JUDGMENT :

S.R. BRAHMBHATT, J.

1. The petitioners, in this group of three petitions, are members of existing cooperative societies, operating in the area called Patanvaav, Chichod and Kalana, in Dhoraji Taluka of Rajkot District. They have filed these three petitions under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, challenging the order dated 31st March, 2011 granting registration to, and registering three new cooperative societies, i.e. respondent no. 4, for the three areas respectively, on the ground that the registration, is in violation of the provisions of the Gujarat Co-operative Societies Act 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the Co-Operative Society Act) and, is granted only for inflating the voters list for the Agriculture Produce Market Committee and the Co-Operative Bank of the area, and being mala-fide, deserve to be quashed and set aside.

2. As all the three petitions have almost similar facts and common grounds for challenging the registration of new cooperative society,-respondent No. 4 in the respective petition they were heard together and are being disposed of by this common judgment and order.

3. Facts, in brief, leading to filing these three petitions, deserve to be set out as under.

3.1. This petition is filed by three petitioners who are members of Shri Patanvaav Juth Vikas Karyakari Sahkari Mandli Ltd. the existing society, operating in the area of village Patanvaav and Chichod in Dhoraji Taluka of Rajkot District since 27th, March 1950. As per provisions of Section 4 of the Gujarat Co-Operative Societies Act 1961 the existing society has right to be heard when any new society, in the same area of operation and field, is proposed to be registered.

3.2. The petitioners have alleged in the petition that the ruling party has, with a view to inflate the voters list of various local authorities, including the Agricultural Produce Market Committee, Dhoraji and Rajkot and other federal cooperative societies, and District co-operative Bank, initiated action in the Rajkot District to register new cooperative societies in various villages. The petitioners have alleged that the official machinery is being used by the ruling political party for achieving their object of capturing power position in various federal cooperative societies and institutions like District Co-operative Bank, Agriculture Produce Market Committee in the Rajkot District. The petitioners have alleged in the memo of petition that respondent No. 4 society is accorded registration with a view to inflate the voters list in various federal cooperative societies and the District Cooperative Bank. The District Cooperative Bank is also joined as respondent No. 5 as its General Manager happens to be the member of District Technical Committee, a Committee undertaking exercise of scrutinizing the proposal for forming society for registration and recommending it to the registering authority. The various irregularities and unholy haste in registering the respondent No. 4 is pleaded and averred in the memo of petition and it has also been averred that the authorities in order to fulfill their evil design, in utter disregard of their own guidelines for registering the new societies in the area, registered this new society-respondent No. 4. The registration of respondent No. 4, therefore, is challenged praying quashing of the order dated 31st March, 2011.

Special Civil Application No. 5585 of 2011

3.3. The petition being Special Civil Application No. 5585 of 2011 is filed by 9 petitioners who happen to be the members of Shri Patanvaav Juth Vikas Karyakari Sahkari Mandli Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as the existing society) They feel aggrieved on account of registration of new society in the village Patanvaav, respondent No. 4.

3.4. The identical challenge is raised on identical grounds and the registration of respondent No. 4 is prayed to be quashed and set aside.

3.5. Thus, the aforesaid two petitions have been filed by the existing members of existing society operating