HC sets aside OPS kin posting as milk producers’ union chief
HC sets aside OPS kin posting as milk producers’ union chief
TNN | Jan 24, 2020, 04:20 IST
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Madurai: Madras high court has set aside the order appointing O Raja, brother of deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam, as chairman, and the interim board members of Theni District Milk Producers Cooperative Union. Petitioner V P Ammavasai, president of Palanichettipatti primary milk cooperative society, said a GO dated 22.8.2019 was passed by the department of animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries for bifurcating A1301 Madurai district milk producers cooperative union into Madurai and Theni districts.
This meant that there were only six members in the Theni district milk producers cooperative union. The petitioner said that according to the Cooperative Society Rules, 17 members are mandatory for constituting a valid executive committee. He said a meeting was convened on August 24, 2019 and O Raja was appointed chairman and 17 members appointed executive committee / interim board members without following rules. This was based on the order of Theni deputy registrar of the milk production and diary development department on August 26.
Hence, the petitioner moved the HC Madurai bench seeking to restrain the chairman and other board members of Theni district union from functioning. A division bench had passed an interim restraining order on September 12 and the state government filed a petition seeking to vacate it. On Thursday, a division bench of Justice M Duraiswamy and Justice T Ravindran observed that the authorities concerned have cited the wrong provision of the Act based on which the interim board was constituted. Hence the judges set aside the August 26 order of Theni deputy registrar and remitted the matter back to the authorities to pass orders on constituting an interim board or regular board in accordance with the Tamil Nadu Cooperative Societies Act, other rules and by-laws.
