K. S. VARMA, J.:- This writ petition is directed against certain orders passed by the Registrar of Firms. Societies and Chits. Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow. The action, which purports to have been taken against the petitioners under the provisions of the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act. 1978 hereinafter referred to as the Act) is sought to be challenged.

2. Petitioners Nos. 1 and 2 are partners of an unregistered partnership firm M/s. Secured Investment Company (petitioner No. 1). It is claimed that petitioner No. 1 deals in the business of acting as an agent for getting money deposited in nationalised or scheduled banks only and also for promotion of sales of certain commodities. The petitioners are carrying on their business mainly in Lucknow with branches at Kanpur and Bareilly. It is further claimed in the writ petition that the petitioners firm started a scheme for investment in which persons who were interested were required to pay a sum of Rs. 220 only once. Then a sum was deposited in a Nationalised or Scheduled Bank in the Reinvestment Deposits Plan certificate and person concerned was given a Fixed Deposit Receipt which has maturity value of Rs. 220. The receipt is given directly by the bank in the name of the depositor. The petitioner firm acts only as a motivator for making deposits in the nationalised or scheduled banks. The petitioners firms acts like an agent for the bank and also helps such depositors in making the deposits and obtaining the receipt from the bank. The petitioner does not get any commission either from the bank or from the depositor but under the scheme he gets a small interest which the depositor would earn in 66 months. Out of this profit, the petitioner provides for the items of utility and household effects which a person can get in accordance with the draw in which he would be able to participate for a period of 60 months. The petitioners further say that the person participating in the scheme is fully secured for his money because he gets a Fixed Deposit Receipt from a nationalised or scheduled bank with the maturity value of Rs. 220. The depositor voluntarily foregoes to accept any interest on the amount for a term of 66 months. The depositor gets the Reinvestment Deposit Plan Receipt of the bank which he can encash from the bank directly whenever he desires. In short the depositor is not likely to lose the amount deposited and he voluntarily agrees to forego interest. Thus a small spare money of the depositor is available to nationalised or scheduled bank which can be utilised, according to the plans of the Government for development and other welfare work for the benefit of the society at large. The deposit of 66 months allows considerable scope for the bank and consequently to the Government to utilise the small thrift of such deposits for great purposes. The petitioner is only able to earn the interest that this small amount would have yielded in lieu of his commission or for services rendered. In addition to it, the petitioners provide for articles ranging from a Scooter or Refrigerator to other household effects to be made available to the depositors up to a total sum of Rs. 15,000 every month. Thus, it is clear that the depositor foregoes the interest with a view to get any of the items mentioned in Clause 8 of the agreement in accordance with the draw. It is significant that no cash prize or cash in lieu of the article is given to any of the depositor. Thus a depositor has 60 chances of getting any of the consumer goods mentioned therein for the petty amount of interest that he foregoes.

3. The terms and conditions of the agreement are contained in the document which has been filed as annexure 1 to the writ petition. Those terms and conditions are being reproduced below:-

"1. Secured Investment Co. will be known as Company.

2. Every member will deposit with the Co. Rs. 220 only once : in return he will get a Reinvestment Deposit Plan Receipt/Bank Cash Certif