Allahabad High Court
The Lucknow Christian College, Lko. ... vs The Lucknow Christian College, Lko. ... on 10 May, 2024
Author: Rajan Roy
Bench: Rajan Roy
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD, LUCKNOW BENCH
?Neutral Citation No. - 2024:AHC-LKO:36120-DB
Court No. - 2
Case :- SPECIAL APPEAL No. - 100 of 2024
Appellant :- The Lucknow Christian College, Lko. Thru. President/Manager/Secy. Anima Risal Singh And Others
Respondent :- The Lucknow Christian College, Lko. Thru. President/Manager/Secy. Dr. Prog. R.R. Lyall And Others
Counsel for Appellant :- Som Kartik Shukla,Ravi Kant Shukla
Counsel for Respondent :- Zainuddin Mohammad Siddiqui,C.S.C.
Hon'ble Rajan Roy,J.
Hon'ble Om Prakash Shukla,J.
1. Objections filed on behalf of respondents No. 1 to 3 is taken on record.
2. Heard.
3. It is an undisputed fact that, as on date, there is no order of any Court to the effect that the petitioner, Anima Risal Singh is a member of the Society, namely, Lucknow Christian College, Golaganj, Lucknow, much less its office bearer. In fact, there is an order dated 21.11.2022 passed by the Deputy Registrar, (Chits, Funds and Societies) saying that all those who participated in the meetings dated 5.3.2021, 12.3.2021 and 20.3.2021, which included Anima Risal Singh, were not members of the aforesaid society and that Smt. Anima Risal Singh failed to produce any evidence and establish that the said participants were members of the society, having been enrolled as per the rules. On the said dates, Smt. Anima Risal Singh claimed to have held an election and that is why list of members of the Committee of Management was submitted before the Deputy Registrar, (Chits, Funds and Societies) and vide order dated 21.11.2022, her claim has been rejected. Now this order, no doubt, is under challenge in writ petition bearing Writ-C No.8521 of 2022, but there is no interim order staying the said order of the Deputy Registrar (Chits, Funds and Societies), meaning thereby, it is operative, although sub-judice in the said writ petitions.
4. In Writ-C No.2124 of 2023, the general body meeting dated 10.3.2023, the list of member of the general body approved under Section 4 (b) of society i.e. Lucknow Christian College in which Smt. Anima Risal Singh does not find mention and it was approved by the Deputy Registrar (Chits, Funds and Societies) under section 4 (b) was put to challenge by Anima Risal singh claiming herself to be the Manager/ President/ Secretary of the Society.
5. Now in this petition also, there is no order to the effect staying the order dated 10.3.2023, therefore, for all practical purposes, the orders dated 21.11.2022 and 10.03.2023 are operative, though, they are sub-judice.
6. Now when the hearing of the said writ petitions was going on, it appears that in one of the colleges run by the society, namely, Centennial College, Lucknow, elections to the Committee of Management were to be held or had been held and therefore, merely because the hearing was going on in the said writ petitions, the said elections were stopped, that was a time bound order. Ultimately the said petitions were heard and judgment was reserved on 5.4.2023 with the further stipulation that the interim order granted on 3.4.2023 shall continue till delivery of order/judgment. The said order dated 03.04.2023 reads as under:-
"An application for interim relief in Writ C No.2124 of 2023 has been filed in regard to staying the operation and implementation of the order dated 31.03.2023, the same is taken on record.
Heard Sri L.P. Mishra, learned Advocate assisted by Sri Kazim Ibrahim, learned counsel for the petitioner, learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel and Sri Anil Tiwari, learned Senior Advocate assisted by Sri Zainuddin Mohammad Siddiqui, learned counsel for respondent at length.
Due to paucity of time, matter could not be concluded today.
List/ put up tomorrow i.e. 04.04.2023 for further hearing as a first case after fresh.
