Bombay High Court Hears Writ Petitions Challenging Order and Certificate of Registration of Co-operative Society. Petitions Under Article 226 Seek to Quash Registration Under Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960, with Connected Interim Applications for Impleadment and Modification of Status Quo Orders.

Case Note & Summary

These three writ petitions were filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India before the High Court of Judicature at Bombay, Ordinary Original Civil Jurisdiction. The lead matter, Writ Petition (L) No.3706 of 2019, was filed by CIPLA Limited, a company incorporated under the Companies Act, 1913, against the Competent Authority and District Deputy Registrar, Co-operative Society, Mumbai (I) City, the Deputy Registrar, Co-operative Societies, G/S ward, Mr. Kamal Kishore Sharma, PBP Commercial Complex Co-operative Society Ltd., Peninsula Land Ltd., and the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai. The petitioner challenged the order dated 9 October 2019 passed by respondent no.1 and the Certificate of Registration dated 22 October 2019 issued by respondent no.2 in favour of respondent no.4 society. Two other writ petitions, Writ Petition (L) No.7586 of 2020 by HDFC Bank Limited and HDFC Securities Limited, and Writ Petition (L) No.1186 of 2021 by Tata Capital Limited, Tata AIG General Insurance Company Limited, and Tata AIA Life Insurance Company Limited, were connected and heard together. Interim Application (L) No.7183 of 2020 was filed by the original respondent nos.4 and 5 seeking modification of earlier status quo orders to permit implementation of consent terms in Writ Petition No.3295 of 2019. Interim Application No.1 of 2020 was filed by HDFC Bank Limited seeking impleadment in the lead writ petition. The court recorded that rule was issued and counsel for respondents waived service. By consent of parties, all petitions and interim applications were heard finally and disposed of by a common order. The facts in the lead writ petition, as narrated in the excerpt, state that by three separate agreements for sale dated 5 November 2012, respondent no.5 Peninsula Land Ltd. sold to the petitioner CIPLA Limited unit nos.101 and 102, 401 and 402, and unit nos.1301 and 1302 of Tower A along with exclusive right to use 27, 31 and 28 car parking spaces in Peninsula Business Park, constructed on land admeasuring 27551.70 sq. mtrs. bearing City Survey No.243 of Lower Parel Division at Ganpatrao Kadam Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai. The excerpt further indicates that on 6 December 2012, the petitioner acquired from respondent no.5 the entire Tower C consisting of ground level and five upper floors comprising unit nos.101, 102, 201, 301, 401 and 501 along with exclusive use of a pantry/cafeteria and 45 car parking spaces for a total consideration, but the text ends mid-sentence. Consequently, the provided judgment excerpt does not contain the substantive legal analysis, findings, ratio decidendi, or final operative directions. No precedents or case laws were referred to in the available text. The court reserved judgment on 25 January 2021 and pronounced it on 22 April 2021, with a coram of R.D. Dhanuka and V.G. Bisht, JJ. The advocates appearing for various parties were recorded in the cause list, but no arguments or submissions are extracted from the truncated text. Therefore, the outcome of the petitions and interim applications is not mentioned in the provided excerpt.

Issue of Consideration