- 1 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 9TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER, 2026 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SURAJ GOVINDARAJ WRIT PETITION NO. 15800 OF 2024 (GM-KSR) BETWEEN: 1. SRI C C PUTTASWAMYGOWDA S/O LATE CHANNEGOWDA, AGED ABOUT 63 YEARS, MEMBER VOKKALIGARA SANGHA (REGD.) BELUR R/AT CHOKKANAHALLI VILLAGE YAMASANDI POST, BELUR TALUK, HASSAN DISTRICT-573115. 2. SRI Y N MALLESH GOWDA, S/O Y D NANJEGOWDA, AGED ABOUT 70 YEARS, R/AT LINGAPURA ESTATE LINGAPURA, AREHALLI, HASSAN-573101. 3. SRI Y H DEVEGOWDA, S/O HOTTEGOWDA, AGED ABOUT 78 YEARS, R/AT YAMASANDRI VILALGE BELUR TALUK, HASSAN DISTRICT-573115. 4. SRI A T SAOMESHAGOWDA, S/O A THIMMEGOWDA, AGED ABOUT 51 YEARS, R/AT HANUMANTHA NAGARA, OPPOSITE ANJANEYA TEMPEL, BELUR TALUK, HASSAN DISTRICT-573115. 5. SRI MANJUNATHA S/O LATE RUDREGOWDA, AGED ABOUT 57 YEARS, Digitally signed by SHWETHA RAGHAVENDRA Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 R/AT HIRIGADDE, AREHALLI HOBLI, BELUR TALUK HASSAN DISTRICT-573115. 6. SRI HIRIYANNA GOWDA S/O BILIYAPPA GOWDA, AGED ABOUT 55 YEARS, R/AT BANASAVALLI GENDEHALLI POST, BELUR TALUK, HASSAN DISTRICT-573115. …PETITIONERS (BY SRI. SAMMITH. S., ADVOCATE) AND: 1. STATE OF KARNATAKA REP. BY ITS SECRETARY COOPERATION DEPARTMENT -03(PANCHAYTA) VIKASA SOUDHA, DR. B R AMBEDKAR VEEDI, BENGALURU-560001. 2. THE REGISTRAR OF SOCIETIES NO.1 ALI ASKAR ROAD, BENGALURU-560051. 3. DEPUTY REGISTRAR OF COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES AND REGISTRAR OF SOCIETIES, HASSAN DISTRICT, HASSAN-573201. 4. THE ELECTORAL/RETURNING OFFICER FOR BELURU VOKKALIGARA SANGHA (REGD) AND INSPECTOR OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY REGISTRAR OF CO OPERATIVE SOCIETIES, HASSAN AND BELUR TALUK, HASSAN DISTRICT-573201. 5. THE DISTRICT REGISTRAR OF SOCIETIES HASSAN DISTRICT, HASSAN-573201. 6. VOKKALIGARA SANGHA (REGD) BELUR TALUK - 3 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. (A SOCIETY REGISTERED UNDER THE KARNATAKA SOCIETIES REGISTRARTION ACT, 1960) REP. BY ITS ADMINISTRATOR BEO OFFICE ROAD, BELUR-573115. SRI. K.P. SHAILESH, PRESIDENT, THE TALUK VOKKALIGARA SANGHA (SOCIETY REGD U/ THE KARNATAKA SOCIETY ACT, 1960) BEO OFFICE ROAD BELUR-573115. SRI. H.C. SURESH SECRETARY THE TALUK VOKKALIGARA SANGHA (A SOCIETY REGISTERED UNDER THE KARNATAKA SOCIETIES REGISTRARTION ACT, 1960) BEO OFFICE ROAD, BELUR-573115. SATHVIK GOWDA S.N. S/O NAGESH AGED ABOUT 19 YEARS CHINNENAHALLI, CHIKKAMEDURU HASSAN-573115. S.J. RAVI S/O OJUNJEGOWDA AGED ABOUT 72 YEARS CHINNENAHALLI, CHIKKAMEDURU HASSAN-573115. SAHANA C.P. W/O MADHU C.T. AGED ABOUT 25 YEARS CHINNENAHALLI, CHIKKAMEDURU HASSAN-573115. YUVARAJ S.V. S/O VENKATAGOWDA - 4 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. AGED ABOUT 43 YEARS SOMANAHALLI, CHIKKAMEDURU, HASSAN-573115. PREETHAM GOWDA S/O BASAVARAJU AGED ABOUT 25 YEARS SOMANAHALLI, CHIKKAMEDURU, HASSAN-573115. BASAVARAJU S.K.. S/O KALLEGOWDA AGED ABOUT 56 YEARS SOMANAHALLI, CHIKKAMEDURU, HASSAN-573115. KANNIKA W/O NAGESH AGED ABOUT 39 YEARS CHINNENAHALLI, CHIKKAMEDURU, HASSAN-573115. MADHU C.T. S/O THAMMANNAGOWDA AGED ABOUT 19 YEARS CHINNENAHALLI, HASSAN-573115. B.S. NAGARAJU S/O SAGENEGOWDA AGED ABOUT 43 YEARS, BOMMDIHALLI, CHIKKAMEDURU, HASSAN-573115. ANNAPURNA W/O NAGARAJU AGED ABOUT 39 YEARS BOMMDIHALLI, CHIKKAMEDURU, - 5 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 19. 20. 