SHRAWANRAM Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By way of this appeal, the appellant Shrawanram has approached this Court for assailing the order dated 5.2.2020 passed by the learned Single Bench in S.B.Civil Writ Petition No.1832/2020, whereby the writ petition preferred by the appellant writ petitioner assailing the order dated 30.1.2020 passed by the Registrar, Cooperative Societies, Govt. of Rajasthan, Jaipur appointing the Regional Audit Officer, Cooperative Societies to be the Administrator of the Bikaner Primary Cooperative Land Development Bank Limited, Bikaner (hereinafter referred to as primary cooperative society for short), was dismissed.

(2.) The appellant writ petitioner claims to have been elected as the Chairperson of the primary cooperative society vide minutes recorded in the meeting of its Managing Committee dated 16.1.2020. It may be stated here that as per the provisions of Section 30 of the Rajasthan Cooperative Societies Act (hereinafter to be referred to as the Act of 2001 for short), the term of the cooperative society had come to an end way-back on 5.8.2018 but despite the obligation cast upon the State Government to conduct fresh elections, the matter is still hanging at the end of the State Government. The Registrar, Cooperative Societies purportedly issued a notice dated 13.1.2020 to the Chairperson and members of the primary cooperative society under Section 30(1)(c) of the Act and on not receiving any response, he proceeded to pass the order dated 30.1.2020, appointing an Administrator to govern the affairs of the society. The writ petition preferred by the appellant for assailing the said order was rejected by the learned Single Bench vide order dated 5.2.2020 which is assailed in the instant intracourt appeal.

(3.) Sarva Shri Akshay Surana and Pappu Sangwa Advocates, representing the appellant writ petitioner vehemently and fervently urged that the order dated 30.1.2020 is without jurisdiction because Section 30C of the Act of 2001 under which the Registrar exercised power for passing of the impugned order and also relied upon by the learned Single Bench in its order dated 5.2.2020 has long since been declared to be ultra virus and the proviso (1) to Section 31C as it existed prior to the amendment has been restored. Learned counsel representing the appellant urged that under the unamended provisions of Section 31C of the Act of 2001, the power to appoint an Administrator to govern the affairs of a primary Society can only be exercised by a Zonal Registrar and the Registrar, Cooperative Societies does not have any jurisdiction to pass such an order. They urged that the learned Single Bench, whilst rejecting the writ petition of the appellant writ petitioner, relied upon the statutory provision, which has been declared to be ultra virus and thus, the impugned order passed by the learned Single Bench as well as the order dated 30.1.2020 passed by the Registrar, Cooperative Societies, deserve to be quashed and set aside as the same are patently illegal.