WA 65/2008 14BEFORE HON’BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR J CHELAMESWAR HON’BLE MR JUSTICE IA ANSARI Heard Mr J Ahmed, learned counsel for the appellant. Also heard Mr HRA Choudhury , learned senior counsel for the respondent No.1 and Mr PS Deka and Ms B Gogoi, learned State Counsel appearing for the respondent Nos.2 to 6. This appeal has a long and chequered history. The appellant was the Chai rman of M/S Ghiladhari Na-duar Min SS Ltd having had been elected in the year 20 03 in a general meeting of the society u/s 32 of the Assam Cooperative Societies Act. For various reasons, the details of which may not be necessary now, by an order dated 21-6-06 the above mentioned elected body, of which the appellant was the Chairman was dissolved by the Registrar of Cooperative Societies. Aggrieved by the said order a writ petition was preferred in this court in WP(C) No.3338/ 06. By an order dated 21-7-06 this court quashed the impugned order dated 21-6-0 6 and directed the Managing Committee to be restored to office. On assumption of the office the Managing Committee realized that as it w as under an obligation to convene the annual general meeting before 31-8-06 and as they were restored to office just 10 days prior to such due date they were no t in a position to hold the annual general meeting within the stipulated period. Therefore, the Managing Committee sought an extension of time for holding the a nnual general meeting. They made an application invoking section 32(2) of the As sam Cooperative Societies Act, 1949 praying for extension of time for holding th e annual general meeting which application was eventually allowed by an order da ted 31-7-06 of the Zonal Joint Registrar granting time to the Managing Committee to hold the election till 27-8-06. On receipt of the said extension the Managing Committee issued notice ca lling for a general meeting on 18-8-06 where the election to the Managing Commit tee for the next three years also was to be held. In the meanwhile one of the sh areholders of the society approached this court by way of WP(C) No.3936/06 with an averment that the Managing Committee whose term expired on 31-7-06 was illega lly continuing in office. A learned Judge of this court by an interim order date d 9-8-06, in the absence of any assistance from the official respondents, tenta tively opined that the Managing Committee ought not to continue beyond its tenur e and they shall desist from functioning as the Managing Committee. Pursuant to the said order the Registrar of Cooperative Societies appointed a one man Commit tee by his proceedings dated 17-8-06 to run the affairs of the society. That one man Committee appointed by the Registrar in turn conducted an election on 15-11 -06. It appears that the said Managing Committee elected on 15-11-06 somehow held another election on 18-5-06 and the Registrar of Cooperative Societies acco rded its approval for such election on 5-6-06. Though it is not very clear as to how such an election was held on 18-5-06, as according to Rule 27 the term of t he Managing Committee is three years from date of its election, that is, the ear lier election conducted by the one man Committee on 15-11-06. The appointment of the one man Committee and the subsequent election led to a spate of litigations both before this court as well as before the Registr ar of Cooperative Societies, the details of which may not be worthwhile mentioni ng. However, we must state here that the WP(C) No. 3936/06 in which the inte rim order was passed directing the then existing Managing Committee, of which th e present appellant was the Chairman, to desist from continuing in office itself came to be withdrawn eventually by the petitioner when the matter came up for h earing. We may indicate here that on the single ground that this court was not a pprised to the fact that the Zonal Joint Registrar by his order dated 31-7-06 gr anted extension of time in favour of the Managing Committee till 27-8-06 to hold the election, the above mentioned writ petition ought to have been dismissed. H owever, in view of the quiet withdrawal of the writ petition this court had no o ccasion to go into this question. In the above mentioned background the fact remains a new Managing Commit tee got elected on 15-11-06 in an election conducted by the one man Committee ap pointed by the Registrar, referred to above. Technically, since the appointment of the one man Committee itself was l egally incorrect, as the order itself came to be passed pursuant to an interim o rder passed by this court all further steps taken by the said one man Committee normally ought to be treated to be invalid in law. But the fact remains that suc h steps were taken prior to withdrawal of the writ petition. In the circumstances the learned counsel for the appellant as well as th e learned counsel for the respondents agree that the existing Managing Committee be superseded by the Registrar and the affairs of the society be conducted by a one man Committee appointed by the Registrar and such one man Committee should hold a fresh election forthwith. In the circumstances the appeal is disposed of in terms of the agreement recorded above. The Registrar is directed to forthwith appoint a one man Commit tee to run the affairs of the society in question and such one man Committee sha ll hold the election expeditiously, at any rate, not later than 15-11-09.