Judgment

M.H.KANIA, J,

(1) LEAVE granted. Counsel heard.

(2) THIS appeal is being disposed of, by consent, at the stage of granting of special leave in view of the urgency. Appellant 1 is the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, a body incorporated under the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act"). Appellant 2 is the secretary of appellant 1, Institute. Appellant 1 was formed with the object of regulating the profession of the Chartered Accountants. S. 9 of the Act provides for the constitution of the council of appellant 1, Institute, and prescribes that the affairs of the said Institute shall be managed by the said council which comprises not more than 24 persons elected by the fellows of the Institute and 6 persons nominated by the central government. Ss. (1 of S. 10 of the Act provides that the election of the said council shall be conducted in the prescribed manner. S. 30 of the Act confers powers upon the council to make regulations for the purpose of carrying out the objects of the Act. In exercise of the said powers, the council framed regulations known as "the Chartered Accountants Regulations" (hereinafter referred to as "the Regulations"). Ch. VI of the said Regulations deals with the topic of "Elections". Regulation 82 provides that the council shall notify in the Gazette of India, at least three months before the date of an election, the dates fixed for various stages of election of the members of the council, like receipt of nominations, scrutiny of nominations, withdrawal of nominations, polling dates and so on. Regulation 87(1 provides that the council shall publish in the Gazette of India a notice, setting out the number of members to be elected and calling for nominations of candidates for election by a specified date, at least three months prior to the date of election. Subregulation (2 of Regulation 87 which is the regulation coming up for construction before us reads as follows:

"87. (2 The nomination of a candidate shall be

(I) in the appropriate form duly signed by the candidate and by the proposer and the seconder both of whom shall be persons entitled to vote in the election in the relevant regional constituency; and

(II) forwarded by registered post to the secretary by name so as to reach him not later than 5 p.m. on the specified date:

PROVIDED that a nomination delivered against an acknowledgement before the aforesaid time and date shall be deemed to have been so forwarded and so having reached if the secretary is satisfied that the nomination has been duly forwarded by registered post at least 48 hours before the aforesaid time and date."

(3) SUB-REGULATION (3 of Regulation 87 provides inter alia for the contents of the nominations. We are not concerned with the rest of the Regulations for the purpose of this appeal.

(4) THE final time for the receipt of the nominations was fixed as 5 p.m. on 20/05/1991, and it was extended to 5 p.m. on 21/05/1991.

(5) THE respondent forwarded his nominations by registered post to the secretary on 17/05/1991, and M 18/05/1991, respectively. The nominations, however, did not reach the secretary by 5 p.m. on 21/05/1991, being the final time and date prescribed for the receipt of the nominations. Actually, they were received by the secretary of the Councirby registered post on 23/05/1991, and M 27/05/1991, respectively. These nominations were rejected on the ground that they were received after the time fixed for the receipt of the nominations and the name of the respondent was not included in the list of the candidates who had filed their nominations for election to the council. Being aggrieved, the respondent filed a writ petition in the Bombay High court seeking a writ of certiorari to quash the order rejecting his nominations. The division bench of the Bombay High court, which decided the writ petition, took the view that a plain reading of sub-regulation (2 of Re