JUDGMENT :

1. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner, Sri Gaurav Mehrotra, who appears on behalf of the respondent nos. 2 & 3, learned Standing Counsel who appears on behalf of respondent nos. 1, 4 & 5 and Sri Rakesh Kumar Chaudhary, who appears on behalf of respondent nos. 6 & 7.

2. This writ petition has been preferred by the petitioner with the following main prayers:-

"(i) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari quashing the impugned order dated 31.01.2023, passed by the opposite party no.3/Election Commissioner, Uttar Pradesh State Cooperative Societies Election Commission, Lucknow, contained in Annexure No. 1 to this writ petition.

(ii) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari quashing the impugned order dated 31.01.2023, passed by the opposite party no.4/District Assistant Cooperative Election Officer/Assistant Commissioner and Assistant Registrar, Cooperative Ghaziabad, contained in Annexure no. 2 to this writ petition.

(iii) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus, commanding the opposite parties to not to give effect to the operation and implementation of the impugned order dated 31.01.2023, passed by the opposite party no. 3 and the impugned order dated 31.01.2023, passed by the opposite party no. 4, contained in Annexure nos. 1 and 2 to this writ petition or to create any disruption in the already initiated election process.

(iv) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus, commanding the opposite parties to allow the election officer/returning officer to complete the election procedure already initiated for the petitioner society."

3. It is the case of the petitioner's Co-operative Housing Society at the primary level that as per the elections that were held on 30.01.2018, the petitioner Management Committee was recognized and it is the outgoing Managing Committee and its term ended on 30.01.2023. Before the conclusion of its term, the petitioner had sent the necessary documents to the District Assistant Registrar which were forwarded to the respondent no. 2 for holding of elections, as per the provisions in the Rules. In compliance of such provisions in the Rules, the requisite fee of Rs.5000/- was also deposited by the petitioner-Committee of Management.

4. The respondent no. 2 notified elections to be held of all housing, fisheries, horticulture and food preservation, handloom and clothing industries, Khadi and village industries, silk and related small industries, primary co-operative Societies through notification dated 03.01.2023. In pursuance of such notification of schedule of election, orders were also issued by the respondent no. 4 on 27.01.2023 appointing Election Officers and Assistant Election Officers. The order dated 27.01.2023 finds the mention of the petitioner Society at Srl. No. 24. After proceeding in pursuance of the notification dated 03.01.2023, all of a sudden, the impugned orders have been issued by the respondent no. 2 by which the elections proposed to be held have been stayed on the frivolous ground of some objections filed regarding dispute of Membership of the petitioner's housing Society.

5. It has been submitted that in pursuance of the order dated 31.01.2023, another order has been passed on the same date, asking the District Assistant Co-operative Registrar/Election Officer to return and deposit all material received for the purpose of holding election of Managing Committee of the petitioner's Society forthwith. Both these orders have been passed in an arbitrary manner and in violation of the provisions of the Rules, 2014, wherein it has been provided under Rule 17 that election proceedings shall not be disrupted except due to the reasons mentioned in Rule 16. Rule 16 relates to the death of a candidate before polling.

6. Learned counsel for the petitioner has also argued that even in the proviso that is part of Rule 17 of the Rules, 2014, it is provided that if polling or any proceeding of election gets disrup