Chapter XVI Chapter XVI

Every society shall have an address registered in accordance with the rules to which all notices and communications may be sent and shall send to the Registrar, notice of any change thereof within thirty days of the change.

Every society shall keep a copy of this Act, the rules and its bye-laws open to inspection free of charge at all reasonable times at the registered address of the society.

(1) In exercising the functions conferred on it or him by or under this Act, the Tribunal, the Registrar, the Arbitrator or any other person deciding a dispute and the liquidator of a society shall have all the powers of a civil court while trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (Central Act 5 of 1908) in respect of the following matters, namely:- (a)summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath; (b)requiring the discovery and production of any document; (c)receiving evidence on affidavits; and (d)issuing commissions for examination of witnesses. (2) In the case of any affidavit, any officer appointed by the Tribunal, the Registrar, the Arbitrator or any other person deciding a dispute or the liquidator, as the case may be, in this behalf may administer the oath to the deponent.

In cases where parties have been heard, the order, decision or award made or given by the Registrar, the Tribunal, the Arbitration Court, the Arbitrator, the Liquidator or any officer or other person under this Act, shall be pronounced on the day on which the case is finally heard or on some future day of which due notice shall be given to the parties or the date shall be pronounced openly on the day of final hearing.

No civil or revenue court shall have any jurisdiction in respect of any matter for which provision is made in this Act.

The Government may, if they are satisfied that it is necessary so to do in the public interest, by general or special order for reasons to be recorded, exempt any society or any class of societies from any of the provisions of this Act or direct that such provisions shall apply to such society or class of societies subject to such modifications as may be specified in the order.

Any register or list of members or shares kept by any society shall be prima facie evidence of the following particulars entered therein:- (a)the date on which the name of any person was entered in such register or list as a member; (b)the date on which any such person ceased to be a member.

(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Indian Evidence Act a copy of any entry in a book of a society regularly kept in the course of its business shall, if certified in such manner as may be prescribed, be received in any suit or legal proceedings as prima facie evidence of such entry and shall be admitted as evidence of the matters, transactions and accounts therein recorded in the same manner and to the same extent as the original entry itself is admissible. (2)A society may grant copies of any documents obtained and kept by it in the course of its business, or of any entries in such documents; and any copy so granted shall, when certified in such manner as may be prescribed, be admissible in evidence for any purpose in the same manner and to the same extent as the original document, or the entries therein as the case may be. (3)No officer of a society and no officer in whose office the books of a society are deposited after liquidation shall, in any legal proceedings to which the society or the liquidator is not a party, be compelled to produce any of the society’s books or documents, the contents of which can be proved under this section, or to appear as a witness to prove the matters ,transactions and accounts therein recorded except under order of the court, the Tribunal or the arbitrator made for special cause.

Every notice or order issued or made under this Act may be served on any person, by properly addressing it to the last known place of residence or business of such person preparing and posting by registered post a letter containing the notice or order and, unless the contrary is proved, such service shall be deemed to have been effected at the time at which the letter would be delivered in the ordinary course.

No act of a society or any committee or of any officer shall be deemed to be invalid by reason only of the existence of any defect in the constitution of the society or the committee or in the appointment or election of the officer or on the ground that such officer was disqualified for his appointment: Provided that nothing in this section shall be deemed to apply to any act done by any society or committee or officer in cases where such defect or disqualification was previously declared by a competent authority.

No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings shall lie against any officer or the Government for anything which is in good faith done or purporting to be done under the provisions of this Act or the rules or the bye-laws.

The provisions of the Companies Act, 1956 (Central Act 1 of 1956), shall not apply to any co-operative society.

(1) It shall be the duty of every police officer, as defined in the Kerala Police Act, 1960 (5 of 1961), to assist and protect the Registrar, the Director of Co-operative Audit and the Vigilance Officer appointed under this Act or any Officer subordinate to them in exercising the powers, duties and function conferred on them under the Act, if any such officer demands the assistance and protection of a police officer as above. (2)Any Police Officer who omits or refuses to perform any duty imposed on him under sub-section (1) shall be deemed to have committed an offence under clause (d) of section 41 of the Kerala Police Act, 1960 (5 of 1961).

(1) The Government may, for the whole or, any part of the State and for any class of societies, after previous publication, by notification in the Gazette, make rules either prospectively or retrospectively to carry out the purposes of this Act. (2)In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:- (i)the applicant to whom the order refusing the registration of a society may be sent by the Registrar; (ii)the procedure and conditions for change in the form and extent of the liability of a society; (iii)the matters in respect of which a society shall or may make bye-laws; (iv)the procedure to be followed for amendment of bye-laws by a society; (v)the qualifications or disqualifications of individuals who may be admitted as members of societies; (vi)the payment to be made and the interests to be acquired before the exercise of the right of membership; (vii)the appointment by a society of one of its members to represent and vote on its behalf at a meeting of another society of which it is a member; (viii)the maximum number of shares or portion of the share capital of a society which may be held by an individual member; (ix)the procedure for the nomination of a person to whom the share or interest of a member on his death may be transferred or the value thereof may be paid; (x) the mode in which the value of a deceased member’s share shall be ascertained; (xi)the election of members of the committee by the general body of a society; (xii)the requisitioning of a general body meeting of a society; (xiii)the remuneration payable to a new committee or administrator or administrators appointed by the Registrar under section 32 or section 33; (xiv)the qualifications or disqualifications for membership of the committee of a society; (xv)the qualifications of employees of societies; (xvi)the prohibition against officers of a society being interested in contracts with the society; (xvii)the matters connected with the direct and indirect partnership of the Government in societies; (xviii)the rate at which dividend maybe paid by societies; (xix)the constitution of the Co-operative Education Fund, the payment to be made to the fund by a society out of its net profit and the mode of its investment; (xx)the mode of investment of funds of a society; (xxi)the objects of the reserve fund of a society and the mode of its investment; (xxii)the mode of disposal of the reserve fund of a society on its winding up; (xxiii)the extent to which and the conditions subject to which a society may receive deposits and loans; (xxiv)the restrictions on transactions by a society with non members; (xxv)the restrictions on grant of loans by a society against its shares; (xxvi)the form and standards of fluid resources to be maintained by societies accepting deposits and granting cash credits; (xxvii)the procedure to be followed in proceedings before the Registrar, arbitrator or other person deciding disputes; (xxviii)the conditions subject to which the assets of a society shall vest in a liquidator and the procedure to be adopted in the winding up of a society; (xxix)the procedure for the recovery of amounts due or payable to a society; (xxx)the mode of making attachment before judgment;

(1) The Madras Co-operative Societies Act, 1932 (VI of 1932), as in force in the Malabar district referred to in sub-section (2) of section 5 of the States Re- organisation Act, 1956 (Central Act 37 of 1956) and the Travancore-Cochin Co-operative Societies Act, 1951 (X of 1952), are hereby repealed. (2) Notwithstanding the repeal of the Madras Co-operative Societies Act, 1932 and the Travancore-Cochin Co-operative Societies Act, 1951 and without prejudice to the provisions of sections 4 and 23 of the Interpretation and General Clauses Act, 1125 (VII of 1125),— (i) all appointments, rules and orders made, notifications and notices issued, and suits and other proceedings instituted, under any of the Acts hereby repealed shall, so far as may be, be deemed to have been respectively made, issued and instituted under this Act; (ii) any society existing in the State on the date of the commencement of this Act which has been registered or deemed to be registered under any of the aforesaid repealed Acts shall be deemed to be registered under this Act, and the bye-laws of such society shall, so far as they are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, continue in force until altered or rescinded.