This writ petitioner challenged his exclusion from the Board of Directors of a 3rd respondent bank after his society's committee term expired and an Administrator took over. The court upheld that his delegation ceased upon expiration, and the bank's action was lawful.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT:
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SHAJI P.CHALY
TUESDAY, THE 12TH DAY OF JULY 2016/21ST ASHADHA, 1938
WP(C).No. 16764 of 2015 (U)
PETITIONER:
GEORGE KUNNAPUZHA KUNNAPUZHA HOUSE, PULLAD P.O., PATHANAMTHITTA DISTRICT 689 548
BY ADVS.SRI.V.G.ARUN
SRI.T.R.HARIKUMAR
RESPONDENTS:
1. THE PULLADU SERVICE CO-OPERATIVE BANK LTD.NO.1375 REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY, PULLAD P.O., PATHANAMTHITTA DISTRICT 689 548
2. THE JOINT REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES (GENERAL), PATHANAMTHITTA, PATHANAMTHITTA DISTRICT 689 001
3. THE PATHANAMTHITTA DISTRICT CO-OPERATIVE BANK LTD, REPRESENTED BY ITS GENERAL MANAGER, PATHANAMTHITTA 689 001
R3 BY ADV. SRI.V.PHILIP MATHEW R1 BY ADV. SRI.PRASAD CHANDRAN R2 BY ADV. GOVERNMENT PLEADER SRI.T.R.RAJESH
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 12-07-2016, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
WP(C).No. 16764 of 2015 (U)
APPENDIX
PETITIONER'S EXHIBITS
---------------------------------EXHIBIT P1 : A TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER ISSUED BY THE CONVENOR OF THE PATHANAMTHITTA DISTRICT COMMITTEE OF THE LEFT DEMOCRATIC FRONT DATED 13.3.2015
EXHIBIT P1(a): COPY OF THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF EXHIBIT P1
EXHIBIT P2 : A TRUE COPY OF THE INTERIM ORDER DATED 18.3.2015 IN WPC NO.8663 OF 2015
EXHIBIT P3 : A TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER NO. C.R.P. (2) 1434/15
EXHIBIT P3(a): COPY OF THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF EXHIBIT P3.
EXHIBIT P4: A TRUE COPY OF THE COVERING LETTER DATED 19.3.2015 ALONG WITH ELECTION NOTIFICATION DATED 19.3.2015
EXHIBIT P4(A): COPY OF THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF EXHIBIT P4
EXHIBIT P5 : A TRUE COPY OF THE JUDGMENT DATED 26.3.2015 IN WPC No.8663 OF 2015 EXHIBIT P6 : A TRUE COPY OF THE RESOLUTION NO.1 DATED 20.4.2015
EXHIBIT P6(a): COPY OF THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF EXHIBIT P6.
EXHIBIT P7 : A TRUE COPY OF THE COMMUNICATION SENT BY THE 1ST RESPONDENT TO THE 3RD RESPONDENT DATED 23.4.2015.
EXHIBIT P7(A): COPY OF THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF EXHIBIT P7.
EXHIBIT P8 : A TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER SUBMITTED BY THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE GENERAL MANAGER OF THE 3RD RESPONDENT DATED 27.4.2015.
EXHIBIT P8(A): COPY OF THE ENGLISH TRANSLATIIN OF EXHIBIT P8.
EXHIBIT P9 : A TRUE COPY OF THE REPLY ISSUED BY THE GENERAL MANAGER OF THE 3RD RESPONDENT DATED 6.5.2015.
EXHIBIT P9(A): COPY OF THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF EXHIBIT P9.
RESPONDENTS' EXHIBITS
EXHIBIT R2(a):- TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER NO.E(I)199/2015/SCEC DATED 20.03.2015 AND ENGLISH TRANSLATION.
// TRUE COPY //
P.A. TO JUDGE
rmm
SHAJI P. CHALY, J.
W.P.(C). No.16764 of 2015
Dated this the 12th day of July, 2016
JUDGMENT
Petitioner has filed this writ petition seeking to declare that petitioner continues to be a member of the Board of Directors of the 3rd respondent bank and for a further direction to the 3rd respondent bank to issue notice of all meeting of its Director Board to the petitioner.
