Hon’ble Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya, J.—Heard Shri G.C. Verma, learned counsel representing the petitioners, learned Standing Counsel appearing for respondent Nos. 1, 2 and 3 and Shri Sandeep Dixit, learned counsel appearing for respondent Nos. 5 and 6.

2. The petitioners, alleging themselves to be life members of a Society know as Public Education Association, Ramganj, district Amethi, have instituted these proceedings under Article 226 of the Contitution of India impeaching the order dated 20.10.2015, passed by the Registrar Firms, Societies and Chits, Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow, whereby the application moved by the petitioners for transferring the proceedings from Deputy Registrar, Faizabad Region, Faizabad has been rejected.

3. The question/issue which has emerged in these proceedings during course of arguments is as to whether the Registrar is empowered to transfer the proceedings from one Deputy Registrar to other Deputy Registrar, in other words, whether the Registrar under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (hereinafter referred to as ‘ the Act’) is empowered to withdraw the proceedings pending under the Act from one Deputy Registrar or Additional Registrar or Joint Registrar or Assistant Registrar and transfer the same to any other Deputy Registrar, Additional Registrar, Joint Registrar Registrar or Assistant Registrar.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioners, apart from attacking the reasons indicated by the Registrar in the impugned order for rejecting the application presented by the petitioners seeking transfer of the proceedings from Deputy Registrar, Faizabad, has also vehemently argued that the Registrar being the highest Executive Officer in the State under the Act is legally empowered to transfer the proceedings from one Deputy Registrar to another Deputy Registrar in exercise of his general administrative and supervisory powers. His submission is that since under the scheme of the Act, there may be several Additional Registrars, Deputy Registrars or Assistant Registrars but the Registrar is one who has the jurisdiction over the entire State of Uttar Pradesh and as such he exercises supervisory and administrative control and powers which would include the authority/power to transfer the proceedings from Deputy Registrar/Additional Registrar/Joint Registrar/Assistant Registrar.

5. Refuting the aforesaid submissions made by the learned counsel for the petitioners, learned counsel appearing for the respondent Nos. 5 and 6, Shri Sandeep Dixit has categorically submitted that the Registrar or the Deputy Registrar or Assistant Registrar or Joint Registrar or Additional Registrar exercise various functions and powers under the Act and since these powers and functions being exercised by these officers are co-extensive with those of the Registrar, as such merely because the Registrar is the Head of the Department, it cannot be said that he has the authority to withdraw the proceedings from the Deputy Registrar and to transfer the same to another Deputy Registrar. In support of his submission, he has taken the Court to the scheme of the Act and has emphatically submitted that under Section 21 of the Act the Registrar would mean the Deputy Registrar as well, on whom any of the powers of the Registrar under the Act are conferred by general or special order of the State Government. His submission, thus, is that since the Deputy Registrar discharges the functions and exercises the powers of the Registrar itself and such functions and powers are statutory in nature, it cannot be said that the Registrar is empowered to withdraw the proceedings from his departmental subordinates.

6. It is in the background of the aforesaid legal submissions that the issue regarding power of Registrar to transfer the proceedings from one Deputy Registrar to another Deputy Registrar has emerged which needs to be addressed in this case.

7. Before dealing with the said issue certain facts which have been gathered from the pleadings of the respe