Ram Pejawar vs The Joint Registrar of Co-operative Societies, Department of Co-operation and Others

A.N. Venugopala Gowda, J.—Petitioner is the member of Dattaprasad Co-operative Society Limited. Respondents 2 and 3 have filed a dispute u/s 70 of the Karnataka Co-operative Societies Act, 1959 against the petitioner and the Society, before the first respondent. In response to the notice issued by the first respondent, the petitioner appeared in the dispute and filed statement of objections, raising the issue of maintainability of the dispute and also the bar of limitation. Grievance of the petitioner in this writ petition is that the first respondent has not raised a preliminary point for consideration with regard to the maintainability of the dispute in view of withdrawal of O.S. No. 2867 of 2001 by respondents 2 and 3 and also the bar of limitation. This writ petition has been filed to direct the first respondent to consider the maintainability of the dispute in the first instance.

Having heard Sri Sreevatsa, learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner, in my opinion, the petitioner should first file an application before the first respondent to decide the preliminary point with regard to maintainability of the dispute and if the finding is not in favour of the petitioner, he can avail the remedy of revision u/s 107 of the Karnataka Co-operative Societies Act, 1959. In view of the availability of alternative statutory remedy, I decline to entertain the writ petition. However, liberty is reserved to the petitioner to approach the first respondent, in the first instance to decide the question of maintainability of dispute as a preliminary point and thereafter seek relief, if any, if necessary before the Tribunal.

Contentions raised in this writ petition are left open for consideration.

Ordered accordingly.