V.Sudhakaran vs Karthikappally Co-Operative ...
2023 Latest Caselaw 13485 Ker

Kerala High Court

V.Sudhakaran vs Karthikappally Co-Operative ... on 21 December, 2023

Author: N.Nagaresh

Bench: N.Nagaresh

        IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
                          PRESENT
          THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE N.NAGARESH
THURSDAY, THE 21ST DAY OF DECEMBER 2023/30TH AGRAHAYANA, 1945
                 WP(C) NO. 41675 OF 2023
PETITIONERS:

    1    V.SUDHAKARAN,
         AGED 69 YEARS,
         S/O VASU, SUDHAMAYI,
         KANDALLOOR P.O,
         KAYAMKULAM,
         ALAPPUZHA, PIN - 690572.

    2    M.SULEKHA,
         AGED 65 YEARS,
         W/O V.SUDHAKARAN,
         SUDHAMAYI, KANDALLOOR P.O.,
         KAYAMKULAM, ALAPPUZHA, PIN - 690572.

         BY ADVS.
         SHRI. P.N.MOHANAN
         SHRI. C.P.SABARI
         SHRI. AMRUTHA SURESH
         SHRI. GILROY ROZARIO


RESPONDENTS:

    1    KARTHIKAPPALLY CO-OPERATIVE AGRICULTURAL &
         RURAL DEVELOPMENT BANK LTD.NO. A 326,
         REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY,
         HARIPPAD P.O,
         ALAPPUZHA, PIN - 690514.

    2    THE MANAGING COMMITTEE OF KARTHIKAPPALLY
         CO-OPERATIVE AGRICULTURAL & RURAL DEVELOPMENT
         BANK LTD.NO. A 326,
         REPRESENTED BY ITS PRESIDENT,
         HARIPPAD P.O,
         ALAPPUZHA, PIN - 690514
 W.P.(C) No.41675/2023
                            :2:


    3     THE JOINT REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE
          SOCIETIES (G),
          OFFICE OF THE JOINT REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE
          SOCIETIES,
          PECHI ANKALAMMAN COMPLEX,
          PAZHAVANGADI JUNCTION, IRUMPUPALAM P.O,
          ALAPPUZHA, PIN - 688011.

    4     THE REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES,
          DEPARTMENT OF CO-OPERATION,
          OFFICE OF THE REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE
          SOCIETIES, JAWAHAR SAHAKARANA BHAVAN,
          DPI JUNCTION, THYCAUD P.O.,
          THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695014

    5     ELECTORAL OFFICER TO KARTHIKAPPALLY
          CO-OPERATIVE AGRICULTURAL & RURAL
          DEVELOPMENT BANK LTD.NO. A 326,
          ASSISTANT REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES
          KARTHIKAPPALLY, KARTHIKAPPALLY P.O,
          ALAPPUZHA, PIN - 690516.

          BY ADVS.
          SHRI.T.R.HARIKUMAR,
          SHRI.ARJUN RAGHAVAN(K/1277/2012),
          SHRI.C.M.NAZAR, SC
          SMT. SHEEJA C.S., SENIOR GOVERNMENT PLEADER

     THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP          FOR
ADMISSION ON 21.12.2023, THE COURT ON THE SAME          DAY
DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
 W.P.(C) No.41675/2023
                                        :3:




                           N. NAGARESH, J.

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                      W.P.(C) No.41675 of 2023

          `````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
            Dated this the 21st day of December, 2023


