- (1.) Leave granted.
(2.) The challenge in these appeals is against the common order dated 26th May, 2014 passed by the High Court of Allahabad in three separate writ petitions instituted by the respondents in the appeals. The challenge in the writ petitions was against separate but similar orders dated 15.01.2007 passed by the Arbitrator/Additional Director Co-operative Societies, Lucknow, as also the order dated 20.08.2009 passed by the U.P. Co-operative Tribunal, Lucknow, by which the respondents-writ petitioners (Ram Piyari and Urmila Agarwal) were held to be not entitled to compensation in respect of acquisition of land from the Co-operative Societies of which they were members. The aforesaid orders of the Arbitrator and the Tribunal have been reversed by the High Court by means of the order presently under challenge.
(3.) The facts lies in a short compass and may be enumerated herein under - The respondents Ram Piyari, her daughter Anita (died on 25.07.1994), Aparajita Singh (Daughter of Desh Raj who is the son of Ram Piyari) and Urmila Agarwal were members of the appellant-society. They had deposited different amounts which were utilised by the Society to purchase land. The bone of contention between the parties is a letter dated 24.01.2002 by which Ram Piyari and Urmila (hereinafter referred to as the 'respondents-writ petitioners') had submitted their resignation to the Society on the condition that their share of the land purchased by the Society from the funds contributed by them be sold out at the rate of Rs. 80,000/- per bigha. According to the Society, the said offer was accepted and the land was sold to some other willing members at the stipulated rate and the payments were made by cheques to each of the respondents. Subsequently, the aforesaid land of the Society was acquired by the Government for the use of Greater NOIDA and compensation was also paid to the Society. This was some time in the year 2003. A dispute was raised by the respondents with regard to the resignations made in the year 2002 and on the basis that the said resignations are forged and fabricated, a claim was laid to the share of the respondents in the compensation amount. The complaint appears to have been investigated by the Additional District Cooperative Officer and a Report of such inspection/investigation dated 21.06.2005 was submitted. The said Report recites the essential facts and a mention is made therein that the signatures of the respondents Ram Piyari and Urmila Agarwal in the resignation letters were sent to the hand-writing experts who had opined that the signatures in said resignation letters were those of the aforesaid two respondents.;