The court emphasized the importance of including members enrolled before 28-8-1998 in the voters list, based on the Full Bench decision in Cherthala Agrl. R.D. Bank v. Joint Registrar, and the power of the High Court to mould relief in peculiar situations.

In these two writ petitions, the issue raised by the petitioners is the same, but the grounds on which the petitioners have set up their respective cases are different. The issue is whether the voters list published by the 3rd respondent-Returning Officer appointed by the administrator of the Alleppey Co-operative Spinning Mills Ltd. (ST)-8, the 1st respondent in W.P (C).No.30057/2006 and the 2nd respondent in the other (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Society’) for election to the society is legally sustainable and whether the election notified on 26-11-2006 can be validly conducted on the basis of such an electoral roll/voters list. In W.P (C).No.30057/2006 the complaint is that eligible members of the society are left out from the voters’ list and in W.P (C).No.30748/2006, the complaint is that ineligible persons who have not been validly enrolled have been included in the list. Ever since the inception of the Society on 20.2.1982, except for the period from 1988 to 1992, the society was administered either by the nominated committee at the time of formation of the Society or the administrative committee appointed by the Government. It so happened that the initially nominated committee, subsequent administrative committees and the elected committee in between all had enrolled members in the society. However, nobody challenged such enrolment of the members in the society by the administrative committees and as a result, those members continued and even now continues to be members of the society, enjoying the facilities and privileges provided by the society to its members, although they never had occasion to be included as voters, since election never took place after the first election in 1988. The petitioners in W.P (C).No.30057/2006 contend that although this Court in a Full Bench decision, which was later affirmed by the Supreme Court held that the administrator or the administrative committee appointed by the Government does not have power to enroll members, in view of the later Full Bench decision in Cherthala Agrl. R.D. Bank v. Joint Registrar, 2000 (1) KLT 730 (F.B), all the members who were enrolled prior to 28-8-1998, which is the date of the decision of the Full Bench of this Court in Hassan v. Joint Registrar of Co-operative Societies, [1988 (2) KLT 746], which held that the administrator does not have power to enroll new members, should be included in the voters list prepared for the present election. In W.P (C) No.30748/23006, the petitioners submit that the members bearing membership nos.163 to 461 enrolled by the administrative committee, which was in charge of the society from 12-10-1987 to 12-4-1988 should be excluded from the voters list, since the administrative committee did not have powers to enroll them.

2. The background in which these disputes arose is this. The society was registered in the year 1982 and the first nominated committee was in charge for the period from 22-2-1982 to 12-10-1987. That committee enrolled 99 individuals and 63 societies as members of the society making a total membership of 162. From 12-10-1987 to 12-4-1988, the society was under the administration of an administrative committee appointed by the Government, which also enrolled 298 members comprised of 44 societies and 254 individuals. For the period from 12-4-1988 to 12-2-1992, the society was under the control of an elected committee, which enrolled 12 societies as members. Although for the period from 12-2-1992 to 20-12-1995 also administrative committee was in charge, that committee did not enroll any members in the society. Another administrative committee took charge and continued to administer the society from 20-12-1995 to 24-12-1996. This committee enrolled 736 additional members comprised of 41 societies and 695 individuals. Later on, another administrative committee took charge and was in office for the period from 24-5-1996 to 28-5-2001. This committee also enrolled members in the society totaling 133