HARCHARAN SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner Harcharan Singh was the President of Minihala Jai Singh Large Size Co-operative Society Ltd. (hereafter referred to as the Society ). Santa Singh was its Secretary. It appears that the affairs of the Society were in a mess. The Assistant Registrar, Co-operative Societies (Respondent 2), in person (along with?) respondent 3 proceeded to village Manihala Jai Singh on 20th March, 1978 requiring Santa Singh Secretary to produce the account-books before him. On his failure to do so, he was ordered to be confined to civil imprisonment. The said Santa Singh filed Civil Writ No. 1712 of 1978 in this Court. As an interim measure, he was ordered b be released from custody. But the petition was ultimately dismissed in limine on 2-5-1978. The Assistant Registrar also issued a notice an 30-3-1978, Annexure P. 1, under Section 31 of the Civil P. C. , 1908 to the petitioner Harcharan Singh, intimating therein that when he went on tour, the Society did not produce the books of account before him and for the purpose the petitioner was required to put in appearance before him on 11-4-1978. Thereafter, when the petitioner put in appearance accompanied by Santa Singh and another before the Assistant Registrar on the adjourned date of 7-6-1978, the impugned order, Annexure P. 2, was passed whereby the Assistant Registrar took the view that both Harcharan Singh and Santa Singh did not want to produce the records of the Society and had evasively been blaiming each other to be in possession of the records. He thus passed the following order in translated form as supplied by the petitioner's counsel:-

(2.) THE petitioner submitted surety for personal appearance and challenged the jurisdiction of the Assistant Registrar in demanding surety for producing books of account. The Assistant Registrar taking aid of the decision in Santa Singh's ease (supra), because in his case also a similar demand had been made, took the order to be legal and within the ambit of Ss. 32 and 151. Civil P. C. That order is Annexure P. 3. The petitioner filed an appeal before the Deputy Registrar vide grounds, Annexure P. 4, but the same was dismissed on the view that the order was not appealable vide order, Annexure P. 8 Challenging the aforesaid orders, the petitioner has approached this Court under Arts. 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India.

(3.) REPLY has been filed by respondent No. 3 in which he has justified the steps taken as a Civil Court. It has been claimed by him that since similar steps taken by him in Santa Singh's case (supra) had been left uninterfered with by this Court, the impugned order in the present one too should be left uninterfered.