The Gujarat High Court has directed the Principal Secretary, Ministry of Farmers Welfare and Co-operative Societies, Gandhinagar, to file a personal affidavit providing clarification on three key issues raised by the petitioner with regard to the governance of co-operative societies in the state.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Pranav Trivedi issued the direction to the Principal Secretary after an affidavit submitted by the Registrar Co-operative Society, Gandhinagar, failed to provide satisfactory answers.
Firstly, the court sought clarification on the framing of rules for regulating the qualification, condition of service, and procedure of recruitment of staff for co-operative societies.
The court observed the state government’s assertion that the qualifications and conditions of service are being governed by the Gujarat Act No 12 of 2015 was vague and did not provide sufficient clarity.
Secondly, the court sought information on the constitution of State Co-operative Council, which is a recommendatory body to maintain standards of service in co-operative societies.
The court noted that the affidavit’s reference to a government resolution dated November 12, 2003, and a meeting of the State Co-operative Council held on November 19, 2011, did not provide a satisfactory answer to the court’s query.
Thirdly, the court sought clarification on the order issued by the state government on July 31, 2023, regarding adoption of e-tender process by co-operative societies.
The court noted that the order appended to the affidavit was not a notification published in the Official Gazette, as required under Section 156A of the Gujarat Co-operative Societies Act, 1961. The matter has been listed for further hearing on February 28, 2025.