                            JUDGMENT

~~~~~~~~~

The petitioners, who are members of the 1 st

respondent-Karthikappally Co-operative Agricultural and

Rural Development Bank, have filed this writ petition seeking

to direct the 1st and 2nd respondents to include the name of

the petitioners in the preliminary voters list and to issue ID

Cards to the 2nd petitioner. The petitioners also seek to

direct the 4th respondent-Registrar of Co-operative Societies

to consider and pass orders on Ext.P7 before publication of

the preliminary voters list.

2. Election to the Karthikappally Co-operative

Agricultural and Rural Development Bank has been notified

as per Ext.P4 Notification dated 27.11.2023. The preliminary

voters list is to be published on 11.12.2023. Objections to

the preliminary voters list will be received till 18.12.2023.

Objections will be considered on 19.12.2023 and final voters

list is to be published on 21.12.2023.

3. The petitioners state that the 1st petitioner is a

former employee of KSFE and the 2 nd petitioner was an

employee of the Bank. Both of them retired on

superannuation. The 2nd petitioner submitted application for

membership in the Bank and it was sanctioned. The 2 nd

petitioner has not been issued with ID Card so far. The

Managing Committee of the Bank enhanced share value

from ₹50/- to ₹100/-. A time limit was prescribed to remit

balance share value. The petitioners did not notice the

same. When the petitioners came to know about the

enhancement of share value, they remitted the balance

share value on 08.10.2021.

4. The 2nd petitioner thereafter approached the Bank

to get ID Card as provided in the Kerala Co-operative

Societies Rules. The ID Card was denied to the 2 nd

petitioner stating that the last date for remittance of the

enhanced share value was 06.10.2021 and the 2 nd petitioner

remitted the money only on 08.10.2021. In the case of other

members who failed to remit the enhanced share value, their

share amount was transferred to a suspense account.

5. As the petitioners were denied membership in

spite of remittance of balance share value, the petitioners

submitted Ext.P6 complaint dated 21.10.2023 to the Minister

for Co-operation. The petitioners submitted Ext.P7

representation to the Joint Registrar also. Exts.P6 and P7

have not been positively responded to.

6. The counsel for the petitioners argued that both

the petitioners have remitted the enhanced share value on

08.10.2021. As per Section 11 of the Kerala Co-operative

Societies Act, enhanced share value can be remitted at any

point of time. Membership has to be granted after fulfilling all

the conditions provided in Section 60 read with Rule 60 of

the Kerala Co-operative Societies Rules. The 1 st petitioner is

interested to contest in the election. Therefore, direction

should be given to the 1st and 2nd respondents to include the

name of the petitioners in the preliminary voters list and to

issue ID Card to the 2nd petitioner.

7. Standing Counsel entered appearance on behalf

of respondents 1 and 2 and resisted the writ petition. On

behalf of respondents 1 and 2, it is submitted that the

Managing Committee of the Society passed a resolution on

21.12.2019 resolving to enhance share value from ₹50/- to

₹100/-. The amendment was registered as per Ext.R2(a)

Certificate of Registration dated 20.01.2021. The amendment

provided that the enhanced share value shall be remitted by

the members within a period of six months and that the

membership of the persons who failed to remit the balance

amount will lose their membership and the share value will

be transferred to the suspense account.

8. Respondents 1 and 2 further submitted that a

notice was published in Mathrubhumi Daily and Veekshanam

Daily on 06.04.2021 intimating the shareholders to remit the

enhanced share value before 06.10.2021. The petitioners

did not remit the balance share value by 06.10.2021. The

staff of the Bank mistakenly collected enhanced share value

from the petitioners on 08.10.2021. From 23000 members,

the Society has cancelled the membership of 15,722

members who failed to remit the enhanced share value. The

writ petition filed by the petitioners is therefore without any

merit and is liable to be dismissed.

9. I have heard the learned counsel for the

petitioners and the learned Standing Counsel representing

