1 of 3 25-wp-7264-23 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CIVIL WRIT PETITION NO. 7264 OF 2023 Ambya Palace Co-operative Hsg. Soc. Ltd. & Anr. ..Petitioner Versus Aaftab A. Alam & Ors. ..Respondents __________ Mr. Prashant Kulkarni a/w. Ritika Rajeev for Petitioner. Ms. Alola A. Nadkarni, AGP for State/ Respondent. __________ CORAM : AMIT BORKAR, J. DATE : 04 NOVEMBER 2025 PC : 1. Rule. Rule is made returnable forthwith with consent of the parties. 2. The present petition challenges the interim order dated 25.05.2023 passed by the Appellate Authority. By the said order, the Appellate Authority granted stay to the orders dated 05.07.2022 and 31.05.2022. 3. The background facts leading to the present petition are as follows. The elections of the petitioner society for the term 2022 to 2027 were held on 12.05.2022. Respondent No.1 challenged the said election by filing an Election Petition. 4. On 31.05.2022, Respondent No.3 issued a letter to Respondent No.4 Bank authorising the newly elected Managing Gokhale VINOD BHASKAR GOKHALE Digitally signed by VINOD BHASKAR GOKHALE Date: 2025.11.04 17:48:49 +0530 2 of 3 25-wp-7264-23 Committee to operate the society’s bank account. Aggrieved by this communication dated 31.05.2022, Respondent No.1 filed a revision application before Respondent No.2. The said revision came to be dismissed by order dated 05.07.2022. 5. Respondent No.1 thereafter preferred Appeal No.341 of 2022 before the State of Maharashtra. The Minister, by order dated 25.05.2023, granted a stay in the revision proceedings, which is the order under challenge in the present petition. 6. This Court issued notice to Respondent No.1. The office report dated 03.11.2025 records that Respondent No.1 has been duly served. However, when the matter was called out, none appeared on behalf of Respondent No.1. Therefore, the Court proceeded to examine the matter on the basis of available material on record. 7. On careful examination of the record, it is clear that the Managing Committee of Petitioner No.1 society was duly elected for the term 2022–2027. The election has been challenged by Respondent No.1 through an Election Petition, which is still pending before the Co-operative Court. So long as that Election Petition is not decided and the election is not set aside, the elected committee continues to hold office and is entitled to perform all its lawful duties and functions. 8. The letter dated 31.05.2022 issued by the Registrar only recognizes the authority of the newly elected Managing Committee 3 of 3 25-wp-7264-23 to operate the bank account of the society. This action was in accordance with law, as the Registrar is bound to recognize the committee that is lawfully elected unless the election is declared invalid by a competent forum. 9. The Revisional Authority rightly dismissed the revision filed by Respondent No.1, since no illegality or irregularity was found in the Registrar’s letter. The subsequent appeal filed before the State Government was not maintainable in law. The Appellate Authority, while granting stay, acted beyond its jurisdiction as it could not have interfered with a lawful administrative act supported by an existing election result that has not yet been annulled. 10. In these circumstances, there is credible evidence to conclude that the impugned order dated 25.05.2023 lacks legal justification. The order staying the effect of the validly issued letter and the revisional order cannot be sustained in law and is liable to be set aside. 11. Rule is, therefore, made absolute in terms of prayer clause (a). 12. The Petition is disposed of. (AMIT BORKAR, J.)