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untoward incident in the State Assembly during the budget presentation, a political front in the State declared harthal on 14.3.2015. The declaration came on 13.3.2015 afternoon. Immediately thereupon the Returning Officer declared that he was adjourning the election. In spite of the petitioner obtaining a letter from the Convenor of the political front, which called the harthal, stating that the area of operation of the 1st respondent society has been exempted from the purview of harthal, the Returning Officer remained with his stand of adjourning the election. Since the petitioner felt that the only reason behind adjourning the election, was to ensure that election is not conducted within the term of the elected committee, petitioner approached this court by filing W.P(C) No.8663/2015 seeking direction to the State Co-operative Election Commission to take emergent steps to conduct the poll to elect the managing committee of the 1st respondent society. In the said writ petition, this court passed an order dated 18.3.2015 directing the 3rd respondent to explore the possibility of appointing the petitioner and two others from
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the existing managing committee as members of the Administrative Committee, in the wake of expiry of the term of the managing committee of the 1st respondent society on 19.3.2015. That part it is urged that, on 20.3.2015, Eraviperoor Unit Inspector came to the office of the 1st respondent society for taking charge as Part-time Administrator. On 20.3.2015 itself, 1st respondent society was served with proceedings dated 19.3.2015 issued by the State Co-operative Election Commission scheduling the poll to 20.8.2015. Thereupon, this court passed Ext.P5 judgment positively directing the Co-operative Election Commission to fix the date of polling before 18.4.2015, without waiting for any resolution by the Administrator, in view of the fact that the term of the managing committee expired on 19.3.2015.
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resolution and the communication, petitioner was not informed about the Director Board meeting of the 3rd respondent. Therefore, petitioner submitted a letter to the 3rd respondent pointing out that petitioner was not issued with notice about the Director Board meeting held on 29.4.2015 and further requesting that, he should be given notice of all future meetings. To the said request made by the petitioner, petitioner has been issued with a reply stating that, he was not issued with notice of Director Board meeting since the Joint Registrar had informed that a Part-time Administrator had been appointed for the 1st respondent society w.e.f. 20.3.2015. It is the contention of the petitioner that since the petitioner is nominated as the delegate of the 1st respondent to the Board of Directors of the 3rd respondent bank, petitioner has every legal right to continue as a member of the Board of Directors of the 3rd respondent. It is thus declining notice to the petitioner to participate in the board meeting of the 3rd respondent, this writ petition is filed.
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refuting the allegations and claims and demands made by the petitioner. Apart from the same, it is contended that the Returning Officer appointed by the Co-operative Election Commission to conduct election of the 1st respondent bank performed his duties without any prejudice or negligence. So far as the submissions and claims made by the petitioner in the writ petition, it is contended that petitioner is disqualified from being the delegate of the 1st respondent bank under Rule 46(f) of the Kerala Co-operative Society Rules, hereinafter called “the Rules”. As per rule 46(f), the delegation ceases to exist automatically when the delegate ceases to be a member of the committee which he represents. Since the term of the committee, which the petitioner represented, expired on 19.5.2015, his delegation to the 3rd respondent is also expired on the said date. Even the appointment of the petitioner as member of an Administrative Committee does not salvage his participation in the meetings of the 3rd respondent as a delegate. Therefore, it is prayed that the writ petition has no legal sustenance and it is to be dismissed.
W.P.(C). No.16764 of 2015
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to them on such nomination.
“ 44A. Delegate of societies in the committee to another society to be members of the committee:- The person appointed to represent a society in any other society and vote shall be a member of the committee of the society which he represents:
Provided that if the affairs of the society are managed by administrator/administrators/Administrative Committee appointed under section 28 or S.32 or S.33 of the Act, the person or persons so appointed shall have power to
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nominate any member of the society to be its delegate in the other society and such delegate shall be eligible to vote and to be elected as a member of the committee of the other society in which he sits as a delegate if he is otherwise qualified to be a delegate under the relevant rules:”
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the committee of another society shall cease to be a member of such committee if he ceases to be a member of the committee of the society which he represented.
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I do not find any legal circumstances warranting interference of this court by exercising the power of judicial review under Article 226 of the Constitution of India to Ext.P9 communication issued by the 3rd respondent bank and accordingly the same is dismissed.
Sd/- SHAJI P. CHALY JUDGE
smv 13.07.2016
3 issues framed by the court
Whether a delegate nominated by a society to the board of another society loses the right to represent that society when the original committee's term expires?
Whether an Administrator's appointment revokes the delegate's status without an express power of nomination exercisable by the Administrator?
Whether the 3rd respondent bank's refusal to issue notice to the petitioner for board meeting was arbitrary or without legal authority?
Colour shows how this judgement treated each authority
John v. Joint Registrar of Co-operative SocietiesFollowed¶66
John v. Joint Registrar of Co-operative Societies [1996 (1) KLT 479]
GEORGE KUNNAPUZHA
PULLADU SERVICE CO-OPERATIVE BANK LTD.
JOINT REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES (GENERAL)
PATHANAMTHITTA DISTRICT CO-OPERATIVE BANK LTD.
SHAJI P. CHALY
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
