Mehsana District Panchyat Karmachari ... vs The Registrars Board Of Nominees on 25 April, 2022

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Gujarat High Court

Mehsana District Panchyat Karmachari ... vs The Registrars Board Of Nominees on 25 April, 2022

Bench: Bhargav D. Karia

     C/SCA/23015/2019                                   ORDER DATED: 25/04/2022



            IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD

             R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 23015 of 2019
                                 With
             R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 23019 of 2019
==============================================================
 MEHSANA DISTRICT PANCHYAT KARMACHARI CO-OPERATIVE BANK
       LIMITED THROUGH NALINKUMAR MATULAL THAKAR
                         Versus
            THE REGISTRARS BOARD OF NOMINEES
==============================================================
Appearance:
MR B.S.PATEL, LD.SR.ADV FOR MR CHIRAG B PATEL(3679) for the
Petitioner(s) No. 1,2
RULE SERVED BY DS for the Respondent(s) No. 1,2,3
==============================================================
 CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BHARGAV D. KARIA

                              Date : 25/04/2022

                               ORAL ORDER

1. Heard learned Senior Advocate Mr.B.S.Patel with learned advocate Mr.Umang Oza for learned advocate Mr.Chirag B. Patel the petitioners and learned Senior Advocate Mr.Prakash Jani for learned advocate Mr.Shivang P. Jani for the respondent Nos.4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 13 to 16, 19 , 20, and 22 in Special Civil Application No.23019 of 2019.

2. Special Civil Application No.23015 of 2019 is preferred with the following reliefs :

"(A) Your Lordship may be pleased to issue a writ of certiorari and/or any other writ, order or direction appropriate quashing and setting aside the order dated 8.1.2019 passed by respondent No.1 below Exh.6 in Lavad Case No.366 of 2018 filed by the respondent No.3 at Annexure-A to the petition and further be pleased to quash and set aside the order dated 4.9.2019 passed by respondent No. 2 dismissing Revision Application No.17 of 2019 at Annexure B to the petition;

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C/SCA/23015/2019 ORDER DATED: 25/04/2022 (B) Pending the admission, hearing and final disposal of the petition, Your stay Lordship may be pleased to execution, operation and implementation of the order dated 8.1.2019 passed by respondent No. 1 below Exh. 6 in Lavad Case No.366 of 2018 at Annexure-A and the order dated 4.9.2019 passed by respondent No.2 dismissing Revision Application No.17 of 2019 at Annexure-B to the petition;

(D) Any other and further relief or reliefs to which this Hon'ble Court deemed fit, in the interest of justice; may kindly be granted."

3. Special Civil Application No.23019 of 2019 is preferred with the following reliefs :

"(A) Your Lordship may be pleased to issue a writ of certiorari and/or any other appropriate writ, order Or direction quashing and setting aside the order dated 4.9.2019 passed by respondent No.1 in Miscellaneous Application No.74 of 2018 rejecting the delay application at Annexure-A to the petition and further be pleased to quash and set aside the inquiry report dated 1.8.2018 passed by respondent No. 3 at Annexure-B to the petition;

(B) Pending the admission, hearing and final disposal of the petition, Your Lordship may be pleased to stay execution, operation and implementation of the order dated 4.9.2019 passed by respondent No.1 in Miscellaneous Application No.74 of 2018 at Annexure-A and the inquiry report dated 1.8.2019 Passed by respondent No.3 at Annexure~B to the petition;

(C) That Your Lordship may further be Pleased to direct respondent No.2 herein to submit a fresh inquiry Teport under section 93 of the Act;

(D) Cost of this petition may kindly be awarded;

(E) Any other and further relief or reliefs to which this Hon'ble Court deemed fit, in the interest of justice; may kindly be granted."

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C/SCA/23015/2019 ORDER DATED: 25/04/2022

4. The short facts of the case are as under :

4.1. The petitioner No.1 is established on 14th May, 2013 for the welfare of the employees of the Mehsana District Jilla Panchayat.

4.2. It appears that the Ex-Directors of the petitioner No.1-Bank committed misfeasance and misappropriation of the amount of the petitioner No.1-Bank and therefore, inquiry was conducted under Section 86 of the Gujarat Co-operative Societies Act, 1961 (for short 'the Act, 1961') and by Inquiry Report dated 14.05.2013, liability of the Ex-Directors and Ex-Officers i.e. respondent Nos.2 to 24 in Special Civil Application No.23019 of 2019 was fasten.

