Kunnathunad Taluk Primary Co-operative Agricultural & Rural Development Bank Ltd. v. State of Kerala and Others

## **IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM** ## **PRESENT** ## **THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE DEVAN RAMACHANDRAN** **TUESDAY ,THE 27TH DAY OF NOVEMBER 2018 / 6TH AGRAHAYANA, 1940** ## **WP(C).No. 19185 of 2018** ## **PETITIONER/S:** **KUNNATHUNAD TALUK PRIMARY CO-OPERATIVE AGRICULTRUAL & RURAL DEVVELOPMENT BANK LTD.NO.E-982, REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY,PERUMBAVOOR P.O., ERNAKULAM.** **BY ADVS. SRI.P.N.MOHANAN SRI.C.P.SABARI** ## **RESPONDENT/S:** - **1 THE PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER/ASSISTANT REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES (GENERAL),KUNNATHUNAD, ERNAKULAM - 683 544.** - **2 THE JOINT REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES GENERAL 5TH FLOOR B2 BLOCK, KAKKANADU CIVIL STATION,ERNAKULAM - 682 030.** - **3 THE REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES DEPARTMENT OF CO-OPERATION,OFFICE OF THE REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES,JAWAHAR SAHAKARANA BHAVAN,DPI JUNCTION, THYCAUD P.O.,THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - 14.** - **4 PREMANATHAN NAIR ETHANKUDI HOUSE,SOUTH VAZHAKULAM,ALUVA - 683 101.** - **5 JITHU C/O.MATHEWKUTTY,KALAPPURAKKAL HOUSE,KOOVAPPADY,ERNAKULAM - 683 544.** - **6 THE CO-OPERATIVE INSPECTOR (KUNNATHUNAD UNIT),OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT REGISTRAR OF CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES (GENERAL),KUNNATHUNAD, ERNAKULAM - 683 544.** **WP(C).No. 19185 of 2018** 2 **BY ADVS. KUM.ANAGHA LAKSHMY RAMAN KUM.ANAGHA LAKSHMY RAMAN SRI.LEGITH T.KOTTAKKAL SRI.S.VINOD BHAT** ## **SRI. S.DILIP-GOVERNMENT PLEADER.** **THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 27.11.2018, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:** **WP(C).No. 19185 of 2018** 3 ## **JUDGMENT** The petitioner, which is a Primary Co-Operative Agricultural Rural Development Bank, incorporated under the provisions of the Kerala Co-oprative Societies Act (KCS Act for short), has filed this writ petition impugning Ext.P10 order of the Registrar of Co-operative Societies seeking certain documents and materials from them, for the purpose of providing information to respondent No.4, who appears to have approached the said Authority for information relating to the petitioner Bank under the Right to Information Act (RTI Act for short). 2. The crux of the submissions of Sri. P.N.Mohanan, the learned counsel for the petitioner, is that since the petitioner is only a Co-operative society and thus not coming under the ambit of the Right to Information Act, the Registrar of the Co-operative Societies cannot seek documents and materials from them merely for the purpose of providing information to a 3[rd] party. He says that this will amount to achieving something indirectly, which is not permitted to be done directly. **WP(C).No. 19185 of 2018** 4 3. In response to the afore submissions of Sri.P.N Mohanan, Sri. M. Ajay, the learned counsel for the State Information Commission who was permitted to address arguments as amicus curiae, as also Smt. Anakha Lekshmi Raman, the learned counsel appearing for the 4[th] respondent, has brought to my notice that these issues have already gained the attention of this Court in the judgment of a Division Bench in **Thalapalam Service Co-operative Bank, Ltd. And others v.** **State of Kerala [2013(4) KHC 131]** . I am also aware that, with respect to the contentions of the petitioners herein, the views and conclusions in **Thalapalam Service Co-operative Bank, Ltd (Supra),** has found the imprimatur of the Hon'ble Supreme Court, though certain other issues have been decided otherwise. 4. On the question whether the Registrar of Cooperative Societies can seek materials and documents from the society for the purpose of providing information to an applicant under the Right Information Act (RTI Act for short) has been answered by the Devision Bench in **Thalapalam Service Cooperative Bank, Ltd (Supra),** in paragraph 52 of the judgment which reads as under:- **WP(C).No. 19185 of 2018** 5 ## “52. Registrar of Co-operative Societies Registrar of Co-operative Societies functioning under the Cooperative Societies Act is a Public authority within the meaning of Section 2(h) of the Act. As a public authority, Registrar of Co-operative Societies has been conferred with lot of statutory powers under the respective Act under which he is functioning. He is also duty bound to comply with the obligations under the RTI Act and furnish information to a citizen under the RTI Act. Information which he is expected to provide is the information enumerated in Section 2(f) of the RTI Act subject to the limitations provided under Section 8 of the Act. Registrar can also, to the extent law permits, gather information from a society, on which he has supervisory or administrative control under the Co-Operative Societies Act. Consequently, apart from the information as is available to him, under Section 2(f), he can also gather those information from the society, to the extent permitted by law. Registrar is also not obliged to disclose those