21. HASSAN-573115. ROOPA W/O PRASANNAKUMAR AGED ABOUT 40 YEARS, HOSALLI, HASSAN-573115. PRASANNA KUMAR S/O EREGOWDA AGED ABOUT 43 YEARS, HOSAHALLI, HASSAN-573115 MADHAN S.K. S/O KRISHNEGOWDA, AGED ABOUT 19 YEARS SOMANAHALLI, HASSAN-573115. … RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. DEVARAJ C.H., GA FOR R1 TO R6; SRI. CHANDRAKANTH R. GOULAY., ADVOCATE FOR R7 TO R21) THIS WRIT PETITION IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO GRANT AN ORDER, WRIT, OR DIRECTION IN THE NATURE OF CERTIORARI QUASHING THE CERTIFICATE NO. DRH/SANGHA/04/2003-04/2022-23 DATED 18/07/2022 ISSUED BY THE R3 DEPUTY REGISTRAR OF COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES AND REGISTRAR OF SOCIETIES, HASSAN DISTRICT, HASSAN, AS CONTAINED IN ANNEXURE-D AND ETC. THIS WRIT PETITION, COMING ON FOR FURTHER HEARING, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SURAJ GOVINDARAJ ORAL ORDER 1. The petitioners are before this Court seeking for the following reliefs: - 6 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 a. grant an order, writ or direction in the nature of CERTIORARI quashing the DRH/Sangha/04/2003- 04/2022-23 Certificate No. dated 18/07/2022 issued by the Respondent No.3 Deputy Registrar of Cooperative Societies and Registrar of Societies, Hassan District, Hassan, as contained in ANNEXURE-D; b. grant an order, writ or direction in the nature of MANDAMUS directing the Respondents not to appoint the Executive Committee on the basis of the amended Byelaw No.10, as contained in ANNEXURE-C; c. grant an order, writ or direction in the nature of MANDAMUS directing the Respondents to appoint the Executive Committee of the Respondent No.6 society on the basis of the unamended Byelaw No.10, as contained in ANNEXURE-B; d. grant an order, writ or direction in the nature of MANDAMUS directing the Respondents issue calendar of events and conduct elections to the Respondent No.6 society as per the unamended Byelaw No.10 contained in ANNEXURE-B; as e. grant an order, writ or direction in the nature of MANDAMUS directing the Respondents to prepare the voters list by excluding the members inducted by the ad hoc committee from 2017 onwards; f. grant such other order, writ or direction as this Hon'ble may be pleased to grant in the facts and circumstances of the case, in the interest of justice and equity. 2. Respondent No.6-Society and its members have been involved in prolonged litigation. By order dated 13.09.2023 in W.P. No.2419/2023, a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court directed the Administrator - 7 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 appointed under Section 27A to conduct elections within two months. Thereafter, by order dated 31.05.2024 in W.P. No.27108/2023, another Co- ordinate Bench directed the Administrator to take necessary steps for conducting the elections in accordance with law, including determining the eligibility of members inducted by the Ad-hoc Committee between 2017 and 2023. 3. Pursuant to the said direction, the Administrator examined the membership records and prepared a final list comprising 2,446 members. The said list is accepted by the petitioners and respondents No.7 to 21, and has not been challenged by any other member. To this extent, the direction issued in W.P. No.27108/2023 has been complied with. However, elections have still not been held, despite the lapse of nearly three years from the order dated 13.09.2023. The dispute now concerns the amendment to Bye-law No.10, produced as Annexure-C to the writ petition. 4. The petitioners contend that the amendment was approved by the Ad-hoc Committee, or at a meeting attended by persons associated with the Committee, without proper notice to all members and without - 8 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 approval by the General Body in accordance with the prescribed procedure. 5. In view of this contention, the learned AGA was directed to verify the records available with the Administrator and ascertain whether the amendment had been carried out in accordance with the applicable procedure. 