Quorum for cooperative society elections is satisfied with a majority of present Directors, allowing elections to proceed even with vacant posts.

JUDGMENT :

RAJESH MAZUMDAR, J.

Heard Mr K.N. Choudhury, learned Senior Counsel, assisted by Mr N Gautam, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner. Also heard Mr S K Talukdar, learned counsel appearing for the respondent Nos. 1 to 3; and Mr P Hazarika, learned counsel appearing for the respondent Nos. 6 to 13, who are the elected members of the Board of Directors of the Kheremia Samabay Samiti Limited, Tingrai Chariali, Hoogrijan, Dibrugarh, Assam.

2. This writ petition had been instituted in the year 2022 by the petitioner, who professes to be a duly elected Director of the Kheremia Samabay Samity Limited (hereinafter, referred to as-“the Society”, for short).

3. The case of the petitioner is that the term of the Board of Directors of the Society expired in the year 2021, and due to reasons not explained in the writ petition, the election to the Board of Directors could not be conducted immediately. When the process for election to the Board of Directors was initiated in the year 2022, the date fixed for filing of nomination papers by the candidates intending to participate in the election was fixed on 08.08.2022. The nomination of 14 numbers of the members of the Society including the petitioner was declared to have been found valid. The general meeting and election of the Society was held on 18.08.2022, and the petitioner was found to have been elected to one of the 15 (fifteen) posts of Directors in the Society. Relevant to state here that there were 14 candidates contesting for the 15 (fifteen) posts of Director. Although the petitioner was declared to have been elected uncontested to the post of Director, he filed a representation before the Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies on 31.08.2022, with a request not to give approval to the proceedings, till the matter of disqualification acquired by some of the elected Directors was decided in terms of the applicable bylaws, the Act and the Rules. The petitioner, thereafter, preferred WP(C) No. 6095/2022, before this Court, praying for directions to the respondents to hold fresh elections of the general meeting of the Society. The said writ petition was disposed of at the prayer of the petitioner to withdraw the same and avail alternative remedy.

4. The election of 11 numbers of Directors out of the 14 numbers of the candidates participating in the contest for the post of Director had been approved by the Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Dibrugarh, on 20.09.2022. The election of 3 (three) numbers of defaulters was not approved. The Secretary of the Society, thereafter, informed the petitioner and others that the first meeting of the newly elected Board of Directors would be held on 22.09.2022, at 11:00 am, for election of President and Vice President of the Society.

It is alleged in the writ petition that in the said meeting, the petitioner and 2 (two) others had raised objections to the proposal to hold elections for the post of President and Vice-President of the Society, till the settlement of the issue of the defaulter members of the Society. It is further alleged in the writ petition that the proposed election to the post of President and Vice President was proceeded with, despite the objections raised by the petitioner and two other members. The Assistant Registrar of the Cooperative Societies had approved the proceedings of the meeting dated 23.09.2022, on the same day itself. The writ petition claims that a representation was filed on 28.09.2022 before the Assistant Registrar, which, however, had remained unanswered till the filing of the writ petition. The writ petition challenges the approval given to the election of the