4.3. After the aforesaid Inquiry Report was submitted, the District Registrar, Mehsana conducted another inquiry under Section 93 of the Act, 1961 by appointing another Inquiry Officer from the Office of the District Registrar who exonerated the Ex-Directors by submitting the report on 1st August, 2018.

4.4. The petitioner No.1-Bank, in the meeting dated 31st October, 2018 being agenda item no.16 discussed whether to challenge the report submitted by Inquiry Officer under Section 93 of the Act, 1961 or not and out of 21 Directors of the petitioner No.1-Bank, 11 Directors including one casting vote supported the resolution to Page 3 of 6 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 26 21:04:16 IST 2022 C/SCA/23015/2019 ORDER DATED: 25/04/2022 challenge the report.

4.5. It appears that one of the Directors namely Lataben Chimanlal Patel who casted her vote in support of the resolution challenged the resolution by filing a Lavad Case No.366 of 2018 before the Board of Nominees, Mehsana.

4.6. The Board of Nominees, Mehsana granted ad-

interim-order on 08.11.2018 against the implementation of the resolution No.16 passed in the meeting held on 31st October, 2018.

4.7. The Board of Nominees, Mehsana vide order dated 8th January, 2019 confirmed the ad-interim- relief granted on 08.11.2018 passed in Lavad Case No.366 of 2018.

4.8. The petitioner-Bank filed an Appeal before the Gujarat State Co-operative Tribunal (for short 'the Tribunal') challenging the inquiry report dated 01.08.2018 under Section 93 of the Act, 1993 on 13.11.2018 along with Misc. Application No.74 of 2018 to condone the delay.

4.9. According to the petitioner, the petitioner filed the application to condone the delay inadvertently as period for filing the Appeal time period of sixty days is to be counted from 15.09.2018 as the petitioner No.1-Bank received the report on 14.09.2018 and as such, there was no delay in preferring the appeal.

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C/SCA/23015/2019 ORDER DATED: 25/04/2022 4.10. The petitioner also challenged the order dated 08.01.2019 passed by the Board of Nominees, Mehsana below Exh.6 in Lavad Case No.366 of 2018 by filing Revision Application No.17 of 2019.

4.11. The Tribunal dismissed both the Revision Application No.17 of 2019 as well the Misc. Application No.74 of 2018 by passing the orders on the same day i.e. on 4 th September, 2019 on the ground that the Lavad Case No.366 of 2018 is pending before the Board of Nominees Court, Mehsana and in view of the injunction granted on 08.01.2019, there was no Authority to file Appeal by the petitioner-Bank in view of the stay of the resolution No.16 dated 31.10.2018 and therefore, due to lack of authority, the Appeal was not entertained.

4.12. The petitioner being aggrieved by the dismissal of the Revision application No.17 of 2019 as well as Misc. Application No.74 of 2018, preferred both the petitions.

5. At the outset, learned Senior Advocate Mr.B.S.Patel appearing for the petitioners in both petitions submitted that the Board of Nominees may be directed to hear the Lavad Case No.366 of 2018 within a stipulated time period and depending upon the outcome of the said case, the liberty may be reserved for the petitioners to revive the Appeal filed before the Tribunal challenging the inquiry report dated 01.08.2018 Page 5 of 6 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 26 21:04:16 IST 2022 C/SCA/23015/2019 ORDER DATED: 25/04/2022 under Section 93 of the Act, 1961, if the Lavad Case is dismissed by the Board of Nominees.

6. Learned Senior Advocate Mr.Prakash Jani appearing for the respondent Nos.4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 13 to 16, 19, 20 and 22 in Special Civil Application No.23019 of 2019 submitted that without prejudice to the rights and contentions of the respondents, the suggestion given by the learned Senior Advocate Mr.B.S.Patel is acceptable to the respondents.

7. In view of the aforesaid consensus arrived at between the parties and without entering into merits of the case, the Board of Nominees, Mehsana is directed to hear and dispose of the Lavad Case No.366 of 2018 after giving opportunity of hearing to all concerned parties on or before 31.12.2022. The petitioners are given liberty to revive the Appeal filed before the Tribunal challenging the inquiry report dated 1st August, 2018 under Section 93 of the Act, 1961 if the Lavad Case is adjudicated in favour of the respondents.

8. With the aforesaid direction, both the petitions are disposed of. Rule and notice are accordingly discharged. No order as to cost.

(BHARGAV D. KARIA, J) PALAK Page 6 of 6 Downloaded on : Tue Apr 26 21:04:16 IST 2022

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