IMPORTANT POINT
The court emphasized that the freezing of bank accounts requires a clear determination of ownership and authority, which was not established in the pending civil suit.

JUDGMENT :

ARUN DEV CHOUDHURY, J.

1. Heard Ms. S. Sarma, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. S. Sarma, learned senior counsel assisted by Mr. A. Gautam, learned counsel for the respondent Nos. 2, 4 and 5 and Mr. M.K. Choudhury, learned senior counsel assisted by Mr. M. Dutta, learned counsel for the respondent No. 3.

2. The present writ petition is filed seeking a writ of mandamus and/or certiorari and/or any writs of like nature restraining the respondents from interfering with the affairs of the petitioner society. It is further prayed that pending disposal of the writ petition, the respondents more particularly, respondent No. 1(a) to 5 be restrained from interfering in the affairs of the petitioner society, till contentions raised in Title Suit 605/2023, pending for disposal in the court of learned Civil Judge, Senior Division, Kamrup (M) at Guwahati, is decided and as an interim measure to direct the respondent Nos. 6 to 9 to defreeze the accounts of the petitioner society.

3. The brief facts of the case of the petitioner as urged by Ms. S. Sarma, learned counsel and pleaded in the writ petition is to the effect that Rashtriya Gramin Vikas Nidhi (for short RGVN), is a society registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. Such society was registered in the year 1990. According to the petitioner, the activities of the organization are currently carried out by a team of 20 regular and 188 contractual qualified professionals headed by its Executive Director. It is also the case of the petitioner that the Governing Body of the society has been headed by the Chairman nominated by Industrial Finance Corporation of India (IFCI), a Government of India undertaking and it was one of the initial sponsors of the society at the time of its inception in the year 1990. According to the petitioner, the respondent No. 3 as Chairman of the Governing Body of the RGVN worked to the detriment of the RGVN in different manners, which are narrated in paragraph 5 of the writ petition.

4. According to the petitioner, for the illegal action of the respondent No. 3, i.e. the Chairman, the society was not being able to upload the Annual Financial Accounts as the society had less than 7 Board Members. It was the further contention that for the fault of the Chairman, the numbers of Board fell below 7, which is the minimum requirement as per the Memorandum of Association, the closure of the society was imminent inasmuch as in such an eventuality, the society would face with cancellation of the registration.

5. In the aforesaid backdrop of illegality, according to the petitioner, the independent members of the Board had expressed deep anguish. A suit was preferred by the RGVN, which was registered as Title Suit No. 605/2023. During the pendency of the suit, according to the petitioner, being faced with existential threat, the members of the Governing Board decided to increase the numbers of the members of the Governing Board and accordingly, an EOGM was called and the same was held on 27.09.2023, wherein the respondent No. 3 did not attend and accordingly, the existing members therein unanimously chose that one Sri Gautam Baruah would be the Chairman of the Governing Board of RGVN. Thereafter, the new Board members of the Governing Board of the RGVN amended the Memorandum of Association of the RGVN and the same was uploaded on the website of Register of Societies for the purpose of ensuring the continued existence of the RGVN inasmuch as, the accounts of the RGVN could be uploaded on the website of the Income Tax authorities, only after uploading of such resolution in the portal of Register of Societies. However, according to the learned counsel for the petitioner, on 11.07.2024 the respondent No. 5 (Branch Head of IDBI Bank) froze the accounts of the society. Thereafter, on 31.07.2024, the accounts of RGVN maintained in ICICI Bank, Bhangagarh Branch, and the accounts maintained in SBI, New Guwahati Branch were also frozen. Such decision