Jamia Cooperative Bank Limited Vs Govt of NCT of Delhi & Ors. — Delhi HC (2026) — LawSathi Research

Jamia Cooperative Bank Limited Vs Govt of NCT of Delhi & Ors. — Delhi HC (2026) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Petition and pending application (CM APPL.28739/2026) disposed of with directions: (i) RCS to appoint a Returning Officer on or before 10th May 2026, who shall thereafter review the electoral roll and proceed in accordance with law to ensure free and fair elections to the Managing Committee; (ii) the present Managing Committee/Board to continue as 'Caretaking Committee' for a maximum of three months from expiry of the present term; (iii) the Caretaking Committee barred from major policy decisions and from transferring/utilising Bank funds except for day-to-day administration and salaries. The exemption application CM APPL.28740/2026 was allowed subject to all just exceptions and disposed of.

Issue for consideration

Whether directions (mandamus) should issue to Respondent Nos. 1-4, including the Registrar of Cooperative Societies, to appoint a Returning Officer forthwith and conduct elections to the Managing Committee/Board of Directors of the Petitioner Bank in a time-bound manner, the Board's tenure expiring on 10th June 2026. +1 more

Court's answer

It is directed that the Returning Officer shall be appointed by the RCS on or before 10th May 2026; immediately thereafter the Returning Officer shall review the electoral roll and proceed in accordance with law to ensure free and fair elections are conducted for the Managing Committee of the Petitioner Bank.

Ratio / Principle

Since the timelines (RO appointment by 10th May 2026) could extend beyond the term of the present Managing Committee, it is directed that the present Managing Committee/Board shall continue as a 'Caretaking Committee' for a maximum period of three months from the expiry of the term of the present Managing Committee, adopting the course set out in the relied-upon order in W.P.(C) 12817/2019.

Key takeaways

The 'Caretaking Committee' shall not take any major policy decision or transfer and utilize any funds of the Petitioner Bank except for day-to-day administration and salaries, as directed in the above-cited order (W.P.(C) 12817/2019).ratio¶37

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Delhi High Court (Prathiba M. Singh, J., oral judgment; Madhu Jain, J. on Bench) disposed of W.P.(C) 5868/2026 filed by Jamia Cooperative Bank Limited seeking appointment of a Returning Officer and time-bound elections to its Managing Committee/Board of Directors, the incumbent Board's tenure expiring on 10th June 2026 and repeated requests (resolution dated 18.02.2026 and letters of 27.02.2026, 10.04.2026, 20.04.2026) to the RCS having gone unanswered. Directed: (i) the RCS to appoint the Returning Officer on or before 10th May 2026, whereupon the RO is to review the electoral roll and proceed per law to ensure free and fair elections; (ii) relying on the Co-ordinate Bench's approach in W.P.(C) 12817/2019 (Jamia Cooperative Bank Ltd. v. GNCTD & Anr., order dated 05.12.2019) and since timelines could outlast the term, the present Board to continue as a 'Caretaking Committee' for a maximum of three months from expiry of the present term; (iii) the Caretaking Committee not to take major policy decisions nor transfer/utilise Bank funds except for day-to-day administration and salaries. Petition and pending application disposed of in these terms; exemption application (CM APPL.28740/2026) allowed subject to just exceptions.

$~56

* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

Date of decision: 29^th April, 2026

Uploaded on: 30^th April, 2026

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W.P.(C) 5868/2026

JAMIA COOPERATIVE BANK LIMITED .....Petitioner Through: Mr. Sudhir Nandrajog, Senior Advocate with Mr. Divyam Nandrajog, Ms. Ankita Singh, & Mr. Jai Singh Rawat, Advocates. (M: 9582252105)

versus

GOVT OF NCT OF DELHI & ORS. .....Respondents Through: Mr Sameer Vashisht, Standing Counsel (Civil) GNCTD with Ms Harshita Nathrani, Adv. (M: 9799150333)

CORAM: JUSTICE PRATHIBA M. SINGH JUSTICE MADHU JAIN

Prathiba M. Singh, J. (Oral)

This hearing has been done through hybrid mode. CM APPL.28740/2026 (for exemption)

Allowed, subject to all just exceptions. Application is disposed of.

