Removal of conditions imposed on a voter held valid by court.

K.A. Swami, CJ.

In all these writ petitions, G.O.Ms.No. 160, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries (M.P.II) Department, dated 29. 1996 issued by the State Government in the purported exercise of its power under Sec. 170 of the Tamil Nadu Co-operative Societies Act (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Act’) is challenged. The said G.O. reads thus:

GOVERNMENT OF TAMIL NADU ABSTRACT Dairy Development Milk Producers Co-operative Societies - Eligibility of Member of Vote at/or stand for election - orders-issued.

ANIMAL HUSBANDRY & FISHERIES (MP.II) DEPARTMENT G.O.Ms.No.160 Dated 29. 1996. Read:

1. G.O.Ms.No.226, Animal Husbandry & Fisheries Department, dated 24. 1990.

2. G.O.Ms.No.477, Animal Husbandry & Fisheries Department, dated 9. 1990.

3. G.O.Ms.No.61, Cooperation, Food and Consumer Protection Department, dated 13. 96.

ORDER In the order second read above, Government in supersession of the orders issued in G.O.Ms.No.226, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries, dated 24. 1990 have ordered that notwithstanding anything contained in the by-laws of the Primary Milk Producers’ Co-operative Societies, the Members who are not otherwise disqualified to vote at, or stand for, any election in accordance with the provision of the Act or the Rules thereunder and who have supplied Milk to the Society for 120 days or 300 litres during the period commencing from the date of commencement of the preceding Cooperative year and ending on that date 30 days prior to the date of election shall be eligible to vote at or stand for any election to the society.

2. In the orders third read above, Government have issued an election schedule to complete the election process to the Co-operatives since a number of representation have been received to rescind the exemption granted in the order second read above so that all the members as contemplated in Rule 51A are made eligible to vote at or stand for any election to the society.

3. Government after consideration have decided to remove the conditions imposed in the Government Order second read above. Accordingly Government direct that the orders issued in the Government Order second read above shall be cancelled with effect from the date of issue of this order. The effect of this order is that all the Members of the Primary Dairy Co-operative Societies, who satisfy the conditions of rule 51-A of the Tamil Nadu Co-operative Societies Rules, 1988 shall be eligible to vote at or stand for any election to the society.

(BY ORDER OFTHE GOVERNOR)

Sd/-M. Raman

Secretary of Government."

2. The contentions advanced by Sri R.Gandhi, learned Senior Counsel appearing for the petitioner and also by the other learned counsel are: that the power under Sec. 170 of the Act is not available to the Government to issue such a G.O., that even if such a power is available, it has been arbitrarily exercised, that it would go against the very object for which the Milk Producers’ Co-operative Societies were established, that no member, who does not supply milk to the Milk Producers Co-operative Society of which he is a member, can be eligible to vote, that the by-law 5 (i) (a) of the by-laws which are common to all the Milk Producers’ Co-operative Societies in the State does not permit a member who has not supplied milk of certain quantity or for certain period to the cooperative society to exercise his right to vote and therefore, the State Government has acted arbitrarily in issuing the impugned Government Order. On the contrary, it is the contention of the learned Special Government Pleader for Co-operative Societies that Sec. 170 of the Act empowers the State Government to issue the impugned G.O., that as per the provisions of the Act contained in Secs.2(17), 11(3), 23(1) (h) read with 23(2) (g) and 26(1)(c) of the Act and Rules 9, 51 and 51-A of the Tamil Nadu Co-operative Societies Rules, 1988 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Rules’), there cannot be any such disqualification as contained in by-law No.5 as long as a member is