6. After examining the records, the learned AGA, on instructions, submitted that no documents were available with the Administrator to establish compliance with the prescribed procedure. In particular, there was no material showing that notice of the proposed amendment was issued to all members, that notice of the General Body meeting was duly issued, that the meeting was convened in accordance with law, or that the proposed amendment was placed before and approved by the General Body. 7. Sri Chandrakanth R. Goulay, learned counsel for respondents No.7 to 21, submitted that such documents were available and sought time to produce them. A memo enclosing certain documents has subsequently been filed. - 9 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 8. The documents produced consist principally of postal receipts relating to three members and the minutes of a meeting accompanied by an attendance sheet bearing the signatures of 196 members. On this basis, it is contended that notice had been issued and that the amendment was approved at a meeting attended by 196 members. 9. This submission cannot be accepted. First, the documents now produced are not part of the records available with the Administrator. The learned AGA has specifically stated that the Administrator does not have these documents. Though reliance has been placed upon a document said to record the handing over of the Society's records, the specific documents now produced are not identified therein. In the absence of any material showing that these documents were in fact handed over to and received by the Administrator, that contention cannot be accepted. 10. More importantly, even the documents now produced do not establish compliance with the procedure required for amendment of the Bye-laws. The material shows the presence of only 196 members, whereas the Society had more than 1,600 members - 10 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 at the relevant time. The notices allegedly issued to the members have not been produced. The three postal receipts, by themselves, do not establish that notice of the proposed amendment or of the General Body meeting was served upon all members entitled to participate. 11. Thus, there is no satisfactory material before the Court to establish that the proposed amendment was duly notified to the members, that a General Body meeting was convened in accordance with the prescribed procedure, and that the amendment was considered and approved by the General Body in accordance with the Act, Rules and Bye-laws. 12. In these circumstances, the mere production of minutes and an attendance sheet bearing 196 signatures cannot establish the validity of the amendment. Compliance with the prescribed procedure must be demonstrated by cogent and contemporaneous records. In the absence of such material, the amendment to Bye-law No.10 cannot, at this stage, be acted upon as having been validly carried out in accordance with law. 13. In that view of the matter, this Court passes the following: - 11 - HC-KAR CNR: KAHC010327952024 NC: 2026:KHC:49184 WP No. 15800 of 2024 ORDER i) Writ petition is allowed. ii) A certiorari is issued. The certificate dated 18.07.2022 issued by respondent No.3 at Annexure-D is quashed. iii) The Administrator is directed to conduct the elections of the society in terms of the unamended by-laws as per the list of voters already finalised, indicating 2,446 members of the society, within a period of 2 months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. He is also directed to file a report to that effect on the file of this Court. iv) Though the above petition is disposed of, relist on 07.12.2026 to enable the learned AGA to file the said report. v) Insofar as the amendment is concerned, once the elections are held, it could always be open for the new committee which comes into office to consider all aspects, including the amendment to the Bylaws. Sd/- (SURAJ GOVINDARAJ) JUDGE PRS List No.: 2 Sl No.: 7