/zones numbering about 8 in all, organized and carved out as Scheduled Caste (Male), Scheduled Caste (Female), Scheduled Tribe (Male), Scheduled Tribe (Female), Other Backward Class and S.E.B.C. (OBC and SEBC) (Female), all other Female and unreserved, on the basis of race, caste and sex, as discriminatory, unreasonable and violative of the equality clause of Article 14 of the Constitution. Accordingly, the Petitioners have prayed for the following relief:

(2.) SRI S.D. Das, Learned Senior Counsel appearing for the Petitioners submitted that the Petitioners are the elected member Directors of their respective Primary Cooperative Society and hence are members of the electorate for the election to the Bank and accordingly each one of them has a right to vote and elect their candidates to the Committee of Management of the Bank. With the preparation of the impugned voter list and organization of the constituencies/zones for election to the Committee of Management of the Bank, the Petitioners' valuable right to contest the election as a candidate as well as a voter has been adversely affected and as such the finally published electoral roll, prepared on the basis of caste and sex is liable to be quashed being discriminatory, unreasonable and violative of the equality clause contained in Article 14 of the Constitution.

(3.) SRI R.K. Rath, Learned Senior Counsel and Sri M. Kanungo, Learned Counsel appearing for some intervenors have opposed the Writ Petition on the ground that the Petitioners having not objected to the provisional electoral roll prepared by the Chief Executive of the Society as prescribed under Rule 6(5) of the Orissa Co -operative Societies (Elections to the Committees) Rules, 1992 (herein after referred to as the 'Rules') and the said provisional electoral rolls having been finalized by the Election Officer, as prescribed under Rule 6(6) of the Rules, it is not open for the Petitioners to now assail the said final electoral roll in the Writ Petition. Mr. Rath further submits that the election to the Committee of Management of the Bank, which was scheduled to be held on 6.1.2008, has already been held and the result thereof has not been declared only because of the interim order of this Court.