Prashant Ashok Ekkaldevi v. the State of Maharashtra Thru. Secretary and Ors.
Case brief
What is this about?
Tenability/maintainability of writ petition where statutory appellate remedy is available (alternative-remedy objection); Section 152 appeal under Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act; Section 21-A deregistration of co-operative society by Divisional Joint Registrar, Co-operative Society, Pune; writ jurisdiction invoked under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution; interim stay of 9 December 2025 continued till appellate decision; time-bound directions (appeal within 3 weeks, appellate decision within 3 months, along with Society's pending appeal, on merits); reliance by respondents on co-ordinate bench decision Ambadas Narsingh Konda & Anr. v. State of Maharashtra, Writ Petition No. 15781 of 2023 (decided 21-12-2023), referred; all contentions kept open; no costs; Bombay HC Kolhapur Circuit Bench, oral order per Pravin S. Patil, J.
What did the court decide?
Writ petition disposed of with directions: Appellant to file statutory appeal under Section 152 of the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act within three weeks; interim order dated 9 December 2025 to continue operating till decision of the appeal; appellate authority to decide the appeal within three months thereafter along with the Society's pending appeal on its own merits; failure to file within three weeks ends the interim relief; all contentions expressly kept open; no order as to costs.