Learned counsel for the petitioner has produced the order dated 31.03.2023 by which the DIOS, Lucknow has appointed Observer for the elections of the Committee of Management of the Lucknow Christian College, Lucknow and vide another order passed on the same date has also appointed election Observer for Centennial College, Lucknow which is also an institution of petitioner No.1 for the elections of its Committee of Management. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that hearing in the matter is going on day to day and this exercise may frustrate the very purpose of filing of the petition.
Learned counsel for respondent has submitted that by this time, the elections are already over.
With consent of parties, let status quo prior to the holding of elections be maintained by the parties. The authorized controller, if, has been appointed prior to the order dated 31.03.2023 shall continue till next date of listing as well as the single hand operation, if it is in effect, prior to the passing of its order dated 31.03.2023 shall continue till next date of listing for these two institutions only."
7. Ultimately, the matter was released on 28.8.2023 in the following terms:-
"While dictating the order, it was felt that matter requires further hearing.
Accordingly, let the matter be listed in the next week before appropriate regular Bench. The matter may not be treated as tied up to this court."
8. Thereafter, the applicant seeking leave to appeal has not disclosed as to whether the said petitions were listed thereafter, if so, what happened?
9. The concerned opposite party in his representation to the DIOS, Lucknow, for declaring the result of the elections held on 3.4.2023, regarding which the status-quo order had been passed on the same date, has informed, that the matter was listed on 14.9.2023, 19.9.2023 and 26.9.2023. It was heard, but the interim order was not extended.
10. We do not find mention of these dates anywhere in the application seeking leave to appeal and the affidavit filed in support thereof, nor any averment that the interim order, which was granted on 03.04.2023, which as per the opposite party is no longer operating especially in view of the order dated 28.8.2023, is in fact, still in operation or has been extended in any manner.
11. For all practical purposes, there is nothing on record to show any order of any authority or any Court that the Anima Risal Singh is a member of parent society, namely, Lucknow Christian College, Golaganj, Lucknow.
12. Now, the appeal has been filed by her seeking leave to appeal challenging a judgment passed in writ petition bearing Writ-C No.3643 of 2024 filed by the respondent for attesting the signatures of the elected office bearers of the Centennial College, as there was no legal impediment in this regard.
13. Needless to say that the office bearers of the society are ex-officio office bearers of the college and there is no separate general body of the Centennial College, a fact which was not disputed by the counsel for the applicant seeking leave to appeal. This being the scenario, and at least as of now there being no order of any authority or Court, that Smt. Anima Risal Singh is a member of the parent society nor its office bearer, one fails to understand as to what locus standi, at least at this stage she could have to intervene in the writ petitions whether as a proper or necessary party or for that matter to maintain this application seeking leave to appeal against the judgment passed in the said writ petition. Of course, if the orders dated 21.11.2022 and the order dated 10.3.2023 are set aside in the writ petitions filed by the applicant, then she may claim her rights, but as of now, we see no reason to hear the petitioner, certainly not claiming herself to be the President/ Manager/ Secretary of Lucknow Chirstian College, Golaganj, Lucknow or the President/ Manager/ Secretary of Committee of Management of the said Lucknow Christian College, Golaganj Lucknow. She is also not entitled to maintain this application seeking leave to appeal in her individual capacity for obvious reasons as discussed herein-above, at least as of now, she is not a member of the society. All this of course is subject to the writ petitions filed by her, which are pending consideration.
14. Needless to say that any action which may be taken in pursuance to the impugned judgment would also be subject to the result of all those writ petitions where these opposite parties are also arrayed.
15. With this observations, we reject the application seeking leave to appeal. Consequently, the appeal is consigned to record.
16. We also take serious note of the fact that the order dated 21.11.2022 though mentioned in the records of the appeal, has not been annexed, though, it is an order adverse to the applicant seeking leave to appeal and has been brought on record by the opposite party in their objections nor the order dated 10.3.2023 has been brought on record.
(Om Prakash Shukla,J.) (Rajan Roy,J.)
Order Date :- 10.5.2024/Gurpreet Singh
