ISHWAR NAGAR CO-OP.HOUSE BUILDING SOCIETY versus PARMA NAND SHARMA AND ORS.

Citation: [2010] 13 S.C.R. 966 · Decided: 15-11-2010 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: MUKUNDAKAM SHARMA · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed

Judgment (excerpt)

A 
B 
c 
[2010] 13 (ADDL.) S.C.R. 966 
ISHWAR NAGAR CO-OP.HOUSE BUILDING SOCIETY 
v. 
PARMA NANO SHARMA AND ORS. 
(Civil Appeal No.9671 of 2010) 
NOVEMBER 15, 2010 
[DR. MUKUNDAKAM SHARMA AND ANIL R. DAVE, 
JJ.] 
Delhi, Cooperative Societies Rules, 1973: 
r.25(2) - Retrospective or prospective in effect - Held: 
r.25(2) operates in future, though the basis for taking action 
is the factum of acquiring a plot in the past - Thus, when by 
virtue of r.25(2), a member is deemed to have ceased to be 
0 a member of the society, the cessation operates from April 
2, 1973, when the rules came into force - Merely because a 
person who had become a member of the society at a point 
of time when the disqualification mentioned in r.25 was not in 
existence and because of the said rule would cease to be a 
member of the society would not necessarily mean that the 
E said rule is retrospective - r. 25(2) is not retrospective - Delhi 
Co-operative Societies Act, 1972 - s.97(1) - Cooperative 
Societies - Retrospective operation. 
r. 25 - Applicability of, when property purchased in the 
F name of HUF - Held: r.25(1)(c)(i) provides an exception in 
case of persons who are only co-sharers in the joint family 
property - Disqualification of membership as laid down in 
sub-rule (l)(c)(i) shall not be· applicable in case of co-sharers 
of property whose share is less than 66. 72 sq. m. (BO yds) of 
G land - In the instant case, the share of the member in the 
purchased property was more than the prescribed limit -
Thus, the said exception was not applicable to his case -
Even otherwise, ownership by HUF is ownership of property 
by the family members and consequently the same would 
H 
966 
ISHWAR NAGAR COOP.HOUSE BUILDING SOCIETY v. 
967 
PARMA NANO SHARMA 
clearly fall within the prohibition and bar of allotment as A 
contained in clause 5(a) of the lease deed - In terms of 
clause 5 (a) of the lease deed, the appellant society was under 
an obligation not to allot a residential plot to a person, who 
was owning a property in the city of Delhi - Therefore, it was 
obligatory for the Society not to allot plots of land to such 
B 
persons who own any residential properly either in their own 
name or in the name of their family member. 
r.25 - Acquisition of separate accommodation by a 
member of the Cooperative Housing Society - Termination 
of membership by appellant-society - Validity of - Held: In 
C 
the light of r.25, the action of the appellant-society would be 
valid if the said properly was found to be a residential house 
- In self-assessment property tax forms filled by the member 
with respect to the said property, the member opposed the 
assessable value shown in. the assessment notice on the 
D 
ground that the building on the said plot was under self-
occi.Jpation for residence and self professional-medical work 
only and was a single-unit house - The said information about 
the nature and status of his property was furnished by the 
member under his own declaration - For retaining the 
E 
membership of the appellant-society, he cannot claim that the 
said property was used purely for commercial purpose. 
Delhi Co-operative Societies Act, 1972: 
s.97(1)- Power of Lt. Governor under, to frame r.25(2)-
F 
Held: r.25(2) prescribes that a member would cease to be a 
member on incurring certain disqualifications - r. 25(2) does 
not in any manner go beyond the ambit of rule making 
authority given u/s. 97(1) of the Act - The object of a co-
operative society is not to earn profits but to enable the 
G 
members to improve their economic conditions by helping 
them in their pursuits - Thus, the cooperative societies which 
seek to obtain the land at concessional rate from the 
government to build houses must necessarily have a 
limitation that only members who are in real need of houses 
H 
968 SUPREME COURT REPORTS (2010] 13 (ADDL.) S.C.R. 
A should be permitted to become members and to take the 
benefit of land allotment - Cooperative Societies. 
B 
Bye-laws of lshwar Nagar Cooperative Housing Building 
Society, 1962: 
· 
Bye-law B(vii) - Acquisition of separate accommodation 
- Disqualification of member - Held: Bye-laws of the society 
regulate the management of the society and govern the 
relationship between society and members inter se - They 
are in the nature of Articles of Association of a company 
C registered under the Companies Act - If they are consistent 
with the Act and Rules, the members are bound by them -
Bye-l

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