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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS
V.PARTHIBAN, J.
Mr.Joseph Abraham - Appellant
Versus
The Madras Medical Mission, (a Society registered under the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975) - Respondent
O.A.Nos.734 & 735 of 2020 in C.S.No.389 of 2020
Decided on : 01-10-2021
Constitution of India,1950 – Article 19(1)(c),130(2)(xii) and (xii-A),38 and 46 - Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975 – Election – Claim - Applicant/plaintiff claims to be life member of respondent/defendant Society - Respondent is a registered Society under provisions of Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975 - Society is governed by its own bylaws read with provisions of Act, 1975 - Respondent Society currently has a total membership of 133 life members - Management and control of affairs of respondent Society is vested in Governing Board which has a maximum of 21 members duly elected from among life members of respondent/defendant society - 1/3rd of members of Governing Board i.e., 7 members retire every year by rotation and election to fill up seats is held during Annual General meeting, in case, more than 7 nominations are received - From among members of Governing Board, President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer are elected - According to applicant/plaintiff, a decision to admit only 23 persons as new members of Society had been taken in partisan manner on eve of forthcoming election to Governing Board - According to applicant, 2nd respondent, being appointed as an interim Secretary of Society was responsible for inducting 23 new members for advancing his prospects in election - Whether a particular rule is mandatory or directory falls to be decided in each case, having regard to well settled rules of construction in that regard – Held, On a prima facie consideration, this Court is of view that no iota of case has been projected on behalf of applicant for considering applications favorably - On the other hand, it has been well demonstrated on behalf of respondent Society and other respondents that induction of respondents is not vitiated by any legal infirmity - In the absence of any specific violation pleaded or demonstrated in terms of by-laws of Society and also in terms of the provisions of Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975 and Rules framed thereunder, induction of new members cannot be held to be illegal - Further, applicant has also miserably failed to establish that respondents have been inducted as a consequence of a malafide exercise of power and such induction amounted to act of bad faith - There is nothing on record or any material produced to establish that the induction of respondents by Governing Board suffered from the vice of colorable exercise of power - On the other hand, this Court does not see even remotely any infirmity in the induction of members and case laws cited on behalf of applicant as stated are extreme examples which have no application to factual matrix of present case - Contrarily, case laws cited on behalf of respondents are relevant and applicable - Accordingly, both Applications stand dismissed.
ORDER :
The applicant herein is the plaintiff and the respondents are the defendants in the suit. The suit has been filed by the applicant/plaintiff for the following prayer.
b. Permanent injunction restraining the Defendants 3 to 25 from acting as members of the 1st Defendant Society;
c. Permanent injunction restraining the Governing Board of the 1st Defendant Society from inducting any persons as life members of the Society pending consideration of the proposed amendment to by-law 28 of the By-laws of the Society.
2. The facts and circumstances which gave rise to the filing of the applications and the suit are stated hereunder.
ii) According to the applicant herein, the normal practice of adding new members to the 1st respondent Society is, that the Governing Board will take a decision to open the membership of the Society to eligible persons and thereafter, decide on admitting those persons who fulfill the eligibility criteria. Any person interested and eligible can apply for admission to membership in the 1st respondent Society.
iii) In 2017, a member of the Society approached this Court questioning the inclusion of new members inter alia contending that induction of the new members, was without the approval of the general body and hence, was improper. In order to clear doubt as to the procedure to be adopted by the Governing Board in admission of new members, an amendment was proposed in the by-laws of the Society. The amendment proposed was to clarify that any member of the Church having paid life membership of Rs.5000/- or as decided by the General Body from time to time and is admitted to the membership of the Society by the Governing Board shall be life member of the Society from the date on which the resolution approving his admission has been passed. The essence of the amendment was to give primacy to the General body towards ratification of the admission of new membership, instead of the Governing Board's exclusive power to admit new members, in terms of the existing by-laws of the Society. The amendment was listed as one of the agenda in the Extraordinary General Meeting scheduled on 22.06.2019. But ultimately, the agenda could not be carried through and thus, no amendment has been effected on the existing by-laws of the Society.
iv) In the meanwhile, seven of the Governing Board members of the Society retired in October, 2020 and the election to fill up the resultant vacancies was to be held. On 30.10.2020, a notice was issued to all the members of the Society including the applicant/plaintiff herein enclosing a list of members of the Society, as on 22.10.2020. Accordin
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