Prathamesh Krishi Vikas Kendriya Sahkari Sangh Ltd vs State Of Uttarakhand & Others

Pankaj Purohit, J

By means of present writ petition, petitioner has sought the following reliefs:-

"i) Issue a writ, order or direction in nature of certiorari to quashing the impugned order dated 26.05.2026, passed by respondent no.2 (contained in Annexure No.7 page no.29 to 31 to the writ petition).

(ii) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus directing and commanding respondent no.2 to include the name of the petitioner society in the list of societies for the purpose of conducting its election and to permit the petitioner society to conduct its elections.

(iii) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the respondent no.1 to hold an inquiry against the erring officers of the respondent department for withholding the documents and fees of the petitioner society and for forwarding the same after the due date so as to keep the petitioner society out of election."

It is the case of the petitioner that petitioner is a duly registered cooperative society under the Cooperative Societies Act, 2003. It submitted all requisite documents and deposited the prescribed election fee within the stipulated time vide letter dated 21.04.2026, received by respondent no.3 on 22.04.2026. Despite compliance with all formalities, petitioner's name was omitted from the list of eligible societies published on 14.05.2026. Aggrieved by such exclusion, petitioner filed Writ Petition (M/S) No.1487 of 2026. During the proceedings of aforesaid writ pettiion, letters dated 04.05.2026 and 11.05.2026 issued by respondent no.3 confirmed that petitioner had fulfilled all requirements and its name had been forwarded to respondent no.2. Accordingly, this Court, vide order dated 22.05.2026, directed respondent no.2 to consider and decide petitioner's representation by a reasoned and speaking order. Pursuant thereto, petitioner submitted a representation dated 23.05.2026, which was rejected by respondent no.2 vide impugned order dated 26.05.2026 without proper consideration of the material on record. Being aggrieved by the impugned order dated 26.05.2026, petitioner has preferred the present writ petition.

Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the impugned order is arbitrary and unsustainable as it rejects the petitioner's claim on the ground that the election process had already commenced, ignoring the fact that petitioner had complied with all requirements within time and that any subsequent delay was attributable solely to the respondent authorities. He further submits that petitioner cannot be made to suffer for administrative lapses of the respondents.

Per contra, learned counsel for the respondent no.2 opposed the writ petition and submits that the list of societies eligible for elections was finalized and published on 14.05.2026 and petitioner's name could not be included, as the requisite communication was received after 14.05.2026. He further submits that the authorities have acted strictly in accordance with law.

I have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the record. This Court does not find any illegality, perversity or arbitrariness in the impugned order dated 26.05.2026 warranting interference under Article 226 of the Constitution of India as the reasons assigned in the impugned order are legally correct and given as per law. The respondent authority has considered the petitioner's representation and assigned valid reasons for rejecting the same.

In view of the aforesaid, no case for interference is made out. The writ petition is, accordingly, dismissed in-limine.

Pending application, if any, stands disposed of accordingly.