Gauhati High Court
Niloy Bhusan Singha vs The State Of Assam And 7 Ors on 25 May, 2022
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GAHC010086402022
THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT
(HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)
Case No. : WP(C)/2984/2022
NILOY BHUSAN SINGHA
S/O LATE NRIPENDRA SINGHA, R/O VILL-RONGPUR, P.O.-SAHABAD, DIST-
HAILAKANDI, ASSAM, PIN-788163
VERSUS
THE STATE OF ASSAM AND 7 ORS.
REPRESENTED BY THE ADDITIONAL CHIEF SECRETARY TO THE GOVT.
OF ASSAM, COOPERATION DEPARTMENT, DISPUR, GUWAHATI-6
2:THE DEPUTY SECRETARY TO THE GOVT. OF ASSAM
COOPERATION DEPARTMENT
DISPUR
GUWAHATI-6
3:THE REGISTRAR OF COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES
ASSAM
KHANAPARA
GUWAHATI-22
4:THE ZONAL JOINT REGISTRAR OF CCOPERATIVE SOCIETIES
SILCHAR ZONE
SILCHAR
CACHAR
ASSAM
PIN-788001
5:THE ASSISTANT REGISTRAR OF COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES
HAILAKANDI
ASSAM
P.O. AND DIST-HAILAKANDI
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PIN-788151
6:RONGPUR SAMABAI SAMITY LTD.
RONGPUR
P.O.-SAHABAD
DIST-HAILAKANDI
ASSAM
PIN-788163 REPRESENTED BY THE SECRETARY
7:THE CHAIRMAN/OFFICER-ON-MANAGEMENT
RONGPUR SAMABAI SAMITY LTD.
RONGPUR
P.O.-SAHABAD
DIST-HAILAKANDI
ASSAM
PIN-788163
8:JIABUR RAHMAN LASKAR
S/O LATE NURUDDIN LAKSAR
R/IO VILL-SAHABAD PART-II
P.O.-SAHABAD
DIST-HAILAKANDI
ASSAM
PIN-78816
Advocate for the Petitioner : DR. B AHMED
Advocate for the Respondent : SC, CO OP
BEFORE
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANASH RANJAN PATHAK
ORDER
25-05-2022
Heard Dr. B Ahmed, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. S K Talukdar, learned
Standing counsel, Co-operation Department, Assam for the respondent Nos. 1 to 5. Also heard
Mr. M Khan, learned counsel for the respondent No. 8/ Caveator.
By a common judgment and order dated 10.02.2022, a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court
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while disposing of WP(C) No. 5607/2021 and WP(C) No. 86/2022 both preferred by the
respondent No. 8, where the present writ petitioner was the private respondent No. 7, directed
the State Government in the Co-operation Department to appoint a Secretary/Chief Executive of
Rongpur Samabai Samity, Rangpur, District- Hailakandi within a period of 20 (twenty) days from
the date of passing of the said judgment and order, permitting the petitioner of WP(C) No.
86/2022, i.e. the present respondent No. 8 to carry out the functions of the Secretary (In-charge)
of the said Rongpur Samabai Samity till such time of appointment of Secretary/Chief Executive of
the said society by the State Government in the Co-operation Department with the rider that the
Officer-on-Management shall operate the Bank Account of the said society with the approval of
the Zonal Joint Registrar that includes the District-Hailakandi, till such time the State Government
makes appointment as directed in the said order dated 10.02.2022 with a further observation that
while granting such approval by the Zonal Joint Registrar, Co-operative Societies, Silchar, said
authority shall take into consideration that the directions for operating the bank account is in the
interim till a regular appointee is made by the State Government.
Against the said common judgment and order dated 10.02.2022 passed by the Co-ordinate
Bench of this Court in WP(C) Nos. 5607/2021 and 86/2022, the authorities in the Co-operation
Department of the State preferred an appeal being Writ Appeal No. 98/2022.
In the meanwhile, the State Government in the Co-operation Department by impugned
order No. COOP.58/2022/259 dated 17.03.2022 informed the Zonal Joint Registrar, Co-operative
Societies, Silchar, respondent No. 4 requesting him to allow the existing Secretary of said Rongpur
Samabai Samity under Hailakandi Sub-Division to continue to hold the post of Secretary of the
said Samabai Samity under Hailakandi District and further, directing him to take necessary action
for holding election of the Board of Directors as per the said common judgment and order dated
10.02.2022.
Being aggrieved with the said order of the State Government in the Co-operation
Department dated 17.03.2022, thereby allowing the respondent No. 8 to continue to hold the
post of Secretary of said Rongpur Samabai Samity, the petitioner has preferred this writ petition
praying amongst others to set aside and quash the said order dated 17.03.2022 of the Co-
operation Department and further, for a direction to allow the petitioner to act as the Secretary of
the said Samabai Samity till new Board of Directors is constituted as per the provisions of the
Assam Co-operative Societies Act, 2007 with an interim prayer not to allow the respondent No. 8
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to operate the Bank Account of the said society maintained with the Union Bank of India,
Katlicherra Branch of District- Hailakandi.
By filing an additional affidavit, the petitioner submitted that the respondent No. 8 on
09.05.2022 had withdrawn an amount of Rs. 26,15,000/- from the Bank Account of Rongpur
Samabai Samity and with regard to the said illegal action of the respondent No. 8, one of the
shareholders of the said society lodged a complaint before the Chief Judicial Magistrate,
Hailakandi on 12.05.2022 against the respondent No. 8 as well as the Chairman of the said
society which was registered as C.R. Case No. 446/2022 and pursuant to the order of the Chief
Judicial Magistrate, Hailakandi, the said complaint on being forwarded to the Katlicherra Police
Station for investigation is now registered as Katlicherra Police Station Case No. 85/2022 U/S
420/409/406/34 of IPC against the petitioner as well as other accused persons of the case.
Dr. Ahmed, learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that pursuant to the impugned
order dated 17.03.2022 passed by the respondent in the Co-operation Department of the state,
the respondent No. 8, being the sole authority to manage the Bank Account of said Rongpur
Samabai Samity there is all possibility that he shall misappropriate the funds of the said Samabai
Samity.
It is seen from the copy of the order dated 29.03.2022 passed by the Hon'ble Division
Bench in Writ Appeal No. 98/2022 annexed to this petition as Annexure-17 that the appellants
i.e. the authorities in the Co-operation Department placed before the Court the order dated
17.03.2022 passed by the State Government in the Co-operation Department appointing the
present respondent No. 8 i.e. the respondent No. 1 in said writ appeal as the Secretary of the
said society and the Hon'ble Division Bench by the said order dated 29.03.2022 though took note
of it, but did not interfere with it.
It is seen that in said Writ Appeal No. 98/2022, the present petitioner is the respondent No.
2.
Since the Hon'ble Division Bench in its order dated 29.03.2022 passed in Writ Appeal
No.98/2022 has not interfered with the impugned order dated 17.03.2022 issued by the State
Government in the Co-operation Department allowing the respondent No. 8 to hold the post of
Secretary of said Rongpur Samabai Samity, therefore this Court is not inclined to pass any such
order in the present writ petition in respect of the impugned order dated 17.03.2022(Annexure-16
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to this petition).
However, the petitioner being the respondent No. 2 in said Writ Appeal No. 98/2022 may
appear in the said writ appeal and bring the relevant facts to the notice of the Hon'ble Division
Bench for necessary consideration.
List after 6(Six) weeks.
JUDGE
Comparing Assistant
