Dilip Gupta, J. - (1.) ALL these Special Appeals have been filed for setting aside the judgment and order dated 11th May, 2009 of a learned Judge of this Court whereby the age of superannuation of employees of the Ordnance Factory Co-operative Society Limited, Kalpi Road, Kanpur (hereinafter referred to as the ''Society") has been held to be 60 years instead of 58 years as claimed by the appellants.
(2.) THE Society is registered under the provisions of the U.P. Co-operative Societies Act, 1965 (hereinafter referred to as the ''Act") and has about five thousand members who are employees of the Ordnance Factory. It is said that on 3rd January, 1968, the Committee of Management/Board of Directors of the Society passed a resolution that the age of superannuation of the employees of the Society will be 60 years. THE writ petitioners, who are respondents in these Special Appeals, had asserted that in 1977, the Society framed "Ordnance Factory Co-operative Society Limited, Kanpur Service Rules" (hereinafter referred to as the ''Rules") and the District Assistant Registrar, Co-operative Society, U.P. Kanpur Nagar (hereinafter referred to as the ''District Assistant Registrar") accorded approval to these Rules on 3rd July, 1991 but according to the Appellants such Rules were not approved by the District Assistant Registrar and so could not be applied to the employees. THE decision in these Appeals, therefore, depends upon the applicability of these Rules because under Rule 14 no employee can be continued in service of the Society if he has attained the age of 60 years though the Board of Directors can extend the employment beyond the age of 60 years in very special cases but no extension can be given for more than one year at a time and for more than two years in aggregate. THE Committee of Management/Board of Directors of the Society passed a resolution on 29th July, 2006 that the age of superannuation shall be reduced from 60 years to 58 years. It was also resolved in the said meeting that the two employees namely K.B. Tripathi and V.S. Bhadauria who had attained the age of 58 years on 3rd July, 2006 and 12th July, 2006 respectively be allowed to superannuate w.e.f. 31st July, 2006. This resolution of the Committee of Management/Board of Directors passed on 29th July, 2006 was assailed by K.B. Tripathi and V.S. Bhadauria in Writ Petition No. 43167 of 2006 which was disposed of by this Court on 10th August, 2006 with a direction to the Joint Registrar, Co-operative Society, U.P. Kanpur Region, Kanpur (hereinafter referred to as the ''Joint Registrar") to decide the representation within six weeks. The representation was ultimately rejected by the Joint Registrar by the order dated 6th January, 2007 exercising powers under Section 128 of the Act. The said order of the Joint Registrar mentions that the approval granted to the Service Rules on 3rd July, 1991 by the District Assistant Registrar appears to be very doubtful, particularly when the approval is said to have been granted after a long period of 14 years and, therefore, in such circumstances the Rules will not be applicable and the age of superannuation of Class III employees of the Society will be 58 years. The order further mentions that the District Assistant Registrar by his communication dated 14th December, 2006 had also issued directions to the Secretary/President of the Society that the age of superannuation of the employees of the Society will be 58 years which directions were binding on the Society and have to be followed. Special Appeal No. 902 of 2009 arises out of the order passed in Writ Petition No. 3588 of 2007 which had been filed by Pashu Pati Nath Tiwari for quashing the order dated 6th January, 2007 passed by the Joint Registrar in so far as it ratifies the resolution passed by the Committee of Management/Board of Directors of the Society on 29th July, 2006 that the age of superannuation of the employees will be 58 years and a consequential direction has been sought upon the respondents to allow the petitioner to continue in the service till the completion of 60 years of age.
(3.) SPECIAL Appeal No. 900 of 2009 arises out of the order passed in Writ Petition No. 16808 of 2007 that had been filed by Vijay Shanker Singh for quashing the resolution dated 29th July, 2006 passed by the Committee of Management/Board of Directors of the Society as well as the order dated 6th January, 2007 passed by the Joint Registrar and the consequential notice dated 19th March, 2007 issued by the Society. Special Appeal No. 905 of 2009 arises out of the order passed in Writ Petition No. 16809 of 2007 that had been filed by Chandra Shekhar Singh for quashing the resolution dated 29th July, 2006 passed by the Committee of Management/Board of Directors of the Society as well as the order dated 6th January, 2007 passed by the Joint Registrar and the consequential notice dated 19th March, 2007 issued by the Society.;