IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA AT CUTTACK W.P.(C) No.3906 of 2025 In the matter of the application under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India.

Daluram Dehury and others … Petitioners - Versus -

State of Odisha and others … Opposite Parties For Petitioner … M/s. Debakanta Mohanty T.K. Nayak, A.K. Das.

For Opposite Parties … Mr. Pitambar Acharya, Advocate General (For O.P. Nos.1 & 2)

PRESENT:

THE HONOURABLE SHRI JUSTICE ADITYA KUMAR MOHAPATRA Date of hearing and judgment : 18.02.2025 A.K. Mohapatra, J. The Petitioners, who are the members of Gandhamardhan Loading Agency and Transporting Cooperative Society Ltd. (registered as a Cooperative Society under the Cooperative Societies Act), have approached this Court by filing the present writ petition with a prayer to quash the final electoral roll of the aforesaid Society on the ground that the same has been prepared in violation of the provisions contained in the Cooperative Societies Act as well as the Rules framed thereunder. The Petitioners have also prayed for a direction to the Opposite Parties to prepare a revised final electoral roll considering the points/grievances raised by the Petitioners in the writ petition and till such time the election of the managing committee members of the aforesaid Cooperative Society be not conducted.

2. The factual background of the Petitioners’ case, in a narrow compass, is that Gandhamardhan Loading Agency and Transporting Cooperative Society Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Society’) is a registered Cooperative Society bearing Registration No.89/BJR/28.12.2006. The Society is governed by its own bye-law and the Petitioners are the members of the Society. A copy of the bye-law of the Society has been annexed to the writ petition as Annexure-2. Clause-5 of the Bye-Law specifically deals with admission of members. There are three categories of members who can be admitted in the Society. Class-A members of the Society are those who hold more than 50 shares with voting right. Class-B membership shall be allotted to the State Government/Central Government employees working in the area.

Class-C members shall consist of the share holders, who are nominal members and shall not have any voting right.

3. The pleadings in the writ petition further reveals that the Society is managed by an elected managing committee. The dispute arose when the Deputy Registrar, Cooperative Societies, Keonjhar Division vide his letter dated 23.07.2024 dissolved the elected committee of management and appointed the official Administrator, namely, Sri Susil Chandra Naik (SARCS). Accordingly, the management of the Society has been taken over by the above named Administrator till constitution of a newly elected managing committee. For constitution of the newly elected managing committee, the above named Administrator was required to prepare the list of eligible members which would constitute the electoral roll for conducting the election of the new committee members.

4. Mr. D.K. Mohanty, learned counsel appearing for the Petitioners, at the outset, contended that the main grievance of the Petitioners in the present writ petition is with regard to the preparation of the electoral roll consisting of valid members having voting right. He further contended that it was the duty of the Administrator to prepare the list of eligible members who can cast their votes once the election process is notified. By the time the Administrator took over the charge of the Society, there were altogether 105 nos. of Class-A members and 2453 nos. of Class-C members. He further alleged that the Administrator, after taking over the charge, convened an Annual General Body meeting and, accordingly, new members were admitted to the Society. As a result of which, the number of Class-C members, which was 2453, increased to 3317. He further alleged that the Administrator, Opposite Party No.3, inducted 211 numbers of Class-A members from out of 864 numbers of Class-C members inducted by the Admini