Section 101 in The West Bengal Co-Operative Societies Act, 1983
101. Powers and obligation of liquidator. -
(1)On the appointment of a liquidator under section 100, all assets, properties, effects and actionable claims of the co-operative society or to which the co-operative society is entitled shall vest in the liquidator.(2)The liquidator shall from the date of his appointment have power-(a)to take immediate possession of-(i)all assets, properties, effects and actionable claims of the co-operative society or to which the co-operative society is entitled,(ii)all books, records and other documents pertaining to the affairs of the co-operative society; and(b)to take, under the general direction and control of the Registrar, such steps as may be necessary to prevent loss or deterioration of, or damage to, such assets, properties, effects and actionable claims.(3)In the event of an order under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) of section 99 being set aside on appeal, the liquidator shall deliver possession of all assets, properties, effects, actionable claims, books, records and other documents referred to in sub-section (2) of this section to the appropriate officers of the co-operative society, provided that anything done, any action taken or any proceeding initiated by the liquidator shall be binding on the co-operative society and such action or proceeding shall be pursued and continued by the officers of the co-operative society.(4)From the date on which an order under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) of section 99 takes effect, the liquidator shall, subject to the rules and under any general direction and control of the Registrar, have power, so far as is necessary for winding up of the co-operative society on behalf of the cooperative society to carry on its affairs and to do all acts and execute all documents necessary for the purpose of winding up, and, in particular, shall exercise such of the following powers, as the Registrar may from time to time direct, namely :-(a)to institute and defend suits and other legal proceedings;(b)to carry on the affairs of the co-operative society so far as may be necessary for the beneficial winding up of the co-operative society;(c)to sell any movable [or immovable] [Words inserted by West Bengal Act 27 of 1989.] property and actionable claim of the co-operative society, in whole or in part, by public auction or by private contract, to any person or body corporate;(d)to raise, if required, money on the security of the assets of the cooperative society;(e)to make compromise or arrangement with any person between whom and the co-operative society there exists a dispute and to refer such dispute to arbitration;(f)to determine the debts due to the co-operative society by a member (including a past member) or the estates, nominees, heirs or legal representatives of a deceased member;(g)to calculate the costs of liquidation and determine the persons by whom, and the proportions by which, they are to be borne;(h)to determine from time to time the contributions, including the items referred to in clauses (f) and (g), to be made to the assets of the co-operative society by the members (including past members) or the estates, nominees, heirs or legal representatives of deceased members or by the past or present officers of the cooperative society or by the estates, nominees, heirs or legal representatives of deceased officers;(i)to investigate into all claims against the co-operative society and,subject to the provisions of this Act, to decide questions of priority arising amongst the claimants;(j)to fix the time within which the creditors of the co-operative society shall prove their debts and claims or take steps to be included for the benefit of any distribution that may be made before such debts and claims are proved;(k)to pay claims against the co-operative society (including interest up to the date of the order for its winding up) according to their priority in full or rateably as the assets of the co-operative society permit;(l)to give such directions as may appear to him to be necessary in regard to the realisation, collection or distribution of assets of the co-operative society;(m)to do all acts and, in the name and on behalf of the co-operative society, to execute all deeds and other documents and to grant all receipts as may be necessary for the winding up of the co-operative society; and(n)if there is reason to believe that the co-operative society can be reconstructed, to take, with the prior approval of the Registrar, such action as may be necessary for such reconstruction.(5)The liquidator shall, at such times as may be prescribed but not less than once in a co-operative year, present to the Registrar an account, in the prescribed form, of receipts and payments by him. The Registrar shall cause such account to be audited and, for the purpose of such audit the liquidator shall furnish the Registrar with such vouchers, documents and information as the Registrar may require.(6)The liquidator shall pay such fees as the Registrar may direct for the audit of the accounts referred to in sub-section (5).(7)The liquidator shall cause a summary of the audited accounts to be prepared and shall send a copy of the same to the contributors and creditors.(8)The by-laws of a co-operative society may provide as to how the surplus assets, if any, shown in the final report of the liquidator of a co-operative society which has been wound up, may be utilised, and the liquidator shall deal with such surplus assets accordingly. If the by-laws of any cooperative society do not contain such provision, the surplus assets as aforesaid shall vest in the liquidator who shall credit such assets to the Co-operative Education Fund.(9)When a co-operative society has been wound up, the liquidator shall preserve the records of the co-operative society in the prescribed manner and shall make a report thereon to the Registrar.(10)Notwithstanding anything contained elsewhere in this Act or in the rules or by-laws of a co-operative society, the services of all the employees of a co-operative society, which has been ordered to be wound up, shall be deemed to have terminated with effect from the date on which the order directing the winding up of the co-operative society takes effect:Provided that the liquidator may, subject to the approval of the Registrar, reappoint any such employee in connection with the work of liquidation on such terms and conditions and for such period as he deems fit.