W.P.(C) 5868/2026 & CM APPL.28739/2026 (for interim relief)

The Petitioner – Jamia Cooperative Bank Limited has filed the present petition seeking directions to the Respondent Nos.1 o 4 i.e., Registrar of Cooperative Societies (hereinafter, ‘ RCS ’) and other authorities for appointing a Returning Officer and for ensuring that elections for the Managing Committee/Board of Directors of the Petitioner Bank are

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W.P.(C) 5868/2026

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conducted in a time bound manner.

The case of the Petitioner Bank is that the tenure of the present Board is expiring on 10^th June, 2026. The resolution was passed on 18^th February, 2026 requesting the Respondent No.2- RCS to appoint a Returning Officer. The same was followed up with three further letters dated 27^th February, 2026, 10^th April, 2026 and 20^th April, 2026 respectively. However, since no response was received from the RCS office, the present writ petition has been filed by the Petitioner Bank. The prayers sought in the present petition are as under:

“a. Issue any writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus directing respondent nos. 1-4 to appoint a Returning Officer forthwith and ensure that elections to the Managing Committee/Board of Directors of the petitioner are conducted in a time-bound manner;

b. Issue an appropriate writ, order or direction permitting the existing Board of Directors of the petitioner to discharge their statutory functions till an election for the subsequent Board of Directors is concluded by a Returning Officer duly appointed under the Delhi Co-operative Societies Act, 2003, and;

c. Pass such other or further order(s) as this Hon’ble Court may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case.”

Mr. Nandrajog, ld. Senior Counsel appearing for the Petitioner Bank submits that the tenure of the Board is coming to end on 10^th June, 2026 and it could lead to governance issues within the Bank if the elections are not conducted expeditiously. Mr. Vashisht, ld. Standing Counsel appearing for the RCS submits that the RCS would be appointing the RO shortly within a

W.P.(C) 5868/2026

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maximum period of two weeks from today.

Under these circumstances, it is directed that the Returning Officer shall be appointed by the RCS on or before 10^th May, 2026 . Immediately thereafter, the Returning Officer shall review the electoral roll and proceed in accordance with law to ensure free and fair elections are conducted for the Managing Committee of the Petitioner Bank.

Till the Managing Committee is elected, there is an apprehension that there could be a stalemate in the administration of the Bank. Reliance is placed upon the decision in W.P.(C) 12817/2019 titled Jamia Cooperative Bank Limited v. GNCTD & Anr. by the ld. Sr. Counsel for the Appellant, in which vide the order dated 5^th December, 2019 the Co-ordinate Bench of this Court had directed as under:

“20. The next question that arises is what should happen in the interregnum i.e. after the expiry of the term of the earlier Managing Committee and the election of the new one in terms of the election schedule to be drawn up by Mr. Krishnan as an RO of the Petitioner society? Although there is no clear cut answer either in the DCS Act or the Rules in Delhi, the course that commends itself to be adopted in the present case would be to require the present committee to continue as a ‘caretaker committee’, till such time the new committee is in place, with the added condition that the present committee shall not take any major policy decision or transfer/utilise any funds of the committee, except to the extent necessary for the for the day-today administration, including payment of salaries of the staff and other normal banking activity. The copies of the decisions taken by the committee will be open for inspection by the Registrar. Mr. Krishnan, the RO will go strictly by the time limit specified in the Act and the Rules therewith, and draw up a schedule for

W.P.(C) 5868/2026

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the elections.”

In view of the fact that the Returning Officer is to be appointed by 10^th May, 2026 and the timelines could extend beyond the term of the present Managing Committee, it is directed that the present Managing Committee/Board shall continue as ‘Caretaking Committee’ for a maximum period of three months from the expiry of the term of the present Managing Committee.

However, the ‘Caretaking Committee’ shall not take any major policy decision or transfer and utilize any funds of the Petitioner Bank except for day to day administration and salaries as directed in the above cited order. 10. The petition, along with pending application, is disposed of in the above terms.

PRATHIBA M. SINGH JUDGE

MADHU JAIN JUDGE

APRIL 29, 2026/ dk/ck

W.P.(C) 5868/2026

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