State of Uttar Pradesh Vs Milkiyat Singh & Ors. Etc. (Supreme Court of India)
SC on Section 103 MSCS Act: State reorganisation alone doesn’t convert society into multi-State cooperative
The Supreme Court set aside the Allahabad High Court’s ruling and held that a cooperative society does not automatically become a multi-State cooperative society merely because of State reorganisation. Interpreting section 103 of the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002, the Court ruled that the deeming fiction applies only where the objects of the society extend to more than one State. The Court clarified that “objects” cannot be conflated with “area of operation”, and that residence or domicile of members is irrelevant. Since the objects of the sugar cooperative society in question remained confined to Uttar Pradesh even after bifurcation of the State, section 103 was held inapplicable. Consequently, the society continued to be governed by the Uttar Pradesh Cooperative Societies Act, and the State retained legislative and administrative control. The High Court’s view that reorganisation by itself divested the State of jurisdiction was held to be legally erroneous, and both writ petitions were dismissed.
FULL TEXT OF THE SUPREME COURT JUDGMENT/ORDER
1. The present appeals assail the common judgment dated 26th September, 2008, passed by the Division Bench of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad1, in Civil Miscellaneous Writ Petition Nos. 61489 of 2007 and 18556 of 2008. By the impugned judgment, the High Court allowed the writ petitions and held that the cooperative societies in question could not be treated as State cooperative societies so as to attract the legislation enacted by the State, and that consequent to the reorganisation of the erstwhile undivided State, they had attained the character of multi-State cooperative societies.