respondents 1 and 2. I have also heard the learned Senior

Government Pleader representing respondents 3 and 4 and

the learned Standing Counsel representing the 5 th

respondent.

10. Section 11 of the Kerala Co-operative Societies

Act provides that a Society may by an amendment of its

Bye-laws, change the form or extent of its liability. When the

Society has passed a resolution to change the form or

extend of its liability, it shall give thereof in writing to all its

members and creditors and any member or creditor shall

during the period of two months from the date of service of

notice upon them, have the option of withdrawing of their

shares. In the case of the 1 st petitioner-Society, the Society

has given notice to its members regarding enhancement of

share value.

11. Rule 16(3) of the Kerala Co-operative Societies

Rules provides that where a person already admitted to

membership is seen to have been eligible for membership at

the time he was so admitted as a member or if he

subsequently becomes ineligible for membership, the

Committee of the Society may remove the person from the

membership after giving him an opportunity for making his

representation if any and the person concerned shall

thereupon cease to be a member of the Society.

12. In view of Rule 16 of the Kerala Co-operative

Societies Rules, since the petitioners have not been issued

with any notice as contemplated under Rule 16(3), the

petitioners will continue to be members of the Society.

13. However, as the petitioners have not remitted the

enhanced share value, they will not be entitled to exercise

their right to vote. A Division Bench of this Court has

considered the issue in the judgment in Keechery Service

Co-operative Bank Limited No.668 and another v.

Ramesh M.M. and others [2020 (1) KLJ 80] and held that

only members who have remitted the entire share capital,

necessary for exercising all the rights of a member as on a

day 60 days prior to the election, are entitled to get their

names included in the list of qualified voters published by the

Electoral Officer under Rule 35A(4).

14. Be that as it may, even though the legal position

be so, this Court is not called upon to adjudicate on the

claims of the petitioners for the reason that the Kerala State

Co-operative Election Commission has already published

election notification as per Ext.P4 on 27.11.2023. The

election process includes publication of preliminary voters

list, submission of objections to the preliminary voters list and

publication of final voters list. The finalisation of voters list

being an integral part of the election process, the petitioners

will have to challenge any inclusion/exclusion/discrepancy in

the voters list in an election petition, resorting to Section 69

of the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act. The petitioners

have not advanced any special circumstances warranting

interference in the process of election, under Article 226 of

the Constitution of India.

The writ petition is therefore dismissed.

Sd/-

N. NAGARESH, JUDGE aks/21.12.2023

APPENDIX OF WP(C) 41675/2023

PETITIONERS' EXHIBITS:

Exhibit P1 A TRUE COPY OF THE ID CARD HAVING MEMBER SHIP NO.14230 IN RESPECT OF THE FIRST PETITIONER Exhibit P2 A TRUE COPY OF THE REMITTANCE OF THE ENHANCED SHARE VALUE DATED 08.10.2021 IN RESPECT OF THE FIRST PETITIONER Exhibit P3 A TRUE COPY OF THE REMITTANCE OF THE ENHANCED SHARE VALUE DATED 08.10.2021 IN RESPECT OF THE SECOND PETITIONER Exhibit P4 A TRUE COPY OF THE ELECTION NOTIFICATION DATED 08.12.2023 PUBLISHED IN MATHRUBHUMI DAILY DATED 08.12.2023 Exhibit P5 A TRUE COPY OF THE FD RECEIPT DATED

15.07.2016 IN RESPECT OF THE SECOND PETITIONER Exhibit P6 A TRUE COPY OF THE COMPLAINT DATED 21.10.2023 ADDRESSED TO THE MINISTER FOR CO-OPERATION ALONG WITH THE ENDORSEMENT DATED 26.10.2023 Exhibit P7 A TRUE COPY OF THE REQUEST DATED 25.10.2023 SUBMITTED BY THE SECOND PETITIONER BEFORE THE JOINT REGISTRAR

RESPONDENTS' EXHIBITS:

Exhibit-R2(a) A TRUE COPY OF THE CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION OF AMENDMENT DATED 20/01/2021 Exhibit-R2(b) A TRUE COPY OF THE BYE-LAW AMENDMENT APPROVED BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT Exhibit-R2(c) TRUE COPIES OF THE PAPER PUBLICATIONS DATED 06/04/2021 PUBLISHED IN MATHRUBHUMI DAILY Exhibit-R2(d) TRUE COPIES OF THE PAPER PUBLICATIONS DATED 06/04/2021 PUBLISHED IN VEEKSHANAM DAILY