Page No.# 1/6 GAHC010058142025 2025:GAU-AS:7488 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : WP(C)/1587/2025 GUNENDRA KUMAR NATH S/O- BHABIRAM NATH, VILLAGE- DOSOTANI, P.O- GARUKHUTI DOSTANY, SIPAJHAR, DARRANG, ASSAM 2: JULHAS ALI S/O- LATE NAUSAD ALI R/O-VILLAGE- G.K PWD ROAD NEAR SONOWA BAR MASJID SANOWATARI SIPAJHAR DARRANG ASSAM PIN-784145 3: KHORSED ALI S/O- LATIF ALI R/O-VILLAGE- SANOWATARI DARRANG ASSAM PIN-784145 4: CHANDRAMA DEVI D/O- HARENDRA NATH VILLAGE- RAJAPUKHURI P.O- GARUKHUTI DOSTANY SIPAJHAR DIST-DARRANG ASSA VERSUS Page No.# 2/6 THE STATE OF ASSAM REPRESENTED BY THE SECRETARY, COOPERATION DEPARTMENT, DISPUR, GUWAHATI-06 2:THE REGISTRAR OF COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES GUWAHATI-22 ASSAM 3:THE ZONAL JOINT REGISTRAR OF COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES TEZPUR ZONE SONITPUR ASSAM 4:THE ARCS MANGALDOI DARRANG ASSAM 5:THE SECRETARY OF KURUA SS LTD MANGALDOI DARRANG ASSA Advocate for the Petitioner : MR S ISLAM, MS G DUGAR,MS K BHATTACHARYYA,MR G N SAHEWALLA,MR M SAHEWALLA,MR. M U MAHMUD,MS. D BORA,MS. F RAHMAN,MS. B CHETIA Advocate for the Respondent : SC, CO OP, BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ARUN DEV CHOUDHURY ORDER Date : 09.06.2025 1. Heard Mr. G.N Sahewalla, learned senior counsel for the petitioners assisted by Ms. S Agarwal. Also heard Mr. S.K. Talukdar, learned standing counsel, Cooperation Department appearing for respondent Nos.1 to 4. 2. The petitioners are shareholders of Kurua Samabai Samiti Page No.# 3/6 Ltd. in the district of Darrang, Assam. According to them on 12.09.2024, the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the said society was held in most illegal and irregular manner. It is their allegation that out of total 272 persons who participated in the proceeding, 125 persons were not even members of the society. Accordingly 88 shareholders submitted an application on 21.10.2024 before the Inquiry Officer of Samabai Samiti Ltd, Darrang District. 3. According to the petitioners, thereafter the Inquiry Officer submitted his report to the effect that out of 272 shareholders, no details of their shareholding is found and therefore, there was violation of section 34(1) and section 34(2) of the Assam Cooperative Societies Act. 4. It is the further contention of the petitioners that after receiving the said Inquiry report, Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies heard all the parties on 30.01.2025, including the shareholders, who were present during the AGM held on 12.09.2024 and thereafter by an order dated 07.02.2025, the in-charge ARCS Mangaldai did not approve the proceeding of AGM as required under section 45 of the Cooperative Societies Act and asked the Secretary of the Society to revise a plan of action for identification of shareholders/members. 5. Thereafter the zonal Joint Registrar of Cooperative Societies at Tezpur appointed one Senior Inspector/Auditor of Cooperative Societies to manage the affairs of the society and to convene the Annual General Meeting in terms of Section 41(6) of the Cooperative Societies Act. Page No.# 4/6 6. Being aggrieved, 9 members of the newly elected to the Board of Directors of Kurua Samabai Samity Ltd, preferred an appeal before the Registrar of Cooperative Societies Ltd, Assam and Registrar of Co-operative Societies passed the impugned order dated 12.03.2025, whereby the order of Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies dated 17.02.2025 and the order dated 14.02.2025 of the zonal Joint Registrar were set aside and quashed. 7. Being aggrieved, the present writ petition is filed. 8. Mr. Sahewalla, learned senior counsel for the petitioners submits that the order dated 07.02.2025 was passed by the Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies based on the complaint of the petitioners and based on an enquiry at the behest of the petitioners, and therefore, the petitioners were necessary parties and they ought to have been given an opportunity of hearing by the Registrar of Cooperative Societies while setting aside the order dated 07.02.2025. 9. Accordingly, Mr. Sahewalla, learned senior counsel, without going to the other aspect of the matter raised in this writ petition, he would submit that the impugned order should be set aside and quashed being violative of principles of natural justice and the matter is required to be relegated to the Registrar of Cooperative Societies to hear the parties afresh including the elected Board of Directors in terms of the impugned AGM dated 12.09.2024. 10. The principles of natural justice mandate that a reasonable opportunity must be given to a person before taking any action against them. The adjudicating authority must disclose all the material placed before it and must give reasonable opportunity to the Page No.# 5/6 affected to submit their case. A fair hearing means that a person against whom an adverse order is passed should be informed of the charges against them by giving them an opportunity to submit their explanation to the charges and the person is also have a right to know the material on the basis of which the allegation is proposed to be decide. 11. Law is by now well settled that until and unless the adherence of principles of natural justice is excluded, every action which results in civil consequences must follow due procedure of principles of natural justice which has not been followed in this case. 12. Mr. S.K. Talukdar, learned standing counsel, Cooperation Department has also submitted that it will be interest of justice that the petitioners be heard in this matter. Therefore, Mr. Talukdar submits that it is true that initially the Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies did not approve the formation of the New Board of Directors based on an enquiry and it is also true that said enquiry was conducted based on the allegations of some shareholders and therefore, interest of justice required that such shareholders ought to have been heard by the Registrar. 13. Considering the matter in entirety, this court is of the opinion that as the decision dated 07.02.2025 of the ARCS was based on an enquiry, which was initiated at the behest of some of the shareholders alleging anomalies in the AGM, more particularly that, non members were allowed to participate, the Registrar of Cooperative Societies while passing the impugned order, ought to have given a hearing to those shareholders, who raised such Page No.# 6/6 grievances, whose names are reflected in the aforesaid order. 14. For the reasons recorded hereinabove, the impugned order dated 12.03.2025, stands set aside and quashed and the matter is remanded back to the Registrar of Cooperative Societies to take a fresh call after giving due opportunity of hearing to the appellants as well as the shareholders whose names are reflected in the order dated 07.02.2025 (in the order under challenge before the Registrar of Cooperative Societies). 15. Such exercise be carried out within a period of 4 weeks from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order. 16. The present status of management of the society be continued till such determination is made. JUDGE Comparing Assistant