information if those information fall under Section 8(1)(j) of the Act. No provision has been brought to our knowledge indicating that, under the Co-operative Societies Act, a Registrar can call for the details of the bank accounts maintained by the citizens or members in a co-operative bank. Only those information which a Registrar Co-operative Societies can have access under the Co-operative Societies Act from a Society could be said to be the information which is “held” or “under the control of public authority”. Even those information, Registrar, as already indicated, is not legally obliged to provide if those information, falls under the exempted category mentioned in Section 8(j) of the Act. Apart from the Registrar of Co-operative Societies, there may be other public authorities who can access information from a Co-operative Bank of a private account maintained by a member of Society **WP(C).No. 19185 of 2018** 6 under law, in the event of which, in a given situation, the society will have to part with that information. But the demand should have statutory backing.” 5. A reading of the afore extracted portion of judment, makes it indubitable that whatever information that the Registrar of Co-operative Societies can legally ask for obtain from the Societies under his jurisdiction, can also be furnished by him, subject to the restrictions in the RTI Act, to an applicant. 6. The axiomatic question which then arises is whether, in the process of deciding whether a particular information is exempt under the provisions of RTI Act from being disclosed by the Registrar of Co-operative Society, the society concerned should also be put on notice. In fact, I do not require to labour much on this issue either because another learned Judge of this Court has in **Thrissur District Co-operative Bank v. State Information Commission [AIR 2017, Kerala 120]** has declared that while deciding whether a particular information is exempt or otherwise, the Registrar of Co-operative Societies will issue notice to the Co-operative Society concerned and hear them also, so that their valid objections to the disclosure of the concerned information can also be taken note of and a suitable **WP(C).No. 19185 of 2018** 7 reply given to the applicant in terms of the RTI Act. 7. I am in complete affirmation of the view and holdings of the learned Judge in **Thrissur District Co-operative Bank (Supra),** and I therefore, I am of the view that any exercise by the Registrar Co-operative Society while determining the exemption from disclosure of information under the RTI Act, can be done only after notice is issued to the petitioner Co-operative Bank. In this manner, I am certain that the views in **Thalapalam Service Co-operative Bank, Ltd (Supra)** and **Thrissur District Co-operative Bank (Supra)** would stand synchronized and there would be no prejudice to the petitioner Society, since they would obtain an opportunity to tell the Registrar Co-operative Societies that the information sought for by the applicant cannot be disclosed within the ambit of exclusionary provisions under the Act. 8. In the afore circumstances, I close this writ petition without acceding to the prayers made for by the petitioner; however, making it clear that the Registrar, before furnishing information to the applicant, namely the 4[th] respondent herein, will hear the Co-operative Society also, as also any other third party, if the interest of such parties are also affected as per **WP(C).No. 19185 of 2018** 8 Section 11 of the RTI Act and only thereafter furnish the information or issue orders to the applicant in terms of law. Since this writ petition has been pending before this Court for the last more than five months, I deem it appropriate that the competent Registrar/Joint Registrar of Co-operative Societies complete the exercise as ordered herein as expeditiously as possible but not later that one month from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment. **Sd/-** Dxy **DEVAN RAMACHANDRAN JUDGE** **WP(C).No. 19185 of 2018** 9 ## **APPENDIX** ## **PETITIONER'S/S EXHIBITS:** - **EXHIBIT P1. A TRUE COPY OF THE PETITION DATED 12.03.2018 SUBMITTED BY THE FOURTH RESPONDENT TO THE FIRST RESPONDENT.** - **EXHIBIT P2. A TRUE COPY OF THE PETITION DATED 28.03.2018 SUBMITTED BY THE FOURTH RESPONDENT TO THE FIRST RESPONDENT.** - **EXHIBIT P3. A TRUE COPY OF THE PETITION DATED NIL SUBMITTED BY THE FOURTH RESPONDENT TO THE FIRST RESPONDENT.** - **EXHIBIT P4. A TRUE COPY OF THE PETITION DATED 06.06.2018 SUBMITTED BY THE FIFTH RESPONDENT TO THE FIRST RESPONDENT.** - **EXHIBIT P5. A TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER DATED 13.03.2018 OF THE FIRST RESPONDENT.** - **EXHIBIT P6. A TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER DATED 03.04.2018 OF THE FIRST RESPONDENT.** - **EXHIBIT P7. A TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER DATED 05.06.2018 OF THE FIRST RESPONDENT.** - **EXHIBIT P8. A TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER DATED 08.06.2018 AND 08.06.2018 OF THE FIRST RESPONDENT.** - **EXHIBIT P9. A TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER NIL DATE OF THE PETITIONER.** **EXHIBIT P10. A TRUE COPY OF THE LETTER DATED 11.05.2018 OF THE SIXTH RESPONDENT.**