JUDGMENT :

Rajesh Shankar, J.

Both the writ petitions have been filed for quashing the order dated 28.02.2020 passed by the Inspector General of Registration, Jharkhand (the respondent no.-10 of W.P.(C) No. 1151 of 2020] whereby the ‘certificate of amendment’ in executive committee (office bearers as well as other members of the executive committee) of ‘Sri Ramkrishna Seva Sangha’ (hereinafter to be referred as “the Society”) has been issued in favour of Sukrit Bhattacharjee (the respondent no.9 of W.P.(C) no. 1151 of 2020) and others in exercise of the power conferred under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (in short, “the Act, 1860”).

2. Since the common issue is involved in both the writ petitions, the same have been heard together and are being disposed of by this common order treating W.P.(C) No. 1151 of 2020 as a lead case in which the petitioner of W.P.(C) No. 1094 of 2020 has also been arrayed as respondent no.8.

3. Mr. Ajit Kumar, learned senior counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner of W.P.(C) No. 1151 of 2020, submits that the Society was registered in the erstwhile State of Bihar on 20.02.1965 under the Act, 1860 vide Registration No. 46 of 1964-65. The aim and object of the Society is to impart and promote the study of ‘Vedanta’ and its principles as propounded by Sri Rama Krishna Paramhans as well as Swami Vivekanand. The Society also runs a school namely Vivekanand Vidya Mandir (VVM), Sector-II, Dhurwa, Ranchi. In the year 2008, Alok Kumar Sinha (the respondent no. 7), who was only a member of the Society, illegally called an annual general meeting of the Society on 02.11.2008 and got himself elected as President of the same. On the same day, he called an Extraordinary Executive Committee Meeting of the Society in which 73 new members including Abhay Kumar Mishra i.e., the Secretary-cum-Manager of the petitioner-Society were enrolled by him. It is further submitted that the Society was re-registered in the State of Jharkhand vide registration no. 851/2008 dated 09.12.2008 and at that time, Om Prakash Saran was the President of the Society whereas Kashi Nath Mukherjee and Ranendra Deb Bhattacharjee (the respondent no. 8) were Vice-President and Secretary respectively. It is also submitted that in the annual general body meeting held on 06.07.2014, Alok Kumar Sinha (the respondent no. 7) was again elected as President whereas Kashi Nath Mukherjee and P.N Roy were elected as Secretary and Treasurer respectively along with other executive members.

4. Learned senior counsel for the petitioner further submits that the annual general body meeting for the year 2015-16 was notified to be held on 07.06.2015 by the then Secretary-Kashi Nath Mukherjee in which new executive committee was constituted and Abhay Kumar Mishra was elected as Secretary. Accordingly, the charge was handed over to the new executive committee on 15.06.2015. Thereafter, several meetings were held by the new executive committee and the persons namely Smita Dey, Tushar Kanti Sheet and Tanmay Mukherjee, who are claiming themselves as Secretary, Assistant Secretary and Treasurer by virtue of impugned order dated 28.02.2020, had also signed the minutes of the said meetings. It is also submitted that in the 57th executive committee meeting held on 16.07.2017, 89 members were added as ordinary members as was resolved in the 56th executive committee meeting held on 19.02.2017. The annual general body meeting for the year 2017-18 was scheduled to be held on 03.09.2017, however due to some unavoidable circumstances, the same was deferred for three months. The letters were issued to all the members of the Society on 11.09.2017 for submission of photographs so as to issue identity cards but all the members refused to do so which reflected that they did not want free and fair election of the Society.

5. It is further submitted that after completion of three months, reminder notice was issued on 11.01.2018 by the Secretary of the petitioner-Society to all the