#Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act

The Bombay High Court has affirmed that the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies can issue an interim order to halt new deposits in a multi-state cooperative society when there is prima facie evidence of fund diversion and financial misconduct. This sets a critical precedent for deposit protection, empowering regulators to act swiftly before final adjudication to safeguard vulnerable members from systemic collapse.

The Supreme Court has ruled that the territorial reorganisation of states under the Uttar Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2000 takes absolute precedence over the deeming provision in Section 103 of the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002, rendering cooperative societies operating within a single post-reorganisation state ineligible for multi-state status. This decision directly impacts hundreds of agricultural cooperatives in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, resolving long-standing ambiguity over asset ownership and regulatory jurisdiction after state bifurcation.