Point of Law: Section 16B of KCS Act creates an ineligibility for a member of an APCOS to continue as an active member in certain circumstances, which are totally unique to such a type of society.

JUDGMENT :

The issues involved in all the above Writ Petitions are intrinsically connected, and they are being heard and disposed of together. W.P.(C)No.9793 of 2022 is being treated as the main case for the purpose of convenience, and the facts are narrated on that basis.

WP(C)No.9793 of 2022

RELEVANT FACTS:-

2. The petitioners are Presidents of various Anand Pattern Milk Co-operative Societies (hereinafter referred to as APCOS) under the 4th respondent Central Society. The questions posed in the Writ Petition are (i) whether any member other than a delegate contemplated in Section 28(8) of the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”) can vote in the election to the committee of the 4th respondent Society and (ii) whether societies granted membership/affiliation by the Administrator/

Administrative Committee can vote in the election. The Writ Petition was heard along with several other Writ Petitions relating to the election to the managing committee of the 4th respondent, and all the Writ Petitions are disposed of together.

3. The election to the 4th respondent was notified as per Ext.P1 on 04.03.2022. The election was scheduled to be held on 09.04.2022. The preliminary voters' list was published on 05.03.2022. Objections were to be submitted on or before 11.03.2022. The objections were to be considered on 14.03.2022. Of 978 Societies included in the preliminary voters' list, 58 Societies were under the control of the Administrator/ Administrative Committee appointed by the concerned Deputy Directors of Dairy Development under Section 32 or 33 of the Act, and 23 of the members were admitted/affiliated by the Administrator/Administrative Committee. The contention of the petitioners is that the 58 persons delegated by the Administrator and the 23 members who were included as members by the Administrator/Administrative Committee are not entitled to vote at the election. The contention is based on Section 28(8) of the Act, introduced by way of an amendment with effect from 12.02.2021 which says that only the President of the APCOS can be a delegate to participate in the General Body Meeting and contest the elections to the managing committee. The term of the elected committee was over on 16.02.2021, and an Administrative Committee took charge. The elected committee had taken a decision on 08.02.2021 to conduct the election, but the same was not recommended by the Department to the Election Commission. On 12.02.2021, sub-section (8) was added to Section 28, which required that the delegate of the member APCOS to attend the general body meetings and to contest the elections to the managing committee of the Regional Co-operative Milk Producers' Union shall be its President only. It is in the above background that the petitioners contend that the 58 Societies managed by Administrator or Administrative Committee that do not have a President cannot participate in the meeting or contest the election as a delegate. Regarding the 23 primary societies admitted to membership of the Central Society by the Administrative Committee, the petitioners place reliance on the decision in Jt. Registrar of Co-operative Societies V. T.A.Kuttappan reported in [2000 (2) KLT 480 (SC)] to contend that such persons cannot vote at the election.

4. The counsel for the petitioners points out that a Milk Society is one among the 15 types of Societies which are contemplated in the KCS Act. Amendments were brought in exclusively for the APCOS. These amendments were hence to be understood as overriding the other provisions of the Act, which apply to all societies. It is contended that the general provisions will have to give way to the special provisions.

5. On 16.03.2022, the Electoral Officer issued Ext.P4 order whereby the final voters’ list was published. The 58 member Societies under the Administrator/Administrative Committee were included in the list. So also, 11 APCOS were found to have deemed affiliation and hence entitled to be in