Sharad Nagari Co Operative Credit ... vs The State Of Maharashtra And ...
2021 Latest Caselaw 3198 Bom

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           IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE OF BOMBAY
                      BENCH AT AURANGABAD

                        WRIT PETITION NO.2083 OF 2021

 Sharad Nagari Cooperative Credit
 Society Ltd., Aurangabad                              Petitioner

          Versus

 The State Co-operative Election
 Authority, Pune & others                              Respondents


 Mr.V.Y.Deshmukh, advocate for the Petitioner.
 Mr.S.K.Kadam, Standing Counsel for Respondents No.1 to 3.
 Mr.L.H.Kawale, advocate for Respondent No.4.


                                 CORAM : V.K.JADHAV, J.

                     RESERVED ON    : 03rd February, 2021
                     PRONOUNCED ON : 18th February, 2021


 ORDER :

1 By way of instant petition, the petitioner-Society is

challenging the legality, validity and propriety of the order dated

22nd January, 2021, passed by Respondent No.2- Election Offcer

whereby the objection raised by the petitioner-society for inclusion

of its name in the fnal voters' list for the election of Aurangabad

District Central Co-operative Bank Limited, came to be rejected.

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2 The learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that

Respondent No.2 has issued the notifcation dated 27 th

December, 2019 calling for the resolutions of the Member Societies

to nominate their representatives and to prepare the provisional

voters' list of the Respondent No.4-Bank. In terms of the said

notifcation, the Member Societies were to pass the resolution of

representative of the concerned Member Societies and it was to be

submitted on or before 31st January, 2020. In view of the same,

the petitioner-Society has passed the resolution in the meeting

dated 08th January, 2020, nominating name of its representative to

participate in the ensuing election of Respondent No.4-Bank.

However, the State Government has issued orders on 27 th January,

2020 and 31st January, 2020 directing postponement of the

elections to District Central Co-operative Banks and V.K.S.S.

Societies within the State of Maharashtra for a period of three

months. On 29th January, 2020, representative of the petitioner-

Society had been to the offce of Respondent No.3 to submit the

copy of the resolution. However, since the elections were

postponed under the orders of the State Government, the offce of

Respondent No.3 had not accepted the said Resolution submitted

by the petitioner-Society, but has made an endorsement to that

effect.

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3 The learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that so

far as the said orders dated 27th January, 2020 and 31st

January, 2020, issued by the State Government postponing the

elections, came to be challenged before this Court by fling Writ

Petition No.3155 of 2020 and by way of interim order dated 24 th

February, 2020, the Division Bench of this Court, issued a

direction to the respondents to continue the process of fnaliiation

of voters' list.

4 The learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that

Respondents No.2 to 4, however, did not issue any communication

to the petitioner for submitting the resolution of the representative.

It was incumbent upon them to issue a letter to the petitioner-

Society through R.P.A.D. as well as through personal service. The

petitioner-society was not aware of the petition fled before this

Court and the interim order passed in the said petition.

5 The learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that

Respondent No.2 has published the program on 04 th January,

2021 in the Daily Newspaper for fnaliiation of voters' list of the

Respondent No.4-Bank. As per the said program, the provisional

voters' list was published on 04th January, 2021 by the

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Respondent No.2 and objections to the provisional voters' list were

to be submitted up to 13th January, 2021. The objections were to

be heard and decided on 25th January, 2021 and the fnal voters'

list was to be published on 27th January, 2021. However, the

petitioner-society has come to know about the said program

through some other Society.

6 The learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that

the petitioner-Society accordingly submitted an application to

Respondent No.2 on 08th January, 2021, requesting therein to

include the name of the petitioner society in the voters' list of

Respondent No.4-Bank. It has been specifcally brought to the

notice of Respondent No.2 that the petitioner-Society has already

passed Resolution on 8th January, 2020, however, it was not

accepted in the offce of Respondent No.2 due to the postponement

of elections under the orders of the State Government. Even the

petitioner-Society has raised objection in that regard. However,

without considering the guidelines issued under Circular dated

10th December, 2019, Respondent No.2 illegally rejected the

objection/application preferred by the petitioner-society and

refused to include petitioner-Society and its representative in the

fnal voters' list for elections to Respondent No.4-Bank.

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7 The learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that

the guidelines given in the Circular dated 10 th December, 2019,

have not been considered and no communication has been served

upon the petitioner-Society by Respondents No.2 to 4 for calling

the Resolution of representative before preparation of provisional

voters' list. The learned Counsel for the petitioner submits that the

petitioner-Society would remain unrepresented in the ensuing

elections to Respondent No.4-Bank.

8 I have heard Mr.S.K.Kadam, Standing Counsel for

Respondents No.1 to 3. He has supported the order passed by

Respondent No.2.

9 I have also heard Mr.Kawale, learned Counsel for

Respondent No.4-Bank for some time.

10 It appears that so far as earlier process of elections to

Respondent No.4-Bank is concerned, under the orders of the

Government dated 27th January, 2020 and 31st January, 2020, the

elections have been postponed. It appears that the Division Bench

of this Court, in Writ Petition No.3155 of 2020, while issuing notice

to the respondents, has directed the respondents

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to proceed further with fnaliiation of voters' list. In view of the

said direction, further process of election is commenced from the

stage it was stopped.

11 At the outset, it is needless to mention that the

Division Bench, by judgment and order dated 11 th March, 2020 in

bunch of writ petitions, including Writ Petition No.3155 of 2020,

quashed and set aside the orders dated 27 th January, 2020 and

31st January, 2021, issued by the Government. In the Civil

Applications fled by the State Co-operative Election Authority,

bearing C.A. (St.) No.10472 of 2020 and connected matters, fled in

the above referred bunch of disposed of writ petitions, the Division

Bench of this Court by order dated 23 rd March, 2020, considering

the pandemic situation, in para 8, has observed that the District

Co-operative Election Offcer, the State Government or such other

competent Authority may take decision with regard to the

postponement of the election and its process considering the fact

and situation and may take such other steps as are permissible

and required under the Statute.

12 In terms of the guidelines dated 10th December, 2019,

for calling resolutions from the Societies for sending their

representative, the communication is required to be made

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through R.P.A.D. and if so required, one additional copy of the

communication is required to be served on such Society by hand.

Furthermore, the paper publication is also required to be given as

regards the prescribed dates.

13 In the instant case, I do not fnd any record that the

petitioner-society has been served with the said communication in

respect of sending of the resolution recommending name of the

representative before the rescheduled date.

14 It has been further pointed out to me during the

course of argument that the paper publication was given in Daily

Newspaper "Punya Nagari", Aurangabad.

15 I have carefully gone through the said paper

publication. It appears that the said paper publication has been

published not in a widely circulated Newspaper and furthermore, it

is not in the manner, as prescribed in the guidelines dated 10 th

December, 2019. It also appears that the said paper publication is

not on the front side of the newspaper. Undisputedly, the said

communication has not been sent to the petitioner-Society by

hand.

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16 It appears that as per the earlier scheduled program,

the petitioner-Society has passed the Resolution of representative

and tried to submit it in the offce of Respondent No.3. However,

said resolution was not accepted since the State Government has

postponed the elections for three months. There is an offce

endorsement to that effect.

17 In view of the same, in my considered opinion, the

petitioner-Society would remain unrepresented in the ensuring

elections to Respondent No.4-Bank for no fault of it.

18 In view of the same, I proceed to pass the following

order:

(i) Writ Petition is hereby allowed in terms of prayer

clause "B".

(V.K.JADHAV) JUDGE

adb