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2026 Supreme(Ker) 847
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
K. NATARAJAN, JOHNSON JOHN, JJ.
Jayamani A.T., W/o. Baby P.G. – Appellant
Versus
The State Of Kerala Represented By The Secretary – Respondent
Wa No. 751 of 2026
Decided On : 25-05-2026
For the Appellant : Dr.V.N.Sankarjee Shri.V.N.Madhusudanan Smt.R.Udaya Jyothi Smt. Keerthi B. Chandran Smt.Shilpa P.S. Shri.Unnikrishnan H. Smt.Shriya Merlin Maxwell Shri.Nitheesh.M
For the Respondent: Shri.P.N.Mohanan Sri.C.P.Sabari for Smt.Amrutha Suresh Shri.Gilroy Rozario Sri. Imam Gregorious Karat, Gp
An authority should not preside over arbitration proceedings under Section 69 of the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act if they are the subject of allegations in the dispute or have previously passed orders directly challenged in the same proceedings to avoid conflicts of interest.
Headnote:The dispute involves the interpretation of the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act regarding the authority competent to decide an arbitration case under Section 69. The appellants challenged an order of the Registrar General delegating the authority to the Joint Registrar, arguing that allegations were leveled against said officer, creating a conflict of interest, as the officer would effectively 'sit in appeal' over his own previous order which was subject to challenge. The court addressed whether an authority against whom allegations are raised in an arbitration proceeding can preside over the same dispute. The court reaffirmed that while Section 69 empowers the Registrar, the principle of fair trial and objective adjudication necessitates that an authority who has previously formed an adverse opinion or is the subject of allegations in the matter should not preside, as this constitutes a conflict of interest. The court allowed the appeal, set aside the order delegating authority to the Joint Registrar, and directed the Registrar to hear the matter personally or assign it to the Additional Registrar General.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. procedural history regarding prior challenges to arbitration delegation under the kcs act. (Para 1 , 2 , 3 , 4) |
| 2. arguments concerning conflict of interest and the impropriety of an officer deciding a case involving allegations against themself. (Para 5 , 6 , 7) |
| 3. the court's decision that an authority subject to allegations or previous challenge cannot fairly arbitrate the dispute. (Para 8 , 9 , 10 , 11) |
Judgment :
K. Natarajan, J.
This Writ Appeal is filed by the petitioners in W.P(C) No.27342 of 2025 challenging the judgment dated 12.08.2025 passed by a learned single Judge of this Court.
2. Heard the arguments of the learned counsel for the appellants, the learned Government Pleader and the learned counsel for respondents 7 and 8.
3. The case of the appellants was that, earlier, the appellants filed W.P. (C) No.22976 of 2023 before this Court against Ext. P29 order dated 31.08.2021 passed by the Joint Registrar directing the appellants to prefer an arbitration under Section 69 of the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act before the Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies, Ambalapuzha. However, the same was dismissed by a learned Single Judge of this Court vide Exhibit P34 judgment dated 24.09.2024. Challenging the same, the appellants filed W.A No.1982 of 2024 before a Division Bench of this Court. The Division Bench of this Court, vide judgment dated 11.12.2024, modified the judgment of the learned Single Judge clarifying that in case the petitioners intend to proceed with the arbitration case seeking refund of deposits, Assistant Registrar, Ambalappuzha, will not be the competent authority to decide the matter and leaving it up to the Registrar General to take a call. Pursuant to the same, the appellants moved Ext. P36 application under Section 69 of the KCS Act before the Registrar General of Co-operative Societies seeking inter alia as follows:
”(b) Set aside Exhibit P27 (the order No.JRGALP/3191/2020-CRB dated 31.8.2021 issued by the Joint Registrar of Co-operative Societies (General), Alappuzha after calling for the records leading thereto;”
4. Subsequent to moving the arbitration case, the Registrar General, vide Ext.P38 order dated 14.07.2025, authorised the Joint Registrar (General) to take up the matter. Being aggrieved by the same, once again the appellants/petitioners approached a learned single Judge of this Court by filing W.P. (C) No.27342 of 2025, which was dismissed on the ground that the delegation of the power of the Registrar General is based upon the judgment of the Division Bench in the Writ Appeal No.1982/2024. Hence, the instant writ appeal is filed.
5. The main contention of the appellants before this Court is that though the Joint Registrar of Co-operative Societies (General), Ambalapuzha, on a complaint made by the appellants before him, directed the appellants on 31.08.2021 to file an arbitration application under Section 69 of the KCS Act, prior to that he had sent a report to the District Collector making certain allegations against the appellants. Therefore, while raising the dispute before the Registrar General under of the KCS Act, the appellants made some allegations against the Joint Registrar of Co-operative Societies, Alappuzha District–respondent No.4 and the appellants also sought a second prayer to set aside the very said order passed by the Joint Registrar on 31.08.2021.
6. Such being the case, it is contended that since the very same case or arbitration application was referred to the very same Joint Registrar by this Court, it is not fair to decide the case by himself, as the order passed by him is to be set aside and some allegations were made against the Joint Registrar as well. Therefore, the appellants approached this Court by filing the writ petition to set aside the order of the Registrar General for once again authorising the Joint Registrar to decide the issue. Therefore, they prayed for setting aside the order under challenge.
7. Per contra, the learned Govern
