The Union Ministry of Cooperation has written a letter to all the registrars of cooperative societies of all state governments/UTs, requesting the list of MSCSs whose elections have been conducted by the officials of RCS after 03.08.2023 within 15 days.
In its circular released last week, the MoC stated that it has been noticed that a few MSCSs have themselves appointed officials of state RCS as returning officers to conduct their board elections, which is not in accordance with the provisions of the MSCS (Amendment) Act & Rules 2023.
“The appointment order of Returning Officer (RO) and election program of MSCSs should be issued only by the CEA, Ministry of Cooperation, New Delhi. CEA normally appoints the District Collector/District Magistrate as RO,” the Ministry of Cooperation circular added.
It further reads, “It is therefore requested to kindly intimate all officials, including field staff of RCS office, not to accept proposals from MSCSs directly regarding their appointment as RO/ARO.”
“Secondly, societies registered under the State Act may send their delegate for participation in the election of federal cooperatives registered under the MSCS Act. Due care and vigilance may be ensured by the field functionaries/State RCS in this regard,” the circular informed.
It is noteworthy that the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Act, 2023 has been notified via gazette notification dated 03.08.2023, and the MSCS Amendment Rules, 2023 have been notified via gazette notification dated 04.08.2023.
As per Section 45(1) of the MSCS (Amendment) Act 2023, the Central Government, by notification, has established the Cooperative Election Authority (CEA) to conduct elections of the Board of Directors and Office Bearers of MSCS in a free, fair, and transparent manner.
Earlier, in a separate circular, the MoC released a fact sheet for conducting elections of the board and office bearers in Multi-State Cooperative Societies and directed MSCSs undergoing election or likely to request for conduct of election to submit the required information in the fact sheet to ensure free, fair, and transparent elections in a smooth manner.
