SURENDER SINGH Vs. REGISTRAR, CO-OP SOCIETIES, HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The sole controversy involved in this writ petition is whether the tenure of three years of the members of the Committee of a Cooperative Society under Section 28(4) of the Haryana Co-operative Societies Act shall be reckoned from the date of election of the members of the Committee or from the date the members of such Committee assume charge of office.

(2.) The brief resume of facts relevant for the disposal of this controversy is that the election of the Managing Committee of the Board of Directors of Sirsa Central Co-operative Bank Limited Sirsa, was scheduled to be held on 4th October, 1989, as per the original election programme, but due to some reasons, it was held on 21.9.1989, when out of ten members, only six members of the Board were elected unopposed while the remaining three and one were elected on 10.1.1990 and 30.1.1990 on the basis of elections held on the said dates in respect of Zone Nos. 5,7,8, and 2 respectively as per the return filed by respondent No. 1, The Registrar, Co-operative Societies, Haryana Chandigarh. It is also admitted case of respondent No. 1 and the petitioners that the first meeting of the Board of Directors was called by the Manager of the Bank for 26.7.1990 for co-option purposes. The petitioners thus contend that they assume office on 26.7.1990 and the tenure of the three years of Managing Committee should be reckoned from this date. Reliance in this regard has been placed on the decision of Division Bench of this Court in The State of Punjab and another v. The Managing Committee of the Patti Primary Co-operative Land Mortgage Bank Ltd., Patti, 1980 PunLJ 44. On this assumption, the petitioners contend that the terms of the Managing Committee of the Bank would last upto three years from 26.7.1990, but respondent No. 1 had wrongly issued notification, Annexure P-1, under Section 33(1) of the Haryana Co-operative Societies Act, 1984, appointing Administrators on the wrong assumption that the term of Committee/Bank having come to an end, the Committee does not exist. Through this writ petition, the petitioners seek the quashment of this notification Annexure. P-1.

(3.) Sh. Naresh Gulati, Registrar, Co-operative Societies, Haryana, Chandigarh-respondent No. 1, has filed the return, contending that as per provision of Section 28(4) of the Haryana Co-operative Societies Act, the term of three years of Committee shall start from the date of election and as six of the Directors had been elected unopposed on 21.9.1989, the term of the Boards completed on 20.9.1992. Thus, he maintains the above referred notification, Annexure P-1 dated 24.9.1992 was perfectly legal.