Ramesh R Malge
I am staying is a Peony Co-op housing society, Pune0411045. Peony is formed recently however for past two years we were running society activities by forming Ad-Hoc Committee. All was well till the society gets formed. In 1st AGM new committee had presented a maintenance proposal which was double as compared to last year. Almost 65% members who attended the meeting were against the decision, hence requested to avoid the unwanted expenses from the proposal and come up with new maintenance cost. It was expected that the new maintenance cost will be presented before asking for the maintenance charges. But committee did do anything in the proposal and demanded the maintenance cost as illustrated by committee. They keep telling us that the resolution was passed in AGM. we never signed any resolution in AGM. I think they have attached the attendance sheet to Minutes of meeting and submitted to Dy. Registrar.
Committee is arrogant and not interested to reduce the cost.
We had written a letter to chairman for Special General Body Meeting with agenda and signed by more than 26 members to Discuss the maintenance cost and etc, However committee is misleading other members by sending mass emails within society group. they are trying to mislead Society members by passing wrong information amongst members.
It is our right to ask for Special general Body Meeting. trying to reduce the maintenance cost.
I C Naik
Yours is a new housing society which has come up at an opportune time when the Highest Court of the land has demonstrated the highest honour to a majority wish in cooperative society. Last Thursday the Supreme Court in an order approved ouster of a Chairman of the Largest Dairy Amul Dairy by a majority of the board expressing no confidence in his Chairmanship. Gujarat cooperative society Law does not provide for passing a No-Confidence motion against office bearers. Even then honouring the Constitutional mandate vide the Constitution ( 97th Amendment ) Act 2011, that cooperative society must run on democratic principles directed all societies that where they have no confidence in the office bearers by more than 50% member so wishing they can remove the incumbent and elect another one. And this is whether the Law provides or not. The definition of the cooperative society as per Constitution after The Constitution ( 97th Amendment ) Act 2011 demands that a registered cooperative society must run on democratic principles.
Applying this spirit to your case what decisive steps you can take in the early years of your C H S I will suggest. Your goal should be to install the managing committee which enjoys confidence of a large majority of members. For that you have to remove the arrogant members of the Committee as a first step. If your members are of a balanced mind, they will not get carried by mass e mails of the incumbent office bearers. You have to convince at least more than 1/3 numbers of the managing committee to sign a requisition to call a meeting of the managing committee to consider no confidence motion against the office bearers. This motion will have to be passed in the meeting to be presided by the authorized officer of the Registering Authority. So you with a small group of members will have to contact the Registering Authority first and convince him of the arrogance you people have witnessed. You should have at least one member of the managing committee with you in the representation to the Registering Authority. Rest the Authority will handle.
Alternatively have a recourse to the Bye-Law No 97 reproduced below.
“97. A special general body meeting of the society may be called at any time, at the instance of the chairman or by the decision of the majority of the committee and shall be called within one month of the date of the receipt of requisition, in writing, signed by at least 1/5th of the members of the society or from the Registering Authority or from the Housing Federation, to which the society is affiliated. The meetingso convened shall not transact any business other than that mentioned in the notice of the meeting.”
Send a copy of the letter signed b y 26 members (which were sent to the Chairman) with a written request signed by 26 members (Hope the total membership is less than 130) to the Registering Authority to convene the Special General Body Meeting. Your problem should be solved.