Mr. Sandeep Kumar, Advocate v. REGISTRAR OF COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES ORS. Through

Through: Ms. Urvi Moha, Advocate for RCS Mr. Rohit Kumar Modi, Advocate for R-3 (Through VC) .....Respondents CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE CHANDRA DHARI SINGH HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ANUP JAIRAM BHAMBHANI O R D E R 10.03.2025 The instant petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, % 1. 1950 has been filed on behalf of the petitioners seeking quashing of the order dated 19th April, 2024, passed by the learned Registrar of Cooperative Societies (hereinafter “RCS”) and order dated 13th February, 2025, passed by the learned Financial Commissioner in Appeal No. 116/2024. 2. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioners submitted that the present Management Committee of the petitioner society was elected on 20th March, 2022, however, soon after the election, respondent no. 3 made a complaint dated 15th May, 2022 and 6th June, 2022 against the petitioner society with the RCS, which was subsequently forwarded to the society for This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 18/03/2025 at 11:48:25 a response. The society replied to the said allegations vide communication dated 23rd August, 2022. 3. It is submitted that respondent no. 3 made another complaint dated 15th November, 2022 before the RCS, questioning the validity of the election process. Subsequently, respondent no. 3 also approached this Court by filing W.P.(C) 3592/2023, which was disposed of vide order dated 22nd March, 2023, directing the RCS to address the complainant‟s grievances in accordance with the law.

4. It is submitted that in compliance with the aforesaid direction of the Court, the RCS forwarded the complaint of respondent no. 3 to the petitioner society vide letter dated 8th May, 2023, to which the society duly responded through a detailed reply dated 18th May, 2023. Additionally, petitioner no. 2 (President of the Society) personally appeared before the RCS office and provided a comprehensive explanation, addressing each allegation in detail and submitting relevant supporting documents. 5. It is submitted that the RCS issued a show cause notice dated 13th July, 2023 to the petitioner society, under Section 37 of the Delhi Cooperative Societies Act, 2003 (hereinafter “DCS Act”), citing multiple violations. The primary allegations included the failure to conduct timely audit of the society‟s accounts as required under Section 60 of the DCS Act and the failure to submit annual returns in a timely manner as required under Section 32 of the DCS Act. 6. It is further submitted that the aforesaid show cause notice also questioned the appointment of Mr. Ajay Kumar Matta as an Election Officer in violation of Clause 1(iii) of Schedule II of the Delhi Cooperative Societies Rules, 2007 (hereinafter “DCS Rules”), which prohibits a member This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 18/03/2025 at 11:48:25 of the society from serving as an election officer. The notice called upon the petitioner society to provide explanations and justifications for these alleged lapses, failing which further action, including potential supersession of the Managing Committee, could be taken under the DCS Act. 7. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioners submitted that vide the impugned order dated 19th April, 2024, RCS erroneously appointed Mr. R.K. Kapoor as Administrator-cum-Returning Officer of the petitioner society and failed to appreciate that he might take coercive action to disqualify the petitioner and other members of the Managing Committee, thereby, undermining the settled principles of law. 8. It is further submitted that the Administrator-cum-Returning Officer has a pre-determined mindset and close affiliations with individuals having vested interests, which raises serious apprehensions regarding fair and impartial proceedings conducted at his instance. 9. At this juncture, the learned counsel for the petitioners, after advancing arguments at length, made an innocuous prayer to the effect that the Administrator-cum-Returning Officer may be directed to act strictly in accordance with the settled legal principles laid down by this Court in previous judgments, including W.P.(C) 7137/2011 titled „Arun Kumar Jain & Ors. v. Registrar Cooperative Societies‟, W.P.(C) 7099/2010 titled „K.K. Bhardwaj & Ors. v. Registrar Cooperative Societies & Anr.‟ and W.P.(C) 14211/2009 titled „Rudra Cooperative Group Housing Society Ltd. v. Registrar Cooperative Societies’ and to conclude the election process expeditiously. 10. Per Contra, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the respondent no. 1 and respondent no. 3 vehemently opposed the instant petition on This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 18/03/2025 at 11:48:25 merits, however, on instructions, it is submitted that they have no objection to the limited and innocuous prayer made by the petitioners. 11. Heard the learned counsel for the parties and peruse the material on record. 12. The petitioners are not pressing the present petition on merits and an innocuous prayer has been made on their behalf, thereby, seeking directions to the Administrator-cum-Returning Officer, appointed by the RCS, to ensure compliance with the settled legal principles while conducting elections and managing day to day affairs of the petitioner society. In view of this limited prayer, nothing survives for adjudication in the present matter. 13. Therefore, taking into consideration the aforesaid facts and circumstances, the innocuous prayer made on behalf of the petitioners and the no objection given by the learned counsel appearing for the respondents, the following directions are passed: a. The Administrator-cum-Returning Officer shall ensure that the election process and day to day affairs of the society are conducted strictly in accordance with the provisions of the Delhi Cooperative Societies Act, 2003, the Delhi Cooperative Societies Rules, 2007 and Model Bye-laws governing the affairs of the petitioner society as well as the case laws mentioned hereinabove. b. The Administrator-cum-Returning Officer shall act in a fair, transparent and impartial manner in conducting the elections and managing day to day affairs of the petitioner society, in accordance with the law. c. The entire election process shall be concluded expeditiously, This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 18/03/2025 at 11:48:25 preferably within a period of six weeks, from the date of this order by ensuring that all the statutory compliances are met.

14. In view of the aforesaid terms, the instant petition stands disposed, along with pending applications, if any. MARCH 10, 2025 Rk/kj/ryp CHANDRA DHARI SINGH, J ANUP JAIRAM BHAMBHANI, J Click here to check corrigendum, if any This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 18/03/2025 at 11:48:25