Anil K. Narendran, J.
The appellant is the petitioner in W.P.(C)No.30365/2014. The appellant, a Co-operative Society registered under the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act, 1969, approached this Court in W.P.(C)No.30365/2014 seeking a writ of certiorari to quash Ext.P4 notification and Ext.P5 communication dated 12.11.2014 issued by the Kerala Co-operative Election Commission, the 4th respondent herein, and seeking various reliefs including a writ of mandamus commanding the 4th respondent-Election Commission and the 5th respondent-Returning Officer to conduct elections to the Managing Committee of the appellant-society as scheduled in Ext.P1 order and Ext.P2 notification dated 10.10.2014 of the Election Commission.
2. By judgment dated 02.12.2014, the learned Single Judge dismissed the writ petition holding that there is no infirmity in the Election Commission having interfered with the election. But, it was made clear that, even if an Administrator or Administrative Committee is appointed, expeditious steps shall be taken to conduct the election. It is aggrieved by the judgment of the learned Single Judge, the appellant is before us in this writ appeal.
3. We heard the learned Senior Counsel appearing for the appellant, the learned Special Government Pleader appearing for the official respondents and also the learned counsel appearing for the party respondent.
4. By Ext.P1 order of the Election Commission, the election to the Managing Committee of the appellant-society was scheduled to be held on 23.11.2014. Ext.P2 is the election notification issued by the Election Commission. The draft voters list was published on 20.10.2014 and the final voters list was also published on 29.10.2014. Ext.P3 is the list of candidates published containing the names of 28 candidates. However on 12.11.2014, the Election Commission cancelled the election by Ext.P4 notification for the reason that, complaints received by the Election Commission indicated that, the voters list was not drawn up properly. Based on the said complaints, the Election Commission called for a report from the Electoral Officer, who submitted a report stating that, since the age and address of the voters were not included in the voters list handed over by the Managing Committee, it was not possible to verify whether any persons residing outside the area of operation of the appellant- society are wrongly included in the voters list. Since there are more than 10,804 members in the appellant-society, the verification of the voters list would require considerable time. Hence, it was impossible to complete a democratic and transparent electoral process within the time stipulated in the election notification. Based on the report of the Electoral Officer, the Election Commission issued Ext.P4 notification temporarily postponing the election scheduled to be held on 23.11.2014, on a finding that, to ensure a democratic and transparent election, the electoral process has to be rescheduled from the stage of publication of the preliminary voters list.
5. According to the appellant, every details required to be included in terms of sub-rule (4) of Rule 35A of the Kerala Co- operative Societies Rules, 1969, in the voters list are included correctly in Ext.P6 final voters list. The stand of the respondents that address of the voters are not mentioned in the voters list is untenable, as what is lacking in the address, if at all there is any, is only the name of the post office. However, it is inconsequential, since there is only one post office in the area of operation of the appellant-society. All such details are there in the membership register and also in the identity cards issued to the members. The learned Senior Counsel for the appellant would also contend that the action of the Election Commission in postponing the election is vitiated by malafides.
6. State Co-operative Election Commission has been constituted under Section 28B of the Act for the superintendence, directions and control of the conduct of elections to the Committees and Representative General Bodies of all credit, apex, central and Federal Societies in the State. Rule 35A of the Rules deals with the procedure regarding conduct of election to the Committee of Societies by the State Co-operative Election Commission. Sub-rule (4) of Rule 35A, which deals with finalisation of voters list reads thus;
“(4) The State Co-operative Election Commission shall appoint an Electoral Officer from among the officers of the concerned. Administrative Department who shall be responsible for the publication of the list of members qualified to vote at the election in accordance with the provisions of the Act, rules and bye-laws as stood on a date 60 days prior to the date fixed for the poll. The list shall contain the admission number, name of the member, name of father or husband and the address of such member. Such list shall also contain the name and other particulars of the delegate in cases where the member is a society or corporation or a statutory or non-statutory Board, Committee or other body of persons which is a member of another society or Government. It shall be the duty of the Chief Executive of the concerned society to prepare, update the list as per the Rules and submit voters list duly approved by the Committee, to the Electoral Officer within thirty five days prior to the date fixed for election and render all assistance required by the Electoral Officer. It is the duty of the Electoral Officer to publish the preliminary voters list in Form No.34 in the Notice Board of the Head Office and branches if any, of the society and call for objections if any, on the voters list within seven days of publication and publish final voters list in Form No.35 within twenty days prior to the date fixed for the poll. The final voters list so prepared should be published in the Head Office and branches of the concerned society. A copy of such list shall be supplied by the society to any member on payment of such fees as may be prescribed by the committee of the Society.”
