#Multi-State Co-operative Societies Act

The Bombay High Court holds that a co-operative bank’s dispute over professional fees paid to an empanelled valuer does not fall under Section 115’s mandatory notice requirement, as such services are ancillary to, not integral to, the society’s core business. This shields service providers from procedural hurdles in fee recovery suits, clarifying the boundary between commercial contracts and statutory governance of co-operative societies.

The Bombay High Court, Nagpur Bench, ruled that under Section 84 of the Multi-State Co-operative Societies Act, 2002, a co-operative society must initiate arbitration before auctioning mortgaged collateral to recover defaulted loans. The court stayed the auction notice issued by Buldhana Urban Co-operative Credit Society, emphasizing procedural compliance and protecting borrowers' rights against unilateral enforcement actions.