7. Going by the mandate of sub-rule (4) of Rule 35A of the Rules, the voters list duly approved by the Committee and submitted to the Electoral Officer in order to publish the preliminary voters list should contain the admission number, name of the member, name of the father or husband and the address of such member. The object sought to be achieved by the publication of a preliminary voters list and calling for objections, if any, is to ensure that the said list does not contain persons ineligible to vote and that all persons eligible to vote are included therein. The publication of a preliminary voters list in terms of sub-rule (4) of Rule 35A, containing among other particulars, the father's or husband's name of a member and the address of such member is highly essential in order to ensure that the members of the society are afforded with a reasonable opportunity to exercise their statutory right of objecting to the preliminary voters list in a fruitful manner. The said statutory right would be rendered nugatory, if identification of the members is not possible as per the preliminary voters list.
8. In the present case, even on a cursory glance through Ext.P6 final voters list, it is manifest that the said final voters list does not meet the statutory mandate of sub-rule (4) of Rule 35A of the Rules. There are more than 10,804 members in the appellant-society. The document produced as Ext.P6 is an extract of the final voters list, which contains pages 1 to 5 and 202 to 206 of the said list. Though it is specifically mentioned in page No.1 of Ext.P6 that the father's or husband's name of the member is shown inside the bracket, the same is conspicuously absent in the case of a large numbers of members whose name figure in the pages referred to above. Though father's or husband's name is discernible from the name of a few among them, it is not so in the case of others. Further, the house name of the members alone is mentioned in the voters list, as against the statutory mandate of sub-rule (4) of Rule 35A that the voters list should contain the address of the members of the society. Ext.P3 list of validly nominated candidates contain the name of 28 candidates as against 11 seats to which election was notified. As the number of validly nominated candidates exceeded the number of candidates to be elected, the Returning Officer has to make necessary arrangements for polling on the date notified for election, on the basis of a final voters list prepared in terms of sub-rule (4) of Rule 35A.
9. As we have already noticed, Election Commission has been constituted under Section 28B of the Act for the superintendence, directions and control of the conduct of elections to the Committees and Representative General Bodies of all credit, apex, central and Federal Societies in the State. When Ext.P6 final voters list is found to be one prepared not in conformity with the mandate in sub-rule (4) of Rule 35A, the Election Commission cannot be found fault with in issuing Ext.P4 notification, temporarily postponing the election scheduled to be held on 23.11.2014, in order to ensure a democratic and transparent electoral process by rescheduling the election from the stage of publication of the preliminary voters list. It was in such circumstances, the learned Single Judge repelled the challenge made by the appellant-society against Ext.P4 notification and Ext.P5 consequential communication issued by the Election Commission. The learned Single Judge has also made it clear that, even if an Administrator or Administrative Committee is appointed, expeditious steps shall be taken to conduct the election. We find absolutely no illegality or irregularity in the judgment of the learned Single Judge, warranting any interference in this writ appeal.
In the result, the writ appeal is dismissed. No order as to costs.
SD/-
ANTONY DOMINIC, JUDGE SD/-
ANIL K. NARENDRAN, JUDGE jv